Saint Petersburg - Russia

We got to St. Petersburg, the second largest city in Russia. Natasha was our local guide. We started in a large souvenir shop and gathered all kinds of goodies. Natasha showed us many of the churches, palaces, monuments, and the Hermitage Museum. Some of us got a tour of the museum, which was spectacular. In the evening we had the option of touring St. Petersburg by water, the "Venice of the North". Beautiful night! It doesn't get dark during June, it is referred to as the "white nights".

View of the Hermitage Museum, the largest art collection in the world

Exploring the Peter and Paul Fortress

One of the highlights of the day was visiting Saint Petersburg State University, with more than 50,000 students, and with a record of seven Nobel Prize winners. Our group took a picture in front of the university's main building, constructed on a decree of the Tzar Peter the Great in 1724.

Visiting the sumptuous hallway in the Twelve Collegia building: one of the longest academic hallways in the world, where each participant was given a token by the university staff

 Book discussion about globalization in higher education

The impressive architecture of Saint Petersburg, situated on several islands of the Neva River delta and crossed by more than one hundred canals

Shawn's family enjoying our boat cruise through the city canals

 Enjoying the "white night" in Saint Petersburg: it never gets dark in June!

Timothy shared an experience about missing the bus one day in St. Petersburg. He and his roommate Ndalahwa had gone to eat lunch, and were on their way back to the meeting point an hour early because they know the bus is timely and doesn't wait. On their way, they saw a few drawing artists. Timothy asked one how long it would take to draw his picture, and thinking he had time, sat down for the artist to draw. Well, the artist severely underestimated the time it would take, and the guys missed the bus, then chased down another bus that looked like ours. Eventually they made it back to the hotel with the help of a Russian and the subway.