St. Petersburg, like most big cities, strikes me as a place of small surprises. For every grandiose palace visit, there’s an insightful trip to the grocery store. For every grand view, there’s a real-world view right behind you.

Today I thought I’d post some photos of everyday life in St. Petersburg. Mind you, I don’t have any clue what “everyday life” would be like for a resident, as I’ve only spent four days here. But apologies aside, here are some everyday scenes that struck my fancy.

Some things haven’t changed very much since Soviet times. Above, a man reads today’s newspaper, posted along the street for the public.

This is the control panel of the elevator at my friend Carl’s seven-floor apartment building, where I’m staying. Although there are numbers for floors eight and nine, they aren’t really buttons and you can’t push them. (I still haven’t figured out what the X-button is for. Care to find out?)

When you get off the elevator downstairs, a man sitting in a little room looks at you from behind an open window. The first couple of days I offered smiles, nods, and hellos. I’m a little wiser now and just get out of there.

This is the meal that I devoured inside the Peter and Paul fortress two days ago at their cafe. Shown here: Beet salad (turns out with pickled herring), a sort of double-wide meatball (beef and pork) topped with soft cheese and baked, rice, a slice of wheat bread, and a glass of strawberry water (a refreshing concoction made up of watered-down strawberry juice with two frozen strawberries dropped inside).

The cafe had a special buffet-style system set up, except you didn’t serve yourself. The lady working behind the bar explained the dishes in basic English, I pointed, and she put it all together and rang it up at the register. This meal cost about 300 rubles, or about $8.50. And yes, it was absolutely delicious. I could eat it again right now.

Speaking of lunch, at almost every restaurant or cafe I’ve visited so far, the napkins on the table are presented in this festive manner. They’re folded, fanned out, and displayed upright. It makes quite an impression.

Something about this bathroom, located in the visitor’s center at the Peter and Paul fortress, cracked me up. The stalls (not pictured) are not blessed with their own toilet paper dispensers. You must take your paper before you head in. Choose wisely!

I’ll bet that you can read that familiar restaurant sign, written above in Cyrillic. I’ve noticed a few American chains, including McDonalds, Pizza Hut, and yes, Subway. However, there are fewer than I expected to see (and certainly than I saw in Paris).  This Subway is located near the Hermitage on Nevskiy Prospekt.

Finally, because today’s post might paint a rather unglamorous portrait of St. Petersburg, let us focus on one decidedly “non everyday” aspect of the city. In this photo, which I took yesterday in the Hermitage, Matisse’s masterpiece, “La Danse” (1910) is displayed on the wall of a third-floor gallery that overlooks the palace square.

I spent about five hours in the Hermitage, exploring the palace rooms with my audioguide and getting close to priceless artwork. The best part–there’s hardly anyone around. When I took this photo, I had to wait for somebody to walk through the door.

The world comes to St. Petersburg in the summer when the white nights keep the city illuminated nearly around the clock. In January, however, most tourists stay away, intimidated by the bleak weather.

And to think it’s colder right now in New York…  More soon!

The post St. Petersburg Journal: Daily surprises appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

I’ll be in St. Petersburg for eight days–exploring the city, camping out at the Hermitage, and visiting some hotels for the site. I’ve got the lodging covered in St. Petersburg.

Moscow hotel quandary

However, from St. Petersburg I’ll be heading down to Moscow for three days. This requires two nights in a hotel. As you may know, Moscow hotel prices are quite steep.

Here’s what I’ve found so far:

* Hostels are available with bunks for $30 a night.
Problem: I don’t want to stay in a hostel. (And I really shouldn’t, considering I’ll have a computer, cameras, and such. And I haven’t found any hostels with private rooms.)

* B&Bs run about $135-200 a night.
Potential problem: Will I be able to find it? Will I feel completely safe staying in a B&B in Moscow? Most of the B&Bs I’ve found don’t have any guidebook or user reviews. Yikes.

* Hotels start at about $200 and shoot up to over $500 a night!
The cheaper hotels tend to be Soviet-era concrete structures (which have their own special charm), located at some distance to the city center. Recognizable chain hotels start at about (gulp) $300 a night and quickly become much more expensive.

So what’s a Cheapo to do in Moscow? Where does an independent traveler stay?

I’m realizing that this isn’t like planning a trip to Europe. Aside from the slightly spooky formalities (hello mandatory tourist visa!), it’s also quite a bit harder to find helpful advice online.

I’m obviously a proponent of independently-run small hotels, and thus this dilemma doubly concerns me. Perhaps Moscow demands a different approach. I’m wondering if I might want to splurge on a three or four-star hotel in Moscow. Or would it be cheaper to book a hotel through a travel agency in the States?  Join a tour package (double-yikes!)?

Tell me: Have you been to Moscow? Where did you stay? Do you have any advice? Thanks!

The post Moscow hotels: What’s a Cheapo to do? Advice needed! appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.