Saint Petersburg is gradually opening up museums and parks. This happens not once, but in waves. The first doors to tourists opened the Peter and Paul fortress with its museums. As well as several parks. They, in theory, was supposed to take the “first strike” missed the cultural values of residents and tourists.
First call to Paul. In early June, all the approaches to the fortress was blocked: the bridges stood the fences, behind them sat the guards and not let anyone to the beach or to the Museum. In any case, call the Museum to clarify what is already working. They quickly pick up the phone and answer very distinctly: “is prison space Museum and the Peter and Paul Cathedral”. And, of course, you can walk on the territory of the fortress.
Come and find you open, the prison of Trubetskoy Bastion, but the exhibition of torture instruments (the most popular activity here, at the entrance to the pavilion mascot of the executioner, the wax figures resemble torture, all decorated in a Gothic black and red colors). On the door – a warning that you can enter only in masks and gloves. In front of me out of the Museum came the family were all in masks. In the prison of Trubetskoy Bastion – the big flow of people here are big companies. Next to the ticket booth, the exit door, and go with exposure people, mostly without masks. Look in a small boat house pavilion, where there is the famous boat of Peter I. in the same place – offices of the Museum and a souvenir shop. The cashier is all, many without masks, gloves I did not notice anybody, and nobody cares about social distance – but, the truth, and the place is a bit. Around the small boat driving around in circles restless children
In the Peter and Paul Cathedral, where are buried the Russian Emperor and Empress, a lot of people – but visitors to the fortress ten times less than in the normal tourist season. Work until all the Museum pavilions, and kiosks with Souvenirs already.
I am also interested in the beach town of Sunny weather is one of the most popular places in the city center among St. Petersburg citizens. Walk around the Bastion, you see workers shifting the pavement. One of them says that for some reason people love to pick out granite stones and throw them in the river, so shore has to recover. “Behind the rocks even a diver dived”. Caught a pile of rounded stones lying around. Working return them to their places. Myself sandy beach was opened only on the ninth of July – for some reason, later than the fortress and museums. Prior to this there was also a fence, behind which sat a security guard.
Another of the biggest opened Museum arena. There is an exhibition of Magnum photographers depicting life in the Soviet Union and Russia in different years. In the arena, no queues, because the Museum has distributed tickets for the sessions the number of visitors and limited. Friends who visited the Arena, delighted: first, all have not been on the shows “live”, and secondly, in the Arena at once, few people. Usually there doing major landmark shows that there are huge queue. And finally – the exhibition itself is “just a song”. All visitors, according to my friends, the exhibition was in masks and gloves, but on the whole a huge two-story arena – about thirty people. Compared with conventional load is very small.
Opened and one of the Central parks Museum – the Mikhailovsky garden belonging to the Russian Museum. They say guests at the entrance need to wear a mask, standing next to a machine with PPE. The garden, while small, can accommodate just over two thousand people. But walking there can be free – a strictly restricted route no, people heads are not considered. July 15 will open a Summer garden – the same Museum. There at the entrance, there are turnstiles, the number of visitors can be adjusted.
In General, the museums in St. Petersburg opened piecemeal, and suburban reserves have to come up with a scheme of visiting the parks. For example, Gatchina – the only major Museum-reserve, where there is still free entrance to the Park – to the delight of all, came up with a special free tickets, in order to control the flow of visitors. In
the Gatchina Palace from July 7 is also possible to get there but to walk there now it should be according to a strict itinerary, in one direction only. Tours conducted for groups of no more than five people. While prior’s Palace only opens on July 11.
Later, on July 15, will open the Hermitage and the Russian Museum. Everywhere you go will be strictly masked. The Hermitage has already shown the routes that divided the exposure to streams of people intersect. And the Museum will not be able to walk more than two hours. Russian Museum will open only the Mikhailovsky Palace and Benois wing.
