Xi yuanxu
ID# 8825
Music as a World Phenomenon# 22121/010
Travel Report due: 11/18/2014 Orientation

St. Petersburg is the second largest city located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea in Russia. Saint Petersburg was founded by Tsar Peter the Great on May 27 1703. As of the 2010 Census , the federal subject's population is 4,879,566 or 3.4% of the total population of Russia. St. Petersburg is a humid continental climate. Distinct moderating influence of the Baltic Sea cyclones result in warm, humid and short summers and long, cold wet winters. Cultural Customs and Economy

Saint Petersburg is a federal subject of Russia. The political life of Saint Petersburg is regulated by the Charter of Saint Petersburg adopted by the city legislature in 1998. Saint Petersburg is a major trade gateway, financial and industrial centre of Russia specializing in oil and gas trade, heavy machinery and transport, food and catering,. In addition, Saint Petersburg is the location of a significant brewery and distillery industry.It is known as the "beer capital" of Russia.

While Russian is the official language, and Russia has an almost 100 percent literacy rate, many Russians also speak English as a second language. Orthodox Christianity is Russia's largest religion with 75 percent of the population belonging to the Orthodox Christian denomination. Russians observe Christmas on January 7 as a public holiday according to the Julian calendar used by the Russian Orthodox Church.

Activities

The Hermitage Museum/The Winter Palace is Saint Petersburg's prime attraction, a massive palace-museum showing the highlights of a collection of over 3,000,000 pieces spanning the globe.The Hermitage is with an imposing setting displaying priceless works by Rembrandt, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Rubens and more. The State Russian Museum (formerly the Russian Museum of His Imperial Majesty Alexander III) is the largest depository of Russian fine art in Saint Petersburg.

The Mariinsky Theatre, Mariinskiy Teatr , also spelled Maryinsky , Mariyinsky is a historic theatre of opera and ballet in Saint Petersburg , Russia . Presently, the Company lists on its roster 22 sopranos (of which Anna Netrebko may be the best known);13 mezzo-sopranos (with Olga Borodina familiar to US and European audiences); 23 tenors; eight baritones; and 14 basses.With Gergiev in charge overall, there is a Head of Stage Administration, a Stage Director, Stage Managers and Assistants, along with 14 accompanists. Travel By subway. The transportation is developed in St. Petersburg.Saint Petersburg's metro is the second largest underground railway system in Russia, second only to Moscow. The subway is a cheap and effective way to get around the city, and also a major tourist attraction in itself thanks to the beautiful decorations of the stations. The trains are fast and run frequently (during rush hour, there are often only 30 seconds between trains). The metro costs 28 rubles per entry regardless of the distance. Brass tokens (жетон – zheton) can be purchased from kiosks at station entrances and vending machines, and it is good to stock up in advance, since queues can be long. You have to pay an extra token if you have a big baggage. By bus. Buses (автобус) and trolleybuses (троллейбус) are cheap (25 rubles) and frequent. They cover many areas of the city that the metro doesn't. There is no map for the trolleybuses, but Google Transit comprehensively shows all the routes making it easy to navigate using the buses with this service. By taxi.Route taxi (маршрутка - marshrutka) is sometimes the fastest way to get somewhere. Taxis are