Travel to St. Petersburg, a Naval Capital

The residents of St. Petersburg, Russia, lovingly refer to their city as a “naval capital, but with a river mentality”. Most visitors who travel to St. Petersburg, Russia visa free perspectives often expect a wondrous view of the Baltic Sea. The reality is, however, that although St. Petersburg does lie by the sea, you’ll more than likely get caught in the maze of industrial areas before you get to it.

When Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg in 1703, oddly, the city’s construction was directed away from the sea, not towards it. Yet, Peter provided every noble person who relocated to St. Petersburg with a boat, under one stipulation – they were to use it to sail along the city’s rivers. The nobles, however, chose to ignore Peter’s request.

Russian author Andrey Astvatsaturov observed that literature stemming from St. Petersburg rarely references the sea. In fact, it’s hard to even find any information regarding St. Petersburg’s naval heroes. Astvatsaturov feels that the reason for this is that there is not much to say about the sea. It lies dormant – not stormy and fierce, like other seas. With its 60 embankments, St. Petersburg is seven percent water. The total length of its rivers and passages is 28 kilometers.

Reporter Pavel Nikiforov delved into the history of the thousands of wooden pillars along the shores of St. Petersburg. He discovered that everyone who owned a dwelling on the sea was required to fortify the shore with as many pillars as possible, per an order which was signed by Peter the Great in 1715. Knowing the facts about these pillars makes it easier to understand them, as many visitors travel to St. Petersburg just to see them.

It’s a bit surprising to know that St. Petersburg is where yachting all began. The world’s first yacht club, known as “Nevskaya poteshnaya flotiliya” on the Neva River, was also founded by Peter the Great. World-renowned yacht captain, Sergey Timoshkov, is a direct descendant of those first historical yachting captains.

When you travel to St. Petersburg, Russia visa free, you may choose to visit the sandy desert area of Neva River.  In the distance, you can see the port, and possibly a cruise ship or two. Newer apartment complexes are slowly blocking the view. Possibly the only remaining reminders will be those found in St. Petersburg’s crest, which features two anchors – one a river anchor, the other, a sea anchor.

The Palace Bridge, St. Petersburg