St
Petersburg is
inexorably linked with the personality of it’s founder – Tsar Peter
I. Peter was the grandson of Mikhail Romanov, founder of the Romanov
dynasty. On May 16,1703, Peter laid the first stone of the fortress.He
named St Petersburg
in honour of Saint .Peter, guardian of the Heaven. Across the
river from the fortress, Peter built a shipyard (the Admiral) Peter then
build a city around his little fortress & shipyard, providing Russia
with a trading port and a “window to Europe” through which Russia
could gain the knowledge of the world.
The 18th century saint Petersburg developed not only into
Russia’s political and economic centre but into it’s cultural centre
as well. Russian & European culture met in St Petersburg,
with more & more members of the aristocracy studying abroad and
learning foreign languages at home. While the rest of Russia remained
mired in backwardness, Petersburg flourished under the auspices of the
nobility and the merchant classes that were based here.
Telephone
and fax
Russia's
country code is 7
St.
Petersburg's city code is 812
Moscow's city code is 095
To
make an international call dial 8 and wait for the second dial
tone, then dial 10, the desired country code, city code, and phone
number. Traffic can be heavy on international phone lines so don't be
surprised if you don't get through the first few minutes.
For
international destinations the best rate is on weekends at half the
regular tariffs. 20:00-08:00 on weekdays will get you a thirty percent
discount. For inter city calls within Russia ,the time after 20:00 will
give you the best rate.
Central
Telephone Office
Long-distance
domestic and international calls can be made at the Central Telephone
Office located between Nevsky Prospekt and the Triumphal Arch that
leads to Palace Square. Bolshaya Morskaya Ulitsa 3. Metro: Nevsky
Prospect. Open 08:00-22:00 seven days a week.
The Central Telephone Office also houses a Business Communications
Center, providing a stock of services including computer rental, e-mail,
express mail, fax, telegraph, and local, inter city, and international
telephone access. They'll even type texts for you if you are that lazy.
They have convenient pay phone booths on the premises too.
The Central Telephone
Office's fax receiving number is +7 (812) 314 3360.
They will hold a fax for one month. Call 314 0140 between 10:00 and
21:00 to inquire if anything has come for you. Central Telephone
Office is at Bolshaya Morskaya Ulitsa 3. Metro: Nevsky Prospekt. Open
08:00-22:00; Fax: 09:00-21:00.
Public pay phones
are located all over the city. These run on metro tokens/ zhetons
(which are being phased out) or special phone cards that can be
purchased at any metro station. Pay-phone cards ( ) are sold in 25, 50,
100, 200, 400 and 1000 units. When using a payphone, to get instructions
in English press .
If you are using a token operated phone, place one token in the
cradle on top of the phone before dialing and when your call connects
the coin will drop. If you hear a series of beeps you are just about to
be cut off, so put another coin in fast.
Pay phones
There are business centers at many large hotels and at the
Moscow Railway Station that offer international and intercity phone
access and fax services at various high prices.
TRANSPORT
Metro
The
St. Petersburg metro operates from 05:30 to 00:30 and unless you really
want intimate contact with the Russian people (all of them at once) try
to avoid traveling during the peak commuter hours of 08:00 to 10:00 and
17:00 to 19:00. Stations are indicated by a large "M" and as
you approach you will see two sets of doors, one for incoming (marked
) and one for outgoing (marked ). It's pretty easy to see which is
which - just go with the flow.
The metro is very deep because it passes through soggy marshland under
the canals and rivers. The left side of the escalator is a passing lane
so keeps to the right
Tokens
and Passes
Turnstiles are
automated and operate with tokens (zhetony) or
magnetic-strip cards which can be purchased from the small
windows or booths.
The
tokens are also used for the older style of pay phones, so even if you
buy a monthly pass or a magnetic-strip card it's still a good idea to
pick up a few.
Monthly
metro passes -
in the form of recently introduced magnetic-strip cards - can also be
purchased from the token booths of metro stations. Thin cardboard
half-monthly passes are sold closer to the middle of the month for the
second half of the month only. Magnetic-strip monthly and cardboard
half-monthly passes can also be purchased for use on all city public
transport. All are called kartochka, though the pass for all
public transport is distinguishable by the fact that it is the most
expensive and has the word written across it.
Note:
if you are buying an all-transport monthly pass, make sure you also
receive a cardboard pass to show with the magnetic one when using
on-ground transport, or you are in for surprise when a fare inspector
finds you.
Getting
Around on the Metro
The
metro network is not all that difficult to use. There are four
color-coded numbered lines crossing the city and it is undoubtedly the
most convenient way to get around. Maps are usually located at station
entrances, before the turnstiles, and there is usually one in
each carriage.
You
may have trouble at first because there are few signs indicating which
station you are in and at some of the stations outer doors prevent you
from seeing out of the carriage. Pay close attention to the
announcements, even if you don't speak Russian, as they follow a
definite pattern. As a train pulls into a station an announcement is
made stating the present station first, immediately followed by the
words "Sleduyushchaya stantsiya" and the name of the
next stop. This can be confusing as it can give you the impression that
you are one station ahead of where you are. "Ostorozhno, dvery
zakryvayutsya" means "Caution, doors are closing."
Take this pretty literally as they close pretty hard.
To
change from one line to another follow the overhead signs that say "Perixkhod"
.
Note:
If you are riding to Ploshchad Muzestva or further down the red
line, you will have the pleasure of traveling the Lesnaya to Ploshchad
Muzestva sector by bus, number 80, (which is free). In 1996 this section
of the line collapsed into what authorities described as a "spot of
quicksand 1.5 kilometers long". It's going to take a while to fix
this spot.
Trams,
trolleys and busses
'Above
ground' transport operates from around 05:00 to around midnight
depending on the part of the city (in the center it tends to run later).
If you're going to be around for a while, your best bet is to acquire a
Municipal Transport Routes Map available at some kiosks and stores that
sell maps. Know in advance where you will be getting off as stops
throughout the city can be quite far apart and a missed stop can result
in a fifteen-minute walk.
TAXIS
In
your average Western city - New York, for example - the taxicab ritual
is pretty straightforward:
1.
Hail the vehicle with a wave of the hand
2. Get in and state your destination
3. Pay the amount listed on the meter
The
only similarity the Russian
taxi experience has to New York is that none of the drivers speak
English. Here any vehicle can serve as a taxi. For the most part
these rides are safe and not too expensive, and it's a long-held way for
drivers to pick up a few extra rubles.
Hail
a ride by sticking your arm out and when a vehicle stops open the door
and state your destination. The driver will either tell you to get in,
name a price, ask you to offer a price, or say no and drive away. If you
don't speak Russian this negotiation can be a little tricky and the
standard result is a ride several times more expensive than it would be
for the average Russian.
Know
Russian numbers to talk on the price.
Know
your destination...say
it over and over until you say it smoothly before even attempting to
hail a cab. Know the neighborhood it's in and the approximate distance
from where you are.
Don't
renegotiate...the
unwritten rules say that a negotiated price can't be changed so even if
the driver does figure out you're foreign (and he will) don't fork over
your entire stash of hard currency.
Ordering
a Taxi
Russian
speakers can order a taxi by calling 312 0022, 314 5168, 294
1552, or 068. They will ask the phone number and address from
where you are calling, the destination, the last name of the person who
wants the cab, and when it will be needed. The dispatcher will tell you
to wait for her to call you back so keep the line free. Sooner or later
(usually within ten minutes) the dispatcher calls to tell you when the
cab will arrive, its license number and the color of the car (if it's
anything other than official taxi yellow). You will be required to pay a
small fee for the order.
Official
taxi-cars are safe, but think twice before getting into a private car
that has more than one person sitting in it; take a good look at who
else is in there before making your decision.
IF
YOU WANT TO DRIVE YOUR OWN CAR – GET INFO FROM
International Educational Consultancy
Drawbridges
that cross the larger rivers rise with a vengeance at different times
between 02:00 and 05:00 to let ships pass through when the river isn't
frozen solid. Note that although the smaller bridges come down again for
a time, the large bridges crossing the Neva River stay up for the entire
interval.
CULTURE
Theatres:
Mariinski Theatre
Teatralnaya plostchad
Tel. 114 4344, 114 5264.
Performances begin at 7 pm.
Box office open from 11 am to 6.30pm.
Musorgski theatre
Plostchad Iskusstv, 1.
Tel. 219 1949
Performances begin at 12 pm. and 7 pm.
Box office open from 11 am to 7.15pm.
Shostakovich
philharmonic theatre
Mihailovskaya Ulitsa, 2
Tel. 110 4257
Performances begin at 7 pm.
Box office open from 11 am to 7.30pm. (break from 3 pm. to 4 pm.)
Newspapers:
We
can recommend you two papers which you can get in all McDonald’s,
Pizza Hut, Carols, Patio Pizza and other
bistros, restaurants, clubs, etc. There you can find all city
news, information on museums, bars, disco’s, performances,
exhibitions, so on and all this in English:
-
Pulse, Saint-Petersburg
-
Saint-Petersburg Times
Books:
You can get books in English and
English speaking staff at the British Council Library. Its address is
Fontanka embankment, 46.
If
you want to have a reference book with addresses and telephones of all
Saint-Petersburg’s establishments, we recommend you to buy a YELLOW
PAGES OF ST>PETERSBURG book/ You can by it for about 1 USD.
We
have opened an internet cafe in the grounds of the St. Petersburg
Mechnikov State Medical Academy. The club is open to all students and
students of the
International Educational Consultancy
Foundation get a special discount.
The
days when Internet was considered an attribute of computer geeks are way
past, even here. Today, all major universities and many companies have
Internet access. There are also places in the city, which offer e-mail
and Internet access for travelers and short-time users charged by the
hour or based on the kilobyte size of the message and/or destination.
Internet Cafe Tetris.
The
interior of this cafe strangely combines an office and an artsy hang
out. They offer quick internet access, some discount times. If you are
planning on exploring St. Petersburg in virtual reality only, opening a
personal e-mail box with them might be a good idea. They also conduct
complex searches and offer various computer-related services. There is a
snack bar on the premises with a standard menu of sandwiches, ice-cream
and drinks, reasonably priced. Ulitsa Chernyahovskogo 33. Metro:
Ligovsky Prospect. Open 10:00-21:00 Mon-Fri,13:00-21:00 Sat-Sun. Tel:
164 6785, 164 4877; e-mail: tetris@dux.ru
Also
we recommend Internet-club, RED FOG. Internet access for about 1-1,5 USD
an hour. Grivzova, 14 Metro: Sennaya ploschad, Sadovaya. Tel: 219 18 71.
The Central Railway Ticketing Agency. E-mail and Internet access ($6 an
hour), personal e-mail boxes ($8). Kanal Griboyedova 24. Metro:
Nevsky Prospekt. Open 08:00-23:45. Tel: 168 6734, 310 5628 (some
English).
Business
Communications Center, Central Telephone Office. They charge from 0.5 to
25 rubles per kilobyte, depending on the destination. Ulitsa Bolshaya
Morskaya 3. Metro: Nevsky Prospekt. Open 08:00-22:00. Tel: 314 0140
(English).
Peter link. Nabereznaya Fontanki 118. Metro: Nevsky Prospekt. Open
09:00-17:00 Mon-Fri. Tel: 310 0105, 310 0337, 310 0327.
Sovam Teleport, a Russian-British-American joint venture, offers
complete e-mail, on-line database, and other information and
telecommunication resource services including Internet. Customers can
send faxes and telexes directly from their PC's via e-mail, at prices
lower than standard international tariffs. One line service, temporary,
and long-term accounts available. Nevsky Prospects 30. Metro: Nevsky
Prospect. Open 09:00-18:00 Mon-Fri. Tel: 311 8412; Fax: 311 7129;
e-mail: spbsuppo@sovam.com,
spbsuppo@online.ru
CHANGING
MONEY
Changing
money legally is no longer the logistical problem nor the blatant
rip-off it used to be. Exchange offices abound, particularly in the
center and around touristy areas. Rates at different currency
exchange vary not much.
Both
banks and exchange booths will change most major currencies into rubles
at the posted rates of exchange and almost all banks will change major travelers
cheques. Many give cash advances on credit cards. Fees and
commissions are often posted at the exchange window, though sometimes
only in Russian. There is a tax on all currency exchanges. In order to
exchange money you are supposed to present your or some other form of
identification.
International Educational Consultancy
do not recommend exchange hard currency through unknown
persons on the street or in other places. It’s advisable to change
currency only in banks (currency exchange office).
PRECAUTIONS
The
most common crime is pick pocketing. Watch your valuables on all
forms of public transport and in touristy places where there are large
crowds, for instance in train stations, on Nevsky Prospect (especially
between Kanal Griboyedova and Sadovaya Ulitsa) and around
St. Isaac's Cathedral. Gypsy kids and moms pull the same heists that
they do everywhere; crowding around, grabbing and tugging and looking
pitiful while their little hands magically remove all your valuables.
The most important thing is to not be paranoid, but careless behavior
will only make thieves' jobs much easier. No place is one hundred
percent safe and no place is one hundred percent dangerous.
- Dress down a little. Flaunting your wealth through Rolex
watches, expensive jewelry, and gilded Viking hats is only going to
attract unwanted attention.
- Don't give your telephone number or hotel room
number out to people you don't know well.
- It goes without saying that you should not invite
people you don't know well onto your turf. Be safe and meet them on
neutral ground.
- Russians are extremely open and friendly and will
let you into their confidence quite quickly, inviting you over to their
apartments, spending enormous amounts of time with you, and so on. This
is a very admirable trait, but you should be a little wary of people you
become acquainted with on the street, particularly if they seem to be
going out of their way to get to know you.
In
case of emergency dial the following numbers:
Fire
01
Police
02
Ambulance
03
Special
police for foreigners
278 30 14
You
can get any information on phone numbers, currency exchange rate, etc.
If you dial the number of ELDOPHONE – 326 96 96
