Museum of Ethnography

The worn-gold handle of the door is an ethnographic exhibit in itself, showing as it does the age of this marble monolith. Although student tickets are said to be R150, this could just be at peak times, as our entrance was free. I bought a photo ticket for R160 as the current exhibition “History of the Jewish People in Russia” is extremely relevant to my Year Abroad project (and absolutely fascinating). I got given a special big badge to hang around my neck to stop babushki shouting at me and took full advantage of my purchased privilege. 

 In the Marble Hall, there is a collection of fashion designs and some odd artwork, some of it intriguing, around the balcony. It’s worth going in just to admire the hall itself, with a stone façade of peasants circling the inner wall and marble columns rising to a glass ceiling.

 The museum houses large collections of costumes and utensils from all neighbouring countries, including a full-size yurt. It seems ludicrous to come to Russia and only learn about the Slavic people when the Museum of Ethnography provides a knowledgeable and exciting insight into cultures so far removed from our own

Ploshad’ Iskusstv, yellow building on the left of the Russian Museum.

Marketplace

 This self-service restaurant is too good to be called a Stolovaya, but it’s only a little pricier considering the quality of the food. Downstairs is a great selection of sandwiches, meat/fish (including quail!), garnishes, Asian dishes, soups and tapas. A tar-tar fish cutlet, vegetable-cooked rice and some pineapple juice with real chunks of fruit in it set me back just R205, while flavoursome Ratatouille-esque vegetables and rice are a snip at R127. Head up the staircase, eccentrically decorated with coloured-string and a crockery mobile, to sit in the café which offers a selection of pastries, cakes and good coffee, not to mention the adorable pots of tea (R99), to which you can add dried flowers (R20). The muffling acoustics and free Wi-fi make this an ideal place to do some work, chat with friends, or just admire the humorous, hand-decorated interior. The map of the world made of names of local dishes is definitely worth a gander – England just says ‘Porridge’.

Nevsky Prospect, opposite the Kazan Cathedral towards the Griboedova.

Kroshka Kartoshka

A fast-food chain that is bizarrely healthy: pick from a variety of different baked potatoes (cheese is delicious) for R70 and add a topping for R33 – cheese and mayonnaise is delicious, but there is a nice range of vegetables and meat. You can make a meal of it with a 500ml drink for R130 – definitely worth it. 

Khochu Khartso

 Although this menu comes recommended by Time Out for ‘Menu and Price’, it’s not the ideal place to go for Georgian food. It’s about double the quality of the Yusopovsky Garden restaurant and three times the price. Fishcakes and mash (that came with cucumber and an onion dip), a small bottle of coke and half a khachapuri came to R700 – while the generous portions were delicious, it was definitely overpriced. Nevertheless, stop in for a drink to admire the homely décor and sink into the giant sofas.

Sennaya ploshad'.

Hermitage - European Art

 As with the Ancient Greek and Egypt sections, the upper floor of the Hermitage is immense, stunningly beautiful and full of a vast collection of art from various European countries – including France, Britain, Italy and Holland. A large area is devoted to Russian culture, as well as to rooms preserved from the days of the Winter Palace – including some very ornate furniture and a gorgeous, dark library of which I’m not jealous at all.

 It’s incredible to think how they must have filled the scores of lavish rooms in the palace before it officially became a museum: I caught myself thinking, ‘Russians really know how to do monarchy’ before I remembered the massive poverty gap, the assassinations, the revolution…maybe the British do have the right idea.

Entry to the Hermitage is free for all students, under-18s and Russian pensioners, R200 for Russian adults and R400 for tourists. Dvortsovaya Ploshad’ – Big blue building. Can’t miss it.

Garmadzhoba

 This gem of a Georgian restaurant is another victim of misleading Russian shop exteriors, but don’t be fooled by the neon signage and gaudy bar. The friendly staff will seat you in the secluded back, which is decorated like a traditional Georgian home – whitewashed walls, tastefully small paintings and some lovely dark pine furniture. Meat-eaters will love the spice of the shashlik, while a great vegetarian option is ‘lobio’ (R170).

 If you can ignore its initial brown, congealed appearance, you’ll find a delicious bean dish which is somewhere between a casserole and a curry. Of course, you can’t go for Georgian food without ordering some of the infamous ‘khachapuri’ (R250-350) – the cheese and herb one here will have you asking for the recipe! To treat yourself, order some homemade Georgian wine (R1000 for a litre) – sweet, heavy on the grape taste with an alcoholic kick, this is definitely one to order for a group.

On the corner of Rimskovo-Korsakova and Bolshaya Podyacheskaya.

Galeria

The consumerist hub of Petersburg, Galeria is the place to go for European clothes shops and coffee brands and their Russian equivalents all under one enormous roof. The general rule of navigation is that the shops get less European and less expensive the higher up you go. Next and Accessorise cheekily put their prices up a LOT, but H&M is about the same, and there’s a very good food court on the 4^th floor.

M Moskovsky Vokzal’, on the left of the station.