Postcards in the snow

Our second full day in St Petersburg was spent exploring many of the city's more popular sights up close. We started our day with a vist to Tsarskoe Selo (Tsar's Village) , 25km south of the city. It was here that Catherine the Great built a long, narrow baroque Palace surrounded by peaceful woodlands.

Our first glimpses of the palace was breath-taking. We approached from the park, turning a final corner, only to be greeted by a classic, duck-egg blue building sitting on low hilltop surrounded by clean, fresh white snow. The scene was a true postcard moment. Most unexpected and truly memorable. The palace interior was equally impressive. The Great Hall was mind-blowing. Imgaine a long, elegant ballroom filled with gilded wood carvings, large mirrors and floor to ceiling windows overlooking an expansive red-brick courtyard. Stunning.

The restored Amber room

The palace also boasts an Amber Room, where the walls are clad in ornate Amber fittings. The room was plundered by the Nazis during World War II. The contents surviving the war but strangely disappearing in Kaliningrad in 1945. Two years ago the mystery was solved when historians discovered that the Amber Room's treasures had been caught in a fire after the Red Army has secured them. Those responsible had been so terrified of Stalin's reaction that they'd crafted an elaborate hoax to hide the truth.

Much of the palace has been restored in recent times. During the war it was used by the Nazis as a command centre, given its proximity to the front line. As you enter the outskirts of the town a somber memorial marks the Russian defensive line, no-man's land and the opposing German front line. Throughout the building, black and white photos display the destruction wrought during Nazi occupation.

From Tsarskoe Selo, we slowly returned to St Peterburg in crawling local traffic. Our next stop was St Isaac's Cathedral. While replenished with gold domes, the exterior is relatively plain. It's external walls are framed by massive red granite pillars, each weighing 120 tonnes. Some still bare the scars of artillery fire from the Second World War. While the exterior is low-key, the interior is something else. It's interior can only be described as obscenely lavish. Gold leaf, detailed mosaics and classical paintings adorne every available space.

Garry and I also braved cold winds and climbed St Isaac's external, 43 metre high colonnade which circles the rim of the cathedral's main dome. From here we were granted an impressive view of the city skyline at sunset.

Our final sight for the day was Peter and Paul Fortress. Founded in 1703, its the oldest building of significance in city. Within the fortress walls lies the SS Peter and Paul Cathedral. As we drove through the fortress gates the cathedral's landmark needle-thin gold spire was just beginiing to glow under its many display spotlights. Once again, the interior stunned us. Here was another staggering baroque interior. It's also the final resting place of every Russian Tsar since Peter the Great (with the exception of two individuals).

Garry and I were subsequently dropped at the Hermitage and left to wander for several hours before joining our group for an evening of ballet. We watched Swan Lake performed on the stage of the Hermitage Theatre, a private performing venue built by the Imperial Family in the 1780s. Another stunning memory as we experienced entertainment popular with the Tsar himself, in the very venue he'd once owned.

Our last day in St Petersburg was December 23. We awoke to sunny, blue skies, the first for our Russian tour. We spent the morning touring the Museum of Political History, seeing relics from the Soviet era. A simple highlight for me was Yuri Gagarin's pilot's licence. Yuri was the first man in space.

Garry and I later spent the remainder of our day wandering the streets of St Petersburg, visiting sights we'd previously seen covered in snow, lit by dull, cloudy light. Each sight looked even more dazzling in bright sunshine. Before long it was time to head for the railway station.