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6th day, metro and train to return to our palace of the day (and its gardens).

During the journey by train, one sees old Soviet buildings (dwellings) with their style always so particular.

And here we are at Peterhof! Peter the Great, after being in France and seeing Versailles, decided to make a palace that would surpass what he could visit, something much more grandiose! Work begins at Peterhof (Peter's Course) in 1714 and ends in 1723. Stone lodging in Monplaisir's house located on the property.

The gardens are enormous, '' à la versailles '', with golden fountains everywhere (more than 600 fountains, all of which work thanks to gravitation.) Given the number of them, I would not have liked imagine the price of electricity 600 pumps (especially that it was not really useful at the time of construction)!


But a park like this requires some rules to avoid damaging it ... well .. '' a few rules '' ...:
- prohibited firearms
- prohibited explosives
- prohibited cigarettes
- campfires are forbidden
- prohibited alcohol
- ban on walking on the lawn
- prohibited bags
- ban on repainting statues
- no disposal of rubbish beside rubbish bins
- ban on lying on the grass
- ban on bathing in fountains
- no bathing
- ban feeding squirrels (we will come back ...)
- ban on feeding ducks
- ban on walking with your dog
- ban on segway
- ban on scooters
- ban on skates
- prohibition of rollers
- ban on bicycles.

Ha, and prohibition to use the toilet anyhow too!

We begin with the visit of the park, with the main fountain Samson opening the jaws of a lion, symbolizing the victory of Russia on Sweden in the Great Northern War.

We descend towards monplaisir, with its gardens (and a little original photos).

Monplaisir, the palace built on the personal order of the great stone to live there in a comfortable and practical way, like a person enlightened of his time (but still Russian emperor!).

Located in the dining room, this large crystal vase was used by the great stone when someone did not respect the rules of the house. The vase was filled with wine and the offender had to drink all of it at once.

The kitchen, very decorated with paintings on faience walls. As well as the bedroom of the imperial couple.

In front of my pleasure and on its direct terrace is the Gulf of Finland and the famous Baltic Sea.

We will also see the first sewer system in Russia.

A fountain that was powered by the back of the bench, Peter the Great would have done this to have fun (and allow his guests to have fun too) on hot days.

A little further, we will see park employees selling squirrel candy bags for people to hand out to bushy animals ... despite the wholesale ban sign at the park entrance! This gives rise to the possibility of making pictures very close to animals (less than a meter for me), with the semi-domestication of squirrels.

We continue the visit of the park with its fountains, its plants, its fountains, water jet and fountains, its forest, its fountains, its trees ... (I do not know if I spoke fountains?). And a koala mop that sits 2 minutes.

A statue of Peter the Great, proudly posing in the middle of his park.

We reach quietly the edge of the water with the docks for the hydrofoils, that we will take to return.

Just before entering, I cross a funny poster for a labyrinth.

And here is the end of the penultimate day here, and not even cold (on the contrary, I was almost like only with a t-shirt!).

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