St. Petersburg at last!

We are finally in St. Petersburg! The weather is absolutely beautiful today - warm and sunny! Unfortunately we are too exhausted to enjoy it all day. We got up at 4:00 this morning after only about 4 hour's sleep. We had a quick breakfast and went down to the taxi waiting for us. We said goodby to Roman and Ludmilla and the taxi drove us to the airport. Since there was no traffic at that hour we got to the airport quickly and had to wait. The plane was full and cramped, but the flight took less than an hour. Tanya's son, Svyatoslav, and brother, Sasha, met us at the airport and drove us (in Sasha's car) to Svyatoslav's apartment through lots of traffic. Svyatoslav's apartment is on the fourth floor with no "lift". So we get a little extra exercise. It has a large livingroom, one bedroom, a sunlit kitchen and two balconies. I helped him pick it out last year when he moved from another apartment. The apartment is in an excellent location - a three minute walk to a metro station and then three stops to the center of the city. There are all kinds of stores nearby.
After taking a shower and having a little to eat, Tanya and I went out to take a look around. I extracted some roubles from an ATM and we bought some groceries. It was very plesant just to walk around looking at the shops and many people on the street enjoying the warm sunshine. Later we went out with Svyatoslav and bought a card which gives him internet access. So that is why I can make this entry and future entries from his computer. We will also try to add a photo or two but I can't promise anything.
Keep those comments coming in. We're in Russia and the fun has just begun!