Member News & Updates
Jul 4, 2010 - The Adventure Concludes
This was a big day for Mastersingers USA. It began with a tour of Peterhof, the summer palace of the czars, about a 30-minute drive from the heart of the city. And during that drive, we got fascinating insights about the terrible suffering of the citizens of St. Petersburg during the 872-day siege by the Nazis during WWII. Before entering the Peterhof grounds, we stopped at the nearby Church of Sts. Peter and Paul, the first picture on the left below. It really is that colorful. As we were told, when Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg, he decreed that buildings should be made colorful — to counteract the dreariness of the long winters.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
The other five pictures above give the only the most basic idea of the opulence and grandeur of Peterhof’s palace and grounds. It was all simply stunning. Our guides led us on tours, both inside and out, that gave us insight into the dramatic history of this place. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to take pictures inside the palace, and the pictures above weren't easy to find on the Internet.
After returning mid-afternoon from Peterhof, we had a few hours rest before we were bussed to the Lutheran Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the heart of St. Petersburg. It was a rather unadorned facility, but the acoustics were good, perhaps helped by the fact that there was a swimming pool right below the floor (an innovation of the Soviet era). After a brief rehearsal, people started flowing in, and we eventually performed to a crowd of about 200 people. We were surprised at how enthusiastic they were for all our music, and their warmth was a fitting conclusion to the performing part of our tour.
After the concert, we were bussed to the Tchaikovsky Restaurant, where we occupied a tiny below-ground room. We were entertained by a 5-member folk music group, who involved individuals among us in their performance, and very soon spirits were sky-high. They got even higher as we heard the Top Ten lists of tour quotes, the history of the tour in verse, a song from the wives, etc. And then there was praise for those who had contributed to the success of the tour, and the beginning of long good-byes, since it had gotten to be after midnight, and some of us had early flights.
We travelled in small groups to the airport on Monday morning, with wonderful memories to share with family and friends.