问答题 St. Petersburg. The very name brings to mind some of Russia's greatest poets, writers and composers. Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky.

问答题 The 19th century was a golden age for St. Petersburg's (圣彼得堡) wealthy classes. It was a world of ballets and balls, of art and literature, of tea and caviar (鱼子酱).

问答题 The golden age ended with the advent of World War Ⅰ. Working people were growing more and more discontented. In 1917, Communism came, promising peace and prosperity.
St. Petersburg had become Petrograd in 1914. People wanted a Russian name for their city. Ten years later, the city's name changed again, this time to Leningrad. Then in 1991, Leningraders voted to restore the city's original name. Some people opposed the name change altogether.

问答题 Others thought it was just too soon. Old, run-down Soviet Leningrad, they said, was not the St. Petersburg of 19th-century literature.
What, then, is St. Petersburg? In the confusing post-Soviet world, no one really knows. The quiet, if Soviet-style, dignity is gone. The revolutionary sayings are down, and gaudy advertising up. Candy bars and cigarettes are sold from boxy, tasteless kiosks. And clothing?

问答题 Well, anything goes. Everyone wants to be a little different. But many people do not know the true meaning of freedom. Personal crime has gone up, up, up in the past few years.
Yet in spite of this, you can still find some of the city's grand past. Stand at the western tip of Vasilievsky Island. To the right is the elegant Winter Palace, former home of the Czars. Its light blue sides and white classical columns make it perhaps St. Petersburg's most graceful building. It houses one of the world's most famous art museums, the Hermitage. Inside, 20kin of galleries house thousands of works of art.

问答题 Look over your right shoulder. The massive golden dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral (圣以撒大教堂) rises above the skyline. You'll see, too, why St. Petersburg is called a "float city. " Standing there, nearly surrounded by water, you can see four of the city's 42 islands.