Today, certainly the best day in Peter. I dragged Kristin and Franzie on my "Dostoyevsky walk." We went down to the flat where Roskolinkov (The main character from his Crime and Punishment) lived. We took pictures there. And there was something almost spiritual about the place. I don't know how many of you have read the book, but Rodya really embodies a stuggle that the whole of humanity experiences. All over the walls in the hallway outside the flat where Rodya was supposed to have lived were notes scrawled in coal or etched into the wall. Notes to Rodya. "Don't do it Rodya, it's not worth it." "Thall Shalt Not Kill." "Babke must die." Etc. It was really awesome.
We went from there to the flat of Babke. I think one of the coolest things about it was that this was so non-touristy. None of these things were marked. Only by reading Crime and Punishment would you know about this stuff. *sigh* It was great. I'm a huge nerd.
After that we went back to St. Isaccs to the Colonade and I got some of the best views of Petersburg. Lots of pictures, LOTS of stairs. I got to be nerdy even there and tell Franzie why spiral stairs spiral the way that they do.
Then, that night, we went to Cafe Idiot. Dedicated to Dostoyevsky's "The Idiot" the place is freaking awesome. I wish I could explain it well, I've told a few people about it so far but I haven't been able to explain what was go great about it. The atmosphere is so "underground." And, well, it is, both literally and figuratively. The only advertisement is a small and dim lamp above the lower level door that says "Idiot" in Russian.
It's a cafe for foreigners, but not for tourists, because a tourist would never find it. They give you free vodka just for coming in, which, is kinda cool. They have bookshelves for the perusing. Cigars for the smoking. And of course food for the eating. But, the couches for the sitting are some of the coolest parts. Comfy, antique, man, this place is awesome. I wish I could have gone there more than once.
I have more to say about the cafe, but this is long. If you want to know about it, e-mail me. Or save some money and I'll take you there if I like you.
~J