St Petersburg is a relatively young city, 319 years old. It was founded by Emperor Peter the Great in 1703. That's why I often see architectural monuments from the Classicist, Baroque and Art Nouveau eras on my walks, and it's these that I usually talk about. To see the ancient castles and old churches, I would have to ignore my usual roads and drive outside the city. The direction is not important, there are ancient forts and settlements to the south, north, east and west of the city.
The fact is that St Petersburg's geographical position is both very fortunate and extremely unfortunate. If you just look at a map and don't take climate or natural phenomena into account, you can't pick a better location. The Neva River was an important waterway on an ancient trade route, and a fortified city at the mouth of this river could have helped secure trade and the economy. But the landscape at the confluence of the Neva River and the Gulf of Finland is rather low-lying and the land suffers greatly from floods. Floods can be devastating, sometimes even catastrophic. Only the construction of a protective dyke in the Gulf of Finland has solved this problem.
I decided to go for a walk to one of the ancient settlements this time. I had not planned for very long journeys and excursions, so I chose a small village on the banks of the Neva River, a few kilometres east of the modern city limits. The exact time of the founding of this settlement is unknown. It was recorded in scribe books in 1500, but archaeologists believe that the settlement is older. The name of this village "Ust-Izhora" means "mouth of Izhora river". The village is located on the ancient Shlisselburg Tract at the place where the Izhora River flows into the Neva River.
I took the metro to its terminus, Rybatskoye. The subways in St. Petersburg are laid at great depth because of geological conditions, but this is true for the central part of the city; in the suburbs the conditions are simpler. The end stations are shallow, and some are located on the surface of the earth. Bright sunlight poured through the windows of the station. From the underground station I had another 7 kilometres to cover by bus.
I got off the bus and went deeper into the narrow streets of the dacha village. Soon the asphalt street ended, and a stretch of road, preserving the ancient paving, began. This cobbled pavement has survived to this day because it has been recognised as a historic monument, and this status prevents landowners from arranging a standard pavement here that is suitable for motor traffic. After a while I was forced to stop for a while: the street was being used as a film set for a feature film, and I had to wait until the filming of the next take was over.
Soon I came out to the Church of Alexander Nevsky. The stone church building had been erected in 1799 when the wooden church that had previously stood there had burned down.
The church is located near the place where the Izhora River flows into the Neva River. On the shore stands a monument to Novgorod Prince Alexander Yaroslavich. Exactly on this place in 1240 a battle with the Swedes, who sailed their vessels up the Neva River from the Gulf of Finland and tried to seize control of the trade route, took place. The Novgorod prince was named "Nevsky" after his victory in this battle. On the opposite bank of the Izhora River there is a museum-diorama dedicated to this event.
The shore near the monument is cobbled and the place is popular with locals and tourists. Along the shore you'll see quite a few people with fishing rods in their hands, and quite a few cats waiting for their share of the catch.
Beautiful views open up from this place in different directions. You can gaze at the Neva River gently carrying its waters from Lake Ladoga to the Gulf of Finland. Or you can follow the small boats which transport fishermen and tourists from the Izhora River to the Neva River and back.
I crossed to the other side of the Izhora River over a high bridge. The bridge is so high in the interest of shipping, there is a pier behind the bridge. It is not difficult to cross the bridge on foot, but it is more difficult for cyclists.
The bridge offers a beautiful view of several 19th century brick buildings. These are the former buildings of the inn and the tearoom, which now house a museum, and the old building of the parish office, which still houses the settlement's administration. There is another monument near the administration building: a monument to Emperor Peter the Great.
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| Smartphone | Google Pixel 3a |
| Location | Saint Petersburg, Russia |
This is my entry for the #WednesdayWalk challenge by 