We had an absolutely wonderful September this year. It ended almost on the calendar, October brought us cold winds, frequent rains and even the first snow. So far, the snow is just a harbinger of winter to come. The snow flakes melted so quickly that few people had time to see them. So I learnt about the past snowfall from a few photos on social media. But nevertheless, we all realised that the warm autumn has come to an end. Next up will be colder days. Sometimes they will be stunningly beautiful days, as the autumn colours haven't gone anywhere yet, but the warm summer weather won't return until next year.
But in September, summer seemed to slow down and came back a few times for a short while. The temperature rose above +20 ℃, and it was possible to put on light summer clothes and go for a long walk to make the most of autumn, a bit like summer. On one of the last days of September, I decided to go for a walk in the parks of Tsarskoye Selo. I wanted to check out Babolovsky Park, which I hadn't been to in a long time.
Babolovsky Park is not as popular as other parks due to two circumstances. Firstly, the traditional walking route is designed in such a way that you start from either Catherine Park or Alexandrovsky Park. When you get to the far edge of one of these parks, you can walk a little further and go deeper into the alleys of Babolovsky Park, but you usually don't find enough energy to do so. Even if you don't manage to get tired physically, you are tired from the sheer amount of experiences. All you want at that moment is to net on a bench by the pond and look at the calm water surface.
Another reason is that there are very few park pavilions in Babolovsky Park, and the main attraction of the park, Babolovsky Palace, has been closed to the public for many years and is surrounded by a blank fence. It is assumed that renovation work is underway inside, but the blank fence prevents this claim from being verified. The photograph above this paragraph of text shows this fence around the palace. The road leads towards the palace. I moved further away to photograph at least the upper part of the building, but the trees obscured the view.
I made my itinerary in such a way as to start my walk from Babolovsky Park. But I took very few photos in this park. The weather did not seem very favourable for photography. The sky was a dull grey-blue colour, and even bright autumn leaves could not quite make up for the situation. I only started taking photos again when I moved on to the next park.
The next park on my route was Alexander Park. I entered the park from the opposite side, where Chinese-style park pavilions are concentrated. Most of these pavilions are located near the Catherine Palace. But soon I turned down a side alley and headed towards the landscape part of the park, towards the Gothic Chapelle Tower.
Some historical film was being shot near the Chapelle Tower, and a carriage with actors in historical costumes drove past me a couple of times. Another carriage was waiting at the foot of the tower, with a coachman walking alongside. In the depths, under the archway, a film crew was on duty.
Not far away I found a clearing with comfortable wooden benches, and paused for a rest. I had been walking for a long time, and it was time to finish my walk, but I didn't want to leave this beautiful park. But after a while, the sun rays ran away from my bench and the wind blew. The warm, almost summer-like day was being replaced by an autumn evening, and it was time for me to go home.
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| Smartphone | Google Pixel 3a |
| Location | Saint Petersburg, Russia |