Tour Guide, Saint Petersburg, Russia
| 5 mins read
St. Petersburg is a fantastic and miraculous city. It is a dream city for many. No wonder wishes come true here. All you have to do is to go to a special place and make your wish. Today I will tell you about 5 such places-
1. Sphinx and gryphons
The first one is opposite the Academy of Arts on University Embankment. Approaching the place, you can see the monuments of two ancient Egyptian Sphinxes. They are the oldest monuments in St.Petersburg. The sphinxes are estimated to be 3,500 years old. These monuments were originally placed near the entrance to the tomb of the Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep III in the 14th century, BC. In the 19th century, after the tomb had been researched by archaeologists, the sphinxes were put up for sale. One of the Russian diplomats purchased them on the order of Russian emperor Nikolay I. They were transported to Russia and took their place here on University Embankment. Lots of legends surround these creatures. The Sphinxes are believed to be sinister and able to make those who look in their eyes at sunset go mad. But there are other mythological creatures right here to make a wish. Some citizens believe the Sphinxes protect St. Petersburg from floods as their number decreased after Sphinxes were brought to the city.
Go downstairs and see Gryphons who are the creatures with the head of a lion and a bird’s body. These little cuties in St. Petersburg are believed to make peoples' wishes come true. You can make different types of wishes here. If you put your hand to his mouth, hold his fang and make a wish, it will come true. If you pat his paw, your house will be full of happiness, joy, and good luck. If you pat his wing, your career will develop successfully. If you pat his head and look in the eyes of the Sphinx, any wish and even the most incredible of your wishes will come true.
Address: University embankment, 17.
2. Atlants of the New Hermitage
The second place is situated next to the Winter Palace. These are 5-meter high Atlants. Actually, they are a part of the façade of the building. It is called the New Hermitage. It was built in 19th century as a storage house for the huge collection of The Hermitage which was getting bigger and bigger.
Atlants were built as a decorative element and are believed to safeguard the city and have magical power. There is a legend that during the second world war, an artillery shelling got into one of the Atlants damaging almost a half of his torso. The Atlant sustained this courageously and is now believed to be the most powerful. So, if you manage to touch his big toe, you may ask the Atlant for inspiration or your cherished wish. There is a legend for couples getting married. If they touch a big toe of any Atlant on the day of their wedding, their marriage will be long and happy and their children will be beautiful and talented.
Address: Millionnaya street, 35.
3. Ball fountain
Our next place is Sadovaya street. Actually, this street has 2 landmarks I want to tell you about. The first is 739-kilogram marble ball. This is a fountain actually. The marble ball rotates freely in water streams. It was constructed in 2000. It has 12 granite steps and it was initially designed as a clock. The simple design hides a compound mechanism. Until now, the clock function hasn't been implemented.
So, people use it to make wishes. Take a coin and think of your wish. Turn your back to the fountain, throw the coin to the steps, count the step with your coin on. This will be the number of rotations you will have to make. Rotate the ball. Be sure your wish will come true.
Address: Beginning of Malaya Sadovaya street.
4. Yelisey and Vasilisa, The Cats
If you go further along the street you will be able to make another wish. Just a few steps away from the fountain, there is another monument. But you will have to raise your head. It is a boy cat named Yelisey and a girl cat, Vasilisa. They impersonate all the cats that were delivered to St. Petersburg during the Second World War. The thing is that St. Petersburg had been in a state of siege for almost 3 years. The citizens were famishing and cats and dogs were eaten at the beginning of the siege. Rats became a big problem for the city. The authorities decided to bring cats from outside. When the siege was broken, 4 railway carriages full of cats were delivered to St. Petersburg from Siberia and Yaroslavl. Thus, cats saved St. Petersburg from rats. Now you can always see people jumping and waving. They are just getting lucky here. So, if you want to get your portion of good luck here, take a coin, toss it up and it must land right in front of the cats.
Yelisey's address: Malaya Sadovaya street, 8 (the corner of the house).
Vasilisa's address: Malaya Sadovaya street, 3 (the corner of the house).
5. Monument to a Hole
It is one of the strangest monuments in the city. Looks really freaky. The monument is quite young but it got a legend already. It helps to find a life partner if you manage to put your hand into a hole which becomes quite a challenge as the hole is situated very high above the ground.
Address: Mayakovskaya street, 3 (in front of Novotel).