{Church on Spilled Blood}

Saving the best for last: here is, to me, the most astoundingly beautiful place (in terms of physical structures) that we visited on our recent Northern European vacation. I was blown away by every sight we got to see in St. Petersburg: from the unapologetically extravagant palaces to intricately detailed churches, as well as the history-rich Hermitage museum-- everything was overflowing with beauty and was more than enough to make our two days there the highlight of the trip. And I won't bore you with many photos of me- the buildings themselves are what's worth seeing!

Back to regular programming (lots of outfit posts!) starting tomorrow!{A glimpse of the mosaics that covered every wall inside the Church on Spilled Blood}{Winter Palace at the Hermitage}{Look at the detail!}{Perfectly groomed gardens at Peterhof Palace - is it just me or is anyone else thinking of the blog photoshoot potential? ;)...}{More Peterhof fountains. The inside of Peterhof Palace, said to rival Versailles, was incredible and the most extravagant thing I've ever seen in my life. Photos weren't allowed, but imagine gold leaf and silk fabrics lining every inch of the walls and each piece of furniture more beautiful than the last}{Russian food is interesting to say the least. Also, it's customary to have champagne or sparkling wine and a shot of vodka at every meal- crazy!}{The "Blue Room" at the Yusupov Palace. Amazing embroidered silk fabric on the walls, and the royal blue/gold/white is divine!}{Interior of St. Isaac's Cathedral, which is covered in 220lbs of gold!}{Another shot inside St. Isaac's Cathedral}