Re-Living History: 1905 and Cossack Entertainment

Being the history nerd that I am, I felt like a kid in a candy store today. This morning, I attended my St. Petersburg in War & Revolution class and learned a great deal about Catherine II's reign. A very impressive historical figure indeed. The day truly began when I went on a field trip to a few key locations in the Revolution of 1905. Firstly, we visited the Narva Gate, one of many places where the Bloody Sunday shootings occurred. It was at the Narva Gate that Tsarist troops fired on a peaceful crowd of workers and their families. This group of protestors was led Father Gapon, a Russian priest who was concerned with the health of the working class. Father Gapon survived the shooting himself and eventually fled to Finland where he was then assassinated by the Soviet government for having connections to the Tsar's secret police.

The Narva Gate

There is something surreal about visiting places where incredible historical events occurred. Whilst standing under the Narva Gate, I imagined Tsarist troops firing at a large crowd of workers right in front of me. Our next stop was visiting the monument of Dimitri Mendeleev; the inventor of the periodic table. On the way to the monument, we also saw the building where the first official Soviet met. On the wall of the building, there was a plaque showing that Lenin spoke at that location. I found it surprising that a lot of USSR signs, monuments, and plaques still exist all over the city. 

Monument to Dimitri Mendeleev.

Leftover Soviet plaque/sign.

Our field trip ended with a visit to the Alexander Gardens, another place of tragedy on Bloody Sunday. While sitting in the garden chatting with my professor, I could feel the weight of the past on my shoulders. By far my favorite part of the day was going to see a Cossack folk music/dancing show at one of the theaters in the city. I learned just how amazing and diverse Russian culture actually is. Not only was the show itself incredible, but I gained even more respect for the Russian people. What an amazing country. One which I quite frankly think is greatly misunderstood. I'm already excited for tomorrow.

A big THANK YOU to everybody for reading this blog. I greatly appreciate it.