This is an outlined "Table of Contents" for daily life while in St. Petersburg. The information described here starts upon arrival at the airport and checking in to the hotel and continues about where to get meals, bus tours around the city, excursions, classes, shopping, and even what to expect for night life. Note: nearly every daily life photo can be clicked for more detailed information about that particular subject (or you may click More).

		Arrival at the St. Petersburg Airport
St. Petersburg Airport		Our group was greeted at the St. Petersburg airport by program coordinators from Hertzen University. A bus chauffeured students to the hotel for room check-in. Dinner was served in the hotel cafeteria and students unpacked. In the evening, people were free to exchange money or get acquainted with the area. More details are available.
		Meals
Hotel Dining Center		You definitely won't starve while studying abroad. Two meals per day are provided for you, most of them are served within the motel (pictured left). During excursions, restaurants will be reserved to offer you some authentic Russian cuisine. If you do get a little homesick, there is still familiar foods available at McDonald's or Pizza Hut. There is More information about what's to eat.
		City Tour
Bus Tour around the City		In order to get better acquainted with St. Petersburg's rich history, culture and surroundings, we were given a bus tour of the city. This was the first excursion after arriving in the airport. Some of the sites included seeing the Bronze Horseman, Palace Square, touring the battleship Aurora, St. Issaac's Square and our first excursion at Peter and Paul Fortress. Please click More to see additional details about these sites.
		Excursions
Novgorod		In addition to the city tours around St. Petersburg, excursions are offered to Novgorod, Izborsk, Gatchina, Oreshek, Pushkin, Pavlovsk, Pskov and Peterhof. Locations vary from year-to-year. This is a tremendous opportunity to absorb so much of Russia’s diversity. Activities include seeing some of the earliest settled villages, iconic cathedrals, natural springs, huge monuments and palaces of emperor’s. For More information about excursions.
		Classes
Russian Language Classes		After site seeing for a few days around St. Petersburg it was time to start classes. We did come to Russia to study, right? While in Russia, it's important to have some fundamental understanding of the language. As a prerequisite everyone will have taken Elementary Russian I (770:001). Daily language classes help to understand words and phrases that you will see and hear regularly. Plus it helped students to speak more authentically. More about class schedules.
		Shopping
Markets and Bazaars		What's the best part of studying abroad? Buying souvenirs! There are many open-markets around the city. Most are located near museums, hotels or where tourist are likely to visit. Here you can find items such as Matroshka dolls (wooden dolls), Palah boxes (hand-painted decorative boxes), jewelry, authentic military badges or even Communist Flags. Other "mall" shopping is conveniently available at DLT or Passage (both are close to the motel). More about shopping!
		Night Life
JFC Jazz Club		The nightlife in St. Petersburg is as rich and diverse as it's culture. Clubs range from small 20-30 seat jazz clubs, like the JFC Jazz Club (pictured left) to the three story disco tech at Club Metro (St. Petersburg's largest). If you are interested in other clubs and information about night life, please click on More for additional details.