Once upon a time (seven years ago) I rented an apartment in St. Petersburg :)
The recent scandal reminded me of it, as it is at a distance of 50 m from the building of the Small Marble Palace, from which the European University is currently being tried to evict. And as it turned out, Belkovsky said that in the next house Prime-minister Medvedev and several other high-ranking officials bought apartments.
It's not difficult to guess my apartment was in the heart of St. Petersburg.
And I was surprised. I chose this apartment, since it was about 20-30 minutes walk from my university. And as I studied at the evening department, so 7 months out of 9 in Petersburg - it's pitch dark after 9 pm and I did not want to go anywhere even more than an hour. A couple of months per year - white nights.
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In this pitch darkness, half of the road still somehow was visible, and the second half ... just closer to home, only the roadway was illuminated and that with some kind of dim light from the 19th century. Sometimes, when the frozen pavement was slightly muted and covered with a single puddle on the ice moving in this darkness, I could only drill a pin of my boot at every step, so as not to slip and break all limbs.
The happiest time for returning home was due to the repair of the tiles in the neighboring street, as the trailer for the builders' residence was set right at my house's entrance. And every evening knocking with heels along the completely deserted street, I had to slip to my home unnoticed.
Yes - despite the fact that this is the center of the city, that is a very quiet city center.
The entrance to the house by the way was a ceremonial one. Inside the year of construction of the house — 1861 – was laid with the tiles on the floor. And then there was a circular staircase with apartments on each half-span. I lived above all and even in the apartment I had another small staircase to the residential part. At the same time in the apartment on the floor below there was a «new Russian» with a family (so rich people in post-soviet times are called), and on the opposite half a floor was a communal apartment with three alcoholics.
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The windows overlooked the courtyard-well. In which sometimes on Saturday morning alcoholics made songs, swears and fights. And sometimes from one of the neighboring apartments was heard playing the violin and with the acoustics of the yard-well - it was amazing.
Soon I got a job, and it was 30 minutes walk from my flat as well but in another direction from the university. At the same time, public transport did not travel to this quiet part, so there were few options on rainy days - a taxi or a ride. But in good weather my road passed by the Museum of Applied Art, next to which there were expositions of contemporary authors, the Mikhailovsky Castle, the Summer Garden, the Field of Mars, the Mikhailovsky Garden and the Savior-on-the-Blood. Very nice and never bother.
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In winter, I sometimes happened to a blizzard, when the lights of the castle or the Champ de Mars could hardly be seen through the swirling snow. In the summer I passed along a traffic jam on Sadovaya-Pestelya, and it was incredibly nice to come home while all the cars are standing and just hoping to leave the center.
And in the apartment while living a house. From time to time, I heard footsteps and walking creaks. And although I liked to sleep with an open window, but in winter, when it became particularly cold, it slammed shut. I understand that there is an explanation for this, but it was very creepy.
So that was my most favorite rented apartment :)
