Saint-Petersburg lies on the coast of the Gulf of Finland (the Eastern shore of the Baltic Sea) at the mouth of the Neva River. The city is located on 44 islands. A 32 kilometre-long section of the Neva River flows within the city limits. Four hundred bridges, 21 of which are drawbridges, adorn the city.

Saint-Petersburg, one of the largest northern cities in the world, it occupies an area of 1400 sq kilometers. The south-western, southern, eastern and northern districts are located on the mainland, while the central and western districts lie on the islands of the Neva's delta.

Saint-Petersburg is the second largest city in Russian Federation with about 5 million inhabitants. Most of the population is Russian, but there are also Ukrainians, Byelorussians, Letts, Lithuanians, Georgians, Armenians and other nationalities.

Saint-Petersburg has a moderate climate, thanks to the warm air from the Atlantic Ocean. The temperature is above zero about 222 days of the year. Winter usually starts in December and lasts until the middle of March. Summer lasts from June to the middle of September. The Petersburg weather is known for its changeability, from one day to the next. Saint Petersburg's climate is one of strong contrasts. Saint Petersburg has cold winters, with temperatures in January averaging -10ø C (14ø F); the summers are generally cool, with the temperature in July averaging 17ø C (63ø F). Although the city's harbor is frozen for three to four months of each year, icebreakers keep it open for much of the winter season.

Saint-Petersburg is famous for its White Nights - a period from the last week of June through the last week of July - when the dark of night lasts for only about 40 minutes, and the rest of the night is almost as light as day.

Nowadays Saint-Petersburg again is a cultural center, which contains so many historical and cultural sightseeings. Undoubtedly it is one of the greatest Russian and European cities. The cultural capital of Russia, The northern capital of Russia, Northern Venice are just some of the city's names. However the number of tourists visiting Saint-Petersburg each year goes up steadily, the city doesn't get as many tourists as it could and as it deserves.

Recently Saint-Petersburg celebrated its 300th birthday which happened in May 2003. Great deal of historical spots were reconstructed and renovated as long as roads and bridges for the event. And a great deal of investments had been drawn by the Goverment to prepare the Putin's home-town.

Saint Petersburg was the capital of Russia for two centuries (1712-1918), Saint Petersburg is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, noted for its lavish palaces and grand cathedrals. It is also a major rail junction and an industrial, cultural, and scientific center.

Saint Petersburg has been renamed three times since its founding. Construction of the city began in 1703, ordered by Russian tsar (later emperor) Peter the Great, who named it Saint Petersburg after his patron saint. After World War I broke out in 1914, the city's Germanic name was changed to Petrograd. In 1924, upon the death of Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin, its name was changed to Leningrad. Finally, in June 1991, six months before the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) officially dissolved and Russia emerged as an independent country, the city reverted to its original name.

The commercial areas are in the city center, close to Nevsky Prospekt, the stylish shopping boulevard famous for its magnificent buildings and large department stores. Situated on the south bank of the Neva and circumscribed to the east and south by the Fontanka River is the Admiralty district, the hub of the city, where the main avenues of central Saint Petersburg come together. The district houses the Admiralty fortress and dockyard, which was a shipyard before it became part of a naval college in 1925. Upriver from the fortress is Palace Square, where the ornate Winter Palace (built in 1762)-the winter residence of Russia's former imperial rulers-is located. The Winter Palace now houses the world-famous Hermitage Museum. Directly across from the Admiralty district is Vasilevsky Island, the largest of all the islands in the Neva and home of the Naval Museum.

Farther up the river, on Zayachy Island, is the Peter and Paul Fortress. It was built in 1703, before construction of the city itself began. The fortress held political prisoners until the beginning of the 20th century. The Peter and Paul Cathedral, located inside the fortress, is the burial place of the tsars and the tallest historical building (122 m/400 ft) in the city. The headquarters of Saint Petersburg's municipal government are located in the Mariinsky Palace, which was built in 1844 on Saint Isaac's Sqeare in the Admiralty district for Emperor Nicholas It's daughter Maria.

Also on Saint Isaac's Square is the Cathedral of Saint Isaac, which was built between 1768 and 1858. Far to the east of the Admiralty district is the Smolny Institute, founded by Catherine the Great in the 1700s to serve as a boarding school for upper-class girls. The current building-built to replace the original structure in the early 1800s-housed the first Soviet government from the time it took power in October (or November, in the Western, or New Style, calendar) 1917 until March 1918. The Smolny now houses the offices of the city's mayor.

Outside the city proper, Saint Petersburg's metropolitan area is home to some of Russia's most renowned historical sites. Among them is the royal village of Tsarskoye Selo (now Pushkin), where the Catherine Palace, a magnificent structure built in the mid-18th century, is located. Pushkin is situated 27 km (17 mi) south of Saint Petersburg. Pavlovsk, located less than 2 km (1 mi) south of Pushkin, is home to the Great Palace of Emperor Paul I (built from 1782 to 1786). On the Gulf of Finland, 40 km (25 mi) west of Saint Petersburg, is the former imperial residence of Petrodvorets, named for the city's founder. Large-scale housing developments were built on the outskirts of the city in the period following World War II (1939-1945); they house the bulk of Saint Petersburg's residents. Most units are equipped with indoor plumbing, electricity, and telephones.

Saint Petersburg is the home of Saint Petersburg University (established in 1819), about 200 scientific institutes, and more than 40 colleges. Among the city's numerous libraries are the Russian National Library (formerly the M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin Public Library; founded in 1795) and the Library of the Academy of Sciences (built from 1783 to 1789), one of the oldest scientific establishments in Saint Petersburg.

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