St. Petersburg is a mecca of cultural, historical, and architectural landmarks. Founded by Tsar Peter I (the Great) as Russia’s “window on Europe,” it bears the unofficial status of Russia’s cultural capital and most European city, a distinction that it strives to retain in its perennial competition with Moscow. Three distinctive characteristics of St. Petersburg engage attention. The first is the city’s harmonious mix of western European and Russian architecture. Second is St. Petersburg’s lack of an unequivocal city centre, which, in other Russian cities of medieval origin, is defined by a kremlin and its surrounding area. The third characteristic feature of the city is its many waterways. The short but full-flowing tributaries and canals of the Neva River that stretch to the Baltic coast are inseparable from St. Petersburg’s panorama. Many of the city’s most famed architectural sites stretch along the Neva’s historic embankments. Moreover, the bridges and natural canals of the river
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