It isn't enough to tell us what a man did. You've got to tell us who he was.

Citizen Kane. It's arguably the best movie ever made according to critics and film festivals. It incorporated ground breaking cinematography, soundtrack, and storytelling. More importantly, I watched it last night, giving it more legitimacy than the reviews of Siskel, Ebert, and Jon Lovitz combined (remember he had a show? no? me neither). 

I was actually really moved by the overall message of the movie-that is, success is futile. Ok, so that's probably not what the movie's message really is, but it's along those lines. As I was watching the movie, I realized just how nerdy I'm becoming (and how much I'm craving some sort of creative medium) because I started taking notes of my favorite quotations as they were said. Before you decide to judge me, and cut off all communication with me, don't. 

I especially liked the character Jed Leland, one of Kane's closest colleagues. From the beginning of the film, Leland sort of acts as a moral critic of Kane, and tries to keep Kane in check. Eventually, because of disagreements, Leland tries to distance himself form Kane's control. We see that Kane destroyed everyone that ever got close to him; his wife, his lover, his friends, his colleagues...everyone eventually left him to try to save themselves, but were ultimately left broken or damaged. Leland said, "That's all he ever wanted out of life, was love. That's the tragedy of Charles Foster Kane, you see, he just didn't have any to give." 

Why did Kane have such a destructive influence on himself, and those around him? In the movie, he himself claims, "if I hadn't been very rich, I might have been a really great man." Kane despises even himself, and dies a lonely old man, clinging to the memory of a lost childhood. What missing pieces are there in my own life? What have I given up to gain what little I have? I think it's easy to justify changing your value system, and I also think you really ought to alter it often. It shouldn't remain the same your entire life, it should move forward, not backward, upward, not forward, and always twirling, twirling toward freedom.

The Simpsons actually did an interesting parody of the film with Mr. Burns and his lost teddy, Bobo. In this version, Burns' missing 'jigsaw piece' (see the movie, it's really pretty good) is actually returned to him, and he is content. The movie shows that the sled was stashed among Kane's mountain of possessions, meaning he had somehow obtained the left item, but not the significance it carried.

Skittlebrau at Peterhof is Wunderbar

After an entire day indoors, we needed a change. So we hopped on a bus and rode to Peterhof, a quaint little palace on the Baltic Seashore.

 Yulia foolishly gave away her only escape from the fountain (it's an umbrella)

 Sometimes it's hard being so sexually attractive

 Don't stop till you get enough...

The temple Savior on the Blood is incredible, constructed in the classic Russian style of colorful, and magnificent onion domes.

The frescos were some of the most impressive I've ever seen. The entire interior is covered in them.

The entire city is covered in historic sites. I loved seeing the incredible architecture.

 

I love going to new cities and just exploring. I always find new friends. I shared a romantic stroll on the beach of the Neva with this one.

One of my favorite things was visiting the Crime and Punishment sites. This one is Raskolnikov's house, but thanks to my friend Shine's sleuthing, we got to visit Dostoevsky's house, a pub he frequented, the old pawn broker's house, Sofie's house, and the bridge Raskolnikov contemplated suicide on. Needless to say, I was giddy as a schoolgirl...a very nerdy schoolgirl.

The Hermitage was the most impressive museum I've ever been to. Side note, this picture was taken at 11:30 at night...white nights--they're incredible.

The winter palace is a fantastic structure with elegant architecture, and gold covered everything that I thought was filled with chocolate. I was pretty disappointed to find it was only filled with cheese.

This is pretty much what I looked like the whole time, just stunned by what was around me.

So this isn't my favorite picture I saw, nor my favorite artist. I do love impressionist art though. Some new favorites are Pissarro and Vuillard. Check them out, I think you'll like what you see.

After a day packed full of visual culture, I was ready for a change. What does a single, 25 year old do when he's lookin for a party? He goes to the Marinski Opera House to watch the Marriage of Fiagaro. I was absolutely blown away, it had been far too long since I've seen an opera, and I really enjoyed it...you'd better be okay with that!

Coming up next...Peterhof

"This is a city of half-crazy people...There are few places where you’ll find so many gloomy, harsh and strange influences on the soul of a man as in Petersburg" -Svidrigailov (character from Crime and Punishment)

To say that I fell in love with Petersburg is like saying that Superman is strong. The way I feel about St. Petersburg is better explained by this:

Actually, I think that better explains how I feel about Nintendos. But St. Petersburg isn't too far below this. If you've ever wanted a city bursting with culture in the form of famous art, architecture, and history...Petersburg is, well it's definitely one of them. In any case, it's the best you can do in Russia. So sit back and relax as I take you on a journey through this city of the arts, or check facebook, someone might have reached out to you in the last 30 seconds since you last checked it.

(pictures to come in the next few days)