Detail of the exterior and the golden onion domes of Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia

Some of the thousands of pieces of art housed in the climate controlled vaults of the Hermitage Museum Storage and research facility

General Staff Building of the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia

Alexander Column and Hermitage Museum, seen through the arch of the General Staff Building of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia

Little Konushennaya Street, one of several pedestrianized shopping streets in city center of St. Petersburg, Russia