We got the metro to Komsomolskaya station with no problem and then bought tickets for the Sapsan high-speed train to St Petersburg. The journey of 439 miles took 4 hours and passed through endless forest. There was no arable land or pasture, just mile after mile of forest with the occasional swamp or lake. The train made short stops at the small towns of Vyshnyi Volochek, Uglovka and Chudovo, and passed numerous small villages of brightly-painted wooden cottages. The train arrived on time at Moskovskii station on Nevskii Prospekt where we took a short walk across the road to the Tourist Information office. A very friendly lady phoned the Atrium hotel and ascertained that they had a room for 6,000 Rub. So we walked there and checked in before going to the adjacent restaurant, Bier Konig, for a German-style meal.
Statue of Aleksandr Nevskii in Ploshchad Aleksandra Nevskogo at the eastern end of Nevskii Prospekt near our hotel. He is one of Russia’s greatest heroes, having defeated Swedish invaders on the Neva River (hence his name) and the German Teutonic Knights at Pskov in 1242