Wednesday Walk. Alexander Nevsky Lavra

On one of the final days of Indian summer, I went for a walk around the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. I had passed by the monastery on the bus the day before and I was fascinated by the colors of the fall foliage. I was in a hurry to get to a meeting that day, and the impression was fleeting. Two days later it was a sunny day again, and this wonderful weather coincided with my free time. I had no doubts about the choice of place for the walk: of course, I went to Alexander Nevsky Lavra.

From Alexander Nevsky Square two narrow streets lead in the direction of the monastery. Both of them lead to the river Monastyrka, to get to the territory of the monastery you have to cross the bridge and enter the gate. I stopped in front of the bridge and turned around to take a picture of the street I was on. The not-too-high houses are outside the monastery grounds, but nevertheless have some connection to the monastery. A sign on the nearest house suggests we stop by the dining room and treat ourselves to pies and pancakes. In the courtyard is a guest house for pilgrims.

I took some pictures of Monastyrka River from the bridge. One side of the bridge has a view of the monastery buildings, the other side is just a small river that flows towards the industrial area. This view wouldn't deserve much attention, but the river has been transformed and made to look beautiful by the colorful fall trees on its banks. Even the heating pipes, thrown over the riverbed, began to look like exquisite architectural decorations.

Alexander Nevsky Lavra is the oldest and most extensive male monastery in St. Petersburg. The monastery was founded a few years after the founding of the city by direct order of Emperor Peter the Great.

The complex of buildings includes several churches and chapels, service and residential buildings, several necropolises and a Mitropolnichesky garden. The territory of the Theological Academy and Seminary is adjacent to the monastery from the side of the Bypass Canal. The buildings of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra were designed and built by outstanding architects: Ivan Starov, Domenico Trezzini, Pietro Trezzini, Theodore Schwertfeger, Alexei Gornostaev, Nikolai Grebenka, and others.

I wandered a bit in the Mitropolnichesky garden, and then I went in the direction of the Trinity Cathedral to take pictures of buildings in the evening sun. The territory of the monastery is protected from the wind, so the autumn day seemed warm. I saw cats that were resting on the benches near the central alley. Some pilgrims came up to pet these cats.

At the end of the walk I stopped again on the bank of the Monastyrka River, but in a different place. In the back of the frame, half-hidden by the foliage on the trees, we could see the same church as in the title photo, but this time it was photographed from the opposite side.

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Smartphone	Google Pixel 3a
Location	Saint Petersburg, Russia

This is my entry for the #WednesdayWalk challenge by @tattoodjay.