Exploring: Saint Petersburg

A day of exploring Saint Petersburg. Emily and I had such a grand time.
I haven't really explored much in Saint Petersburg, and downtown is so vibrant with a lot of new places mixed with the old buildings, so it was like a whole new city for me. I am so thankful for the lovely Emily to spend time with. We never run out of things to talk about, and enjoy all these adventures of history and local spots of cities.

Our first stop was the Brocante Market, which only opens one weekend each month. The doors were just opening as we got there, and we stepped into a huge warehouse with 15,000 square feet of antiques and vintage treasures. All kinds of furniture, nick nacks, dishes, collectibles, and decor was on display. It was crowded. The secret is out about this spot, but everyone was nice and nobody was crazy. We didn't have anything specific we were looking for, but ended up finding a couple of little treasures. As crowded as it was, it was a well-oiled machine. The workers kept the lines moving and kept things organized. It's a great spot to get all your flea market, antique store craving out of your system all at once.

After our marketing, we were hungry, so we ate breakfast (second breakfast) at Cassis American Brassiere, which is a restaurant, bakery with a European flair. The place is beautiful, spacious, and a block from the pier and marina. The food was delicious. We certainly did not have a dull breakfast. We drank freshly squeezed orange juice and ate quiche, fresh greens, eggs, red potatoes sauteed with bell peppers and onions, homemade sausage, and an almond croissant. 

Next, it was coffee time. We decided to try a local favourite, Kawha Coffee. The moment we stepped inside we felt like it was a local spot. All the tables were full with people working on their laptops or spending time with family or friends. I noticed a special drink as I approached the counter - vanilla lavender iced latte. I cannot resist anything lavender, so we both ordered that drink and sat at the beautiful tiled table sipping the delicious latte, recharging for our next stop.

Haslam's Bookshop has been there for 50 years. It is a large shop that almost spans a block. It was my first visit, so I had to check out all the rooms and sections to see what books they had. I kept finding sections of books to browse, then I would turn around and find more. Poor Emily was so patient as I browsed. And then as we were making our purchases, a fierce thunderstorm broke out overhead, and we were trapped in the store for another 45 minutes. It was the kind of lightning that cracks and hits all around the building, and the rain came down in heavy sheets. There was no choice but to wait. Emily found the behind-the-scenes shot of the messy stacks of books piled up high with an old monitor in the middle. It's a scene straight out of the 90's.  

As the storm started to slow down, we eventually got out of there safely, and onward to our last stop of the day, a special spot in Tampa. But that will be reserved for the next post.