The Guardian. Insider's cultural guide to St Petersburg

Everybody has its own opinion.

The Guardian asked Anastasiya Fedorova, writer and editor, to give her own, on the topic of hidden St. Petersburg thoughts and gems. You can study the article itself but keep in mind that all the people's picks are highly subjective.

What to read offline?

I've promised to tell you if the book I was reading was any good. Actually, I do enjoy it so wanna share the title with you - just in case you're interested.

It is one of the special "Culture Shock" guides where you will not find the address of the most expensive restaurant and photos of the Red Square but you do will find an answer to the question "Why Russians are so weird?". In my opinion, author, Anna, does the great work of explaining mysterious Russian soul.

Here you are: the website of the publisher, the book on the Amazon.

Also, I can recommend another book about real Russia written by Russian author, journalist and GQ-magazine editor Michael Idov. The full name is "Made in Russia: Unsung Icons of Soviet Design". I bought it myself, read it and liked.

They have chapters based on design of toys, mechanisms, ordinary things like vacuum cleaner and radio, but basically these articles are about culture and history. And were written by Russians.

Amazon link, publisher's website