The Soul of St. Petersburg

By

Petteri Hannonen

Last night I came back from St. Petersburg, Russia. Each and every time it feels a bit more difficult. The city, where I never planned to visit, has become like a home for me. It is a rather interesting feeling for a Finn.

My love affair with the city started in January 2005. Then I traveled to St. Petersburg to study (and work) for few months. While being there, I had a chance to live in a local family. My Russian family was extremely far away from New Russians, and the only way to communicate was to speak Russian. For once there was a chance to see and experience something very different, to be a part of a normal St. Petersburg family and their everyday life.

This time my trip was also a bit unusual. I went to the Venice of North for so many reasons – to have some business negotiations, to perform live the first time in Russia with our rock band (Dusha Pitera, www.myspace.com/dushapitera) and to visit friends. Once again, on my way back to Finland I thought that time flies too fast.

Our concert was held in a local rock/art club, called Manhattan (www.manhattanclub.ru). It was a real pleasure to notice that the place was quite crowded. Naturally, I was a bit stressed, how people would react – we are Finns but we perform only in Russian language. After our first song I knew that our concert would be a true success – the audience was with us all the way, even singing with us during the last songs! After the concert feelings were just unbelievable. People were extremely happy and satisfied, and the art director of the club wanted us to come back again during the summer, etc.

St. Petersburg has something for all. I always recommend interacting with locals as much as possible, and getting away from the stereotypical “tourist supply” as quickly as possible. I found my St. Petersburg that way. Naturally it might take quite a lot of courage, but it is worth of it. Trust me in that. In the end, I am a Finn, who thought that he would never visit Russia…

… and now I’m questioning, is my home here or there…

Petteri Hannonen