Once a young tourist came to St. Petersburg late in the evening. No, this is not the beginning of a literary work, it’s just a short vacation plan an abstract character might have, who discovered a really new world full of bright colors, not like the image of a dreary grey city depicted by our classics. So, it was evening. A tourist thought this way: “I’ll let down my luggages, wander across St. Petersburg at night till I’m exhausted and then I’ll come back to my hotel to have a nice sleep. If I decided to see as much as possible, why should I bother about a place to stay for a night?”
But that plan went awry. First, the tourist was too tired. Second, he was startled by that (let’s say abstract) mini-hotel of St Petersburg, by a room he had booked a week ago. Everything about it was as it should be, but our character still was confused by something. Perhaps, it was the lack of an unpleasant feeling that you stay in a place intended to sleep there and nothing more. Or it was friendly people in the hall even though it was late enough. May be even that fact that this hotel looks more like a house, an ancient one by the way. Room is not just a room but your own apartment. “If next time I book his room again”, our character thought – ” I’ll get a feeling as if I really own an apartment here”.
And then out character had a new look at his vacation. From the window of his cozy room he could see the patio, a known well-yard. There was no one to make a noise at night, to walk along the hall, which at first seemed a bit odd. As he, you see, was expecting entirely different treatment! And the most this is that Nevsky Prospekt is so close, here it is, just about two minutes of walk from here. But it’s still quiet. And the city seems to be unusual. Not so cold and dark, but beautiful, modest and slightly mysterious. This is the very mini-hotel of St. Petersburg out character told much about to his friends, who later would come to confirm his experience. Impressions appeared to be very strong, because you can easily forget your tourist trip, but it’s hundred times difficult to sponge the memory of a piece of your life lived somewhere outside from your home, a familiar and friendly home.
You might ask what all these mean. It’s simple: to get to know any unfamiliar city in depth you needn’t any tours, all that fuss, runnings from one building to another, sittings at the cafe bagging for something traditional, though they still bring some cheesecakes and instant coffee. You just have to imagine that you are not a guest here and it will set things right. In this way any mini-hotel of St. Petersburg, for example wonderful mini-hotel “Polikoff” situated on the corner of Nevsky Prospekt and Karavannay Street, will be able to help you with this.
And you would want to say “There, at Karavannay Street, are nice cafes. They serve nice coffee there. Not some special food intended for tourists, but a simple coffee which is a bit different in this city, not like one served in Moscow”. There should be a talent to let you get to know the city not through bright but everyday things, and “Polikoff” opens its doors and is welcoming new guests to try, what if they also will manage to see St. Petersburg in a little bit different way? And they will see…