We had to chuckle during one of two day excursions we enjoyed in St. Petersburg during our Baltic cruise this summer when we spotted this McDonald’s sign prominently placed right across the street from St. Isaac’s Square, a must-see for all tourists to that great and beautiful city.

In that same area was the Hotel Astoria, which our tour guide told us was built by the American family of the same name and opened in 1912, and a popular place for visitors from around the world to lay their weary heads.

We also enjoyed seeing the Monument to Nicolas I equestrian statue (a bronze horseman).