I have been home from Russia for a full week. I truly feel home sick and disoriented. I am trying to adjust to living a life without my new friends. It is so weird to think about my Flower Bazar family living their lives all the way across the world. I don’t want to let them go or the life I was leading there. I truly feel heartsick, so much so, that I refuse to change the time on my watch. It’s still telling me the time in Moscow.  Just a week ago I was headed to St. Petersburg on the fast train.

Our arrival in St. Petersburg was very exciting. Our first day included a tour of the city.  We saw the winter palace in St. Petersburg.

We also visited The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. The story behind this church is incredible. The interior is totally decorated with mosaic tiles, Every surface or mural was done with tiles.  I was completely mesmerized.

Poor Yuriy, Evan set him up for a silly picture that only we truly understood. Check out the words on the building above Yuriy’s head. By the end of the trip Yuriy and Evan reminded me of my little boys Samuel and Eli. The constant playing and nonsense was very entertaining.

The city of St. Petersburg was incredibly beautiful.

The city and Cathedrals take on a completely different look in the evening. Strolling the city at night was wonderful.

Our second day in St. Petersburg was spent teaching.

The class opened with comments from Olga and then I talked a bit about our life, business, and studio. I demonstrated a compote design and then I worked on a bridal bouquet. Each student made a bridal bouquet and we also discussed floral head pieces. Our hotel had an amazing little rooftop and we all went upstairs for photos and a picture.

This picture is of the lovely Maria. She was one of our sponsors in St. Petersburg. We stayed in her hotel and the workshop was held in her rooftop cafe. If you are ever traveling to St. Petersburg you will most certainly want to stay in Maria’s hotel 3MostA. Maria and her husband also own an incredible restaurant in the city and because we loved it so much, we went there twice for dinner.

While we worked on bouquets, Evan was busy making things happen.

Our table with an incredible view.

The students had a wonderful time making bouquets and I loved the time I spent with them. The class in St. Petersburg was loaded with delightful women. My only regret is that this workshop was not longer. I would have really enjoyed getting to know these ladies better!!!