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Ermitage

Italy

Ermitage

The Hermitage is Saint Petersburg's prime attraction, a massive palace-museum showing the highlights of a collection of over 3 million pieces spanning the globe. Hosted in the Winter Palace, the former main residence of the Russian tsars, and several other historic buildings nearby, the Hermitage is

one of the world's great museums, with an imposing setting displaying priceless works by Rembrandt, Raphael, Rubens, Velázquez, Michelangelo, van Dyck, Matisse and many more. It is possible, though not required, to get a tour guide. They can charge as much as $100 but they can tell you more about the building and the items and take you directly to the items you want to see. For many, finding their own way through the opulent interiors, huge and intricate enough to get some people lost, and exploring corners off the beaten path (and the complex is huge enough to have some) may be an attraction in itself. A popular story describes a foreign diplomat insisting to be guided, blindfolded, directly to the Rembrandts, so not to be distracted by the tremendous glittery. Sometimes the museum will limit the admission rate because of the numbers already in the museum. Large bags aren't allowed in the museum; there is a massive cloakroom downstairs for jackets and bags.

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