Kamenny Island

Century-old dachas (country cottages; now inhabited by wealthy New Russians) line the lanes that twist their way around Kamenny (Stone) Island. The wooded island is punctuated by a series of canals, lakes and ponds, and is pleasant for strolling any time of year. At the east end of the island the Church of St John the Baptist (1776–81) has been charmingly restored. Behind it, Catherine the Great built the big, classical Kamennoostrovsky Palace for her son; it is now a weedy military sanatorium (off limits to casual callers). The rest of the island is a woodsy, mostly residential neighbourhood. For years a dead oak, supposedly planted by Peter the Great, stood in the middle of the Krestovka embankment. The old oak has been removed and replaced with a young, healthy tree; but it is still known as Peter’s Tree.