Zelenogorsk is a small resort town located less than an hour's drive (50 km by train) from St.Petersburg. Its former name which I prefer, Terijoki, in original Finnish simply means 'Tar River'. It is located on the northern shore of the Finnish Bay of the Baltic Sea, which means it is part of the World Ocean... although of course one can not see here nor salty sea water, neither crabs or starfish or corals.
Terijoki was part of the Principality of Finland (which, in turn, was in a personal union with the Russian emperors - and was part of the Russian Empire). At the beginning of the 20th century, 50,000 summer residents came here from St. Petersburg every summer and there were about 1,400 dachas. After the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939, this land was annexed to the territory of the USSR, and although it did not regain its former status as a "resort Mecca", it is still very popular with residents of St. Petersburg - we have no other sea nearby!
Зеленого́рск - небольшой курортный городок расположенный менее чем в часе езды (50 км на поезде) от Санкт-Петербурга. Его первоначальное название — Terijoki — на финском языке означает Смоляная река. Он находится на северном берегу Финского залива Балтийского моря, то есть является частью Мирового океана... хотя конечно о соленой морской воде, крабах и морских звездах с кораллами говорить не приходится.
Териоки был частью Финского княжества (которое, в свою очередь, находилось в личной унии с российскими императорами - и входило в состав империи). В начале XX века сюда каждое лето приезжали 50,000 дачников и было около 1400 дач. После Финской войны 1939 года эта земля была присоединена к СССР; прежний статус "курортной Мекки" не вернулся, но все равно пользуется популярностью - другого моря у жителей Петербурга нет!
View of St.Petersburg over the bay side. On the opposite side of the Gulf you can see the quarters of St. Petersburg, including the famous Gazprom "Needle" business center. As you can see for yourself, this land was damn close to the Russian "heartland" - no wonder Stalin's government was so eager to push the Soviet-Finnish border further away... But, mind you, I'm not going to turn this post into a political discussion. Instead, I suggest you equip your eyes with a black-and-white filter and see what you can see on the seashore. We'll visit the city itself some other time.
С противоположной стороны Финского залива видны кварталы Петербурга, включая знаменитую "Иглу" Газпром-центра. Легко убедиться по фото, насколько близко эта земля находилась к российской "хартленд"; неудивительно что Сталинское правительство жаждало отодвинуть советско-финскую границу подальше... Но я не собираюсь превращать пост в политическую дискуссию. Вместо этого предлагаю надвинуть на глаза черно-белый фильтр и посмотрим, что нам попадется на морском берегу. А сам город мы посетим в другой раз.
City dwellers remember that they have a sea located not too far, and pay visits.
This lady's walk looked like a meditation; or a sacred pilgrimage (at least, it looked so to me).
A girl, playing with sand like a kid, and staring with an excitement at the sea.
A boy.
Here I turned my camera against the sun and took a series of photos for deliberately experimental purposes - to see how it will turn out. Well, color versions did not look attractive, but after I squeezed the RAW files in a proper manner, dried them, fried them, and punched with a mouse in Photoshop for half an hour - a very interesting monochrome rectified product was found in the sediment!
I have no such an option to play with the film processing, so I played with digital processing in Photoshop, count it like that.
Paparazzi-safe zone?!
Muse on the rocks.
This was the end of the beach, wild territory started here; the free hold of seagulls and ducks ...
...which is not less intresting for a man with a camera.
I came to Terijoky twice: in April and July. These photos were taken on the second visit. I took a lot of captures and will continue to acquaint you with this great place. Thanks for walking with me, see you next time!
| location: | Zelenogorsk, Russia | July 2024 | natural light |
| camera/lens: | Canon 5dm3 | Canon 70-200mm | raw-conv |
