{"id":171,"date":"2019-11-07T12:41:09","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T12:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/?p=171"},"modified":"2020-09-24T12:52:44","modified_gmt":"2020-09-24T12:52:44","slug":"the-hotel-rus-svetlogorsk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/the-hotel-rus-svetlogorsk\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

The Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

27 December 2000<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I recently visited the Hotel Russ (August 2019). It is interesting to observe what has changed in the past 20 years and what has not. The following description is taken from my notes of the Hotel Russ as it was on that celebrated day in 2000<\/a> when we first arrived in Russia, almost 20 years ago. Later, we hope to write a review of what it is like to stay in the Russ today. Meanwhile, this was our first experience \u2026<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Having passed through the main gate of the Hotel Russ in Svetlogorsk, we followed the path along the side of the building to the entrance. Two large glass doors opened up into a wide, airy and spacious foyer. You could not miss the reception area as it was elevated and had the word \u2018Reception\u2019 emblazoned across it, surprisingly in English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Hotel
Reception area, Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk, Russia, December 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Previous article: Kaliningrad: First Impression<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get there necessitated climbing up two or three steps\nonto a wider platform and then approaching the bar. I do not mean the sort you\nget in pubs; this experience was rather more similar to approaching the bar in\ncourt (as far as I am aware). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two young ladies behind the counter were, well,\nbeautiful springs to mind, but it was a cold, unsmiling kind of beauty; the\nnext word that sprung to mind was \u2018\u2019officious and, after that, \u2018very\u2019. Olga did\nthe talking; we did the looking and the walking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From our elevated position we could see that on one side of\nus there was, indeed, a bar. We both felt instantly better ~ who said \u2018at\nhome\u2019? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Bar
Bar area, Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk, Russia, December 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The bar area contained the usual outcrops of tables and chairs, which extended down one side to the end of the building. The chairs were chromium backed and the round tables marbled topped. Indeed, marble ~ or simulated marble ~appeared to be the material of the day within the Hotel Russ. To the left of us, in front of the bar, stood a row of tall, square-section pillars, which fanned out in vaulted form before folding into the ceiling. One of the pillars was decorated with artificial shrubs and climbing plants and beneath it we could hear a water feature bubbling<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The area beyond the pillars was effectively the hotel lounge. It was well appointed, with a bank of windows which extended along the entire side of the room and soared up into the heavens above. The ceiling was very high, and if you stood in this lavish area, with its reproduction antique furniture and comfy, cushioned divans, and looked up at the ceiling it was evident  they had designed the Russ to look like an ocean liner, complete with curving staircase that took you up majestically onto the upper deck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Hotel
Lounge area, Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk, Russia, December 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As grand as they were, we did not take the steps. Our\nluggage was extremely heavy and bulky, even discounting the Sausage, so we took\nthe lift instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A tall, thin man, with a face he had purchased from Serious\n& Co, was summoned to help us with our luggage. He came across the room in\na most peculiar way, but it was not until he turned back again towards the lift\nwith a couple of bags, including the Sausage, which were far too heavy for him\nto manage, that my brother, with an alacrity of mind that was so atypical that\nhe must have borrowed it for the occasion, identified the gait as \u2018mincing\u2019.\nFrom that moment on, our tall assistant would be known to us as Mincer and\nMincer he became.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mick
From left to right: Joss Hart, a man from the Hotel Russ and Mick Hart , December 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For a big hotel the lift was little. It was also not very\nwide. Certainly not wide enough for Olga, Joss, myself, two hefty cases, the\nSausage and Mr Mincer. We got in and were all squashed up, something like Dad\u2019s\nArmy<\/em> when they all crowd into the vicar\u2019s office. There was nothing for it,\nsomething would have to give. So Olga got out and walked upstairs. There goes\nanother myth, \u2018the typical English gentlemen\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a small lift and it was also a very slow lift. It did\nnot start moving straightaway. Titter ye not, I thought, but it was hard not to\nall cramped up like that with Mincer looking so serious. But we knew better\nthan to laugh in Russia ~ thank heavens for the stiff upper lip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ping, went the lift, at last. I felt as if we had travelled\nto the top of the Empire State Building not just to the first floor. Joss and I\nsqueezed out and Mincer followed, or he would have done had not the mischievous\nSausage found another small door to straddle. We helped our hapless baggage boy\nout and relieved him of the obnoxious case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were now standing in a wide area overlooking the bar, three\nor four tables and chairs around the perimeter and a pool table in the centre.\nThe rooms on this floor were arranged around an oblong balcony with the\ncentrepiece open and from which you could look down onto the floor below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first room that we entered was the one reserved for my\nbrother, Joss. It was not bad at all. A little formal, perhaps, by British\nstandards, I mean not at all like Mrs Musson\u2019s Guest House at number six No-Beach\nBrightlingsea, but lacking nothing in the clean, neat, tidy and comfortable\ndepartment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the usual appurtenances, Joss had a large,\nthree-quarter size bed and a rubber plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next it was our room, which was on the other side of the\nbalcony facing the Rus garden. In we went, all excited, only to discover that\nour double room was smaller than Joss\u2019 single and that whilst he had a double\nbed ~ of sorts ~ we had two singles?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My brother has always been a true gentleman, mostly by\naccident, and today was one of those, because he surprised us all, including\nhimself (and that doesn\u2019t happen very often) by making the supreme sacrifice:\nhe was willing to give his room up for ours ~ to swap rooms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isn’t it obvious!?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Feeling altogether sensible Olga went downstairs to\nreception to request the transfer. She was back almost quicker than she went\nwith the intelligence that we could not change rooms as Joss had a single room\nand we had a double, so any change was impossible. The exact response from the\nladies at reception had been, \u201cIsn\u2019t it obvious: the single room is for the\nsingle person and the double for two people\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To say that we were not perplexed would be an understatement\nand Olga, perceiving that her two English associates had been skittled, left\nthem sitting on the bed in Joss\u2019 room, to which we had retreated, sipping vodka\nthoughtfully out of a hip flask, whilst she went off \u2018to see what could be\ndone\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ten minutes later she returned. \u201cIt\u2019s OK, they are taking\ncare of it,\u201d she assured us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And they were, sure enough, but not in the way they might\nhave done it back home. As we walked past the open door to our bedroom, we\ncaught sight of the solution to the problem, in the shape of two burly Russian\ngentleman moving the single beds together and securing the legs at either end\nwith two thick pieces of rope. This made us chuckle; Olga was not amused. She\nwas also not very amused as in passing the upper extremities of the Christmas\ntree, which extended from the ground floor up through the oval aperture almost\nto the roof, Joss noted that there was no adorning fairy or star on the top.\nHis suggestion to hang an old pair of underpants on it was a step too far in\nthe smutty English humour direction for Olga, and she went from feeling annoyed\nto visibly irritated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To take the wind out of her sails (my brother was also suffering from wind, and she was not too amused about that, either), I suggested a tour around the hotel to get ourselves familiarised with it. At such a time when many companies were still in the embryonic stage of website development, surprisingly enough the Russ was ahead of itself, and we had been able to appraise the quality of this 4-Star hotel by consulting its site ahead of our trip. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we descended, this time by the grand staircase, we met\nMincer on the ground floor, and Olga asked him if we could see the sports\ncentre. \u201cIt\u2019s broken,\u201d he replied. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joss and I shot a glance at each other: perhaps something\nwas lost in translation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broken or not our guide continued. We followed him down a\nshort flight of stairs into what appeared to be a typical sports centre\nchanging room, wide and open with slatted bench seats around the wall. We then\nturned right into a passageway. Against the wall stood an exercise bike, its\nfront wheel hanging off. Mincer said something. Olga translated: \u201cBroken,\u201d she\nsaid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was little point in arguing. But what about the swimming pool, surely the wheel could not have fallen off that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It had not. But it had shrunk. On the photographs it\nappeared to be a full-size pool, whereas, in real life, it was a large, deep bathtub\ninto which one plunged after vacating the sauna. Was the sauna working? Er \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fully refreshed after our workout, we returned to our\nrespective rooms. Olga had made arrangements to meet with her friend, Helen,\nthe plan being that we would venture into Svetlogorsk for a drink, but what was\nneeded now was a cup of tea and a refreshing bath. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don’t drink the water<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Spoilt by literally having drinking water on tap in England,\nOlga had alerted us to the fact that in the Kaliningrad region it was strictly\na case of \u2018don\u2019t drink the water\u2019. I wondered whether it could be as bad as we\nhad been led to believe. The answer came when I began to fill the bathtub. To\nsay that the water was black may well be an overstatement, but it was certainly\ngetting that way. We called Joss in from his room to witness this hitherto\nunseen spectacle, and then we had Olga ring to reception to report the anomaly.\nHer reply was, \u201cIsn\u2019t it obvious? You must let the water run!\u201d So, we did\nexactly that, until we feared that we had dissipated half of Svetlogorsk\u2019s\nwater reserves. Oh, well, we would have to forgo the bath. But what about\nsomething to eat? Something simple, such as a cheese and tomato sandwich prior\nto going out on the town? Our request, by phone to reception, was met with some\nconfusion. The person who took the call had to consult with somebody else.\nEventually we were informed that we could have two slices of bread, some cheese\nand tomatoes on the side of the plate, but they could not do a sandwich. Well,\nI thought, isn\u2019t it obvious!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was around this time that we received a phone call to\nreception from another of Olga\u2019s friends. Olga telephoned the friend in return\nand was invited to go out somewhere for a drink. As we had a prior engagement,\nwe declined, but Joss solved the double commitment by electing to meet up with\nthe second party whilst we went ahead with our original plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joss\u2019 company arrived first. They were a couple, both\npersons of which were, I thought, most refined in dress and in manner. What\nwould they make of my brother, I mused, as they whisked him away for the evening?\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Olga\u2019s friend, Helen, arrived a few minutes later:\nattractive, very sweet natured but, I thought, rather, and unduly, concerned\nabout my first impressions of Svetlogorsk. I had no idea as to why this apprehension\nshould constitute the status quo in these parts, although I realised later that\nin the year 2000, apart from Germans returning to the region to see where their\nfamily once lived, foreigners were quite a rare species and English men\nperfectly alien.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out into the cold ~ very cold ~ and snow-laden night we\nventured, retracing the route that our taxi had taken. We had difficulty walking,\nthe snow was that thick and, where it was not, it was that icy. Also, as I had\nobserved earlier, there were little or no streetlights of which to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sundial
Sundial sculpture on Svetlogorsk promenade during the winter, December 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Our pedestrianisation seemed to go on forever, until we took a right turn in the direction of the sea. We eventually reached the top of a steep bank of steps. I could hear the sea in the near distance and feel the sea air ~ it was as sharp as the proverbial razor blade! Carefully, very carefully, we picked our way down the gallery of steps until we reached the promenade. Directly in front of us stood a man-made and man height (sorry about the lack of PCism) sundial, the wedge-shaped blade reflecting what light there was as it cut its way upwards from the ground. I took hold of this blade, and, in listening to the rolling sound of the tide, thought to myself, \u201cI\u2019m actually here!\u201d (Do not forget, dear reader, that having read or heard nothing positive about Russia since I was a child and, more recent to the time of my trip, having been the recipient of negative media coverage from, without exception, every UK media source available and, in particular official channels (no change there, then!)  make no mistake that being in Russia was a truly awesome thought!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It used to be<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The icy blast across the Baltics rendered any further deliberation\nuntenable, and we cut a hasty retreat. It had been somewhat easier descending\nthan ascending, and we stopped at the top of the steps to catch our breath. To\nour left there were a couple of derelict buildings, about which Helen\nvolunteered some information as to what they used to be. By the time we had\nreached our destination, a caf\u00e9-bar close to Svetlogorsk centre, \u2018this used to\nbe\u2019 had developed into a catchphrase. We passed several collapsing or deserted\nstructures all of which had been \u2018Used to Bees\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A welcome sight was a little neon sign marking the spot\nwhere a caf\u00e9-bar stood. As we drew closer, I could make out a single-storey\nbuilding with a glass door. There was nothing else around the building. Today,\nas with most of Svetlogorsk, this area has been developed, but the little caf\u00e9\ninto which I first took refuge on 27 December 2000 is, I am pleased to say,\nstill there and still functioning and nothing much, if anything, has changed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside, the caf\u00e9 was a simple rectangular room, tables\nranged down either side and in the far corner to the right a small semi-circular\nor curved bar. The establishment was neither grand nor overtly plain. The\nlighting was just right ~ not too bright, not too dim ~ and the walls were\nconservatively decorated with framed pictures of the Svetlogorsk coastline and\ntown. Most importantly, on a night like this, it was cosy, comfortable and warm\n~ and, of course, it was also licensed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I cannot remember what lager I drank that evening. I did not\nreally bother. As a seasoned real-ale drinker, I had made my mind up in advance\nthat anything lagerish would be poor, but I drank it all the same. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My one abiding memory of this establishment, and one that\nwould stay with me for a long time, was that there was only one toilet, and it\nwas unisex. This perplexed me a little. There were only three other people\napart from us in the bar, but, when the establishment was full, how did a\none-toilet system work? The other thing that surprised me about this odd\nRussian toilet arrangement was that you were unable to use the facility unless\nyou asked for a key from the bar. I would learn later that this inconvenient\nconvenience was by no means a one-off and in some places today the tradition has\nnot moved on much!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also learnt this evening that whenever I spoke English in\na caf\u00e9 or a restuarant I would be looked at ~ and I do not mean in the sense of\na casual glance! As I noted earlier, foreigners were a rare thing in \u2018these\n\u2018ere parts\u2019 and when you were looked at you were really looked at. I believe\nthat throughout the 45 minutes we were in this bar, the other inhabitants, bar\nstaff included, never took their eyes off me, not for a single moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We moved on, not because of this, but to pastures anew. If\nanything, our brief sojourn and the comfort afforded by it, had rendered the\ngreat outdoors even more hostile, or perhaps the temperature was dropping even\nfurther. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caf\u00e9 Mozart , Svetlogorsk<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Luckily, we had only walked a short distance before another\nneon sign glowed its way into our vision: in a purple-red flowing script, it identified\nthe building on which it was erected as the Caf\u00e9 Mozart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I will never forget that first encounter with the Mozart.\nThe building was well lit on this extremely murky but atmospheric evening, a\nlarge picture window flooding the ground with light outside, whilst other lit\nwindows and external lamps threw patches of light onto this and that aspect of\nthe building and wove shadows above and around, picking out and hiding at will\nthe nooks, crannies, decor and detail of what was unequivocally a fine example\nof the Gothic Revival style. As we approached, the wooden slatted and clad\nexterior put me in mind of early 20th<\/sup> century American Romanticist\narchitecture, but it was far too chilly a night to bring this contemplation to a\nproper conclusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside the building, large and spacious as it was, there was\na traditional dance floor to the right, complete with revolving glitter ball,\nand to the left a good-sized lounge with a welcoming fire. Although this was\nnot a real log fire but a gas-fired replica, it made the interior very cosy\nindeed. Comfortable bench seats lined the window, with armchairs and sofas\nscattered here and there inviting you to sink into them, an over-mantle mirror\nhung above the fireplace, which may or may not have been authentic antique, and\nvarious framed pictures adorned the wallpapered walls, the mood lighting from a\ncombination of pendant and wall-mounted lamps making this habitat the perfect\nchoice for reasonable refreshment and good conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for the latter, most of that revolved around what it was\nlike to live in England and the English way of life. I would soon learn that\nthe Russian vision of Merry England was as quaintly outdated as our authorised\nversion of what it was like to live in Russia today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sad to say, the Mozart, which had affected me with such appealing and positive vibes, closed shortly after this visit ~ at least it was closed when I returned a year later, never to re-open in the same style. Six months ago, the building was up for sale. It has been on the market for a long while and may still be for sale today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: Hotel Russ <\/a>2020<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Copyright \u00a9 2018-2020 Mick Hart. All rights reserved.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Hotel Russ, Svetlogorsk 27 December 2000 Having passed through the main gate of the Hotel Russ in Svetlogorsk, we followed the path along the side of the building to the entrance. Two large glass doors opened up into a wide, airy and spacious foyer. You could not miss the reception area as it was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":173,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6],"tags":[37,35,38,39,30,34,36],"class_list":["post-171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diary-2000","category-kaliningrad-mick-harts-diary","tag-holiday-in-svetlogorsk","tag-mick-hart-svetlogorsk","tag-svetlogorsk-baltic-coast","tag-svetlogorsk-hotel","tag-the-hotel-rus","tag-the-hotel-rus-svetlogorsk-russia","tag-winter-in-svetlogorsk"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/1-Rus.jpg?fit=4320%2C3240&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":300,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/exploring-svetlogorsk\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":0},"title":"Exploring Svetlogorsk","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"3 \u044f\u043d\u0432\u0430\u0440\u044f, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Exploring Svetlogorsk 28 December 2000 \u201c\u2026 and then, to top it all off, they passed the bill to me!\u201d This was Joss recounting his adventures the night before over breakfast, which was ~surprise, surprise ~ a Russian version of cold meats and cheeses. \u201cSo,\u201d I clarified, \u201cyou all had plenty\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0412 "Diary 2000"","block_context":{"text":"Diary 2000","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/category\/kaliningrad-mick-harts-diary\/diary-2000\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/1-Joss-Hat-smaller.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/1-Joss-Hat-smaller.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/1-Joss-Hat-smaller.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/1-Joss-Hat-smaller.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/1-Joss-Hat-smaller.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":143,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/christmas-in-gdansk\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":1},"title":"Christmas in Gdansk","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"11 \u0444\u0435\u0432\u0440\u0430\u043b\u044f, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Christmas in Gdansk Updated: 11 February 2022 | First published: 5 October 2019 ~ Christmas in Gdansk Christmas in Gdansk\u00a0is the fourth article in a series of posts that recount my first visit to Kaliningrad in 2000, and my first impressions of the land, the people and its culture. The\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0412 "Diary 2000"","block_context":{"text":"Diary 2000","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/category\/kaliningrad-mick-harts-diary\/diary-2000\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Christmas in Gdansk Mick Hart & Joss Hart","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Mick-Hart-Joss-Hart-in-Gdansk-2000.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Mick-Hart-Joss-Hart-in-Gdansk-2000.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Mick-Hart-Joss-Hart-in-Gdansk-2000.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Mick-Hart-Joss-Hart-in-Gdansk-2000.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Mick-Hart-Joss-Hart-in-Gdansk-2000.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4306,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/svetlogorsk-promenade-perchance-to-dream\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":2},"title":"Svetlogorsk Promenade Perchance to Dream","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"30 \u0438\u044e\u043b\u044f, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Not there today, here tomorrow Published: 30 July 2021 ~ Svetlogorsk Promenade Perchance to Dream Before the Baltic seaside resort of Svetlogorsk was Svetlogorsk, I mean when it was Rauschen, the promenade, along which smart and well-dressed German ladies and gentlemen walked to be seen, to socialise and to partake\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0412 "VISITOR'S GUIDE to KALININGRAD REGION"","block_context":{"text":"VISITOR'S GUIDE to KALININGRAD REGION","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/category\/visitors-guide-to-kaliningrad-region\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Svetlogorsk Promenade under contsruction","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Promenade-hoarding-with-artists-impression-2.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Promenade-hoarding-with-artists-impression-2.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Promenade-hoarding-with-artists-impression-2.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Promenade-hoarding-with-artists-impression-2.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4053,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/a-gothic-favourite-of-svetlogorsk-revisited\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":3},"title":"A Gothic Favourite of Svetlogorsk Revisited","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"1 \u0438\u044e\u043b\u044f, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Appraising the restoration of an architectural delight Published: 1 July 2021 Back in February 2020, I felt compelled to flag one of my favourite historical buildings in the Baltic resort of Svetlogorsk, the former German town of Rauschen. At the time of writing, this superb example of neo-Gothic architecture was\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0412 "Kaliningrad Region Photo Gallery"","block_context":{"text":"Kaliningrad Region Photo Gallery","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/category\/visitors-guide-to-kaliningrad-region\/kaliningrad-region-photo-gallery\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Gothic Favourite of Svetlogorsk Revisited","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Rauschen-Gothic-House.jpg?fit=1200%2C555&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Rauschen-Gothic-House.jpg?fit=1200%2C555&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Rauschen-Gothic-House.jpg?fit=1200%2C555&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Rauschen-Gothic-House.jpg?fit=1200%2C555&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Rauschen-Gothic-House.jpg?fit=1200%2C555&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3991,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/the-hartman-hotel-svetlogorsk-reviewed-by-mick-hart\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":4},"title":"The Hartman Hotel Svetlogorsk reviewed by Mick Hart","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"27 \u0438\u044e\u043d\u044f, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Willie & Greta Hartmann may still be drinking tea on the hotel terrace ... Published: 27 June 2021 ~ The Hartman Hotel Svetlogorsk reviewed by Mick Hart I often wondered what was going on behind the plastic sheets and scaffolding, which, it seemed to me, had been there for years,\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0412 "Kaliningrad Region's bars, cafes, restaurants, hotels"","block_context":{"text":"Kaliningrad Region's bars, cafes, restaurants, hotels","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/category\/visitors-guide-to-kaliningrad-region\/kaliningrad-regions-bars-cafes-restaurants-hotels\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Hartman Hotel Svetlogorsk","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Add-a-subheading.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Add-a-subheading.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Add-a-subheading.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Add-a-subheading.jpg?fit=864%2C399&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":477,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/svetlogorsk-gothic-rauschen\/","url_meta":{"origin":171,"position":5},"title":"Svetlogorsk Gothic (Rauschen)","author":"Captain Codpiece","date":"5 \u0444\u0435\u0432\u0440\u0430\u043b\u044f, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Rauschen (Svetlogorsk) Gothic Architecture This is one of my all-time favourite buildings in the Kaliningrad region\u2019s coastal resort, Svetlogorsk (German: Rauschen). Without genning up on its history, I would estimate that it dates to around the 1920s and is designed and constructed in a neo-Gothic style. 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