A detailed descriptive journey by a fascinating woman: Russia Through The Stereoscope A Journey Across The Land Of The Land Of The Czar From Finland To The Black Sea (1901) Personally Conducted by the Author Mabel.Sarah Emery (born 1858). An excerpt on the Alexander Palace:
Not far from Peterhof is another summer resort of the imperial family, Tsarskoe Selo (The Czar's Village). It has been a favorite retreat of city people ever since the beginnings of life in St. Petersburg. The little town is only fifteen miles from the metropolis, and the fact that the imperial family spend some time here every year attracts each season a large colony of summer residents and a troop of summer visitors. There are two especially interesting palaces at Tsarskoe Selo, belonging to the royal family. We shall see both of them.
Again we must have recourse to the map "Environs of St. Petersburg." There we find Tsarskoe Selo about fifteen miles south of the main city.
40. The Alexander Palace, Tsarskoe Selo.
We come in sight of one of these palaces, the Alexander Palace, as we cross the Lesser Garden of the Imperial Park. It certainly looks like a delightful house, and it is no wonder
the great Alexander was so fond of it. They say he used to live very simply here, with little show or state. One day in his time an English lady was walking down this path where we are now, when two dogs that were being exercised by a gentleman near by ran up to her with doggish curiosity ; she was frightened, and their owner, seeing this, called them off and apologized to her for their bad manners. He seemed a very kindly and agreeable person, so the Englishwoman, being anxious to see all the sights intelligently, asked him all sorts of questions about the palace and the different pavilions and monuments in the grounds. " But most of all," she confided to him, " I want to see the Emperor. Where do you suppose I could catch a glimpse of him? "" Oh, you will very likely see him around here somewhere," her guide assured her. " He often walks here." She passed on and later met an officer, to whom she repeated her question about the
Emperor. "That was the Emperor himself, madam," said the officer, "the gentleman with the dogs."
The same simplicity and hospitality are still kept up in this lovely, rambling park. These little folks sitting on the bank are children of the people, and this park is practically a free, open playground for them and such as they, with boats and swings and all sorts of out-of-door games freely at their command. The privilege does not seem to be abused either, for these embryo Russians, while they love to romp and run like human children the world over, seem to have naturally gentler manners than our young Americans, and can be trusted to keep out of uncouth pranks and destructive mischief.
The young Grand Dukes and Grand Duchesses have their fun here, too. The Duchess of Edinburgh, Victoria's daughter-in-law, is an aunt of the present Czar Nicholas. When she was a little girl the size of our shy friend here on the grass, she used to play about here with her dolls. She and her brothers planted a good many of the willows that grow so abundantly alongside the water-courses (is not that a beautiful tree growing out over the water?) ; for they had the pretty custom of setting out the pussy-willow twigs that were given to them at church every Palm Sunday.
http://www.archive.org/details/russiathroughthe010215mbpJoanna
