[Unstagram] Dosiyi Jibubgwa Sajineui Bakkat

The iron staircase looked shabby compared to the grandeur of the building, a symbol of the city. The blue paint on the stair railing leading to the outdoor dome roof was peeled off and worn shiny black where people’s hands had touched it. It seemed sturdy enough to bear the weight of a person, but too many people were going up and down the narrow stairs that only allowed one person at a time. Both those ascending and descending had to line up and wait for the oncoming procession to clear. Holding onto the railing, climbing the steep stairs, there was a thicker and taller iron railing surrounding the large dome of the cathedral, and inside that was, so to speak, an observation deck. The outdoor space was also crowded with too many people, brushing shoulders with passersby, and every few steps, one had to stop and wait. Still, the city viewed from the tallest building was as elaborate as a symphony and as rugged as jazz. The old, varied rooftops seemed to hide the individual pasts of the buildings and the secrets of the people who had lived there. The endless row of rooftops stretching to the horizon looked like a sea with waves of various sizes rolling in. Beyond that, at the edge of the view, cranes loading and unloading containers onto cargo ships rose abruptly. That was the real sea. The Baltic Sea was hidden behind the sea of rooftops.

St. Petersburg, 2015 ⓒ Heo Yeonghan

Near the bronze-colored iron roof corner surrounding the dome, a young man and woman were leaning against each other. The man was pointing toward the distant sea, expressing a grand future with his body language. To sit on the roof, one had to climb over a railing about chest-high for an adult, and the slanted roof edge had no special protective devices. This was not the first time seeing young couples on the roof in this city. Whether it was a trend to confess love on the roof or because desperate stories required overwhelming scenery, young people frequently climbed onto the roofs. Not far below, a 5-6 story old rectangular building’s rooftop, visible from here, seemed to be a caf? or restaurant. The long folding glass doors dividing the rooftop into indoor and outdoor sections were wide open, and about thirty men and women were mingling inside and outside. Their expressions were hard to distinguish, but it was clear from the distance that they were laughing, chatting, and some were intoxicated. In the courtyard with tall potted trees, five or six ivory-colored parasols stood out, illuminated by the late afternoon sunlight.

St. Petersburg, 2015 ⓒHuh Younghan

On a round table covered with a white tablecloth sat a white three-tiered cake. A woman wearing a voluminous, long ivory wedding dress passed through the glass door and blended with the people outside. Men dressed in black and gray suits and women in wine-colored one-piece dresses and mustard-colored two-piece outfits moved energetically. The exaggerated gestures of the already intoxicated led the laughter of the people, and the music, which was probably jazz originally, was mostly drowned out by the wind and street noise, with only the bass and trumpet sounds occasionally coming through.

St. Petersburg, 2015 ? Heo Yeonghan

A man in a black suit walked out from inside and staggered toward a corner of the rooftop. It was unclear whether he was the groom who got married today, but his suit was slightly loose and his steps seemed sluggish as if wet. There was a space in a corner, not visible from inside and barely noticeable from outside, where a few people could stand and smoke. A concrete railing about one meter high surrounded the rooftop. The man, who had been standing briefly in the corner, struggled to steady his swaying body and climbed onto the railing. The top of the railing was about the width of two feet. He took a cigarette from a pack in his pants pocket, put it in his mouth, and threw the pack into the air. The pack did not fly far. He tried to light the cigarette with both hands cupped around it, but the wind made it difficult to ignite. After shaking the lighter two or three times, he lit it again. He swayed back and forth, exhaling a long stream of smoke into the air. After staring at the sky for a while, he turned his head to look briefly at the people, then took a deep, long drag, arching his back as if exerting great effort. Then he exhaled an even longer stream of smoke into the air.

Peterhof, 2015, ? Heo Yeonghan

His exhale was so long it seemed as if he wanted to vomit his insides. The smoke did not travel far and dispersed in the light wind.

The music had stopped. I raised the camera.

St. Petersburg, 2015 ⓒ Heo Yeonghan

The sea of rooftops was visible.

From the outside of the photo, dark clouds filled the sky like an oil painting.

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