The highlight of my summer in St. Petersburg was volunteering at the Hermitage. There were so many different people there and all of them were absolutely amazing. How could they not be? They are Hermitage volunteers!!!! Volunteers pointed out that some Russians do not understand the concept of working for free. But volunteers at the Hermitage work for free and they work hard. Volunteering at the Hermitage is not a cakewalk because the Service is the catch-net for the entire museum. They pick up all of the work that the other departments are not able to do. The tasks, may not be very difficult, but what is difficult is to be given the assignment at the last minute and sometimes without all of the details. The head coordinator of the Volunteer Service is always in a frenzy, which can be intimidating for a new volunteer. However, after a while, most volunteers realize that the key to finding one's niche in the Volunteer Service is by being creative, taking initiative and actively participating. That is the only way to enjoy the service. Another great thing is that most of the volunteers are around the same age. We hung out together at the Hermitage and in our spare time. The Volunteer Service is the probably one of the best ways to meet good friends with many different interests. All of the volunteers are very unique people, who do not mind sacrificing their time in order to help out at the Hermitage. I respect those people tremendously and I will miss them all. I suggest joining the Volunteer Service to anyone who will be spending time in St. Petersburg!