A recently retired couple I know have been called there. I haven't found out too much online at lds.org--they tend to lump the Russian missions together.
My former brother-in-law served in Russia recently. I believe he was in the Moscow mission however. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary for their zone, he was treated well and while he did lose a bit of weight while he was there he wasn't like emaciated by any means. I've seen some mishies come back looking just scarily thin. The people they would teach didn't have much of their own, but they were always willing to feed and entertain the mishies. He seemed to get a lot of meals from the branch members and locals.
Their MP seemed like a reasonable human being. My ex BIL always talked in his emails about some pretty fun P-Day activities, their rules didn't seem too strict.
All-in-all I got a very positive impression of it. He was a bit overwhelmed by the language and culture in the beginning, but it didn't take him long to acclimate. His companions always seemed nice too.
I don't know about the LDS Inc activities in St.P., but I've been there a few times. It can get VERY cold in the winter - I've been there when it was -25 degrees Celcius. Dress warm. Most of The women wear fur (which would piss off any PETA members who might go there).
my bro went to Rustov on his mission. he won't hardly talk about it so i don't know much. i do know that he was told specifically to purchase cold weather clothes in Russia, they would be warmer & cheaper. he got the info from his mission packet. he did purchase his coat, hat, etc in Russia and he said it worked out great. he's also mentioned rampant drug use secondary to poverty and despair but he barely will mention his mission, won't hardly use his Russian at all...i sometimes wonder what the hell happened out there or if he's secretly a NOM...
bro didnt get any thinner, he's always been a beanpole. couldnt gain weight if he tried. he & his comps prepared all their meals they werent allowed to eat at member homes after a large number of missionaries had gotten very sick over the years, so they bought & cooked their food. he said the food is very cheap and they ate steak, pork chops, fancy cheeses for very little.
Yes. The cold weather is insane. The future mishy will have much better luck getting warm hats and gloves in Russia for a much cheaper price.
My ex BIL brought back some pretty killer souvenirs for the family too. He was able to get a ton of stuff for very little money. I still have two of the pretty scarves he brought back for me. He brought back one of those fur-lined hats for my son too. Lots of neat stuff for practically nothing.