Travel

[World Traveler]

@lulu2 The local guide talked about Finlandia, but did not play it. That would have been really cool! Lucky you. 

Having your flooded would be horrible. YUK! This bathroom has three separate compartments with drains in each section (shower, vanity area, toilet area). If my room gets flooded, it would be a real shocker with that many outlets for water to go! Ha! Actually, it is the nicest bathroom I have ever had on any cruise ship, including those humongous ones like Norwegian.

[itsmagic]

I forgot to say that when we took a cruise around the Hawaiian Islands I also loved watching the ship coming in and out of port with the tiny tug boats pushing a huge ship.   Since we cruised all night and came into port in the early morning I would be up and out on deck watching it all.  

[World Traveler]

Tuesday - July 18 - St. Petersburg, Russia

We arrived early this morning at St. Petersburg. What a beautiful sight it was! The buildings are quite ornate and lots of interesting architecture is seen.

St. Petersburg, founded as the new capital of the Russian Empire more than 300 years ago, was the vision and creation of Tsar Peter I, who named it after his patron saint. This beautiful city, covering 150 square miles, is a combination of both European and Russian styles, with elements of East and West. Pushkin called this city "Peter the Great's Window to the 

With more than 40 picturesque islands, 60-plus canals, and hundreds of lovely bridges, St. Petersburg is considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

After breakfast, we took a panoramic city tour, and I learned that in order to maintain the old feel of the majority of the structures, anyone putting up a new building must be sure it fits in and looks like the other buildings. There can be no glass buildings or all metal.

We visited St. Isaac’s Cathedral. The largest church in the city, it was originally built to serve as the main church of the Russian Empire. The dome of the cathedral, which dominates the city’s skyline, is gilded with more than 200 pounds of gold, and the interior is elaborately decorated with exquisite mosaics, icons, malachite, and lapis lazuli.

This grand church can seat 14,000 worshippers. Although the church was closed after the 1917 Revolution, it reopened as a museum in 1931, and services for worshippers resumed in 1990.

While we were there, a male group of around 15 stood in the center of the church (the best place as far as acoustics is concerned) and sang acapella. It was so beautiful. I understand that the church will allow this during visitation time if you are respectful. I did notice that a church official told them to stop after they sang two songs, so they control it somewhat.

After a light lunch at a local restaurant (beef stroganoff and potatoes, along with borscht), we continued exploring St. Petersburg, with a visit to the Hermitage Museum. Formerly known as the Winter Palace and home of the tsars, today this is one of the most splendid museums in the world.

Built by the Empress Elizabeth, daughter of Peter I, the palace became part of the Hermitage, originated in 1764 when Catherine the Great began her private art collection. Today, more than 1,000 lavishly adorned rooms house nearly three million exhibits and displays representing some of the world’s greatest art from ancient Egypt to early 20th-century Europe.

Tonight, our onboard dinner was the following asparagus soup, Zakuski appetizers (stuffed egg, beet root salad, herring canapés, caviar, tatar of smoked and fresh salmon), rostegai (traditional home stuffed rolls with potatoes, cabbage, and cheese), chicken Kiev, teftelli (traditional meat balls from beef and veal), buttered fried fish, and traditional moose stew.

Evidently buckwheat is a favorite side dish in Russia. I tried it and found it very good. Dessert was sirniki (cheese fritters on strawberry ragout), korkunov (chocolate and nut cake), and banoffee cake (homemade banana-caramel-cream cake served with ice cream).

Some of our group went this evening to a folk show at Nikolayevsky Palace, enjoying live music, dancing, and games in a 19th-century setting. Constructed for Duke Nikolay in the mid-1800s, the ornately classical Nikolayevsky Palace now serves to welcome visitors to St. Petersburg. The folk show, performed in the palace theater, is a mix of traditional song and dance from across Russia, topped off by demonstrations of local musical instruments and games.

Some of the things I learned:

• Russia's life expectancy is 72 for women and 62 for men.
• The currency is rubles, so I made yet another change in money I carry around.
• They have a 13% flat tax rate.
• Retired people do not have to pay taxes.
• 5.4% are unemployed.
• The lowest income in dollars is $1,114/yr; the highest is 25 million.
• The average pension is $200/mo.
• The main religion is Orthodox Christianity.
• Russia's poor people have a daily grind of survival and spend hours each day selling their belongings or other goods on the street.
• American-style products and pastimes are popular, especially in large cities.
• Watching TV and movies is a popular form of entertainment. The shows now include Western-style programs, such as game shows and soap operas.
• Reading Russian classics have lost ground to detective novels, pulp fiction, science fiction, and romance novels.
• Chess and soccer are popular sports.
• Concerts by Western music groups have become commonplace in the large cities.
• Russian pop groups try to emulate Western styles.
• Many urban Russians spend weekends at their dacha (summer house) in the countryside.
• Average dacha is only a simple shack and sits on a very small plot of land.
• Most dacha owners have gardens on their summer plots, where they grow vegetables and fruits to supplement their diets.
• Travel is popular for those who can afford it.
• During the Soviet period, the government strictly controlled travel, limiting it to destinations primarily in Eastern Europe and other communist countries.
• Turkey and Cyprus are now popular destinations among the middle class.
• Ethnic foods from around the world are now widely available, including Mexican and Chinese.
• Their breakfast is called zavtrak and typically includes kasha (porridge or other cereals) served with milk and sugar, or plain eggs, fried or boiled.
• Lunch is called obed and is often the main meal of the day. It begins with soup, such as borscht, which is made from cabbage and beets, and is served with sour cream and garlic. It might also begin with zakuski (appetizers).
• The evening meal is called uzhin and may be light, just salads and fruit.

The view from my cabin.

 

 Inside the Hermitage

[lulu2]

@World Traveler

I so enjoyed today's travel chapter as I loved St. Petersburg.  The palaces rival others anywhere else, including Versailles. We spent only 3 days there but must have seen about 10 weddings, both at churches or having pictures taken in the gardens of the palaces. We heard groups perform in St. Isaac's too.

I do not know how long you are docked but one of the places that made the most indelible impression was a World War II memorial. (it was under a main road)  I remember sobbing uncontrollably when we heard the stories of what the people in city endured.  There was literally no food and people starved to death. (I remember the guide telling us, women endured starvation because they are more apt to have stored fat on their bodies)

On a lighter note, I am a figure skating fan and we visited the facility where many of Russia's top skaters train.  We saw a few of the big names practicing.

Continue to enjoy and report.

[SANNA]

Thank you for posting!!!!! I haven't seen these views for 30 years!!!!!

[World Traveler]

@SANNA I would post more photos, but because of the way I have to work around the photo posting problem with my camera, it just takes more time.   

Am attaching something different now. These are fighter planes that were flying over our ship a lot yesterday and when I opened my window this morning, I saw the two boats with guns. I always thought we were not supposed to take photos of military stuff, but there they were right by me, so...........

If this is the last post you see from me, you will know why! I may be in detention. 

[JudyL]

@World Traveler

That blue cammo ship would go nicely with my blue cammo bag from LUG!  HAHA

[World Traveler]

@JudyL LOL!!!!!! Actually, I thought it would blend in well with my confetti blue Ace! Guess it is supposed to make it less easy to find them in water. 

[World Traveler]

Wednesday, July 19 - St. Petersburg - Peterhof

I was very much looking forward to today. The Hermitage yesterday was beautiful and packed with people, like always. But I remembered how much I enjoyed Peterhof the last time I was in Russia.

Rain was predicted for the day and I was afraid I would not get any good outside photos. But it was nice and sunny when I went to breakfast, so there was always hope that the weather forecast was dead wrong, which it was. It turned out to be the best possible weather. The temperature was 61 today and 51 last night.

Breakfast is always full of the usual and many new things. I particularly like oatmeal at home, but here it is kasha. The warm porridge is the perfect dish for Russia's cold winter months. Unlike American oatmeal, this porridge is made from buckwheat. Kasha is a popular breakfast dish, and they sometimes enjoy it as a side dish for lunch and dinner. I was surprised to know that in ancient text there is mention of this porridge, which was used as a peace offering between a former Russian prince and Turkish invaders.

After breakfast, we all headed off to Peterhof (which means Peter's yard in German), which is the magnificent summer residence of Russian royalty and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In 1714 Peter the Great asked for a "Versailles by the Sea," and the site evolved into a stunning palace on top of the hill surrounding a park. There are so many things to see and the Grand Cascade (an extraordinary fountain ensemble made up of three waterfalls, nearly 160 fountains shooting more than 2,000 jets of water, and a myriad of statues and sculptures) is the best part in my opinion.

Of course, the inside of the palace was magnificent; however, no photos were allowed. So many things are solid gold or gold leaf and just stunning to see. Lots and lots of mirrors, so that made it even better.

One of the advantages of going on a group tour is like today when we were allowed to go into the palace before the general public went. It is not just any group of such-and-such amount of people. The company I usually travel with is one of the few that is allowed to do the early tour. So, when there were lines and lines of people standing outside waiting to get in, our four groups were allowed in first.

As we went from room to room, the most that was in a room was two of our groups and no one else. The last time I was there, it was almost impossible to see anything because of the heads of so many people in your way. This was wonderful to have it where we could easily walk around and not feel people up against us all the time. The guards in the palace, however, did keep us moving, so we could not spend too much extra time in each room.

After going inside, we spent quite a bit of time going over the grounds, which are huge. The place employs 500 gardeners! At noon you can hear the music start up and know that the water fountains of the Grand Cascade will be turned on. Until then, they are not turned on. So many people crowd around the Cascade for a great photo, but our guide was smart and told us to wait until after seeing all the other gardens, then come back when most of the crowd will have left. And that we did; she was right.

After the visit to Peterhof, we had lunch in what looks like a mini palace summer house. The walls and ceilings were almost as grand as the palace. From there we had several choices.....go back to the ship, go see the Faberge eggs (only six remaining in Russia), a couple of museums, go into town on your own, etc.

I was going to give you some Russian words, like how to say hello, welcome, good morning, etc., but that is really hard to do. Except for yes (dah) and no (nyet), it is difficult for me to pronounce, much less try to convey the words.

I believe the alphabet is referred to as Cyrillic, named after the 9th century Byzantine missionary St. Cyril, who created the first Slavic alphabet in order to translate Greek religious text to Slavic. It has gone thru many reforms in both Russia and other countries. The symbols are probably on my iPad; however, I wouldn't know if I was spelling any of the words correctly, and you probably wouldn't either!

Tonight's dinner had some more new things I have not tried. Blinis are thin, flat pancakes prepared from batter and cooked on a hot frying pan. Tonight they were served with salmon inside them. We also had zeleny borsch, which is traditional beet soup with vegetables and sorrel. Our main course was beef tenderloin, pan fried fillet of John Dory (some kind of fish, I guess), breaded mushrooms, and pasta bolognese. Dessert, my favorite part of any meal, was pavlova (meringue with whipped cream and fresh fruit; and yes, it was inspired by and made in honor of the ballerina, Anna Pavlova), ice cream with cognac raisins, and the always present fresh fruit plate and cheese plate.

Did you know that Russians are very superstitious? Although most people will laugh if you ask them about superstitions, we don't like it when a black cat crosses our path or we probably avoid walking under a ladder on the street. So here are some interesting Russian superstitions:

Good Luck
It is good luck to break a dish.
If a fly gets in your soup, you will get a gift or a treat.
It is good luck to see a pig in the street.
It is good luck to meet a funeral procession coming towards you.

Bad Luck
If a black cat crosses your path, it is bad luck. In this case a Russian turns back or spits three times over his right shoulder (however, in Anglo Saxon culture, it is good luck!)
If you meet a woman carrying an empty bucket walking towards you, it is bad luck.
If you spill salt, there will be a fight in the house unless you throw three pinches over your left shoulder immediately.
If you break a mirror, it is bad luck; do not look into a broken mirror.
If a bird comes into the house thru an open window, you will have bad news.
Never light a cigarette from a candle; it will bring you bad luck.

To Do or Not to Do

Do not whistle in your own house. If you do, you will not have any money.
Do not give sharp things, like knives or scissors, because they can be used to injure someone.
If you get an animal, like a kitten or dog, as a present you should give a kopeck (token sum of money) for it.
Do not greet anyone or say goodbye to anyone over the threshold. If you do, you will have a fight.
If you give flowers to someone, always give an odd number (three, five, etc.). An even number of flowers is given to a dead person at a funeral.
Do not celebrate your birthday in advance of the actual date; you might not make it!
Do not return into the house once you have started on your way from it. But if you have to, then look into a mirror; otherwise, you will have a bad journey.
Unmarried people should not sit at the corner of the table. If they do, they will not marry in the next seven year.
Do not boast about your future success. It may bring bad luck. It is safer to sound pessimistic even when you are sure of success. If you cannot help yourself after saying something like "Next month I will get a promotion," then spit three times over your left shoulder.
Never buy or accept as gifts baby clothes, shoes, toys, furniture, etc., before the baby is born. When you see an excited man buying baby clothes, don't be surprised. Most probably, he became a father that day!
Refusing to drink vodka at a funeral banquet is absolutely unacceptable.
Shaking hands while wearing gloves is simply impossible. You should always remove your glove from the right hand before a handshake, even when it is very cold. Actually, in Russia no one will shake your hand if you don't remove a glove.

General Superstitions
If you sneeze while saying something, you are telling the truth.
If a fork or a spoon falls on the floor, you will shortly be visited by a woman, because in Russia a fork and spoon are feminine. But if a knife falls down, you will be visited by a man because a knife is masculine.
If the right eye is itching, you will be laughing; the left one, you will be crying.
An eyelash coming out means you will receive a gift.
If your lips are itching, you will soon be kissing.
If it rains at a wedding, the newlyweds will be rich (good news for those who live in England!).
Russians never leave empty bottles or keys on the table; it means an empty house.

We are leaving St. Petersburg tonight and heading towards the country of Estonia with a stop at Tallinn. We had a port talk on Tallinn and I am looking forward to going to this country I have never seen before.

[World Traveler]

What Russian written language looks like. 

Waitress in mini Peterhof palace lunch room.