Cruise to Europe Conclusion

Arrived home safely after two days of travel. I am not going to make a scrap book of the trip, so I am enhancing verbiage and adding pictures to the blogs. It was a whirlwind tour, so this is helping me remember what we did and where! We want to return to see some places in depth. but are glad our first Europe experience was a "sampler".

Oslo, Norway

Lots to see in this wonderful city. This was our second time here and we stayed in the waterfront area. The opera house was a marvel of modern design. We visited the Resistance Museum, which was enlightening. My history lessons addressed WWII, but not the role of the resistance in any detail. The Norwegian resistance efforts were awesome.

We enjoyed walking in the sunshine through an old castle/fortress. I am so ready for summer after this wet and cold spring.

Sailing out through the fiords was wonderful. We sat on the stern in the sunshine with a bottle of champagne and a quiet dinner alfresco.

With all the islands, there are many lighthouses to see. We weren't able to identify the lights at the time, but since we came home, Don has identified most of the lights. They were manned to this day, well used and had charming cottages and docks. Most of the islands in the fiords of Scandanavia have summer houses accessible by boat.

The empty chairs on the street are in honor of the Norwegian Jews that did not return after WWII.

Arhaus, Denmark

Sunday is not just another day in most of Europe. Most shops are closed. Old churches that you can tour on other days are busy with services. We walked to the Botanical Gardens, visited a windmill and sat in the sun, listening to birds, admiring the roses and recharging our personal batteries. I must be ready to go home. I took very few photos today. Architecture held no excitement and neither did steak and lobster for dinner.

We watched the pilot boat get the harbor pilot off the ship ahead of us and then retreive our pilot during a glorious sunset.

If there is one problem with cruising, it would be the perceived loss of space/time. We go to bed at night and the next morning we are in another town. Although this allows us to see many places effortlessly, since we have no perception of travel, it is hard to remember where we are and where we have been. But, when weighed against not having to pack and waste days getting from here to there, I'll keep writing a journal or blog to help me remember! :-)

Warnemunde/Rostock Germany

Finally summer may be coming and only three stops left. Even the locals are complaining about the cold, wet spring. We keep washing the only warm clothes we brought, but today we could wear shorts comfortably.

We took a boat into Rostock and walked the town. Interesting brick shoes on the walk outside a shoe store. School must be out since there were plenty of kids everywhere.

We were charmed by the wall of bells above an open air resturant on the pedestrian plaza. They played lovely music at regular intervals that we enjoyed as we passed this intersection several times.
The old town is protected by eleven huge gates and four remain. Different architecture here with half-timbered houses and not as much gothic/renaissance influence. Great modern uses of cobblestones and pavers. I will miss the cobblestones (old and new) and intricate pavers of Europe.

When we returned to Warnemunde, we walked out through a quaint quay-side area to the three lighthouses which signal the entrance to Rostock/Warnemunde harbors. From the top of the lighthouse we could see the beach with lines of beach chairs, umbrellas and people. You would have thought it was Florida!! We miss hearing from friends and family.

Stockholm

This is our second stop and third day here. We were at a different dock, so we saw different things and didn’t have far to travel. Lovely buildings all along the water. Nothing new, just the stately, historic design that is common in the cities we have visited.

We were able to visit two lightships.

One had an underwater bell.

The Vasa Museum was amazing. It was the best single subject museum we have ever seen. The Vasa was a Swedish ship that was to be the jewel of the shipping fleet. It sank on the initial sail. After being on the bottom of the bay for 333 years, it was recovered. The many displays are comprehensive and far reaching. The bones of 25 people were recovered and their life histories are detailed from clothes worn, location found, birth defects, evidence of breaks and malnutrition; and mineral content of teeth and bones. There is one skull showing how facial reconstruction is done using the skull bones. The build up of clay muscles and skin and the markers used was fascinating. The busts of all 25 people are seen dressed in period costume. The recovery effort is detailed as well as the continuing efforts to preserve the ship.

I had to pose with one of the wooden statues. She looks like she is singing and needed a partner.

The carvings from the inside of the ship were recovered and are extensive and restored in wonderful detail. There is a great interactive computer simulation you can use to redesign/reload the ship to make it more stable. Don’s ship sank. I got a citation from the King on my redesign although he encouraged me to include more cannons. Fun stuff.

Helsinki, Finland

We are now headed west, so are recovering the hours of sleep we lost as we traveled east. Yeh. We were up early and wandered the city. It was a respite after the crush of the last few days. I was able to sit in a beautiful Russian Orthodox church and listened to the music in a hushed and relaxed atmosphere and appreciate the grandeur of the place. The icons were gorgeous.

We walked the harbor, the market square, parliament square with wonderful statues and visited a lightship. The rail and bus stations were grand and the oldest house in town is a museum we were able to visit. There are beautiful long park blocks, squares and churches. Things here are almost as expensive as Oslo and Stockholm. We got turned around a bit and were approached twice by helpful souls who directed us. Most people in the Scandanavian countries know at least three languages and are highly educated.

Lots of bikes again with wonderful bike lanes and a great public transportation system. This is a typical stoop. Lots of carved granite or brick and lovely porches or statues. The cobblestone walks were lovely. You can feel history as you walk through town but the people are genuine.

St Petersburg, Russia

Russia may be changing, but there is still a weird sense of Big Brother watching. Long lines for immigration, sour faced officials, and RULES. No wandering around. You must stay with your tour – no deviations – having to pay for the right to take pictures in the buildings. On the first day our bus was stopped for no apparent reason and the driver collected dozens of papers to show the police officer. The tour guide mentioned the officers are known for extortion and bribery. They didn’t tell us the outcome, but after about 20 minutes, we finally continued on. The bus driver was very upset and muttering as he got back on the bus. The places we visited were exquisite. WAY over the top in opulence. No wonder the people rebelled against the upper class. Catherine's Palace had dozens of huge rooms and most were like the pictures above done in gold leaf and carvings. You can see the many golden doorways above the heads of the crowds in the picture above. The amber room was spectacular with the walls covered with intricate designs made of different shades of amber.

Peterhof had variety of styles but all done with opulence. I liked the room from China with jade, silk, carvings, laquer furniture and all the accessories. The grounds and fountains were spectcular. We had to wear shoe covers in both palaces to protect the beautiful inlaid floors.

There was even a lighthouse built here so the czar could find the palace by sea.

The Church on Spilled Blood was my favorite. I wish we had more time there or with less people. We were packed shoulder to shoulder as we constantly moved through the church. It was hard to get photos or even to appreciate what you were seeing inside. The architecture with the onion domes was exquisite and the mosaics covering the walls and celings inside were stellar and mostly original. Many of the palaces have been restored because of damage during the war. Since the mosaics in the church were not easily removed and it was not bombed, 92% survived intact. The blue and gold piture of Jesus above is just a small section of the stunning ceiling.

We visited with a local street seller when we were standing in one of the many lines. He was selling French language books to Canadians and Spanish books to Californians and Floridians. He had a great patter. Other than that, we were just herded, shoulder to shoulder with the masses of people and treated like cattle. Although the tour people were nice, there were no personal interactions, just strictly business.

We took a hydrofoil ride from Peterhof into the city. It is known as the "Venice of the north" and had many lovely canals. The metal railings on the bridges was exquisite and every bridge was different.

The Rostral Columns were two lighthouses flanking the river and had the forcastles of ships for decoration. Definately different.

This is a typical apartment building in the city. Although we didn't go in, they appeared devoid of any architectural appeal or charm. We were told there are waiting lists to get basic housing such as this and there will typically be many people and multiple generations per unit. This was in stark contract to the large amount of expensive cars driven by burly, suited men made you wonder if they make money legitimately or are part of the extorcian racket that appears to be prevalent. Those men were frightening. Russia was, and is still a study in contrasts.

We were there on Sunday and parked across from a wedding chapel. We caught a picture of a nervous bride and her bridesmaid outside for a smoke. It saddened me to see so many people smoking.

The nights are very short here. It feels odd to watch the sunset at 11:30 PM. This time of year is called “white nights”. The sun sets for such a short time, it never really gets dark and we won’t be able to see the Northern Lights.

We didn't have time to see the Hermitage but saw the lovely buildings and heard that the displays were exquisite.

Tallinn Estonia

What a great old city built on a hill top. We entered the walled section through this tunnel. However, we made tracks off the top when I heard thunder and the wind starting howling. Thankfully, the storm stayed to the north so we could enjoy the day. The oldest section retains the old walls, narrow alleys with steps, buildings and character.

We saw a gorgeous onion dome Russian Orthodox Church as we walked all over enjoying the architecture and visiting quaint stalls and shops.

Lovely woolen and linen goods and of course, amber. Street vendors and shops were numerous and varied.

I especially liked the girl on a modfied bike selling drinks at the top of the hill. Vendors in Old Town dressed in costume.

You could get a smashed penny, but here it was done by hand.

Sleek, modern pedi cabs were available to take you through the narrow, winding and steep streets. The camera got a work out today.

I loved the street dedicated to booths of knitted goods and another with more than a dozen flower stalls. I bought a linin-cotton knit sweater and am sorry I didn't get several woolen ones.

Looking out over the rooftops from the top of old town was stunning and the market square was delightful.

As we spoke to the Estonian people, we were amazed at the depth of dislike for the ethnic Russian Estonians. When Russia first took over Estonia, 30% of Estonians were moved to various places in Russia (Siberia) and same number of Russians brought to Estonia. It seems they have maintained separate schools, culture and social groups and to this day, generations later, they still speak Russian and are not integrated into the community by choice.

Finally the coughs and colds are getting better. Back on ship we were able to retain our Wine Trivia title on the ship for the third time.