Today we briefly drove through St Petersburg and headed for the countryside town of Pushkin. We visited the magnificent Catherine's Palace (also called the Summer Palace) named after Catherine the Great, restored over the last 40 years to its original splendor. We saw ceilings decorated with paintings by Italian artists of the 17th and 18th centuries. We saw many decorative plates and vases of Japanese and Chinese porcelain. The magnificent Grand Hall (Throne room) is a gilded wonder with a spectacular painted ceiling and mirrored walls that are breathtakingly beautiful. Above all, we saw the outrageously beautiful Amber Room - a brillant and painstaking re-creation built in semi precious stone by Russian craftsmen after the original panels were stolen by the Nazis during World War II. This museum visit was much better managed for crowd control ... read more

We start with an expert led overview of Helsinki, taking in the historical center, Finlandia Hall and the opera house. See the Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral, Presidential Palace and enjoy brief stops at Senate Square, Sibelius Monument and the Rock Church. Dorothy Williams, of our group, had brought three white roses to leave as a memorial at the Sibelius Monument, and a group of us gathered around her and all sang the beginning notes of Sibelius's Finlandia. Other tourists took pictures of us memorializing Sibelius. It was very touching. We had a lovely lunch at a formerly Romanov renovated estate near Porvo. The stuffed zuchinni primavera was delicious. The estate was a beautiful setting. After lunch, we drove into Porvo, an old wooden town with medieval cobble stone streets, outside of Helsinki. It was fun to walk ... read more

Our first stop in Copenhagen was at the Little Mermaid. A photo opportunity for us and three other tour buses. So getting a clear picture of the statue was quite a feat, with all the people jockeying for position. Then we were quickly back on the coach for a visual tour passing famous Tivoli Gardens, Town Hall square and NY Carlsberg Glyptotek. Next we passed the world's oldest Royal Stock Exchange, the Naval Church and Nyhavn, with it's noisy outdoor cafes and trendy restaurants. Our next stop was a guided visit to the Royal Reception Rooms and Parliament Chambers at Christiansborg Palace.We saw beautifully decorated rooms and impressive chambers and learned all about the Royal Family of Denmark. After a wonderful lunch at a local restaurant called Casiopiea, we visited the Nationalmuseet, the Danish National Museum, ... read more

Today is our first "at sea day" and we begin with our Road Scholar Lecture series by Kristof Kristiansen. Kristof is a Danish teacher, scholar and international policy expert who has worked with Elderhostel/Road Scholar groups for over a decade. Our morning lecture is ✳Holland and the countries around the Baltic Sea - basic facts and contemporary challenges✳ and our afternoon lecture is ✳From Bruges to Tallinn - Hanseatic trade relations and political conflicts in the Baltic✳ We enjoyed both lectures and spent the rest of the time exploring the ship and getting aquainted with the ship's daily schedule. Laurieanne had arranged for our very own Cocktail party so we all gathered in formal dress (stated dress code) before dinner. It was great to see everyone "all dressed up".... read more

Our excursions today started with learning about Amsterdam's History while we viewed, from our coach, the Royal Palace, the National Monument at Dam Square, and one of Amsterdam's windmills. Then we visited the Albert Cuyp Markets, Europe's biggest day market. Then John and I chose to have lunch in Remberant Square at the Opera Restaurant near the hotel. It was a sunny day and we had time to walk around and do a little shopping. For Dinner we rejoined our group and had a nice meal at a local restaurant, Haesse Clees. Again we were all glad to go to bed and sleep. ... read more