Blogs from Saint Petersburg, Northwest, Russia, Europe - page 61

Hi all Yesterday I took the train from Helsinki to St Petersburgh. When I arrived, the helpful woman at the train station suggested I take the metro into the city. Now that is an experience.. very few people speak English, there are 33 letters in the Russian alphabet.. it was an adventure ensuring I was going the right direction first of all and then to get off at the right stop.. well I made it with surprisingly few problems.. really Today was busy busy as my time here is short.. I went to Palace Square and into the Hermitage.. or Winter Palace. It was so amazing.. the rooms were absolutely beautiful. I was thrilled.. The gold covered banquet room, the throne room, all of the rooms were just awesome. AND the art.. I LOVE Picasso and ... read more

It's been a while since you heard from us, but cheap and affordable internet has been hard to come by. We are now in Salzburg, but must tell you about our trip to St Petersburg first. We flew from London, Heathrow direct to St Pburg with BA. A short trip, about 3.5hrs. The airport at St Pburg is a bit like landing at a country strip in the 70's, but none the less has all the functional bits required. No dramas at passport control, so off to get the bags and meet our driver. Maree is a young university graduate who studied languages and ancient history - hence an excellent tour guide. Her english is very good and her knowledge of all things Russian (and indeed greater Europe) is exceptional. We were dropped off at our ... read more

Technically I count it as yesterday as I'm not here the whole day- leaving at 12.30 for the airport. Yesterday I headed out with Sr. from the church and a couple of the youth and this nice fellow Sr. got to drive us as the priest's car was broken down. So we spent four hours driving trying to find this dacha (country house) that was donated to the church. One of the girls told me when the priest drives it takes 2 (probably because he knows the way, and probably also because this man driving us was probably the most cautious driver in the entire country). The whole experience was quite comical. We asked directions often, and turned around a few times. The last time we got stuck in the mud, though it only took us ... read more

I have not posted in so long! I'm so sorry. The past couple days I've actually not been feeling well, but before that I have no excuse whatsoever! Thanks again to all readers- it's nice to be able to let people know what I'm up to, and thanks, Greg. Nice to meet you. I must admit my only experience with Chicago was a layover in O'Hare last February, lol. I must say, I'm a bit proud I showed up on google.. kinda lol. So what have I done since my last diary entry? A fair bit, I tell you! I was going to try to update from the Hermitage because they have an internet cafe there but it's actually not that good.. quite frustrating, in fact. I was going to be all spiffy and say "Live ... read more

Man, am I good at titles or what? Hehe just kidding... I just can't be that inventive with them on a regular basis. So, the long promised account of the Museum of Government History (I think that's the name). This museum is in the Petrogradsky Region, which is the larger island 'cradling' the island of Petropavlovskaya Krepost (Peter and Paul Fortress). Originally, it was the mansion home of a ballerina, built for her by her lover. In revolutionary times, it was the Bolshevik Headquarters (I think they significantly expanded it). It has great displays on Soviet government and leaders. The way you move about the museum is rather reminiscent of Soviet bureaucracy as I understand it. :) You walk to a grand staircase, buy your ticket to the right of it, go downstairs to drop off ... read more