We reached Finland Station and Leningrad at about 9:30 a.m.. Finland Station is famous for being the station through which Lenin returned to Russia from exile in 1916. After disembarking we walked the length of the train to the exit. A green electric locomotive was at the head end. Inside the station, the steam locomotive that powered Lenin's train was on display. Prominently on display outside was a statue of Lenin at the exit. "They have him everywhere" someone said. But I knew the whole story and was sure the statue was there to commemorate the role the station had played in the Revolution. We met our Intourist guide at the entrance to the station. Masha would keep close watch on us during our stay and made sure no one strayed. That as the way it ... read more

The 1975 Los Angeles Geographical Society trip was a memorable month long exploration of Russia and the Balkans, beginning in Finland. Leaving LAX on United to Seattle in the morning, we traveled by a Pan American connection to London Heathrow. There we connected with a British Airways flight to Helsinki. (I'm tall and the BA Trident had a very narrow seat pitch!) It was a very full day of flying. Therefore, we really started seeing Helsinki the following day. First was the Suomenlinna Fortress, seen largely from the harbor in a tour boat. Suomenlinna reflects the history of modern Finland. The fort, overlooking the entrance to Helsinki harbor, was begun by the Swedish administration in 1750. It was expanded during the Russian occupation of Finland in the 19th century to the independence of Finland in 1917. ... read more

The LAGEOS group arrived at Heathrow Airport from Los Angeles. (Valene and Ed came in on a direct BOAC flight from Anchorage. They had been making a film in Alaska.) We transferred to a flight to Shannon Airport on the west coast of Ireland. The tour through Ireland would take us from Shannon to the Cliffs of Moher, then to Limerick, Blarney, Waterford, and Dublin. On our first evening in Ireland, we went to a Medieval Banquet at Knappogue Castle in Quinn, County Clare. Knappogue is an Irish tower house dating to 1467. It was indeed very Medieval looking inside the banquet hall, fashioned in stonework, and heavy wooden tables and bench seats. A hearty dinner was followed by Irish entertainment: a harpist and singers and dancers. Our motorcoach took the group around the west of ... read more

In the summer of 1971 I traveled to Iran with the Los Angeles Geographical Society. A Pan Am flight took us from Los Angeles to London for a connecting BOAC flight on to Tehran. A long flight, but I was very much up for seeing this storied land. Upon leaving Mehrabad Airport for the transfer to downtown Tehran, the first sight to be seen was the then-new Shahyad Tower (now the Azadi Monument) constructed in a large traffic circle. The imposing monument had just been built to commemorate the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire. Certainly it gave the observer the impression of permanence to the Palahvi dynasty. First impressions were of the modernity one encountered in cosmopolitan downtown Tehran. An English-language newspaper carried ads for telephone answering machines. That was cutting edge technology in 1971. ... read more

Oberammergau, Germany, is the location of the famous Passion Play produced every ten years. The tradition began in 1634 in thanksgiving for the town having been spared during the Bubonic Plague. The play is cast and produced entirely by the residents of this Bavarian town. I was fortunate to be able to be there to see the 1970 production of this legendary, and often controversial, dramatic work. In Oberammergau, the townsfolk open their homes to the throngs of visitors coming to see the play. We stayed with a family at their home right in the town. Our homestay family consisted of a mother, father, and teenage daughter, about 17. Dad and daughter were in the play, but not Mom. They kindly provided meals as well as a place to stay. Cast members all had color photo ... read more