Faberge Eggs and Nesting Dolls Great photos of the Faberge Eggs and the explained history of each! I remember seeing a small exhibit of some in London decades ago as I recall and they were fabulous. Sometimes I think the souvenirs you buy in haste (having to rush back to the bus or your ship) turn out to be some of the best and most memorable just like your Matryoshka Doll! One of my favorite souvenirs is a set of 3 carved stone animals (llama, vicuna & alpaca) a woman from Peru begged me to buy as I was rushing onto the bus!
At least you were not the last person on the bus! The Russian doll smiling at me daily ensures my memories of the Faberge Museum and the story how I got her will never fade. The twists and turns is what makes it so much fun travelling as you know Bob. It is how we handle them that makes the man. Reminds me how you twisted your ankle on day one of your Camino walk and you kept going. I guess that event means of the zillions of travels you have done the Camino will remain with you forever. Somewhat less significant but the doll has done that for me. And as you know I love a good story.
I had to pinch myself to realise it wasn’t a dream Hello David & Denise,
Oh I must agree - The Hermitage was certainly a highlight of the trip. I had to pinch myself to realise it wasn’t a dream.
Many thanks for the wonderful shots as a reminder of the beauty of such talent & breathtaking works of art. We were just so lucky to be there & I will never forget the experience.
Have a great Christmas & enjoy the holiday season. Many thanks again for your blog & all the fabulous photos.
Love
Mary & Peter
I had to pinch myself to realise it wasn’t a dream Thank you Mary for keeping in touch. That you spend the time to comment on my blog is appreciated as the blog is my take of a unique Russian adventure not just for Denise and I, but for all of us. A big "Hi and Christmas cheer" to Peter & you from both of us.
The Hermitage I never did finish my blog through Russia. Got lost in the wilds of Mongolia. I have been contemplating completing the trip in words but there's no way I can write better than this blog. It wonderfully sums up the overwhelming experience of the Hermitage. When Sylvia and I were there in 2008, the "No Photographs" signs were there but it wasn't policed. It was most frustrating as we couldn't view the displays for all the camera flashlights. Have you noticed how so few people actually look at what is in front of them? They are too busy looking through the lens of a camera/phone to actually experience the moment :(. Did you get to the Summer Palace, or this that for another day?
The Hermitage The Summer Palace is my last blog as Tsarkoye Selo with my Russian History summary, John. Check it out. As to the Hermitage, times have changed since 2008. Not only are folks smiling, but flashbulbs are either banned or no more. There are no restrictions on photography other than at the secure vaults which are at a different location. Also the nationality of visitors has been expanded significantly. You make a good point that many are too busy photographing to look at what is in front of them. As most like us were in tour groups there is pressure to keep moving as there is much to see. To dwell can risk being left behind. My balance was to take as many pics of paintings as I could so I could enjoy later as otherwise they would be forever hazy or forgotten. But there were times I had the chance to enjoy the now of the looking and do my best with limited time to morph into the then of the paintings. But many just pass by and their looking is nothing more than fleeting glances at best. Those that are interested dwell a while 'cos that is what they do. Hope you enjoyed my pics of the paintings as well. I feel fortunate that thanks to Travelblog, I have preserved my memories so I can revisit as often as I please.
Are you sure you were in Russia? Sounds to me like you were in Dutch-land, about 300 years ago.
Enjoyed the blog. Hermitage is very high on my wish list, well St. Petersberg as a whole is. And I will take it slow. 'Cause that's my style... No surfing for me! A lazy raft down a slow moving river, taking my sweet time seeing and sensing everything.
Are you sure you were in Russia? I perceive you get it Ralf. I can see you having a lazy raft down a slow moving river, taking your sweet time seeing and sensing everything. I can relate to that. Do you like me, also quite like getting lost.?
Painting those word pictures once again Your advice to go slowly and enjoy will be heeded when we head that way. It does look simply amazing. Thanks for the history lessons. The grandeur is amazing. Thanks for taking us along.
Painting those word pictures once again Thank you MJ for joining the ride and getting into the limited brushstrokes I offer. Denise spent more time absorbing the grandeur of the numerous halls while I spent my time capturing the paintings between wave tips. There was only a pocket sized reference book on offer and many if not most of the paintings are not on the internet. Makes me a happy chappie that I captured what I did. When you visit there, I say 'when' not 'if', please increase our collection of pics of the extraordinary artworks on offer.
Oligarch's Gluttony Fantastic voyage back into a time where art collecting was the bomb. I can imagine you slipping away during the tour, never to be truly herded, looking for gold....and finding it.
Oligarch's Gluttony I can visualise you smiling Dangerous One as you pen from your Florida shores, knowing me from shared adventures afar, dropping the bomb "never to be truly herded, looking for gold....and finding it". Ya got me. Guilty Your Honour!
On going to St Petersburg Thank you for writing about the hermitage. I really want to go to St Petersburg. I think I nowadays can visit St Petersburg for up to 72 hours, or something like that, on a visa I can get at the border. I might go there on one of those. Longer trips in Russia are unfortunately much more difficult to get visas for. /Ake
On going to St Petersburg I would have thought from Sweden to St Petersburg, for you would be like visiting your neighbour, Ake. However, I suggest you go through a visa agency. My investigations indicate you can visit St Petersburg visa free for 72 hours if you travel via Helsinki on a particular ferry and stay in designated listed hotels, but you have to book 4 days ahead. Otherwise, from 1 October 2019 you can apply for a 30 day e-visa as Sweden is an approved country. Yet I am unaware if you would be successful applying for a visa at the Russian border for 72 hours or otherwise. As an Australian I certainly could not apply at the border and definitely can not seek to extend a 30 day tourist visa, as I investigated that for our recent trip. We ended up being booked on a flight out of Moscow 5 minutes before our 30 day Tourist Visa expired. But that's another story!
A good reading! Hi Tab. While we are surrounded by bushfires in Sydney you are probably surrounded in snow at your home in Canada. The secure vaults of the Hermitage were No Photos Allowed, but the Hermitage itself which is the old Winter Palace had no restrictions on photos at all. Hope you get into the paintings as well...just a taste of one of the largest art collections in the World.
St Petersburg Enjoyed the amazing art? Sure did David. But with so much on offer, I have been very selective as to the genres and periods I have shared. Didn't seem right that I included any pre-medieval, impressionist or modern art in this blog. Hope you spend the time to morph into the then of the works by 14th to 18th Century masters I have offered.
...the art of now of the looking morphing me into the then of the paintings... it was indeed dizzying - oscillating from the now to the then...& not to mention the swimming!!
Fab penmanship btw.
...the art of now of the looking morphing me into the then of the paintings... Delighted that folks can hop onto my words and join the ride, my love. Also delighted that by surfing the crowd that is the Hermitage, that we can enter the now of the looking of Thursday afternoon "Conversations" of Catherine the Great and morph into the magnificent paintings, that by doing so smile upon our merriment and folly. Let's make sure we go back again.
Enchanted Again taken back in time with your magical words. I love to read your words.
Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to Dancing Dave and his beautiful Denise.
Enchanted Ah...the now of the looking...and the then of a magical, (I like your word "enchanted") time together in Russia with Simon & you, Liz.(and the others that enjoyed the ride). Thank you for keeping in touch and keeping the memories alive. This blog is for those that know that now the looking can best be appreciated by morphing into the then...and being pleased they did so.
Wow!!! You have really waxed poetic with this blog... about all the great art. The Hermitage has always been high on my bucket list, and now you have given me more inspiration.
Wow!!! You have really waxed poetic with this blog... This blog is not for a quick brush or a scan, Bob. Yet it is just a taste of the visual delights on offer at The Hermitage, and only a portion of our time there. Denise & I would like to return...but in quieter waters where we can dwell and not be whipped along with the tide. When you go Bob...make sure you allow plenty of time, as a short visit can be like missing a sunrise or the magnificence of a sunset.
My wife Denise & I like to travel "on paths less travelled" that capture our imagination, inspire my photography & where we mix with locals & remain safe.
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Faberge Eggs and Nesting Dolls
Great photos of the Faberge Eggs and the explained history of each! I remember seeing a small exhibit of some in London decades ago as I recall and they were fabulous. Sometimes I think the souvenirs you buy in haste (having to rush back to the bus or your ship) turn out to be some of the best and most memorable just like your Matryoshka Doll! One of my favorite souvenirs is a set of 3 carved stone animals (llama, vicuna & alpaca) a woman from Peru begged me to buy as I was rushing onto the bus!