Monthly Archives: June 2014

Last night when we started to work out the details of today, it got complicated. We wanted to go to the Catherine Palace, which is outside of town. I thought it would be like going to Versailles in Paris, or … Continue reading →

Although yesterday was wonderful, if anyone has to choose between the Hermitage and the Russian Museum, all three of us would recommend seeing the Russian Museum, hands down. The art was beautiful, the rooms were beautiful, but it was Russian … Continue reading →

Today we had too much fun to write in one post. After the Hermitage we toured the inside of The Church on Spilled Blood, which is the iconic building of St. Petersburg. I’m super happy that the Soviets didn’t destroy … Continue reading →

The Hermitage is one of the largest and most prestigious collections of art in the world, but what makes it especially spectacular is that it is set in Peter the Great’s architectural masterpiece, the Winter Palace. Each room in the … Continue reading →

We took a “free” (tips only) walking tour of the city today, and besides us there was only one other couple. (Two young Dutch teachers currently living in Latvia.) It was three and a half hours of interesting information, and … Continue reading →

The first day in a new city often reminds me of the first day of high school. It seems so big and confusing and you don’t know the customs or if propel will be nice to you, but after a … Continue reading →

Estonia is so far north that it stays light outside all night. This makes it really really hard to sleep easy to wake up early. At 5:30 am Jim and I were wandering the streets, enjoying the quiet city. Today … Continue reading →

Today we wandered darling, cobblestone streets and drank coffee and ate wonderful food. It was my favorite kind of day. The city is packed with little museums, cool architecture, and interesting history and sights, but is small enough that you … Continue reading →

Two o my favorite things are people and food. We landed in Helsinki at 11:00 pm and it was as light as Ventura at 3:00 pm. It was light all night. We know this because we were awake all night. … Continue reading →