Baltic Reflection

So I have been in the Baltic for 4 cruises for over a total of 50 days of spectacular fun. In my usual fashion my first days in cities were spent hitting the pavement walking around in an open manner with ideas of where I wanted to go, but more or less following where the wind took me. The following visits I took more time to read up and research specifics of what I wanted to see and signed up for tours. The third time I continued in that manner for the larger cities, but the also just tried to find a way to see the city in a different manner or go out of town. This past time and the rest of this last cruise I will spend it just enjoying and getting the feel of each port. I’ll make sure to see a few more things, but for the most part I will get my souvenirs, eat some local foods, drink some local brews, and try to just enjoy. This makes me one happy traveler.

I look back at the Baltic capitol cruise and am just amazed at what a wonderful itinerary this was. Warnemunde as a port town is small, but what a jumping off point. From there I made it to see Rostock, Berlin, Lubeck, and Wismar. Each German town or city offered me a taste of culture, history, and people I was struck in each moment with not only the beautiful architecture, but also the importance of History. This coming trip I might make it to Guestrow or go back to Rostock. Unfortunately another trip to Berlin is time wise unattainable, but five hours in Berlin would never be enough. Germany for me has been charm, beer, and learning about the former East Germany.

Stockholm’s ever present beauty has taken a special place. I have seen it from the water and from the roof tops. I have seen it in the best of weather and the rainiest of weather. I have seen it in quiet weekday to busy festival weekend. At all times Stockholm has given me a lesson in all that is beautiful. I hop in this trip to see the changing of the guards, inside the town hall, and finish with a boat ride to see the Vasa museum. I will also hop to find a nice place to eat and drink a local brew.

Helsinki is a town that I truly enjoy. It is not over the top, it simply is a great city. The churches are unique and gorgeous, the architecture is clean and well thought of. The people are humorous, down to earth, and friendly. And Helsinki has the Beer Tram or Pub Tram, what more could I ask for? I also got to see the great old town of Porvoo. This medieval city and my trip out to Haikoo Manor gave me a look at Finnish history and culture that I truly appreciate.

St. Petersburg is tremendous. The Russian border agents and rules are very rigid and difficult to deal with. In many ways each trip into town was the most memorable part of the trip itself. From the Taxi mafia driver taking us to a club late to the attempts at convincing a bus driver to take us to town. The time table that wasn’t and the Random black market DVDs being sold out of a container just outside of the immigration control, St. Petersburg was definitely a different country all together. The amount of history and tyranny was hard to fathom: Who shot who, who plotted against who, what tsar was killed here, what author fought his final dual here after having a drink there. So many palaces with so much riches made you think that Russia must have always had great wealth. A visit to a restored church. Restored back to a church from the ice rink it was during the strongest of communist years. The sailors that were always around to be seen with girlfriend in tote always added such charm. So many brides taking photo ops throughout the city. Finally the hugeness and grandeur of the Hermitage and the Palace Square. It was so easy to feel small in St. Petersburg. This time I am gunning to see Peterhof as my colleague from St. Pete’s says that if I see anything in St. Pete’s Peterhof is a must. I hop this trip to see Peterhof and Puskin as well as actually get a picture of the Marinsky theater.

Then there is the gem of the cruise. My new love--Tallinn. What a picture book town! The old town brims with medieval perfection I find it impossible to not fall in love with this place. To this day I think it impossible to actually put my camera away when walking through this absolutely gorgeous city. In addition to its fairy book character is the chocolate. I reiterate, this is very very good chocolate. Just look at my web album pics and you will see that Tallinn is just simply beautiful.

Copenhagen is just a delight. I have walked around town and am continually surprised at how comfortable this city is. I have sipped coffee and ate Danishes, taken a harbor cruise, visited the Tivoli Gardens amusement park, visited some great churches, nearly been killed by bicycles, happened upon and organ concert, and enjoyed listening to a trombone concerto written in Copenhagen while walking along the Harbor to the Little Mermaid. This next time I hope to see some more, but honestly just sitting a café and watching people seems like the ideal way to spend my last day in Copenhagen. Copenhagen to me seems to just say relax.

Finally there is Amsterdam. Amsterdam is our homeport and the cheapest of the cities we go to. This makes it the go to supermarket, post office, and get what you need port. I do try to get out and see stuff. I have walked along the canals, seen the floating flower market, saw the Anne Frank House from the outside (queue too long), had Dutch pancakes, went to the Sex Museum, strolled the Red Light district, and enjoyed the best Falafel ever, and I have taken time to relax in the Dam square. Our next time in Amsterdam is our overnight there. There is no limit to possibilities of what to do on an overnight in Amsterdam.

All in all I am sad to commence my last 12 days in the Baltic, but excited to get to some new ports and cities. I look back and have had a phenomenal two months in Scandinavia. Let me restate that I have had an unbelievable time. I look forward to each day of this cruise and will continue to make the most of it. As I sit here in my cabin after a small rehearsal and waiting for dinner time I realize that I have truly got my bearings in this Baltic Cruise and feel very comfortable with time I have had here. Yay!

Another Try at Explaining Ship Life

Someone pinch me. Is this really my life? I am living a dream and each day brings so much wonder, joy, and laughter I just can’t help but smile till my cheeks hurt. Don’t get me wrong, things happen and there is a great deal of occurrences that might take away the smile. However, the more I open my eyes to see what is in front of me, the more I close my eyes to hear what is around me, the more I breath in the air that surrounds me, the more I take the time to stop and touch the life around me, and the more I simply enjoy what is around me, the more the things that one might call “bad”, or “depressing” slip away and disappear.

It is weird, this life I’m living. Everyday I wake up and am in a different country. Every other day I wake up and I am in a different time zone. Each time I go out I need to figure out what type of currency I need to have; is it the Swedish kroner, the Danish kroner, the Estonian kroner, the Norwegian kroner, the Euro, the dollar, the Russian Rupple, etc. Each day I need to remind myself how to say thank you: is it tak, taki, kippsi, spasiba, dank u wel, danke, etc. I could wake up and see these challenges and make the choice to whine and complain and not want to deal with it, but instead I revel in the wonderful joy that it is to find myself confused in this manner. Furthermore, I love the confusion when I start heading to favorite café in Copenhagen only to realize that I am actually in Stockholm.

I have a great deal of free time, and I can fill that free time in many ways. Of course we are at sea at night, except for overnights in St. Petersburg, and that means I must entertain myself onboard this floating city. Luckily it is just that. In the evening I can go have a drink at our Hemisphere lounge on one of the top decks. This bar has windows on all sides and is a great place to watch the many beautiful sunsets. The Hemisphere is the main guest disco with a DJ spinning the hits all the way to the wee hours. If I am not in the mood for this I can chill out in the Martini Ice Bar. With a fluid change of colors in the lights and some easy chill music in the background, I find this to be a favorite. Plus the drinks are quite a delight. Nothing can beat an espresso martini. Should I want a little more upbeat atmosphere I can go to the Rendezvous lounge and enjoy the Argentinean talent of the fabulous Azure Jazz Quartet. For even another atmosphere I can head to the Cova Café and enjoy the many tantalizing coffees and cocktails on offer there. Often though I do not want to be in guest areas where dress code is enforce and the crew is on constant call to be über friendly so I head to the crew areas. In the crew areas I can dress how I want and pretty much behave in my “normal” way. The crew areas give me two option for drinks on a regular basis. That is the non-smoking staff bar and the Smoking crew bar/night club. The other advantage is the drastic decrease in cost when going to crew bars. Now do not get me wrong, I have more to do then just drink.

If I don’t want to drink I can go to the gym or sit in the sauna. This is also a nice place to enjoy sunsets. Just last night as we sailed away from St. Petersburg, I ran my 20 minutes on the treadmill to one of the most gorgeous sunsets on the high seas, the brilliant hues of orange outstretched in the horizon.

Things happen everyday that remind me I live in a metal box that floats around the world. For Instance, when I wake up and want to look out my window, I turn on the tele and tune to channel 19. Sometimes I can‘t tell if I stagger due to alcohol or rough seas, and the crew food is…bad. My job is easy if I am relaxed enough to deal with the cast of strong characters that ascend to the top of the pyramid. We have numerous celebrations for the crew that celebrate the wonderful diversity of our nearly 900 strong crew. I have celebrated, Canada Day, 4th of July, Indian, Independence Day, Pakistan Independence Day, Indonesian Independence Day, Russian Navy day, and numerous others. I sit down for lunch with my two friends from the Philippians and learn about how they do not even speak the same language. I stand on stage talking to the AV manager from Trinidad, the sound guy from Japan, the lighting guy from Brazil, the Sax player from Russia, and drummer from France and that night beyond all our linguistic and cultural difference we put on two great productions nearly every night. I feel isolated from the world because I know that news and events are occurring around the world. After all, when you’re in a different country everyday the news events that seem to matter are different everyday. But on the ship, the world is all around me contained in a metal box and I think I like it.

Sweetest Day Ever

I’ve said before and I’ll say it again. I love Tallinn. This town has so much charm wrapped up into the perfect little package that I could just die in the present. From the moment you see the town’s church spire you know that it is going to be wonderful, but until you actually step foot inside the gate do you really realize just how wonderful it is. When I first came here in June, I was in awe of how absolutely magnificent it was. My camera could not be put away the entire time, or turned off even. Each building was postcard perfect, each vista was a panorama not to be missed, and each bustling sidewalk was so full of the beautiful life that I was immediately taken back with the absolutely astounding beauty. Today as I returned to this city so full of memories of the last visit wondering how can it possibly get any better, it did. How you may ask. To put it in a word…Chocolate.

I awoke this morning on a mission to find chocolate. With chocolate loving companion by my side, we set off bright and early to go to town and find a specific chocolate shop we knew to be great as well as a few others. Now as I sit here in my cabin, I feel it safe to say that Tallinn has the best chocolate, especially tiramisu, that I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying. WOW! It was a delight to the buds that were flooded with the joy of abundant taste, texture, feel, and experience. Today I enjoyed; chocolate bars, mocha, hot chocolate, truffle dipped in chocolate, truffles rolled it mint flakes, chocolate covered truffles rolled in wild flowers, and a tiramisu that made me believe I was in heaven. And all the while I was surrounded by sights and sounds of exquisite Estonia and it was another beautiful day in theBaltics.

One stop hailed itself as the Marzipan Museum. Being allergic to almonds I was worried I might be left out of the ability to enjoy a taste here, but thank Buddha I was not. There had three truffles without nuts: Chocolate Cream Liqueur, Peppermint, and Caramel. We made our purchase from the counter lady dressed in medieval garb and then returned to the streets walking toward the town square. At a certain point I decided I could wait no longer and opened the bag of treats so as to enjoy one of my morsels. As my teeth bit into the White Chocolate Cream Liqueur truffle, I was taken aback by the delicate texture and the silky mouth feel. But then as I began to realize that this morsel was far more then a mere truffle. I knew it needed to be savored. Many things that can’t be done while walking, savoring this truffle is one of those things. I had to stop walking. I grew dizzy in delight at the enchanting taste. It took over my whole oral sense of being. The world began to spin away from me and disappear as entered a state of absolute bliss. Right there in the middle of the street I stood, unable to do anything but give an honest heart felt moan and groan at the sheer joy of eating this chocolate. For a moment I was embarrassed to be reacting this way with people around. I thought, maybe I should “get a room” just to enjoy this breathtaking chocolate. But then as I brought myself back to the here and now. Still sensing the creamy goodness that filled my mouth I began to look around. I saw the medieval town square in front of me. I don’t know if was the sun, reality, or the chocolate but it all appear surreal in how perfect it was. I came to appreciate once again how wonderful life is. The fact that I could stand there nearly falling to my knees from the wonderful weakness caused my basking in a chocolate dreamland whilst being warmed by the summer sun, is that life is damn good. I began a full fledged happy dance right there in the middle of the street. Not just a little happy dance, but the full 360 degrees times three of happy dance with vertical leaps et al.

Later we came across the chocolate shop we really set out to find. We were like giddy girls at a sock hop, only far more ecstatic. Picture pre-teen girls at the latest boy band concert and you might get a little bit of the image of how we reacted to finding this place. We had been just walking down the street surrounded by tourists when, upon seeing the sandwich board and realized we Mecca, we jumped out for joy gave a yelp and began hopping merrily down the ivy covered walkway towards paradise. The tourists that were around us gave a giggle at our glee. As we entered the tiny courtyard filled with small tables the ambience was paradigm of perfection. I ordered a tiramisu.

The tiramisu was delivered to me on a small silver platter. There was some orange and raspberry marmalade and chocolate garnish surrounding the white chocolate covered tiramisu. My eyes grew wide a the twinkle probably blinded all around me and may have even caught the attention of authority. This was going to be good. Just starring at it gave me enough satisfaction to last a while. Of course, I had to take picture of this most beautiful of sights. Then I took my fork and made the initial slice. The chocolate coating did not crack or crumble. It simply gave way to my fork almost like it enjoyed it. Then I brought the bite to my mouth. From the moment my lips touch this bite I was transported once again to the state of absolute bliss where the rest of the world falls away and it was just me my beloved tiramisu. The cake part so fluffy and perfect, the cream so smooth and succulent, the coffee flavor so uplifting, and the white chocolate that smothered it was beyond fine, beyond good, beyond anything I knew this world could bring to taste. I knew I must have emitted sound that would make a window display in Amsterdam blush, but I simply could not help. It was just that good. Eek! I am one happy, happy, happy girl.

I will leave my Tallinn tale at that and go hop in a cold shower. I will not brush my teeth or rinse my mouth, I will simply lay down, close my eyes, perhaps nap a little while enjoying my sweet dream.

Helsinki is Sinking Into My Heart

Helsinki is a wonderful little Capitol City that does not try to be anything more then it is. Like the town the people are just who they are: humorous, open, friendly, and welcoming. Helsinki itself is a sea-town with drastic scenery containing the numerous islands in their archipelago and many harbors and inlets that provide ultimate scenic drives. As a city there is a special feel that is connected between the architecture and the people that it simply just is what it is-nothing more nothing less. People seem to genuinely enjoy being where ever they are at simoment and are there. The city is one of art and culture. There is a happy division between the Finnish speakers and the Swedish speakers, and is a country that is proud to be the second country in the world to allow women to vote. Helsinki is even more proud to be home of their female president. My three visits to this beautiful sea town has given me a wonderful peace of mind that cities can still exist by and for the people that live in them, and that the people in them are happy for that.

Walking around town I got the instant sense that, while not an ancient town, it is still a town with a strong sense of history. The immense senate square is a wide open gathering space. There are always tourists snapping photos and many Finns there just there to enjoy the company of some friends and taking in the sun. Atop a grand staircase is the Lutheran Cathedral. Its sheer white color with gold and copper domes have a striking contrast to the blue skies we’ve been having. It is a very large cathedral that, much like Helsinki, is gorgeous and beautiful, but not overstated, overdone, or anything more then what it needs to be. On the other sides of the square are the parliament house, a university, and shops.

Heading towards the water from the square you meet up with the fish market. Being a Seattle girl I do have a hard time finding a fish market that is any where near the greatness of Pike Place, but this market is certainly lively. From the market heading towards the town center you come across the icon of Helsinki the statue of mermaid Havis Amanda and the wonderfully lively Esplanade. On a sunny day the Esplanade is teamed with people enjoying company and the obligatory Finnish Ice Cream. There are gorgeous flowers and a large path in the Esplanade. Flanked on each side by stores selling many Finnish wares--from clothes, to dishware, to furniture. From the market and Esplanade it is impossible to miss the captivating thirteen onion domes of the Orthodox Uspensky Cathedral.

Up a ways from the Senate Square is another unique Helsinki attraction of the Temppeliaukio Church, or the church of the rock. This fascinating church was blasted from rock and features a 78 foot diameter roof that is a spiral of over thirteen miles of copper wiring. Unfortunately, I have not been able to catch a concert here, but from what I hear, concert here are must do.

Another feature of Helsinki are the many parks. One of the best parks is Sibelius Park, featuring a magnificent monument to the great Finnish composer, Jean Sibelius. The monument is a cluster of steel pipes that are very reminiscent of an organ, but are said to also represent the forest that inspired much of Sibelius’ works.

I went on a tour to Seusaari Island and was blessed with a gorgeous day. Seusaari Island is an open air museum, much like one I visited in Molde Norway, that displays 18th and 19th century houses, manors, churches, and other such structure from around Finland. Even here I could find something that all Finnish folk seem to absolutely just love, the Sauna. An integral part of their culture it is said that when designing a house it is designed around the sauna first and foremost.

Another tour I took was out of the city to a town called Porvoo. Porvoo is the second oldest town in Finland found in 1346 ad. It was an important trading center and today remains one still. A stroll through the medieval city is truly relaxing and certainly memorable. Heading up to the main church I was transported to another world as I carefully navigated the rocky cobblestone road. I had to check out the tires on some of the vehicles to see the brand of choice to withstand this far from ideal road. The church had a fantastic shingle roof. I wandered around town for some time enjoying a browse through some of the shops, especially the chocolate shop and then met up with my tour again to catch our boat for a cruise to Haikko manor where we would be enjoying the best meal I’ve had since leaving.


PS This is unedited so excuse any typos etcetera.

There is no rushin’ through Russia

It is not that Russia moves slow, in fact they move in a quick efficient manner, but as a traveler there is no way to see the beautiful city of St. Petersburg in quick rushed manner and truly get a sense of it. I have spent a total of four days in this beautiful city and feel the surface has only been scratched. I have so much more research to do and sights to see, but as of yet my experiences have given a fine introduction and magnificent experience.

I spent a day walking around with my National Geographic Traveler book in seemingly random fashion the first time I was here. It was not the prettiest weather. Cloud bursts made taking photos quite difficult and reading my book and map difficult as well. But I always know that if you encounter miserable weather and city is still captivatingly beautiful, then that city is simply intermittently beautiful. Of course I learned later that the varied colored facades were designed for that exact purpose. The shuttle dropped me off at St. Isaacs cathedral and it was obvious from the start, I was not in Kansas anymore, I was in Russia!

St. Isaacs dome dominates the skyline on the river Neva. I was told the 333 foot gilded dome can be seen from the Baltic Sea--I’ve looked, but have not seen it. Completed in 1858 this cathedral is massive and can hold up to 12,000 worshipers in the Russian Orthodox standing room only style. Laid out in a Greek cross the cathedral has four bell towers with bronze sculptures looming massively atop them and is surrounded by 48 red granite Corinthian columns. It took forty years to build the shrine to St. Isaac simply because its namesake shared the same day of birth (different year) St. Petersburg’s namesake, tsar Peter. Over 400,000 workers labored here and it cost more to build then the winter palace include the lives hundreds of the laborers. The dome has a beautiful mural painted by Karl Bryullov. This mural covers 8,611 square feet and has a central figure of a dove. As I wandered inside this massive cathedral, now museum, I could find beauty in every corner, it was obvious that great thought was put into every nook and cranny. As my neck began to ache from looking up so much I began to look at eye level at the massive bronze doors and the fantastic murals scattered throughout. When the time to leave drew near I exited to look at the massive columns mentioned earlier. Chucks were missing from these granite monoliths. These chunks were caused by shrapnel from the many wars that St. Petersburg has seen.

Just outside of the back of the Cathedral I took a stroll through the beautiful wooded Alexander Garden, containing numerous paths, statues and fountains. A favorite place for wedding photos, I saw numerous happy brides in gorgeous gowns flanked by a handsome groom with a huge smile. One of the paths led me to the infamous statue of the Bronze Horseman. This monument to Peter the Great is located where the garden meets Decembrists’ Square. With a horse reared back on two legs trampling a snake that represents treason the statue is full of symbolism. The bronze statue is on a gigantic rock known as Thunder Rock. This rock is believed to be the very rock upon which Peter stood when he surveyed the scene of what was to become St. Petersburg. It seems classic St. Petersburg that a place so romantic and noble is named for such tragic events as the Decembrist uprising of 1825 where more then 80 people were killed.

I then left the Square along the palace embankment and came across the towering needle spire of the Admiralty. Soon thereafter I came across the Hermitage and Winter Palace. The Hermitage is gargantuan and contains some of the world’s greatest art collected by generations of tsars. Besides the sheer magnitude of the rich art collection the building of the Hermitage and Winter Palace itself is outstanding. With more then 1000 rooms, it is said that if one were to spend a mere minute looking at each piece of art contained in the Hermitage it would take over 9 years to see the whole thing. From the moment you see the outside façade of the Hermitage and Winter Palace you are immediately drawn to it. In fact my first day in St. Petersburg I saw it, but knew I did not have the time to even scratch the surface and that a whole day needed to be dedicated to it. As I walked away that day I could not put out of my mind that which is the Hermitage and Winter Palace. Upon my return to St. Petersburg I did, in fact, dedicate an entire day to this place.

From the moment I entered the Hermitage and Winter Palace I knew I had done the right thing. From the entrance and first sight of Rasterelli’s ornate Jordan Staircase my jaw had dropped and it was useless to pick it up as it continued to fall after each step. On the tour we covered nearly 5 miles and each mile was worth it. I can not even begin to describe all that I saw. Art from Picasso to Monet and architecture that was simply, or complexly, stunning, the Hermitage and Winter Palace delivered all that was to be expected.

After the 5 hours spent in the Hermitage and Winter Palace a good meal was in order. I had the fortune to enjoy a traditional Russian meal. The meal was a spectacular ordeal. On arrival I enjoyed a simple salad with fresh vegetable and herbs. Then we served pancakes with a type of sour cream and caviar (which due to moral objections I declined) the pancake was simple yet delicious. After that we served a delicious summer squash soup that was perfectly seasoned and just a delight to eat. The main course was rice with vegetables (chicken for meat eaters) and desert was a peach cake. Not only did we have a glass of champagne we were served a true Russian Vodka that went down smooth and was the perfect punctuation to the feat. As an added bonus we were treated to Russian folk ensemble’s music.

In addition to these many sights I have seen the gorgeous Church of our Saviors spilled blood with magnificent onion domes in brilliant swirls of blue and gold. I have yet to enter, but know I will. I have seen the battleship Aurora where the canon sounded to start the revolution. The Kazan cathedral, the Mariinsky Theater, the Stroganov Palace, numerous cathedrals, the Field of Mars, Peter the Great’s cottage, strolled on the Nevsky Prospekt, and countless other awesome sites. I will be back to St. Petersburg shortly and look forward to seeing Pushkin, Peterhof, and other awesome sites that await me. Until then I relish in my last night in St. Petersburg of this cruise that I spent on the ship. The cruise brought in some excellent entertainment that evening of some traditional folk dancers and musician. They gave a stunning and graceful performance of the deep knee bending, jumping, spinning nature. They sang in boastful pride glorious folk melodies. After the show there was a crew party of wine and cheese on the bow of the ship. There was a spectacular sunset and the weather was perfect. We could see the fireworks of the Navy Day celebration. We reveled in the experience of a lifetime we were all having together. What a wonderful thing.