Days 31-33, July 11-13 Fountains of Peterhof

The palatial city of Saint Petersburg is now on the other side of the border as we are on the high speed train in Finland, soon to be in Helsinki. We enjoyed our wonderful stay in Saint Petersburg and were fortunate to have a beautiful mostly sunny stay while we were there.

The obvious opulence of the Russians Tzars and aristocrats in this city is doubly impressive when we realize that most of it has been reconstructed after destruction by the Nazis in WWII. One can cerainly understand the revolution against the ostentatious wealth and the source now of Russian pride in salvaged and reconstructed treasures tha now belong to the people.

We have been in many fine palaces, but the collective grandure numeerous palaces, the insides, gardens, and fountains supercedes anything we have seen elsewhere. While in Saint Petersburg we visited the Hermitage and Peter's first summer home and gardens. In Pushkin, we viisited Catherine Summer Palace, and yesterday we visited Peterhof to view the magnificent fountains and gardens of Peter's Summer Palace.

Photos of the WWII destruction leaves one incredulous that there would be the will, perseverance, patience, and funding to reconstruct these beautiful grounds, almost 250 acres built on the gulf of Finland.

The fountains are fed by water pressurized as it heads downhill to the sea. No pumps are involved and the flow is neaarly constant. Some of the fountains are currently being reconstructed. Fountains are for beauty and water play. We enjoyed the day in Peterhof away from the city, just as Peter the Great must have enjoyed his summers here.

Tonight we will spend the night not far from the train station in Helsinki. Tomorrow we will be staying with a SERVAS host a new miles from the city center.

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's now in Finland

Day 30 - July 10, Dancing in Catherine the Great's Ballroom

A Waltz in Catherine the Great's Ball Room

We ventured out today with metro and taxi bus to Pushkin to Catherine Palace,

where we waltzed around in the ornately decorated ballroom.

The biggest adventure for us today was our metro ride. We had to make a few transfers to different lines to get out to Pushkin about 30 km outside of Petersburg. Because we have difficulty reading Russian, we have thankfully learned to count stops to the exit spot. On our second transfer, the train was really crowded. Our group of five was the last to push aboard...well I should say four. The door shut on Russ's back pack. I was still on the platform. The door did a couple of quick open and closes. First Russ tried to push in and make room for me. Nope the door closed on him sideways, he muscled it open just enough to try and jump off, but that didn't work. A couple people drug his stuck body inside, the doors slid shut and the train took off. They watched me and I watched them as they disappeared down the track.

Fortunately we had just confirmed that we would get off at the seventh stop. I waited for the next train, a few minutes after the first. It wasn't crowded at all. I got a seat and rather than zone out and read, I attentively counted stops. I was hoping it would be an open platform stop so I could see the group on the platform. It was a safety station where there is a second set of doors so that the metro is like a horizontal elevator. I stepped out and looked around. It took a couple of seconds, but we spotted each other. Yeah! We were reunited, enjoyed our day to this splendid palace and gardens, and got to dance in Catherine's ballroom.

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's

... from Russia with Love.

Days 28-29, July 8 & 9 a Saint Petersburg, Russia

Tonight, July 9, marks the end of our Silk Road Trip.

July 8 - We arrived in Saint Petersburg yesterday morning at 9:00 am. The train from Moscow was a private British Railcar, and the best one yet. The air conditioning actually worked, there was toilet paper in the bathroom, the windows were clean so we could see out and enjoy the scenery, and breakfast was served up and sent to our compartment at 8:00, three fried eggs withs chive and bacon bits, bread roll and coffee.

As soon as we arrived, we were met by our driver and local guide Elana. Our morning was filled with churches, monasteries, and forts, all beautifully restored.




 Our hotel is near the university and is old, but quaint. We checked in at 2:00 in the afternoon, cleaned up, and were back out by 5:00 pm for a canal ride, dinner, and climb to the top of Saint Issac's Cathedral colonnade to watch the sunset...at 11:00 pm.

 No wonder I'm so tired, we are staying up way too late! by the time we got back to our hotel at 11:30, it was dusk but not dark.

July 9 - Our local guide and driver picked us up at 10 am and we went directly to the Winter Palace of Catherine and Peter the Great, known now as,the Hermitage. Wow! unbridled splendor and wonderful art collections of master painters. These buildings are kept in beautiful condition. We spent the morning and early afternoon at the Hermitage, and saw only a fraction of the collections. It is said that it would take a person nine years to see everything if they were to spend 1 minute learning about each exhibit. Magnificent.

On our way back to the hotel

Russ and I returned to the hotel around three, took a rest break, and went for another long stroll and farewell dinner which included borscht and stroganoff. Yum.

Our traveling companions will begin to leave Russia through the weekend. We will be the last to leave on Sunday. We have planned some post trip excursions with our buddies including a trip to Catherine's summer palace and gardens, Peterhof, and ballet on Friday night.

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's....From Russia with Love

Days 26-27, July 6 & 7, 2014 MOSCOW

Saint Basils Cathedral

We have spent the last two days in Moscova, Moscow. As a child of post WWII and the Cold War with the USSR, my ideas of what this city would be like is far different from the reality of what it once was or what I thought it was. Having been in Berlin prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, and then again within 5 years of the fall of the wall, there was still a heavy Soviet inflluence. Perhaps we expected there would be some heavy remnants here too.

But no, Moscow is a delightful city with a mixture of modern and old Russian, with parks, flowers, beautiful shopping arcades, outdoor cafes, street artists, and fashionable young people and families.

We've been busy with city tours, park strolls, churches, royalty palaces, Red Square, and Kremlin.

All are very impressive/ Tonight we attended a professional Russian Folk and cultural ballet. It was brilliant/ Our train to Saint Petersburg leaves at 1:00 am. It is now 11;00 pm and our transfer will be here in half an hour.

All is well with the Worrall Travel Rs.....From Russia with Love!