Summer Holiday-Part 2

One of the major reasons that we chose to do a Baltic Sea cruise for our Summer holiday was to stop in St Petersburg, Russia.  I have always wanted to go to Russia and was so looking forward to this stop.  We arrived early in the morning and were one of the first people off the ship.  We met our tour guide and were off to a driving tour of the city.  I was expecting such a different looking city, I was raised in the 80s and had these pictures of Russia as a cold, dark, depressing place.  St Petersburg was very Western European.  We learned that the founder Tsar Peter the Great (yes I named my boy after a good one) was a great leader, founded the city in the 18th century and was the capital of Imperial Russia.   We drove past Peter and Paul Fortress, where the city was founded on the inland in the Neva River delta.  We stopped at The Church on the Spilled Blood, where Emperor Alexander II was killed.  This church with it's mosaic covered walls was amazing.  Interesting to learn that during World War II the theater companies were hired to make 'sets' to disguise specific buildings from air raids.

The picture above is of Sticky Boys at Peterhof, the summer palace of the Russian Tsar modeled after Versailles in Paris.  Quite spectacular, the grounds has many fountains all run by a gravity-fed water system.  It was quite impressive to see and play in some of these fountains.  This being the favorite home of Peter the Great, you could see the gardens and fountains all around you and feel warmth even in the cold Russian winters.  We also stopped at Tsarskoye Selo or Tsar's Village, at Cather's Palace to see the beautiful Amber Room.  Then it was quickly by to the ship, through customs and set sail for our next port.  Looking back, we wished we had more time in St Petersburg.  Guess we'll have to try to get back in the next few years.

 Next stop on the cruise was Tallinn, Estonia.  The capital city is made up of a medieval section and the more modern, hillside district.  We were only here for a few hours and we definitely wanted more time.  We walked around the medieval section, with all its churches and old buildings we felt like we were in another time.  St Mary's Cathedral, the Niguliste Church, the Town Hall, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, were all highlights.  Being there in the morning, while most of the city slept and shops were not open yet gave us a feeling of being alone despite all the tours from our ship taking place around us.  It was amazing to see the city come to life as the day went on.  Such a bummer that we had to get on the ship and sail to the next port just when things were happening.  Even though we saw most of what the city has to offer, we might be planning a trip back to see and experience more of the life in Tallinn.

Our next stop was Riga, Latvia.  The capital city is located at the mouth of the river Daugava, on the Gulf of Riga is a major seaport and cultural and industrial center.  Having a history of being ruled by other countries, Latvia found independence after World War I.  During WWII Latvia was annexed by the USSR and was occupied by the Germans before going back under Soviet rule, later regaining their independence in 1991.  Several old neighborhoods have preserved numerous medieval buildings dating back to the 13th century.  The Castle of Riga, dating back to 1330, was built as the seat of the Livonian Order and is not the residence of the President of Latvia.  We took a small elevator up to the top of St Peter's Church to get an amazing 360* view of the city.  (As you can see our ship is in the distance.)  We took a Hop On-Hop Off bus tour that took us around the city to see more of the sights.  One such sight was the Liberty Monument that symbolized the liberation of the Latvian people from foreign powers.  At top is Liberty holding three start over her head, symbolizing the unity of the regions of Latvia.

Check back next week, to see the final stops on our Summer Holiday.  Until then... Happy Crafting!