Day 5: Cruising down the Neva

Patricia

I am alive today!  I had such a good sleep because Syl put the Do Not Disturb sign on the door - and it worked.  I stayed in bed until mid-day and only got up when Syl came to collect me for lunch.  I didn't mind skipping breakfast because we have been living from one meal time to the next so I had a banana and a cup of tea.

We had a wonderful lunch - a salad buffet, sandwiches and a tortellini which I thought was lunch, but there was also a main menu to choose from!  The food here is above 5 star.
Our guide warned us that the visit to Mandrogy would be difficult but we decided to visit it anyway.  At 2pm we arrived at the 'cooked up village' with wooden houses, strange totem poles and tourist souvenir shops. There used to be a real village here but it was destroyed during WW11 and all the inhabitants moved away and settled in other villages. In 1996 Sergei Gutzeit, a St. Petersburg entrepreneur and patron of the arts, decided to revive the village and make it a tourist destination for the many tourists on the river cruises between St. Petersburg to Moscow and Kizhi. 
There were a few buildings I didn't go into - by choice - but I visited the main one with all the crafts and shops and it wasn't difficult for Syl to push me around the village.
When we got back to the boat we spent the rest of the afternoon in the Panorama bar at the front of the boat with windows all around so that we get this wonderful view of the river side villages and an occasional passing boat. After two teas, I decided to have a Bloody Mary - with Russian Vodka - which was much stronger than the Virgin Mary I had the other day.

Sylvia

Last night – or early this morning – I felt the boat start up and rocking as we sailed on down the Neva. Patty decided to have a pyjama day today so stayed in bed while I went to breakfast. After breakfast we assembled in the Sky Bar for a lecture on Russia given by our guide Mikhail. He referred to a large map of Russia and told us about the history, the people and their languages, geography, agriculture, trade and industry, politics etc. Russia wraps around almost half of the globe, with 11 time zones (there are 24 altogether) has 84 states but only 150m people. The bulk of Russia is made up of Siberia with the northern part being mostly un-inhabitable with no industries and few people. He spoke about the changes in the country, pointing out two sides of the coin. Housing, medical, education etc used to be free, now people pay. People can now own land and build their own houses or start businesses but very few can afford to do so. They can choose to use the government medical service or pay for private services (which are more costly). People can now travel extensively. Crime has increased because, in the past the KGB were the police, judge and jury and crime was practically unheard of. Now there is a lot of crime and many places that people find unsafe – especially in large cities and at night. He spoke about freedom of speech, association and religion. The majority of Russians follow the Eastern Orthodox church (not the Roman Catholic Church). There are Lutherans in the North West border with Finland, Islam in the South, and Buddhists on the border with China and even a few Hare Krishna’s. Michael said that he didn’t think the Krishnas would survive  because they shave their heads, wear thin cloth, don’t eat meat or drink alcohol! To survive in Russia you need to wear fur, eat a big steak and toast God with vodka!

After that talk, another guide gave a talk on Russian Souvenirs and what we could expect to find as we travelled down the river. Most of the souvenirs are made of wood – of which there is abundance. During the winter there is little to do and most souvenirs are crafted during the long winter months.
At 12h30 we went to lunch - all we do is eat, eat, eat! At 2pm we berthed next to the restored Arts and Crafts village of Mandogry where we saw typical wooden Russian houses, a pottery, art centre - where 4 young women were painting the little dolls we see everywhere, as well as a Vodka museum, and a souvenir shop.   Its a bit like Shakaland at home - a village re-created in the style of old Russia for tourists.

When we got back to the boat we went up to the Panorma bar and here we sit, sipping tea and hot chocolate, as we set off again, cruising down the Svir.
We heard that Mikhail had taken ill half-way through his second lecture on Russian History and that we would have a different guid the next day.

Day 4: Very expensive tea!

Sylvia
We could have gone on optional tours today to another palace – Peterhof - or a canal cruise – but decided instead to stay in and rest and catch up with the blog and emails. We stayed in bed until 7h45 and had a leisurely breakfast before taking our books and laptop to the Panorma Bar where we stayed until lunchtime.
At 3pm were boarded the bus which took us to the Arts Square in St Petersburg which is close to the main street, Nevsky Prospekt. The Lutheran church of St Peters in Nevsky Prospekt, which was used as an indoor swimming pool was returned to the Lutherans and is now being used as a church. It was raining again so I wore my Altus raincoat and Patty carried her umbrella. I took her to see the church of the Saviour of the Blood, one of the most famous onion dome structures in Russia. (Those are the domes in the header of this blog). The guide warned us not to have coffee at the Grand Hotel Europa because it was so expensive but we decided to give it a try and sit under the canvas canopies at their pavement café. We had a pot of tea and hot chocolate with complimentary biscuits and meringues for 550 Roubles. Actually, I think we were had because she didn’t bring us a bill, just told us what the cost was and we paid, and gave her a tip. The guide told us that a pot of tea in a nice place usually costs around 100 roubles!
We got back just in time to shower and change and go up to the Sky bar for welcoming cocktails at 6:30pm. The captain, his first mate and the event manager introduced the crew and the head chef, restaurant manager, tour guides etc.   At 7pm sharp the boat set sail down the Neva, under the first bridge and past the city. For the first time we saw houses on the banks of the river, mainly summer homes. Dinner started late – at about 8:30pm and we sat with Richard tonight. Patty and Richard shared a bottle of Merlot so they were in fine form (I had water!).
It was announced that, because the level of the river was about 15cm higher than usual we wouldn’t be able to sail under one of the bridges so we would drop anchor and at 2am the road bridge would be raised so that we could continue on our journey. We only got to bed after 10:45pm.

Patricia

The events guide woke us with an intercom message at 7h45 otherwise we would have carried on sleeping this morning. It was great to sit upstairs with no rush to get onto a bus or go on a tour this morning. The afternoon free time in the city was great too.
St Petersburg is beautifully laid out with wide boulevards and gracious old buildings. Syl took me to see the the church of the Saviour of the Blood. It was quite strange to finally see it for real because I have seen it so often in the books Shaun bought me and it was unreal to stand in front of it at last.

After sightseeing, we sat under the red canopies of the Grand Hotel Europe - one of the top 10 hotels in the world - watching the hoi-palloi walking past us while we had our very expensive tea - about R140 for tea and a cup of Horlicks. We watched smartly dressed men entering the hotel and fashonable young ladies struggle by on the cobble stones in 10” high heels.

 The Russians are very fashionable and the summer fashion seems to be dresses - very pretty, summer dresses.

When we got back to the boat there was a notice that the doll painting workshop had been cancelled due to a lack of numbers. (Sorry Di, I was going to bring you back some hand-painted dolls!)

Day 3: Palaces and Saints

Patty:

After getting home from the Hermitage museum yesterday, I decided not to try the theatre with no lifts so Syl went to the ballet and I was happy to stay in. It was a good idea because my oxygen machine played up during the night – I couldn’t get the belt battery to work - and the machine kept bleeping. At around 2am I noticed that the tube was bent and thought that the oxygen not getting through was causing the alarm. Syl had a brainwave and splinted the bend in the tube with an ear bud and elastoplaster (it looked very strange!) but the thing still kept bleeping so I had to go without it.
This morning we had a 6h15 wake up call, had to be at breakfast by 7am and on the bus by 7h45. Phsew – that’s a challenge for me! We went to Catherine’s summer palace in Pushkin (named after the poet). Pushkin is part of the metropolitan area of St Petersburg and is beautifully green with parks and gardens, lots of flowers.
Catherine’s summer palace – a huge blue and white complex of palace and buildings for servants and animals - does not have lifts so I had to slowly climb two steep flights of stairs to get to the reception rooms. I gave up after counting 30 steps! But, it was worth it. I have been looking at pictures of the palace for nearly 10 years and was determined to visit the rooms.
We then came back to the boat at 12pm for lunch and had to be back on the bus at 1h30 for a 5.5 hour tour of St Petersburg. We had a number of photo stops, a stop at a gallery with a souvenir shop and a 45 minutes stop where we could change money at the bank and visit the Church of the Saviour of the Blood.
Tonight there is an optional visit to a Cossack music and dance show but Syl and I both decided to forgo the ‘hop, skip and jump’ and have an early night. Not that early – dinner lasted until almost 9pm!
Now we are looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow morning, having a quiet day on board before getting the shuttle into town where we will do a bit of shopping and watch the St Petersburg world go by!

Sylvia

The WIFI connection on the boat is irratic and  temperamental and we’ve had problems getting onto Gmail, let alone the blog or Facebook.
Dinner last night was a bit rushed because we had to shower, change, eat and be at the buses by 7pm. We were taken to the Alexandrinsky Theatre where we watched Swan Lake. The music was stunning, the story charmingly familiar, the sets excellent and the dancing superb but there were times when I felt myself nodding off. One of the passengers said that it was the best production he had ever seen - sets, dancers, music etc. 
It was after 11pm when we came out of the theatre but the sun was still shining! St Petersburg looks beautiful in the late evening –much softer 

than it does in the morning sunlight. We got back to the boat just as the sun was setting at 11:25pm.  I crept into the cabin, trying not to wake Patty.  My head was still full of swans, dancing and music and when I heard a bleeping sound, it was part of my dream and swans were hooting.  But it was Patty's POC! She has told you about the problems with her machine and we had a fairly disrupted sleep until around 2:30am. We had to be up early and both of us were a bit moggy!

The weather forecast today was 19 – 22oC and 50% rain. As we arrived at Catherine’s Palace in Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin) it started to rain. It took us an hour and a half to walk through the many reception rooms, one more heavily gilded than the next, and as we left, the rain stopped and the sun came out. Patty did very well, climbing up one staircase and then the next. In between, I pushed her in the wheelchair and she saw everything that we did. Mikhail told us that we wouldn't be able to walk around the gardens so he went off with the group and we found a way down into the gardens, walking with Greg and Kathy (who we first met on the bus in from the airport) and, hey presto! who do we run into but Mikhail and his group.  I think he just can't be bothered to find a way to accommodate anyone who needs a bit of help.

We got back to the boat just in time for lunch (more about the food in another post) and it was back to the buses for a tour of St Petersburg.
Today has been go, go, go and I don't think we are going to make the optional Cossack Folk Dancing that is being offered for tonight

.

The Hermitage can be seen across the river.