Russia to Giverny

Apologies for the random additions to the story. I might be on holiday, but there is so much to see and do and it is surprising how time disappears and how often the Internet is not so easy to access,
Anyway, my last post finished on the 2nd June, so here's the next update. I hope you enjoy hearing about my adventure. I will try to add some more pictures, but the connection is pretty slow, so might have to work on them at a later date.
Hope everyone is going ok,
Cheers
Denece

Wednesday 3rd June
The train arrived on time to a cool and wet city of St. Petersburg. The City of the Czars. We couldn’t book into the hotel until after lunch, so did a bus tour of the city. The skyline has many golden domes and spires, and the rivers and canals criss-cross the town. There are many beautiful buildings and private palaces. Booked into the Shelforth Hotel after lunch. It is a small private hotel in a very old building with lots of antiques and a lovely ambience. In the evening, the weather had fined up, so a group of us went walking along the Neva River then stopped for a pre dinner ale in one of the local beer halls.

Thursday 4th.
This morning we toured the Hermitage Museum. The winter palace of the Czars. This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen, The richness of the building, the collection and the artworks is beyond description. 3 hours was not long enough. 3 days might be better.
After the hermitage tour, we boarded a hydrofoil for a ½ hour trip to Peterhof. One of the Czars summer palaces famous for its water gardens and fountains. It is based on the Palace of Versailles and is extraordinary to say the least. We were very fortunate that the day was the exact opposite of yesterday and we had perfect spring weather in which to enjoy it.
In the evening we all went out to a Russian restaurant for a farewell dinner. There was some entertainment, singers and dancers but it wasn’t that great. We contributed to the festivities by singing Waltzing Matilda.

Friday 5th
The 1st leg of the journey is ending and the group members are now going their own way. I am heading to Vyborg on the afternoon train. I am being met by Yana, a representative of the local travel company, Apparently I am travelling on the local commuter train, and need to buy a special ticket.
Yana is very helpful and has good English. She helps buy the ticket, warns me about pickpockets and shows me where to catch the train. The adventure continues…
The train is very crowded, but I have managed to get a seat where I can keep my luggage with me. Lots of people are heading out of town for the weekend.
Arrived safely in Vyborg. It was the last station on the line so it was easy to know which stop was mine. Took a taxi to the hotel as I didn’t know where the hotel was. It cost me 400 rubles to go about 300 metres Oh well, you win some, you lose some! The hotel is very comfortable and one of the receptionists speaks English. She is training to be a translator, so is happy to practice on me. I went for a walk before dinner at the hotel. A few drunks on the street, but the town itself is a pleasant surprise. I have hired a guide 1:1 for a tour of the city in the morning, then I’ll catch the train to Helsinki in the late afternoon.

. I paid 1900 rubles for a 1.5 hour tour. Valentina had been told it was for 1 hour and she was paid 1000 rubles. In the end, we walked around for nearly 3 hours!! The town was originally a Finnish fortress and has a medieval centre and a castle dating from the 11th century. It was also bombed in WW2 and there are still many bomb sites and bombed buildings around the town. It was really fascinating and a bit sad. In the afternoon I revisited some of the sites including the castle, which we’d only looked at from across the river, in the morning. There was a special exhibition and festival on, and in the castle there were many people dressed in medieval period costume, including chain mail, with musicians, potters and other craftsmen demonstrating their skills. The castle is also a museum so I was able to tour that too.

I’m now on the train to Helsinki, The conductor has given me a 1st class cabin to myself and power for the computer, though once again no internet access. There is an accordionist playing in a cabin about 3 down from me. Lots of singing and laughter. I will go and introduce myself.
The conductor has stopped the playing. Bad luck, it was really good. I managed to get a photo in beforehand, though.

Sunday 7th
Arrived in Helsinki last night and walked to the hotel. I am staying at the Raddison Blu which is near the central station.
Went for a short walk around the block and found a café for dinner. This morning I had a bus tour of the city booked. As I approached the stop, I noticed Paul and Helen from the trans Siberian train tour were also there. We had travelled separately from St Petersburg and ended up on the same tour –they hadn’t pre booked just turned up…The tour took in the historical parts of town, City hall, Presidential Palace. After the tour, we had lunch at the waterfront market and of course purchased a few more souveniers. I am now back at the hotel to collect my luggage as I am off to Stockholm on the ferry tonight.

Monday 8th
The ferry “Silja Serenade” was huge. More like a cruise liner with about 10 stories, its own shopping strip about 6 restaurants and bars and a casino. I had my own very comfortable cabin and had a lovely overnight cruise down the Gulf of Finland. The white nights are continuing, so it was possible to see the scenery until bedtime as well as in the morning. The ferry docked at 9.30 – a very civilized time. Took a taxi to the Scandic Sergel Plaza Hotel to check in my luggage, but was able to access a room straight off, so that was a bonus. I then found my way to the Opera House, just a short walk away to do yet another city bus tour. Stockholm is one of my favourite cities so far. After the bus tour, I walked across to the Royal Palace and the old city of Gamla Stan This is a really special place dating back to the 11th century. The streets are very narrow and wind around in a very higgledy-piggledy way. You can touch the walls on both sides of some streets. There are also a no. of squares and lots of cafes, musicians and buskers about and of course many, many tourists. The city is in party mode at the moment as there is to be a royal wedding on the 19th June, so there are lots of pre wedding events such as music festivals, happening around the place. The Crown Princess is marrying a commoner, her personal trainer!!

Tuesday 9th
This morning I caught the train to Copenhagen, arriving here about 3.30 pm. I am staying at the Ascot Hotel which is really well located close to the station and the City Hall Square, the jumping off place for tours and the entrance to the old city. I am here for 2 nights so can catch up on some washing. I also have an apartment, so room to really spread out and relax. Once again, a city bus tour is on the agenda in the morning, but I have already been for a bit of an exploratory walk and managed to get myself lost for a while, so I really took the tourist route back to the hotel. However, I have seen parts of the city I might have otherwise missed.

Wednesday 10th
Woke up to a rainy city for my Grand bus Tour of Copenhagen. I didn’t know it was possible for a city to have so many museums. There seems to be one on every block. Also lots of palaces, churches, squares, statues and fountains. I was surprised at the no. of canals that run through the city.

We visited the Amalienborg Palace where the royal family live and watched the changing of the guard.

We also went to visit the little Mermaid but unfortunately she is in Shanghai for the world expo and we could only see a video of her.
In the afternoon the weather fined up so I wandered around again, passed the Tivoli gardens, saw the Black Diamond Library then went back into the old city. There was a political rally outside the Christiansborg Palace, lots and lots of people. No idea what they were on about, but it seemed pretty intense.

Thursday 11
Checked out of the hotel, stored my luggage and spent this morning back in the old city. I had missed out on visiting the round tower, but decided I had time to find it before heading to the airport and my flight to Amsterdam. I wasn’t disappointed. Another amazing building! Also managed to fit in a visit to the church where Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederick were married.


Friday 12
Arrived Amsterdam last night and booked into the Nicholas Witsen Hotel. A boutique hotel near Rembrandt’s Plein and the Museum district. Phoned Bec and we are catching up on Saturday.
Today, I have been on a canal cruise, and visited Ann Frank’s house (now a museum) and a very moving experience. I’ve also walked my legs off exploring this very pretty city. The architecture is amazing. There ar so many houses and buildings that date back to the 16th and 17th century. Some are leaning at crazy angles as their foundations sink into the swamp that the city is built on and there are countless canals and pretty houseboats… and once again, so many museums. I’ve also learnt that a coffee shop is NOT where you go to drink coffee. You need to go to a café for that.

Saturday 13
Amsterdam. Visit the flower market and the Delft shop in the morning and then meet Bec and Max in the city at 1.00. We then caught the bus back to their place where I spent the afternoon catching up with Bec and Scott and playing with baby Max. Had dinner at their place then Bec and I returned to the city, walking through Amsterdam’s Red Light District (now that is an experience), before returning to the hotel.

Sunday 14
Amsterdam to Groningen. I collected my car in the morning and headed for the coast before turning north to explore that part of the country
Drove to Zandvoort, Alkemaar, across the Zuiderzee dyke, then spent the night in Groningen.

Monday 15
Groningen to Velden
Spent the morning exploring Groningen. It is a university town and reminds me of Carlton. Everyone here is in party mode as Holland is playing in the World Cup today.
On the way to Velden, I stopped off to check out some historic Windmills and to explore the old towns of Hasselt and Grubbenvorst. Here I checked the GPS for local lodgings, the nearest being the Hostelliere de Mourinan in Velden. I had to take a car ferry across the river and the ferryman was quite amused that not only was an Australian was using the ferry but also that I was driving a car registered in France.
The receptionist at the hotel had spent a working holiday in Australia, and was very happy to practice her English. Went for a long walk after dinner and explored the town. It is quite small, very tidy and has some lovely gardens and interesting statuary in the market square as well as the obligatory and spectacular local church.


Tuesday 16
Velden to Dinant
First stop for the day was a tour of Hoensbroek Castle which was first established in 1250. The oldest part of the existing castle dates from 14th century but most is 17th century. It was surrounded by a moat and was really interesting. I climbed the towers, visited the attic and the dungeon cell and every floor in between including the ‘secret room’. It was an absolute maze. There was also a fantastic sand sculpture exhibition in the grounds representing medieval scenes.
Eventually headed off to find somewhere for the night. Once again choose a town from the map, set the GPS and headed off for Namur. This was a stunning town, however even with the GPS I found it difficult to navigate the very narrow lanes. Kept missing the turns as many just look like footpaths!! Eventually gave up and headed for Dinant. Well this turned out to be a bonus… the road followed the Muese River and the scenery and villages along the way were beautiful.
At Dinant, I booked into the Ibis Hotel, right on the river. There is a citadelle (old fort) above the town which dates back to 900 b.c., a 13th century Gothic style cathedral and numerous other places of interest.

Wednesday 17
Dinant. Decided to spend an extra day here and wasn’t disappointed. Once again have walked my legs off, and have to keep picking my jaw up from the footpath. Will I ever get used to the age of these towns.
There are 483 steps up to the Citadell, so I chose to take the cable car. This is a glass gondola that rises almost vertically from beside the cathedral. What a ride… you wouldn’t want to suffer from vertigo.

The guided tour was in Dutch and French, with only a little English, but it was still marvelous. I then went on a boat cruise up the river, visited the cathedral Notre Dame de Dinant and walked… a great day, but if I keep up this pace, I will never get to Brittany.

Thursday 18
Dinant to Compeigne
Today I decided to visit my Uncle’s grave at Bourguignon-sous-Coucy. His plane was shot down over France during WW2 and the crew is buried in a churchyard near the site of the crash.
I travelled from Dinant along the Route Charlemagne and at one point crossed the Marginout line and memorial in St Michel forest. I then used the rural back roads,to circle around Laon ( My GPS is THE best bit of technology I have and my new best friend!) The country is very pretty and absolutely lush farming land. There are lovely little villages every couple of km’s. I think I am finally getting used to the architecture and the age of everything. I even managed to pass through several without stopping to explore.
I stopped for lunch at Chauncy where I visited a local Art Show (I was actually looking for a loo) but the art was really worth seeing. I practiced my French conversation with the lady at the door, who was interested to hear of my pilgrimage. Amongst other things, she told me that this area was severely damaged during the war and everyone has great respect for the allies.
Bourguiginon-Sous-Coucy is a very tiny rural commune. There are lots of Flanders poppies growing along the roadsides, so I picked a bunch to lay on the grave. After visiting and taking some photos I was about to leave when one of the parishioners showed up. Unfortunately my French was not up to the speed of her conversation; however she opened the church for me to visit as well.

Tonight I’m at the Mecure Hotel in Compeigne where once again I’ve managed to amuse the staff with my command of the French language. Well, at least I’m trying.

Friday 19th
Another fantastic day. The weather has been a bit overcast, but still good for travelling. There have been severe flash floods in the South of France resulting in serious loss of life. However, we haven’t been affected here. I spent the morning exploring around the town of Chantilly and though it was very tempting I decided I didn’t have time to visit the chateau,. Could easily spend more time here. I then set a course for Giverny and Claude Monet’s garden. Passed through some spectacular country villages on rural roads as well as using the motorways. I am only about an hour from Paris and the traffic is quite heavy on the motorways. The back roads are much more pleasant and interesting.
The visit to Giverny was really special. I visited Monet’s house and garden and the Museum of Impressionism which includes a collection of spectacular impressionist art. Also walked around the village and visited some of the local hangouts and the churchyard where Monet it buried.

Tonight I am staying at Evereux about 30 km from Giverny. I crossed the River Seine at Vernon and was surprised at how lovely it is.
Tomorrow, I am off to Bayeaux to see the famous tapestry.

Yay... I have internet

Hi everyone
Who would have thought that I would be into day 20 before I was able to add some info on the trip. I'm now in St Petersburg and the trip so far has been amazing.
I'll add the notes I've made along the way so far and also some photos. Hope everyone is well.

********

Thursday 13th May
1pm: Finally the moment of departure has arrived. Denis is there to record me locking the door and stepping off on my big adventure.

Travelled to Melbourne with Evie and Denis who dropped me off at the Motel in Attwood for dinner and an early night. Rang Mepsteads for the latest on Marg and it is great to hear she is home again. I’m looking forward to a long catch up when I get home.

Friday 14th May
Well the early morning got earlier by an hour as I discovered I had not reset the time on my mobile since daylight saving finished. So instead of the alarm going off at 4.30..…!! Couldn’t understand why the airport shuttle wasn’t there when I went to catch it. Oh dear, this wasn’t the start I had envisaged!

Finally worked it out and when I went to the office at the right time, I had an uneventful trip to the airport with no delays at check-in, security or customs.

Cathay Pacific flight CX134 was only lightly booked, so had plenty of space to spread out. We took off on time and a little over 9 hours, some sleep and 2 movies later, I arrived in Hong Kong. Once again, no hassles getting through immigration, baggage retrieval and organizing the hotel shuttle

The Marriot Skycity was my home for the night. It’s a bit above my normal accommodation style and price, but very comfortable and has friendly staff.
However, I decided to eat elsewhere and took the bus to Tung ch a village on Lantau Island at the foot of the mountain where the big Budda is.
I avoided the outlet shopping centre and headed for the local market. There is nothing like setting the scene for the local culture than its market place… the sights and smells are so different for home. Having decided that I am incompetent with the touch pad, I purchased a mini mouse with a retractable cord for the laptop. It’s really cute.
In the lane beside the market I found a café with lots of locals dining, so decided to try it. I was the only westerner there so they sat me with a couple who had some English and I was really well looked after. They even found me a special menu with English translation. Everyone was interested as they hadn’t seen one before! Obviously they don’t get a lot of non locals as most would go to the outlet centre cafes. Highlight of the evening was the singing waiter… who wandered around singing and laughing. My meal, which would have fed 3 people cost $35HK and no tip expected. (coffee and a muffin at the Marriot was $48+ tip)
It was a great start to my visit.

Saturday 15th May
Spent the morning wandering around the village again, then made my way to the airport.
Flight to Beijing went well and I was collected from the airport in a limousine. The driver had spent some time in America and had perfect English. There was an accident on the ring road into town, so it we had quite a delay getting through. Arrived at the Xiao Xiang Hotel quite late but met our tour guide ok then settled into my room.
My room mate isn’t arriving until tomorrow, so have the room to myself for now.

Sunday 16th
Got up early and met the rest of the group at breakfast. We have an, English couple and the rest are Australian. After brekky, we boarded the bus and went to the great wall. There is a cable car which took us to the top and then we walked and climbed the steps along the top walkway and through the forts.

It is an amazing construction and one can only imagine the suffering of those who worked to build it. We had lunch in the village market, tried the local beer and I bought a t shirt for Mitchell.

In the evening we went to a cultural performance. The agility of the acrobats and contortionists is spectacular. The show closed with a death defying performance of motor cycle riders in a metal globe. Started with one and eventually there were 5 riders and machines hurtling round inside the cage. Very scary…
Monday17th

Today we went to the Temple of heaven, (imposing) the Pearl Market (chaotic) and Tianamen square. (impressive, though most of us could only really relate it to the sad and graphic pictures of the student demonstrations we had seen on TV).

We had some free time in the afternoon to wander around and to buy food and snacks for the train journey to Mongolia the next day.
In the evening we visited the Hutong district (Old Peking) and had Peking Duck at one of the local restaurants. It was my birthday and the whole group celebrated with a banquet dinner, beer and even a birthday cake and card.. A very special birthday dinner which I will remember for a long time. After dinner we wandered slowly through the streets and shops of the Hutong, back to the hotel.

Weather in Hong Kong was warm and smoggy, with some showers in the afternoon.


Tuesday 18th
We were dropped at the Beijing station to catch the Trans Mongolian train to UlanBataar. Was raining and the bus couldn’t get too close to the entrance, so we joined the mass of people pushing in that direction. Eventually worked out way up and down many steps to the platform and boarded the train. I am sharing my compartment with a couple of Gippslanders, Denise from Warragul and her traveling companion Mel, from Rosedale. We also have an elderly German lady, Maryanne from Adelaide. Some of the group are traveling 1st class and we are in economy. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of difference in the accommodation, but only two people in the 1st class cabins. There is a dining car on the train and we all gather there for meals and happy hour.

Wednesday 19th
Arrived at Ulanbaatar (Mongolia) in the afternoon, after spending overnight and morning on the train..The border crossing from China took 6 hours. Booked into the Khaara Hotel (sharing with Maryanne).
Had the afternoon free to wander the area around the hotel and found a nice bakery for snacks. The Chezk president was in town, so a heavy presence of police and security on Peace Avenue when the official cavalcade was passing.through.
We went to a Mongolian cultural event in the evening, a contortionist, musicians and singers. It was really lovely and I purchased a cd of the music. We than went to a Mongolian BBQ restaurant for tea. Could have eaten there for the rest of the trip… it was so good.


Thursday 20th (a week since I left home)

This morning we visited an old Budhist temple and listened to the chanting of the monks, then climbed the 200+ steps to a world war 2 memorial lookout, for a view of the city, before boarding the bus for our trip to the Steppes and our Ger camp about 70 km from UB
On the way we stopped for photos and I got to ride on a two humped camel and to hold a hunting falcon aloft..

There are many ger camps, and horses along the route.. it is so different to home.
Arrived at the ‘Guru’ Ger camp late afternoon and settled in. Sharing a ger with Betty and Reg from Doncaster and Maryanne.
This is a spectacularly beautiful valley with large mountains and rock outcrops surrounding the camp. Some of us climbed the outcrops around the camp which provided magnificent views for miles. Wildflowers starting to appear and trees are in bud. They have had a long cold winter, so spring is slow in arriving this year.
We also experienced the camp’s long drop toilet. A hole in the ground with two planks across to balance on. Very difficult for some of our party to master!! There’s no showers and we have a billy of water for washing in.
The owners are working on a shower and toilet block so the next group may have a few more comforts. For us it is part of the adventure.
Dinner at the camp – a feast of Mongolian cooking and a few local beers, and the moveie ‘Weeping Camel’ completed the day.

Friday 21st
Woke early to a very cold morning. The staff came in and stoked our fire about 5.30, so the ger was really comfortable. .Went for a short walk before breakfast, there are lots of little chipmunks in burrows like rabbits, all around the camp; There are horses wandering about and lots of birds. Spring is a little late, so the trees are still in bud and only a few wildflowers breaking through. However, it is an indication of what is to come.

Saturday 22nd
After a splendid breakfast (did I think I might lose weight on this trip?)
We climbed another of the outcrops and watched a horseman riding flat out across the valley below us, I noticed a temple away in the distance. So we arranged for the group to visit it. It is a remote Buddhist retreat.(privately owned!) there was a steep hill and around 250 steps to climb, but the view at the top was worth it. This valley also had some late drifts of snow and a greater display of wildflowers, which was really pretty.
Returned to the Camp for lunch and then went horseriding. Yes, I have now been horseriding on a little Mongolian horse which I named ‘Radish’ in the Mongolian Steppes. A unique experience. When we returned to camp, some of the others where trying their hand at archery and of course, we had to try this too. We were shooting at a target 300 m away. My first shots fell about half way there, however, much to my surprise the next 4 landed within half a metre of the target making me the most consistent archer in the group. None of us actually hit the target though!
That evening we watched a dvd about Ghengis Khan and got dressed in traditional costumes. There was a lot of hilarity and laughter in the camp.
We all wanted to stay more than our 2 nights.

Sunday 23rd
Spent a lazy morning in the camp before heading back to UB. On the way we stopped at the winter camp of a nomadic family and were invited for milk tea and a look at their camp. They certainly live a very basic lifestyle. Once in UB we had some free time to prepare for our next train trip to Irkutsk in Russia.
There is no dining car so we hit the local ‘supermarkets’ for our supplies and the shops and markets for souveneirs. 4 of us took as taxi to the old Winter palace of the last lama. The palace is now a museum and houses a wonderfull collection. Well worth the effort to get there… and back!!

Monday 24th
Spent most of the day on the train heading to Irkutzk. Lots of water ways, snow and ice along the way. Bought local food on the stations to supplement our supplies. The border crossing took 11 hours.
Arrived in the afternoon and met our Russian tour guide ‘Olga”. There was a music concert on at the Polish Catholic church near the hotel, so some of us decided to go there. 2 very good singers (1 man and 1 woman) and 2 pianists. Couldn’t understand the introductions or the words, but the music was really good. We then found a small café and had Russian pancakes for tea.
Our hotel is very modern looking from the street, but quite basic inside.
The city is a mix of modern concrete towers and old wooden structures. It sits on the banks of the Angor River which flows from Lake Baikel. In the city the river is 2 km wide and very fast current.


Tuesday 25th
Boarded the bus to Lake Baikel. The largest fresh water lake in the world. 600 km long and 35 km wide. It is also the deepest lake in the world and is still growing as it sits on a fault line. There is constant movement and we watched the computer monitor at the museum recording the movement whilst we were there. Fortunately not strong enough for us to feel. Visited the local lookout and the natural history museum before booking into our chateau. This is a very pretty area. The lake is surrounded by mountains, still covered in snow, and the lake hasn’t yet completely thawed and there was still a lot of ice and ice flows around. Temp of the water was 1.1 deg.


Wednesday 26th
Breakfast at the chalet was a grand event. As I said before, losing weight doesn’t seem to be an option here. We then boarded one of the local boats for a cruise on the Lake. The weather was fine but the wind was icy so we all rugged up like Eskimos There is a solar observatory and observatory on the lake edge, but this isn’t open to the public. Later, we went to the market for lunch of shaslik and dumplings then collected our bags for the trip back to Irkutsk. Lake Baikel is another of those places where one could easily spend a week and it would be fascinating to see when it is frozen.. ,Half way back to Irkutsk we visited the Museum of wooden architecture. This is a similar concept to Old Gippstown. When a dam was built on the Angor river for a new power station, some houses from the towns to be flooded were relocated. Included some very old forts and a church and various artifacts. Very interesting place. Arriving back at the hotel we once again had free time to explore the area around the hotel. This was set opposite a lovely central square, so it was great for watching the locals go about there business. The women here are very fashion conscious and their shoes have the highest heels I’ve reckon I’ve ever seen.
Went for tea at a local café and had Russian Bortsch with black bread. Delicious.


Thursday 27th
This morning we went on a walking tour of Irkutsk and the History Museum. Then free time for the rest of the day to prepare for the next leg of our journey.

Friday 28th
Board train for 3 day/night trip to Moscow. Sharing with Mel, Denise and Maryanne again. We have developed a good system of food sharing and have a community pantry. There is also a dining car on this train, but not to much to choose from and expensive. We also have a tv in our cabin, but only in Russian and no sub titles and a music channel which has pleasant music, but too much static.
Every carriage has a samovar, so there is endless hot water. The conductor is very pleasant, and will heat food in her microwave for a price!! Once again there is no shower but we do have a chemical toilet on this carriage and it is kept pretty clean, though paper has to be put in the bin, not flushed.

Saturday 29th
The train has had a no. of stops where we can hop on and off to stretch our legs and replenish supplies. Favourite local food is Korvotchki? (potato pancakes)
Scenery is same same different. Don’t know how to describe it really. Lots of birch and larch (pine) forests. Very broad open plateaus and lots of swampy country criss crossed with rivers . There are little villages dotted across the landscape. Mostly log cabins or slab huts. Not many people or animals to be seen, but most cabins show signs of life either by washing on the line or the vegetable garden being freshly dug ready for the spring/summer growing period. The change in vegetation is the greatest thing, from still being in bud to having full leaf, depending on the altitude.
Party night for the group tonight. Someone bought out the vodka and a merry time was had by all.

Sunday 30th
Had to put our watches back another 3 hours today and another two tomorrow for Moscow time.. I think we are now about 7 or 8 hours behind home? The days are now very long, only seems to be about 3-4 hours of night so it is hard to keep track of time. We are eating and sleeping our way across the continent. Last night we went through the Ural mountains, the division between Asia and Europe.
I am writing this on the train. We are about 12 hours from Moscow now.
Arrived in Moscow about 6pm and had a smooth trip from the station to the hotel. We are staying at the Vega hotel. Part of a large tourist complex built for the 1980 Olympic Games. It is a little way out of the city centre, but right by a metro station. It is really a village in itself and very comfortable. Sharing a room with Maryanne, again.

Monday 1st
After a banquet of a breakfast, we caught the Metro rail to the Kremlin.
After getting off the train, we walked through the Alexander Gardens. These are magnificent and the spring flowers and lilacs were beautiful. We passed the eternal flame and memorial for fallen soldiers, and many statues, eventually arriving at the Palace gates.
The Kremlin is a walled fortress with 5 gates. It houses the seat of the Russian government, Bell towers, Cathedrals of the Czars he Armory, Arsenal and palaces.
Once inside, we toured the Armoury Museum. This houses an amazing collection of Russian treasures, Carriages and costumes of the Czars, gold silver and precious jewelry, diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires (to name a few), which have to be seen to be believed. Religious icons, Faberge eggs, Jewel encrusted bibles, crowns, clothing, swords etc.
We then visited the cathedrals of the Czars, the coronation cathedral, the cathedral of the annunciation, cathedral of the archangel michael , all with beautifully decorated golden cupolas, the Czars Bell and Cannon.
Decorations and iconry in the cathedrals dates back to the 11 th century. Unbelievable!! I feel like I am dreaming.

I thought Moscow would have lots of grey concrete. However, I have found a beautiful, modern, vibrant city. I love it.

Tonight we are going on a tour of the Metro stations and tomorrow red square and city tour.

Tuesday 2nd
Well the Metro stations of Moscow are art and architecture galleries filled with statues, paintings and mosaics. We visited 1/2 dozen stations and each on was different. A must do activity for a Moscow visit.

St Basils Cathedral, Red Square and Gum dept. store were also on the agenda today. Still can't quite believe I am here. We are off to St. Petersburgh tonight, actually early tomorrow morning. The train leaves Moscow at 12.45 am.