Helsinki, Finland – a city of 650,000 in a country of 5 million

On July 30, 2016 By Traveling FullersLeave a comment

We have enjoyed a beautiful day in Helsinki– a record breaking day of heat! Still we very much enjoyed our tour, in spite of the fact that half my suitcase of warmer clothes has not been touched. This part of the world is enjoying? record heat!

A few interesting facts about Finland. The country has been recognized as number one in the world in education. They are tied for the number one spot in science and math with South Korea. This in spite of the fact that the first year of school begins at age 7. Preschool is for age six and it’s just to get them ready for the school routine the following year. All education is free for Citizens, and even for immigrants. However, this changes next year and immigrants will have to pay 11,000 euros a year to attend the university.

The language is either Finnish or Swedish. English is widely spoken and is generally the second language chosen and taught in schools. Today the population is only about 6% Swedish, but everything (including street signs) are printed in both Finnish and Swedish.

Finland was under Swedish control for a large part of its history. In 1550, Gustav 1, the Swedish monarch, ordered (forced) several hundred people to come to what later became known as Helsinki, to settle the area. He wanted a seaport since Tallinn was controlling a lot of trade in the Baltic. It remained a small fishing village for almost two hundred years. In 1808, it was conquered by the Russians and during their occupation, the city began growing. Dissatisfaction with Russian rule and calls for independence continued during this period and in 1917 Finland took advantage of the Russian Revolution to obtain complete independence. However, they remained in the sphere of Russian influence and eventually became very reluctant allies of Germany as WWII began. They chose the lesser of two evils as they saw it and allied themselves with Germany to avoid takeover by communist Russia. They were however, not an active participant in the war. Helsinki was mainly a recuperating area for wounded soldiers. At the conclusion of the war, they remained an independent country. The country rapidly modernized and held the 1952 Summer Olympics. You might think they would host the Winter Olympics, but consider the fact that in winter time there are less then 5 hours of sunlight a day. It is one of the big negatives for those who live here. Depression and suicide are national issues. Everyone takes vitamin d because they have so little exposure to sunlight.

Ready for dinner. Not yet docked in Helsinki.

Yes, the Ferris Wheel is just steps from where we’ve docked.

The most famous Finnish athlete –9 gold medals. 3 silver medals and 22 world records.

Tom Roddell in front of the Olympic stadium that is being renovated. The country is sports and rock band happy! They are especially crazy about their ice hockey. But there are 52 rock bands per 1,000 people in the country. Compare that to 10 Rock bands per 1000 people in the USA… Fins are a very “fit” people. Everyone jogs or bikes! There are gyms everywhere in the city.

Gene got very inventive and took this shot of the tribute to Sibelius from underneath the sculpture.

This is the sculpture built to honor Finland’s greatest composer, Sibelius.

The likeness of Sibelius..

Our driver was very amusing and she spoke 4 languages. She was knitting socks for herself!

The “church in the Rock” — a working Lutheran church.

This is where the Congress meets.

A very pretty and interesting metal sculpture inside the Music Center.

A VERY long line of empty coat rooms..

In the city center–Senate Square– is the majestic Lutheran Helsinki Cathedral finished in 1852. Although Lutheran, its architecture shows the Russian influence with its domes.

How fun! They decorated the trees in this small park like dresses!

Senate Square…

Example of street signs printed in Finnish and Swedish. Notice the animal picture? It is a modern replacement, but in Medieval times, different animal pictures on the street corners allowed those who could not read to know where they were.

Local markets in, where else, MARKET SQUARE!

The Russian Orthodox Cathedral.

Taken from our ship balcony.

A very happy and better educated group by the end of the day.

Poor Nicholas II.. The birds do love him…

Next stop, the “crown jewel” of St. Petersburg,

Riga, Latvia

On July 29, 2016 By Traveling FullersLeave a comment

Today, in spite of the rain showers, we all enjoyed our walking tour into the “old city” of Riga, Latvia. Riga owes its roots to trade, bring located on the Daugava River. A town began to grow up along this trade route and Riga claims to have been established in 1201. The most important influence in the first several hundred years was German. Language, trade , architecture and culture were German. It was a very prosperous trading center for hundreds of years and today the old town is a UNESCO World Heritage site. A World Heritage site is a place (such as a building, city, complex, desert, forest, island, lake, monument, or mountain) that is listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as being of special cultural or physical significance.

The Germans brought the first trade guilds to Riga. The first two guilds were trade and artisans. Riga prospered as a port and trading center for centuries under the German sphere of influence. In the 17th century, the city fell under the influence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden (a period of tolerance and prosperity) which lasted until the czar, Peter the Great besieged Riga. Riga then became a part of the Russian empire — pleased to have an important port added to their country. Under the Russian Empire, Riga became heavily industrialized and was the third largest city in the empire, behind Moscow and St Petersburg. Unfortunately, WWI started and in 1917 the Germans marched into Riga and began German occupation once again. Hitler himself appeared in the town. This time the occupation lasted one year until the Treaty of Brest Litovsk was signed giving Latvia and Lithuanian to Germany. 1918, Germany had to renounce that treaty, as did Russia, leaving Latvia and the other Baltic States in a position to claim independence. During the period after WWI until WWII, Latvia turned its attention to more Western Europe and began a parliamentary form of government. This was a brief period of peacefulness until, once again, 1940 had the Russians once again conquering Latvia. Real Soviet domination took place after 1945. Many Latvians were deported to Siberia. Many of German descent were repatriated to Hitler’s Germany. The country remained under Soviet rule until the dissolution of the Soviet Union

Trying desperately to remember what she tells us.

Cobblestone streets throughout the old city.

Oldest church. It was shut down during Soviet Occupation and became a dance club. It was restored to a church with Latvia declared their independence.

The “three brothers” are 17th century architecture.

They’re actually taking a “selfie” using Gene’s iPhone with a wide angle lens attached. It does a great job!

A gentleman who was denied access to the merchants guild because he wasn’t German, built his house directly across the street from the guild. He placed the cat atop the steeple on his house and it appeared that the cat was, how shall I say, defacating?, on the guild! He apparently got the last laugh!

A monument to the Bremen Town Musicians.

Traditional Latvian costume..

The residence of the country’s President.

We took a lazy river cruise on the Daugava.

Since we were a little “damp” from the earlier rain showers, it got a bit chilly when the wind blew as the cruise began. We were grateful for the stack of blankets!

Our “home away from home”!

Small but most important seaport, Klaipeda, Lithuania

On July 28, 2016 By Traveling FullersLeave a comment

The city of Klaipeda, may be small (152,000) people in the country of Lithuania (3,000,000 people), but it is the third largest city and the only seaport. It is a major seaport in part because it remains ice free year round. The city has a long and varied history and was founded in 1252. It was founded by the Levonian Order of Teutonic Knights. For most of its history, the town was an important trading center of eastern Prussia with tremendous German influences. At one point, during the Napoleonic Wars, it became the capital of Prussia. The city became a part of Lithuania in 1923. It was occupied by Germany before and during WWII. It became the independent country of Lithuania in the early 1990′ with the dissolution of the Societ Union. During the Soviet occupation, the Soviets destroyed the Headstones in a beautiful cemetery because of their German style of architecture and the German names on them.

They even dug up the graves and removed bodies. Today, the cemetery is called Monument Park. They did not have the money or the means to restore the cemetery after they achieved independence , but they have restored the area to a peaceful park with multiple sculptures created from the 1980’s forward and scattered about the park. The architecture of the “old city” is very German. The outlying areas of the city are filled with the plain concrete block style of Soviet architecture which is quite distinctive and very recognizable to us by now. The history of the city is that of a true melting pot with the many cultures of the residents able to coexist over the years.

We also visited the oldest beer brewery in Lithuania, founded in 1784. It was a very interesting tour and we had a fun beer tasting at the end of the tour. They promote their beers to be eaten with different snacks to bring out the unique flavor of each beer.

Tonight is formal night aboard our ship. We sat next to The Captain’s table. Great lobster night!

Learning from our guide, Katarina.

Gill you say?

And Gene….

Mr. Cat… A famous inhabitant of Klaipeda…appeared in 1980’s…

Chess anyone? Very light weight plastic pieces.

Another famous inhabitant. In the winter, someone unknown puts little hats and mittens and a jacket on him!

What a face!

The University…

Monument Park. The mostly German cemetery destroyed during Soviet occupation.

Monument Park

The oldest brewery in Lithuania.

Quality control for the brewery.

They made us wear these coats on the tour. Not really sure why since no one who was working there was in anything like it!

Giant storage, aging tanks.

Bottle assembly line.

Original bottles..

Beautiful sailing ship that used to be used for maritime training… It’s now a sea food restaurant.

Our beer tasting complete with snacks. An interesting experience.

Our Captain… WAIT! Who’s driving the boat? LOL!

What a sunset at 10:01 pm!

What a fun group of friends for the last 40 years!

Arriving in Gdansk, Poland

On July 26, 2016 By Traveling Fullers2 Comments

Smooth sailing! We left Copenhagen last evening at 5:00 pm and docked today in Gdansk at 1:00 pm. It’s 7 miles from the dock to the old city. We were first in line for the free shuttle!- Our friends that are traveling with us are Gene and Gill Breslow and Tom and Barb Roddel. We have known both couples for more then 40 years! This is the first time the three couples have traveled together! So far, it’s a match made in travelers’ heaven! You can be friends with someone, but not necessarily travel well with them! This is a compatible group!

We had no formal tour planned today. We just walked the Main Street of old town Gdansk, Poland. Some of you may remember what is today called Gdansk as Danzig. From 1308 to 1945, Gdansk was known as Danzig. In 1997, Gdansk celebrated its 1,000 year as a Baltic city. Gdansk was almost entirely destroyed during WWII. The “old town area” has lovingly been reconstructed since the war. The beautiful St. Mary’s church is the largest brick church in the world and seats 25,000 people.

It was quite warm today with temperatures in the low 80’s. Next stop tomorrow is Klaipeda, Lithuania where it will be considerably cooler. The predicted high is 72′. Enjoy the lovely view of Gdansk, as it has been restored. I am posting one photo of what it looked like before the war…

Entering the old city…

Leaving Copenhagen..

Our home away from home for the next 2 weeks.

Driving into old town. A cool looking suspension bridge.

Yours truly….

Every port in the world seems to have the obligatory “pirate ship”!

Gene and Gill Breslow….

Entrance gate to the old city.

The former residence of Gdansk rulers.

Street merchants selling the “bubble sticks”. Children were enthralled.

Mapping out a strategic walk. Gene Breslow and Tom Roddel…

Gene DOES LOVE His gelato or ice cream!

Me too…..

Historic Gdansk…

This was once the largest mill in medieval Europe.

Third and final day in Moscow.

On July 24, 2016 By Traveling Fullers1 Comment

Another beautiful day – not as warm and NO RAIN! We started off a little later today, and our first stop was an Armenian Chirch. The Armenian church is a totally different style of architecture. It is a relatively recent construction.

We then proceeded to the Armed Forces Museum and had a guided tour of the most important artifacts, particularly relating to WWII , or as the Russians call it, The Great Patriotic War. They make a distinction in the name, because for them the war started on July 22, 1941, when Germany invaded the Soviet Union. WWII began two years earlier for Europe when Germany and the Soviet Union had coordinated attacks on Poland. The Soviet Union suffered greatly in the early days of the war. They were not prepared for war. It is estimated that more than 27 million people lost their lives. Some of the museums most prized possessions are the Victory Banner and all the front banners and the captured Nazi ones. These were used during the great victory parade in Red Square in 1945.

After the military museum, we were off to Christ the Redeemer Church. It is a magnificent cathedral rebuilt in the 1990’s. The original cathedral took over 46 years to build and was completed in May 1883. It is the the tallest Orthodox Church in the world. It was originally built to commemorate Russia’s victory over Napolean. It was torn down on the the orders of Stalin in the 1930’s. Stalin intended to build a new government house (Duma) on the site. It took one year to clear the site after its destruction. They dug very deep down after the structure was demolished. But, the government house was never built. The war interrupted their plans. After the war, the largest swimming pool in the world was constructed on the site to fill up the hole! They also planted gardens. When the old Soviet Union was demolished in the 90’s and the church came back in power, it took only 10 years (instead of 40) to recreate the original church in every detail. It was reopened in 1990.

Our next stop was the Novodevichy Convent. It was constructed in the 16th century. It is behind a wall and is a very pastoral scene, with ancient trees and old tombs. Behind the nunnery is a famous cemetery where all the rich and famous are buried. There are graves dating back to the 1500’s and graves that are recent. Boris Yeltsin, Chekov, famous Bolshoi dance masters, entertainers and Staislavsky are all buried in the cemetery behind the nunnery. Today there are still about 30 nuns residing there in the nunnery grounds. This particular nunnery is one of the oldest and most beautiful fortified religious institutions that ring the city.

Last, but not least, we attended the premier performance of the opera, The Damnation of Faust, in the newly renovated Bolshoi Theater just across from our hotel. It was a very stialized rendition. The theater is lovely. You sit in individual wooden chairs designed, I’m convinced, to keep you from falling asleep during a performance. Thank goodness the seat cushions were padded since the wooden backs were not entirely comfortable. The Opera was in French (they had Russian subtitles which didn’t help us), but they had a book that we purchased that contained an English synopsis. Once you understood the story, you could actually follow along fairly well. The singing and ballet dancing were beautiful I must admit. It was an interesting and entertaining evening.

We left early this morning with fond memories of our tours in Moscow. I had a totally different perception of what I thought Moscow would be. It was very much like a Fabrege Egg with surprises inside! We thoroughly enjoyed our time spent getting to better understand the history and current personality of the people. The entire city seems to be under construction! Almost every major road has lanes closed and people working 24/7. They are digging up asphalt sidewalks and replacing them with granite everywhere. The mayor said it was better to suffer greatly for one year then to be inconvenienced for 10 years. I’m not sure residents would agree! Of course it looks to me like it may still be several years before they finish. Certainly it won’t be completed before winter comes. I can’t imagine how they will do snow removal!!

We arrived in Copenhagen on time. We were reminded upon landing that not everything always goes the way it’s planned. We were to supposed to have a car meet us to take us to the hotel but the car service was no where to be found, even though we waited for an hour. Our 24 hour phone number when dialed said it was not a working number. Oh well, no big deal, taxi line was short and efficient. The next hiccup was when we arrived at our hotel to find that the AC for the entire hotel is broken –on one of the hottest days of the summer! Normally, non functional AC wouldn’t be a big issue, but today it was. Our room had sun load all afternoon and by the time we got in, it was 90′! Fortunately, we have a broken window, which allows us to open it wide and if we leave the door slightly ajar it creates a nice draft. The room began to cool down rapidly. Thankfully it’s cooling off into the low 70’s tonight so we’ll be fine! Besides, they’re discounting the room, Bill has his hot water kettle for tea and the mini bar is no charge!

We met up with the other two couples we’re traveling with and the laughter has begun! Had an interesting dinner in a very pretty restaurant. However, I’ll be glad to check in to the ship tomorrow at noon!

By the way, accolades for our guide in Moscow, Marina. She imparted a great deal of interesting information. I’m sorry I can’t remember all of it!

Dome of the Christ the Redeemer Church after it was rebuilt and finished in 2000. This is the church that was originally built by Peter the Great to commemorate the defeat of Napolean.

The Armenian church. You can see how different the architecture is

Tribute outside the military museum to the submarine Kursk, that went down in 2000 and all perished. The Soviets kept it a secret for many years because it was a nuclear powered sub.

Outside the museum.

The fallen eagle was taken from Hitlers headquarters – a proud Russian possession. Behind is the Victory Parade in Red Square where German prisoners were paraded in defeat.

There were four glass cases of these German Iron crosses.

Outside the military museum.

The Church of Christ the Redeemer— one of the largest and most important.

It was a day for wedding photos! We saw at least 5 brides doing photos!

Christ the Redeemer church taken from the back side on the bridge.

So the story behind this is it’s Peter the Great and it commemorates the founding of the Russian navy. HOWEVER —The rest of the story.. It seems the sculptor originally intended it to be Christopher Columbus. However, Spain didn’t want to pay for it. He tried to sell it to the Americans and we said no. He changed the head to Peter the Great and sold it to Russia where it resides on the banks of the Moscow River.

The scenic and pastoral nunnery built in the 16th century.

A centuries old tombstone on the nunnery grounds.

Most people are buried because cremation is frowned upon in the Russian Orthodox Church. However, people of all faiths are buried here. The key is to be someone important.

Alexander Chekov’s simple headstone.

Boris Yeltsin’s rather bizarre tombstone.

This man was an important founder and entertainer in the famous Moscow Circus..

Atop the churches everywhere.

Another view of the nunnery.

Bolshoi stage.

We were on the ground floor. Sold out performance.

Ceiling in the theater.

Yea! Natural AC begins with the breeze as the sun goes down! Travel is always such an adventure! It’s why I love it!

Second day Touring in Moscow – The Kremlin, Red Square, the Armory, Cathedrals and churches

On July 22, 2016 By Traveling FullersLeave a comment

Wow! What a great day of touring with Marina! And, I have to say my new hip, is working spectacularly because I walked 4.07 miles today and climbed 4 flights of stairs according to the fitness app on my phone! The morning was lovely. Overcast, but pleasantly cool for walking… Our first stop was walking to the Kremlin. The Kremlin area is behind an ancient wall that fortified the original Moscow founded in 1147. On the map below, you can see in the Kremlin in the very center of the map outlined by the red line. Inside the Kremlin wall are a group of important Cathedrals ranging in age from the early 1400’s to to the early 18th century. Renovations are always on going. One of the Cathedrals, the main cathedral of the Russian Czars (the Dormition Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin) , was actually occupied by Napoleon for 30 days before he was driven out. The Dormition Cathedral’s walls are covered floor to ceiling by amazing and beautiful icons. The people were mostly illiterate, and icons were used to tell the stories of the times. Many of the icons were painted on wood, but then they were covered and decorated with beautiful gems and silver. There were so many saints, that there was a period in the 18th century when a child’s name was often chosen by the Saint that was dedicated to that date. It became quite fashionable for a period. This was the cathedral where most of the coronations took place from 1547 to1896.

The Russian Orthodox Church is such an integral part of the fabric of the people through the centuries that it’s easy to understand why, when the churches were closed during The Soviet times , that the religion remained in the hearts and minds of the people. Cathedrals and churches were built in Russia to commemorate everything — every important battle or victory resulted in a church or cathedral being built. There are literally hundreds, (I believe the number was around 400) churches that were built over the centuries in Moscow. The people truly rejoiced when the churches were finally reopened in the 1990’s. The Russian history may be as complicated as British or Chinese history. It is hard to compress all the important information we learned into this blog. The churches and cathedrals inside the Kremlin walls are unique pieces of art and religious history that are most impressive…

Also inside the Kremlin walls is the palace where Putin comes to work every day. There is a photo below with a dome with a flag on top. The flag flys directly over his state office, in the Grand Kremlin Palace.

One of the other impressive cathedrals we went inside today was the Necropolis of the Archangel Cathedral. It was begun in 1340 by the first Romanof Czars. Each one is impressive in so many ways. This cathedral is the burial place for many of the Czars.

After touring the most important cathedrals, we visited the armory. We might call it “the treasury ” because it contains the finest collection of precious gems and preserved, authentic clothes from periods that were centuries old that Bill and I have ever seen. Such things as: 30,000 carats of rough cut diamonds. There are more then 900 large , natural uncut diamonds– the largest of which is 342.57 carats. There is a unique collection of 20 platinum nuggets from the Urals. The largest is 17 pounds and there are three gold ingots, the largest weighing 26 lbs. (423 oz). Using the current price of gold, it would be worth approximately $560,000 each and there are three of them. There are several magnificent tiaras. One of the most Beautiful was the grand imperial crown made for the coronation of the Empress Catherine the 2nd made in 1762. It has 5000 diamonds and 75 natural pearls.

But I believe the jewels pale in comparison to the magnificently preserved costumes from the 1400’s to the magnificently embroidered silk dresses of the empresses–in particular, Catherine II and Peter the Great’s coronation clothes and capes. They even have the boots and shoes covered with natural pearls and gems perfectly preserved. Even the saddles of the Emperors’ horses and the decorations for their horses are an amazing sight to behold. I could go on and on, but I promise to stop. It was just so impressive. I am sad we were not allowed to take photos in the armory. We will have to preserve the images in our minds.

After the Armory, the weather gods deserted us and the rain began. However, this led to a wonderful experience as we took refuge from the weather In the famed Gum’s department store. Actually, it’s not one store, but the collection of many stores under one roof. You can have the glitzy, fancy mall that was recently built (photos from yesterday), but we MUCH preferred the elegant, stately and classic structure of the Gum. We tried to out wait the rain by having lunch as we explored the immense 3 levels of this beautiful, historic marketplace. Gum was originally run by the state so all prices were controlled. Now it is filled with every high end store you could imagine. She is an elegant and “classy” old lady that has maintained her grandeur.

Alas, we could not out wait the rain, so the photos of the famed Red Square are very gray. Red Square is the most often shown on tv. Many state and important festivals continue to be held in the square today. It is the site of Lenin’s and Stalin’s burial place. Lenin’s tomb remains quite visible in the square, but while they were once side by side, Stalin was removed in the Soviet time and buried in a vacuum sarcophagus many feet undergeound. He remains there today.

One last small note of interest about the currency, the ruble. The word itself means “cut”. Early strips of metal were “cut” to make the first currency. Enough for tonight. Enjoy the photos!

Right outside hotel as we walk to the Kremlin wall. The domes you see are light for underground shops.

Lovely sculptures adorn the waterway just before the entrance to the Kremlin.

The gates to the inside of the Kremlin. Remember, the wall was built as a fortification for the early city. Moscow, by the way, derives its name from the river which flows in front of the city.

The Kremlin wall is in the background.

The Soviet Style of building during Khruschev’s years.

The palace that is where Putin’s government office resides.

A beautiful canon that was never fired. It was made to intimidate.

A bell that was cast but broke before it was ever installed.

You can see the many cathedrals that surround the inside of the Kremlin. The white one behind us is where the coronations of the Czars occurred.

The coronations occurred here.

Entrance to Gum’s (pronounced Goom’s) mall”.

Gum’s….

Marina treated us to delicious ice cream! Old school. Very creamy…

This store is not doing well. It has all the Russian Olympic gear. Since the doping scandal, the Russian team is prohibited from participating in this years Olympics. Sad for the athletes who didn’t dope….

A semblance of Gum elegance…

I hope you capture the “flavor”!

Immense grandeur….

Lunch. Pizza survives around the world!!!!

View of a rainy Red Square and Lenin’s Tomb..

A display of “Tigers” along the Square.

St Basils Cathedral..

Inside St. Basil’s …

A first “sound system “! How neat!

The “resonator “!

St. Basil’s…

View of exterior of Gum’s from St. Basils’s across Red Square.

The back view of Saint Basil’s.

Moscow

On July 14, 2016 By Traveling Fullers2 Comments

Slowly recovering from jet lag, we “hit the hay” early last night after an uneventful (thank goodness) flight to Moscow via Zurich! It stays light so late (17 hours of daylight this time of year) that it’s all too easy to lose track of time!

We started our tour this morning with a tour of the recently opened Secret Nuclear Underground Bunker which was built 65 meters underground (like a 20 story building). It was but in the early 1950’s as the Cold War began to heat up and Russia and the US raced for supremacy in nuclear weapons. The bunker was the military command central for the launching of missiles. It was disguised as an apartment building and each 24 hours when the shift would change, 600 “residents in civilians clothes” would enter through the green doors and be admitted by an officer who would verify credentials. There was enough food and water to survive for 30 days underground. We were allowed to sit at a simulated console and “launch” missiles in defense. They determined the depth the Bunker had to built by doing a test in a remote part of the country. They built a simulated “city” and set off a nuclear explosion to see the effects. Animals were 50 meters down and survived the explosion which is why the command center bunker was built at 65 meters.

Moscow was established in 1147 as an early fortress on the Moskav River (from which Moscow gets its name). The river provided part of a natural defense system. Our guide gave us a brief overview of WWII. I had not realized that Russia lost 27 million people in the war. Three million Soviet Jews were taken to German labor camps. Almost every family in Russia lost at least one family member during the war…

Today, Moscow has become fairly “westernized”. American cinema is HUGELY popular and ther are massive malls that are sleek and modern with all our western stores. There is a definite mixture of old and new, though many historical buildings were torn down in Soviet years.

One interesting fact, 60% of Russia is under permafrost! The Russian Federation is such a HUGE land area, even today. In spite of the fact that several of the Federation’s regions became independent Republics in 1991.

After the bunker tour, we made our way to the beautiful underground Metro. It’s like a walk through Russian history–like a museum. It’s an underground palace with chandlers and beautiful art. Each major stop is a period of Russian History. The metro was built from the 1930’s to 1960’s. Today the metro transports 9 million people a day with a waiting time of only 2 minutes between cars. It used to be even more popular before the influx of used cars which first became popular in the 90’s. The used cars that were imported became more affordable for the people resulting in massive traffic jams here – just like in any other major city around the world! There are beautiful mosaics on the ceilings depicting different time periods of Russian development. The subway is immaculate as is the city itself. Moscow is a very clean city. After the interesting rides to different metro stops, we stopped for lunch at one of the newest and “glitziest ” malls -and visited Starbucks for lunch before venturing on to Victory Park built as a monument to the Soviet era, the museum in the park was finished in the 1990’s.

Tomorrow is a visit to Red Square and the Kremlin. Stay tuned! We are also seeing hundreds of churches in the city that have been reopened since the 90’s. However, even though all but 40 churches were closed during the Soviet era, the people kept their religion in their hearts and minds. Today, the church has come roaring back with even a lot of young people attending. There has been a great resurgence of religion for the Russian Orthodox Church, even though churches throughout Europe are diminishing.

In the Museum of Victory Park.

From our balcony.

Museum in Victory Park.

View at night….

The Kremlin.

Inside one of the 40 churches that was allowed to remain open in Soviet times.

Doors to enter the underground bunker.

Our guide in the former nuclear bunker.

The bunker 65 meters down…

Bunker launch command area.

The apartment facade hiding the bunker.

Free glasses of water dispensed to military working in a hot bunker.

In bunker.

Entering the Metro!

The metro!

On metro walls.

Mosaic in metro.

Ceiling in metro.

Stained glass in metro.

Our guide, Marina.

Glitzy mall!

Check out the elevators!

The mall.

Umbrella decorations in mall.

Very modern sky line view.

University of Moscow in background.

Victory Park. There are 1,418 fountains in the park representing the number of days Russia was in WWII.

Winged Victory obelisk in Victory Park soaring almost 1500 feet!

One of the hundreds of churches.

In the great hall which honors 11,000 soldiers from the Soviet era.

They even have their own Arc de Triumph!

Our hotel. There is renovation and construction EVERYWHERE! The Kremlin is just outside the doors of our hotel, The Four Seasons.

Our Last Night at the incomparable Badrutt’s Palace in St. Moritz

On February 8, 2016 By Traveling Fullers1 Comment

What a great last day we’ve had! The skiers were up and out early, in spite of staying up to the wee hours in order to watch the Super Bowl! Congratulations to the Denver Broncos. Nice way for Peyton to exit the NFL!

Gaby made some incredible strides skiing today. She passed the “green level” of skiing and was signed off by her terrific instructor, Rolf Bachman, in her ski school book. She is now ready for blue level!!!! Grant, meanwhile, with Zarina’s help, made it to the red runs! Way to go you two!

Bill, Mary and Mimi headed to the clinic. One last look at Mary’s leg and Bill’s hematoma on his right hip, and both were cleared to fly home tomorrow! A couple of last minute trips to the chocolate store

by Annette and Mimi appears to have all you chocolate lovers at home covered!

Trey did the good dad deed and stayed with Gaby and Rolf on the bunny hill so he could “go pro” her! Gran was originally going to stay with her so Trey could do some good last day snowboard runs! But Gran was scratched for a trip to the clinic….

The ladies stayed back and packed, spending a long time time trying to figure out how to stuff all the new purchases into our suitcases! Wow! I didn’t think we bought that much, but everyone one of us felt like our suitcases shrank by at least two inches! How in the world does that happen? Swiss mountain air?.. I’m blaming it on the altitude!

Tonight the GM had invited us to a small cocktail party so we could give them our two cups! They seem genuinely thrilled to receive them! They had a photographer there, the same wonderful young woman who did our family photo shoot yesterday, to commemorate the occasion! The photo will make it into the local press. They gave us an amazing cocktail party with the yummiest of hors d’oeuvres. Mimi actually made them her dinner! The party could not have been nicer! The staff here is exceptional and we have been treated like royalty everywhere we go! From top to bottom you could not wish for a better experience! This is a true 5? 6 star hotel and we’ve all savored every minute we’ve been here! What a grand experience for our family. More lifetime memories have been created that we will all cherish in the years to come! This has been the ultimate winter vacation/surprise Christmas present! Thank you to everyone who has been involved in making this winter adventure happen!

The GM on the right and th VP of Rooms on the far left with the two small “cups” we are returning to their origin on the table!

At the cocktail party tonight!

Stefan, from the hotel and Annette.

Trey has that “Russell Crow” look going again! Was asked today on the ski slope if he was the “Gladiator guy?”

Last night at dinner!

Grant visiting with Arlene’s contact and the marketing lady….

Duffy and Grant looking very posh!

Delivered to our room today to celebrate the beginning of the Chinese New Year of the Monkey! And the white chocolate is to die for!

Gaby made friends with Donna from Doha, Qatar. Th y meet every day at the swimming pool!

Everyone loved jumping into the gorgeous warm pool and hot tub every day around 4:00 pm!

Zarina came by to say hello!

Gaby and her friend, Donna.

Our courtesy car ride to last nights restaurant!

Bundled!

Gaby’s medals showing her ski school accomplishments!

Congrats to you Gaby on a job well done! Mr. Rolf was really proud of you!

Gaby and Rolf!

Today’s skiers!

Lunch time!

Go Gaby go! I’m told she actually jumped small moguls today!

View at breakfast!

The Cup that Ada Norfleet won for tennis in 1914 At the Palace Hotel in St. Moritz, has returned home…..

The views will be etched in all our memories forever…

No Horse Races, But Fun Skiing!

On February 7, 2016 By Traveling Fullers1 Comment

Even though we couldn’t make the horse races today, there was a fun day of skiing! Bill fell a couple of times and has a bit of a sore right hip! Grant, Trey and Bill worked really hard today at ski school! The girls stayed back and had a totally relaxing day! This morning , we had an awesome photo shoot with a professional photographer, a gift from our friend, Arlene Feen! We had a fun day, in very different environments! KC was the hit of the lobby during the photo shoot because she fell asleep on the grand piano! Everyone was stopping to ooh and awe.

Grant met a super nice young woman who is a ski instructor here in St. Moritz. They went out last night and had fun so he invited her for dinner this evening. A great time was had by all. Zarina, the ski instructor, is going out tomorrow to help Grant. Rolf, is going to stay and help Bill and Gaby! Tomorrow is our last day…. So sad….. We have all had such an amazing adventure!

Zarina and Grant at dinner…

Two of our best!

Gaby at Kid’s Club with Celia…

This showed up on Arlene’s computer coincidentally this week. This was taken the last time we were in Switzerland. We took a helicopter ride to a glacier, but we were here in July…Pro Travel is using the image for marketing!

Our incomparable concierge, Guiseppe, with Annette!

Brother and sister enjoying every moment together!

We wore KC out during the photo shoot! On top of the grand piano….

Sleeping Beauty?!

Guess who has the giggles?!

Love everywhere!

Beauty and the Beast?! Just kidding Trey!

Our fantastic hotel!

Third Day of Ski School —BIG IMPROVEMENTS in all our skiers

On February 6, 2016 By Traveling FullersLeave a comment

Today was a very successful ski school day for everyone! There was tremendous improvement by everyone! Trey is using the GO Pro to video everyone, but I haven’t been able to upload them to my iPad yet. Trey is working on it for me… So stay tuned for tomorrow and I hope to have some ski videos to upload!

The girls went shopping for chocolate and other souvenirs! We did some damage for sure!

Unfortunately, we got the bad news that they are canceling the horse races tomorrow. It is the first time ever.😟. The lake is not frozen enough. They have had such an extraordinarily warm January that the depth of ice is not enough to support the weight of the bleachers filled with people and the cars, trucks and horses! They will hope to race the next two Friday’s, but they need some seriously cold temperatures to be able to race! We do have a family photo shoot tomorrow morning thanks to our terrific travel agent, Arlene Feen. And then, since the races are canceled,☹️, everyone is skiing again. Well, not everyone, but Trey, Grant, Bill and Gaby will be on the slopes. We had dinner for the second time at La Barraca— amazing food! Especially the ravioli! It’s handmade small raviolis and they’re very light! Just totally awesome…..if you come to St. Moritz, you have to go try the food! But, either make a reservation well in advance or go very early!

Gaby and her new ski instructor, Matt!

Breakfast…

In the Chocolate store! Oh my, we all did some damage,

The Palace Hotel is on the right!

Would you believe the size of this giant chinchilla teddy bear?!!!!!!

Dinner at La Barraca!

Yummy food!

She is already beginning to feel better… Yippee!

Trip to the top of Punt Maragi at 7,370 feet!

On February 5, 2016 By Traveling Fullers2 Comments

Today we left Duffy and KC back at the hotel along with Annette and our sitter, Nichole. KC is cutting 3 teeth at once and was running a fever and had a miserable night- which meant Annette got no sleep! So the four of them stayed back. Nichole took care of KC so Annette could grab some shut eye!

The rest of us met our guide (who broke his arm a few days ago at the curling rink) John Webster. John has a titanium plate and seven screws in his right arm now! But he was out of the hospital after two days and doing city tours. We were glad to see him out and about. He took us up the funicular to a lovely restaurant at Muottas Muragi.. But the REALLY exciting news of the day was that it snowed almost 15″ last night. Besides being just exquisitely beautiful, they closed the ski runs for several hours while they worked on grooming and Avalanche prevention. While at the top of the mountain we could hear them setting off the charges and then you could hear the snow falling down! Gaby had a blast building a snowman and playing on the playground! Uncle Grant went out to take a photo of the snowman creation and needed up falling into waist deep snow! But he got the photo! The scenery was just magnificent! The sun peeked out from the clouds after lunch and the view was beyond amazing! We had a wonderful time with our guide, John Webster.who just had surgery on his broken wrist three days ago! He was out of the hospital yesterday doing city tours! Our lunch at the top of the mountain was delicious. Most of us had a traditional Swiss dish called Rosti. It’s basically hash browns with a fried egg and bacon on top! Yum!

This weekend is very important in St. Moritz! Tonight is the White Turf Gala formal ball! We can hear the music from the party down below! Quite the affair! They also had night time snow races with thoroughbred horses racing on the Frozen lake. They’ve been grooming the race track for the past several days! They also had a 2 hour free event of entertainment on the lake which Annette, Duffy, KC, Gaby and I stayed back and watched from our balcony! We saw a couple of races from our balcony! It was beautiful watching the horses streaking down the frozen lake race track against the background of the mountains and the night sky! Waiting to hear a report from Trey, Grant, Bill and Mimi about how it went!

How fun is this?! We have a sterling silver wine goblet that was presented to Ada Norfleet (Bill and Mimi’s grandmother) for winning the 1914 Ladies Open tennis championship at the Palace Hotel. We also have a child’s 1932 croquet cup with Bill’s dad’s initials on it. We are going to return them to the hotel. (I think Bill’s dad and Ada would be pleased that these trophies are returning to their origin!). After I told the GM that we wanted to give them to the hotel, they called and asked if they could invite the local press in for the “cup presentation”. We said “of course!” We’ve now been invited for a cocktail on Monday with the GM at 5 pm where the local newspaper will take the photo of us presenting the cups. What fun! There have been 5 generations of Fullers who have stayed at the Palace Hotel!

The trophy cups!

Feeling better!

Dinner time!

The Ancient horse they are constructing for the White Turf Race we are attending on Sunday.

Riding the funicular to the top of the mountain!

Pretty big snowball!

Gaby’s snowman that Grant took a picture of after he fell in snow up to his waist!

Great photo you Two! Taken by Uncle Grant!

Lounge chairs in the summer months!

Someone is having a blast!

John presented Gaby a small wooden St. Bernard! She’s thrilled!

We love St. Moritz!

We could hear the charges going off to prevent avalanches!

Hard at work!

Dinner last night!

From our balcony.

Second full ski day!

On February 4, 2016 By Traveling Fullers1 Comment

The boys headed out this morning with Gaby for a second full day of skiing! Gaby came back full of energy and headed straight down for more fun at Kids Club! Trey came back exhausted (did a lot of snowboard runs) and Grant came back tired but elated that all the turning has finally kicked in. Bill was doing fine! They all went down to grab Gaby from Kids Club and all went swimming! We hear it was a very successful ski school day and that everyone has improved greatly!

Mimi and I took Duffy back to the clinic for her scheduled recall appointment. Her leg is swelling, thus preventing the healing of the wound. The Dr. Wrapped her leg in an ace bandage so it would act like a compression bandage. We kept her in all day with her legs elevated and it seems to be helping…

Tonight we went to a restaurant that our sitter, Nichole, recommended! It’s called La Berrasco. It had the BEST ( hands down) Italian ravioli appetizer any of us has ever had. This restaurant is a locals favorite and we totally understand why. Everything is hand made and exceptional! We didn’t know until after we ordered that they do not accept credit cards! But the owners were wonderfully accommodating and agreed to have the meal put on our hotel room at Badrutt’s Palace! Wonderful local restaurant. We got there early (6:30 pm) and had the place to ourselves. By the time we left, the place was filled with customers and jumping!

We ran into John today in our lobby. He is out and about after having a titanium plate with 7 screws installed In his arm! He is doing GREAT, he had actually just finished a city tour with a group of tourists when we ran into him in our lobby. We invited him to have lun with us and had a delightful time with him! He kept us well informed on his surgery and was doing extraordinarily well!

Everyone seems pretty well exhausted tonight and all are in bed before 9:30 am.—- Except KC, whose teeth are giving her a comfort problem! Poor Annette! I might mention that Mimi, Annette and I had massages today. Wonderba!!!! AND, to top the evening off, Annette met a friend from Panama in the elevator as we were leaving for dinner! Small world doesn’t begin to explain it!