After an incredible morning at Peterhof, we drove back to St. Petersburg where we first visited the Yusupov Palace, probably best known as the site where Grigori Rasputin was assassinated. There was originally a palace on the site that belonged to the niece of Peter the Great. It changed hands and in 1770, the palace that became what we see today was designed, though there have been additions and changes through the years. In 1830, the Yusupov Family, a rich…
Our next port of call was St. Petersburg, Russia where we would spend two days. St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 by Tsar Peter the Great. Today it is the second largest city in Russia and is considered Russia’s cultural center. It is one of three federal cities in Russia and is an important port on the Baltic. The pictures below are ones we took as we were driving through St. Petersburg on our way to to our first stop….
We left Stockholm just a little before dinner and entered the Gulf of Finland the next morning and were docked outside Helsinki around 10AM. Finland was first occupied just after the Ice Age based on stone tools and pottery that has since been discovered. In the 13th Century, Finland became part of Sweden and in the 1800s, part of the Russian Empire. Finland declared its independence in 1917. Helsinki is its capital. Officially the Republic of Finland, the country has…
Our first port of call after boarding the Star Princess was Stockholm, Sweden. Its history extends back seven centuries when it was inhabited by the Vikings. Sweden has not been at war since 1814. It remained neutral during both world wars, although helped many refuges during World War II including Jewish people fleeing Hitler’s regime. Sweden was also neutral throughout the cold war and did not join NATO. Sweden is a member of the United Nations. Stockholm is the capital…
After exploring Copenhagen and Bornholm, it was time to board our cruise ship, Star Princess, and begin our Baltic Cruise. But first I am going to tell you about something we did on board the ship that we found very interesting. So this will be a bit of a different blog entry, because I will not be sharing information about a particular place, but rather our “behind the scenes” tour of our cruise ship that would give us insight into…
When our cruise ended, we debarked in Vancouver. On our first day there, we took a “hop on – hop off” bus to see some of the sites. The first picture below is of Canada Place which is located on the waterfront in Vancouver. It is owned by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and is the site of educational exhibits, traditional Canadian experiences and special celebrations. It served as the Canada Pavilion for Expo 86, the year Canada Place opened….
Ketchikan, our next port of call, is located on an island. Ketchikan is known for salmon, totem poles and its proximity to Misty Fjords National Monument. The average rainfall is 162 inches per year – residents call it “liquid sunshine.” When we first visited Alaska in 2006, we took a shore excursion to Misty Fjords. We traveled by boat and then took a float plane back to the harbor where we would return to our ship. We saw some beautiful…
Our next port of call was Juneau, Alaska. Juneau is the only state capital in the United States that is not accessible by road. It is only accessible by water or air. Juneau was once home to three of the largest gold mines in the world. The mines are now closed and Juneau is home to over 30,000 people. With an area of over 3,200 square miles, it is the third largest municipality (by area) in the world. We arrived…
Our next port of call was Skagwag, Alaska. Skagwag is an old mining town. Reports of gold in the Yukon Territory first spread in 1896. Gold seekers came to Skagway around 1897 – Skagway served as the starting point for their search. The existing routes – Chilkoot Pass and later the White Pass – were very rugged. We took a journey along the White Pass and Yukon Route Railway. The route was carved out in 1898. It is an international…
The next day we would leave Copper River and head to Whittier where we would board our cruise ship, the Coral Princess. There are lots of different opinions on the kind of cabin you may want to book for your cruise. Some people spend very little time in their cabin and plan to enjoy the public spaces. These people may opt for a less expensive, inside cabin. We decided to book a mini suite which included a small sitting area…