At the ballet in St Petersburg

Off to the land of White Nights

Our adventure got off to an excellent start – Phil and Marg drove us to the station and we caught the 1:30 train to Central. Our airport transfer was smooth and we met Helen shortly before 6. At check in time we were offered an earlier flight with lots of extra leg room and a trip to the Emirates lounge. We accepted and, with not all that much time to spare, we pretended we were rich! 2 glasses of Verve Cliquot and some very nice nibblies set me up for the flight. We ended up flying via Bangkok and many hours later arrived in Dubai. Thence onto St Petersburg – a very different airport to Dubai. Progress through immigration was slow but faster than getting through Washington. Our only concern was that our driver was only booked for an hour and we exceeded that time.  Having finally got through immigration and non existent customs we were very pleased to see a young man holding up a “Barbara Harper” notice. Although we only had 3 undersized bags they wouldn’t fit in the boot so we put one in the car – off we set through some very crazy traffic to our hotel. After 32 hours of travel and still wearing the same socks we arrived at the Nevsky Express. Our driver was excellent.

Through a back door we went and into an establishment that looked a trifle run down - if you had never stayed in a small European hotel before you may have been horrified. We negotiated our arrival and had what turned out to be a very pleasant experience – entering via the front door was more encouraging. The staff, mostly non English speakers, were friendly and helpful and the room itself was spotless. The bed was comfy and the shower was hot. We are apparently the first Australians to stay at this place under this management and we were made most welcome.

Then it was time for a little exploration. Just amazing! We found a very colourful orange fast food / pancake shop where we had a very Russian dinner. No English spoken at all! I had borsch (unlike any I have ever before), Tony thought he was having a buckwheat pancake but ended up with buckwheat and Helen had a pancake with pork and pickles. I even had a beer (nothing else to drink!). It was delicious and very very cheap.

Breakfast was excellent.

Then more walking – and a few hundred photos of some strange and amazing things.

Our taxi was booked for 12 and I was hoping that I had explained clearly that when we got to the indicated area he was not to leave until we were sure we had found the boat. The price was negotiated to be 900 roubles. As we had been warned that the boat might change location the very helpful young man at the hotel rang the shipping line – no answer – so off we set.

Our arrival at the point we were heading for indicated that the boat was on the other side of the river so off we set again. The driver was clearly a little uncomfortable as this was taking longer than expected – he found our boat for us and when last seen he was waving and smiling broadly. We did not stick to the quoted price and our tip was obviously what was needed.

The boat (not called the same as we had expected from our booking) is better than expected. Food is excellent, as is the wine, tea and coffee at all times and a very comfortable cabin. Ours is quite spacious – Helen’s is micro but still very comfortable. We have booked some optional times and we are considering some little purchases in the gift shop! The WiFi seems to be operating, though we have been warned that further north we will lose the connection.

It is now 10:30 – I am about to make the trip down the corridor (do you call it a corridor?) and get a cup of tea. The sky is still light – but we have excellent block out curtains. Tomorrow  -  a trip to The Hermitage and tomorrow evening “Swan Lake”. Should be a great day. The weather is fine -  just worn a light long sleeve top today.

The St Petersburg experience continues…….

Our first land trip with the tour group was to The Hermitage, the largest art gallery in the country. The most special of all its buildings (for me) was the Winter Palace, built between 1754 and 1762. The design was by Bartolommeo Rastrelli, a name we have heard often since we arrived. Catherine the Great began the collection in 1764 and there are now more than 3 million items. It was quite an impressive collection including works by Da Vinci, Rembrandt, Rubens, Monet, Manet, Gaugin and more. Lots of people, lots of rules!!!!!

During the afternoon we listened to a concert by the Mariinsky Theatre. Then back to the Hermitage to see Swan Lake. What excellent costumes, sets and orchestra! The ballet was also good though some non ballet fans had a little nap.

We were somewhat tired by bedtime but were up early on Sunday for a drive to Tsarskoye Selo (Tsar’s Village) or Pushkin to visit the palace given to Catherine in 1708. This palace had been built for Peter the Great and was burnt to the ground during the great siege. Now it is restored to its former glory and has a very impressive 600 foot blue, white and gold façade. The Amber Room which we were not allowed to photograph was amazingly magnificent. The gold walls of the halls and the shiny mirrors were also pretty special. During the afternoon it was off to the Peter and Paul fortress – the original citadel and birthplace of the city and then more exploration of the city and Nevsky Prospect. Night time saw us enjoying the Folklore Cossack show in a tent on the shore near the ship.

We decided to pay for some extra tours as well as doing the included ones and, as a result, set off for Peterhof Grand Palace and Park early on Monday morning. It turned out to be a fabulous day weather wise and our exploration of Peter the Great’s Versailles by the Sea was tremendous. The famed Grand Cascade of 3 waterfalls, 64 fountains and 37 statues (12 miles of water movement all without pumping stations) was accompanied by music as the water started to flow. The sun was shining, people were everywhere and the sky was blue. There are souvenir shops everywhere – lots of street vendors and matryoshka dolls pop up all over the place. The flowers in the gardens were in full bloom – lots of tulips in particular. We even saw The Gulf of Finland – I liked that!

Our next afternoon activity was a cruise along the canals of the city. We sat outside even though it was quite cool and at times were sitting on the floor of the boat as the bridges were very very low. Another great excursion.

The long long hours of daylight means that we have been able to look at the scenery until almost midnight and at 10 on Monday night we sailed out of the Neva River and into Lake Lagoda, passing an old fortress, Schluesselburg. Lake Lagoda is Europe’s largest freshwater lake and 70 rivers add their icy flow to its volume.

Tuesday was time for some lectures and learning and then we arrived at Mandrogy. (Verchnie Mandrogi). The 29 homesteads were burned down during the war of 1941-1945. The township has been reconstructed and is now home to 150 people and workers who create and sell crafts. Helen and I had fun here painting our own nesting dolls. The town did not offer us a job in their factories – we were too good!

Kizhi Island was Thursday morning’s start to the day. We landed early and set off at 8. The island itself is right near the centre of Lake Onega and is 3 ½ miles long and ½ mile wide. Kizhi Pogost consists of 2 major churches and a bell tower. This area was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List and the Russian Cultural Heritage List. The wooden domed churches have been built without nails and we saw a shingle maker cutting the shingles from what I think was birch – extremely light wood in both colour and weight. It ages to a beautiful shimmery silver. The icon wall inside the Russian Orthodox church was beautiful and we were able to take photographs. There is also a wonderful old farmhouse and we explored its nooks and crannies – it had lots of furniture, stoves, looms, tools and sleds. Our tourist guide spoke clearly and well – she was a lovely young lady.

And then, leisurely sailing along the Volga Baltic Canal – lots of huge locks, hydroelectric power stations, dredges, timber wharves, boats, and the occasional fisherman. We are now sailing across the Rybinsk Reservoir which sadly had to flood houses and churches. Such is the price of progress. We have decided not to attend this morning’s history lecture but this afternoon we are landing at Kuzino for an afternoon in the Russian provinces.

We have no complaints except that the internet is very slow and we have not actually been able to send messages. I doubt that I will be able to upload any photos until we get to Moscow but I will try. We have taken lots. We have many power points in our room so it is easy to recharge. Health wise we are faring well except for the odd stomach gurgle and some mosquito bites.  Every meal has been different and there is always a selection of meat/ fish or vegetarian for the evening meal. Lunch and breakfast are buffet meals. I had brussel sprouts this morning - I figured one should try what is presented!  I have eaten all sorts of things regardless of the hour of the day – it is always a reasonable time somewhere!

Helen has been upgraded to a full sized room.

Another adventure begins - Russia and beyond.

Today we fly out of Sydney and head for Russia! That is an amazing concept - somewhere I never imagined that I would go. There will be 3 of us on this voyage - Tony, Helen and myself. The basic plans have been made for a very  long time and the 3 of us are looking forward to our cruise from St Peterburg  (no "s" in Russian) to Moscow, then Prague and a little exploration of the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany. With any luck we will manage a drive into Switzerland as well.
Not much to do now - charge the phone batteries, a few little jobs around the house and at 1 we are heading to the station. Plenty of time for a leisurely train trip to the airport where we are meeting Helen.
The only sad part is missing the family while we are away, especially the twins. They will be so big by the time we return - I hope they don't forget us.

Back to Perth and off again.

The exhaust was repaired quickly and efficiently and we set off south to visit Phillip and Jenny Perkins and the B & B in Toodjay called The Limes. The Phippards came up from Perth and we had a great night sitting around the fire and sampling some of WA's finest! Back to Perth and a bit of reorganisation and we set off with the van and headed south towards the Stirlings. Overnight in Cranbrook and then onto the Mt Trio bush camp and the gathering of KK vans which was the prime reason initially for this expedition. A wonderful time. The KK ladies cooked up a feast for our "formal" dinner together. What a meal!!!!

I love the Stirlings and we were wise enough to go on an orchid tour with the local guides.



We found lots and took heaps of photos.




The backdrop of the range is wonderful for photography especially when there are fields of brilliant yellow canola in the foreground. We tried numbat spotting - we heard some rustlings in the bushes but that was it!


Next stop Albany - this is one to add to your wish list if you have never been there. The scenery is amazing and the contrast between the clear bright blue seas and the sparkling white sand is a delight.

There are lots of little drives to do, lookouts to visit, boardwalks and beaches and a some great spots to eat. The Albany oysters are not too bad at all and we had some pretty good squid at The Squid Shack. We continued our KK gathering at the camping area as several vans had headed in this direction. The wretched van did an unexpected collapse as we were putting it up but the Engineer fixed it with great skill. It frightened me half to death. This all caused us to extend our stay for a day.

From Albany we headed east towards Esperance through fields and fields of flowers to visit Sammy the Seal who visits the old tanker jetty area and to see The Pink Lake. Sammy was in position but the Lake was not pink! Sammy was resting in the sun when we arrived and he only moved to have a scratch, an occasional stretch and to swat a fly.

Then a fisherman cleaned his catch and Sammy was in the water quick smart. He cleaned up the waste and then waited for a wave and surfed back to his spot on the sand. He waited till he was washed right up, dragged himself up the sand and then with a sigh and a wobble he slumped down again to await his next feed.


We had dinner at the Pier Hotel - a wise choice. It was very very busy, a good sign in a town like this. Food was tasty, well priced and they only charged $5 extra for the salad bar to go with my chilli prawn pizza! The van park here overlooks the sea and it is quite old. The sites are large and the trees are beautiful - much better than lots of tar, games rooms and jumping pillows. The main thing wrong with jumping pillows is that they have age/weight limits and they exclude me.

Tomorrow - eastwards and homewards. Oh it is a long long way - but I am ready for some cuddles from Bethany and Ethan and I am looking forward to seeing everyone else, especially the rest of the family, as well. And I want to chat in person with my friends! I have lots to do when I return.

Wandering through WA.

I am somewhat annoyed with Blogger as it will not let me edit. I misnamed the beautiful little twins - they are not Tex and Lex but rather Ted and Lex. Try as I may I cannot correct it. GRRRRRR!!!!!!





Yesterday morning we left Kalamunda and headed towards the coast before our drive north on the recently finished Indian Pacific Drive. It is an excellent road and a most pleasant experience. We had coffee at Leeman's Landing and learned a little more about WA history before we enjoyed a fisherman's basket at the Lancelin Pub. A great view from the restaurant and beer garden! Then northwards - stopping, taking photos, and enjoying the scenery. I had never been to the Pinnacles - made it at last!!!! There was plenty to see and photograph and the whole experience took us 9 hours. That must be the longest drive ever between Kalamunda and Geraldton.



We had not been to Geraldton since 1978 - it bears very little similarity to the town of so long ago. Last night we had dinner at an Italian restaurant Topolinis Cafe and the food was great. The impact of the boom was quite evident in prices however so today we went in search of groceries and fruit in order to feed ourselves!

A reasonably early start saw us heading for Mullewa in search of the elusive wreath flower. We had missed them in the past were we were not too confident. However we collected a map from the Information Centre and were amply rewarded for our efforts. We saw dozens and dozens. What amazing flowers!






This trip has been also good for lizards - 1 unidentifued spiky one yesterday , and a stumpy tail plus ????? today. Shame we left all our ID books at home.


Those white flowers are just a small sample of the carpet on the ground - pink, yellow, white and mauve.

When we returned from Mullewa we drove all around the port and later we drove to the top of the highest hill in town to see the Sydney 11 memorial. This is a good location as it was sunk during WW2 off the coast from here.

Tomorrow morning begins with a trip to the Exhaust Shop - we have a most peculiar rumble which needs to be fixed before we return to Perth and collect the van.

More twins

These 2 are Marley and Imogen - the children of Rebecca and Richard.
Beautiful smiles from beautiful children.

Perth - a great place to be.

A beautiful Kangaroo Paw - the state flower of WA.

Perth continues to be a great place to visit. We have enjoyed the companionship of Lyn and Ian and their family, played with the grandchildren and eaten and drunk well.


Double trouble in the form of 2 budding musicians - Melissa and Starcy's beautiful 13 month old twins, Tex and Lex.


Last night we had dinner with Tony B (the son of Jack and Antoinette who live next door to us at Wentworth Falls) at the Brisbane Hotel. The food was excellent - I can recommend it!

During the day we visited Kings Park and enjoyed a coffee overlooking the city. Perth at this time of year is very green - it isn't quite the same as summer approaches.


We are currently thinking about our activities during the next few days as we plan a possible trip north to visit some more of Western Australia's spectacular wildflowers.