St. Petersburg, Russia

See all of our photos from St. Petersburg here:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103620108216329120374/albums/5913101133610114881

St. Petersburg was so much fun! While planning the trip, I didn't really know what to expect, only that I should see the city since it’s only a 3.5 hour train ride from Helsinki, where we were for the last few days. The visa process for Russia was a much bigger ordeal than I had anticipated, but in hindsight, I’m glad we went through with it.

Our first impression of the city was not so great. At the train station, we couldn't find a taxi driver who would take us to our hotel for a reasonable price, and negotiating didn't seem to help. We ended up overpaying a guy who dropped us off 5 blocks away from our hotel.

The city, though, was so impressive! We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the Hermitage (Winter Palace) and Peterhof Palace. They were our favorite palaces so far on the trip! Every room in the Hermitage is gorgeous, and many have art exhibits. The palace itself is huge; it took us four hours just to see the highlights. If anyone plans to visit, definitely buy tickets online to avoid the hour plus queue. Peterhof, which is about half an hour outside of Saint Petersburg, is filled with fountains of all types. My advice there is to take the public mini-bus there, which is cheap and ran frequently. The tourist hydrofoil is way overpriced and is not really a fun nor time-saving ride.

The main Hermitage building

One of the hundreds of rooms inside the Hermitage

The main fountains leading up to Peterhof Palace 

Other fountains and beautiful gardens at Peterhof

Walking around the city any time of the day is great. There’s beautiful architecture everywhere. My favorites were along the waterfront and on the main street of Nevskiy Prospekt. While we were there in July, there was a long dusk/sunset at around 11pm - lighting at that time of day is magical on a clear day. Plus, if you get tired of walking, the city has an efficient, clean, and beautiful subway system.

Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood - the inside is even more impressive!

The riverfront at dusk

Typical canal-side buildings

A church near Peterhof Palace

Food was great too. We found a bunch of atmospheric restaurants with delicious Russian cuisine. I love Russian pancakes, which are a slightly thicker and chewier version of French crepes. Why haven’t they made their way to New York?

The only things that could have made the stay more pleasant: if English were more widely spoken, if tourist attractions were more friendly to tourists, of course, if cab drivers weren’t scammers. 

Helsinki and Tallin

Photos from Helsinki and Tallinn:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103620108216329120374/albums/5910972329148004433

Helsinki was a welcomed break from the remote north - in comparison, Helsinki seemed like a buzzing metropolis. We had a great time wandering around its harbor, which has a large market selling souvenirs and delicious seafood. We also got a glimpse of Russian-style churches and spent half a day on the historic fort island of Suomenlinna. Food was surprisingly delicious and affordable by Scandinavian standards, and since the Finns are the world's biggest coffee drinkers, good coffee shops are always around the corner.

Uspenski Cathedral

View of the Harbor, with Lutheran Cathedral in the background

We also took a day trip to Tallin, Estonia, an hour and half away from Helsinki by frequent hydrofoils. Tallin was packed with tourists, and it’s easy to see why. The city has a well-preserved old town, dating from the 14th century. Within it, you feel like you’ve gone back in time. Shops kept their historical decor, buildings are restored to their original, and everyone working in the tourism industry is dressed up in medieval costumes. There was a restaurant serving entirely historically accurate medical food (honey beer, game meats, and grand feasts)!

Despite the perfect setup for tourist traps, Tallin remains mostly authentic and interesting. It’s easy to find good local products (marzipan, and arts and crafts) and good restaurants and cafes. And added bonus: the city has a great free WiFi network!

Coffee in medieval coffee mugs

Afternoon snack in Old Town

Town square from the Clock Tower

Whale safari

See more of our whale safari photos!:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103620108216329120374/albums/5909475696110964913

We concluded our stay in Norway with a whale watching tour from Sto. Throughout the day, we saw countless birds, including puffins, guillemots, and gulls. The highlights, though, were our two whale sightings. First, we were extremely lucky to run into a large pod of orcas (killer whales). Our boat got really close to them and followed them around for at least 20 minutes. We also found a sperm whale (the boat has a sonar system that tracks the whale’s sounds) and observed a complete dive. The sperm whale dives for about 30 minutes at a time to feed,  then resurfaces for air for 15 minutes or so, before it dives again. Just as it dives, you can see its characteristic tale above the water for around ten seconds.

Dave was super excited to use his new zoom lens, and got some really good pictures!

Orca whales! We were told that this is a rare citing.

Puffin munching on fish

Sperm whale

End of it's dive

This wrapped up our three weeks in Norway. We took a quick detour to Northern Sweden the next day, before flying out to Helsinki, Finland. A few concluding thoughts on Norway: 

Generally, everything works in Norway. Buses and trains run on time; stores are open when they are supposed to be (I was shocked that there were grocery stores everywhere, with better hours than those in France); and everything is modern. There are old buildings here and there, but most occupied buildings are kept very up to date, and everywhere you go, the facilities are good. 

Traveling to Norway does require a few sacrifices. We feel like we have been deprived of good food for the last three weeks. (We caught a small break in Northern Sweden yesterday, where twenty minutes across the border from Norway, we found much better variety and value in food.) Most grocery stores only stocked the basics, especially in the fresh meats and produce departments. Fresh seafood was almost non-existent, even though Norway has a huge fishing industry. Restaurants (outside of Oslo and Bergen) almost exclusively served burgers and pizza. Thus our diet consistent of many self-catered meals and lots of chocolates, bread, and peanut butter. We found a few places with fish markets, where we were able to buy amazing fresh salmon. 

We also had to cope with the exorbitant prices for almost everything. A few things are just a bit more than what they would cost in the US (car rentals and campsites), but most things are at least double, if not more, than what you would expect them to cost. The most outrageous prices that we had to pay: $6 for a bottle of water, $100 a day for bike rental, and $11+ for a beer at a restaurant (or $6 for a bottle at the supermarket). 

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the natural beauties of Norway, and found the journey to be extremely worthwhile. For anyone considering a trip to the area, I would suggest leaving yourself with a few extra days and being flexible with your itinerary, as the weather is very unpredictable. 

Lofoten Islands

Photos from Lofoten:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103620108216329120374/albums/5907964396484441777

We spent the past week well above the arctic circle. Our first impression upon landing at Tromso is that the far north is not as cold as you’d expect it to be. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the town was so lively. There was a market at the town square, and we found a guy selling freshly caught fish (which is surprisingly hard to find in a place where fishing ties with tourism as the top industry). We cooked a lot through Norway, and fresh fish was always a treat over what we can find at grocery stores.

We drove from Tromso to the Lofoten Islands, an archipelago connected by road to the mainland. The islands are filled with small green peaks and dotted with tiny fishing villages. It’s a must see for anyone who likes cute places!

Settlements in Lofoten started over 1,000 years ago because of their strategic location for cod fishing during the winter. Fishermen used to come to Lofoten from January to April and stay in little red cabins that formed small communities. Each had a general store and typically an owner of the community. Fishermen worked for that owner and were paid often paid with fish. The cod was mostly dried and exported - and still is today! We saw many drying racks filled with cod heads. The islands also provide for great hiking and beautiful drives, and if you’re lucky, amazing viewing spots for the midnight sun. Many of the villages are well-preserved, so you can really get a sense of what life was like on the island for a fisherman.

Harbor at Tromso, Norway

These are the last few of the Lofoten Islands, driving from mainland. Today, the Islands are connected by a well-maintained road. 

One of the many cod drying racks found throughout the islands.

One of the larger fishing villages in Lofoten. This one has an active artist community.

Biking the Rallarvegen

A highlight of our journey through Norway was our day biking trip from Finse to Flam. We biked the Rallarvegen, an unpaved road that was used for the construction of the Oslo-Bergen railroad. The road is now closed to traffic and, for the most part, well maintained. Best of all, most of the ride is downhill.

We had camped in Flam the night before. In the morning, we took the scenic Flamsbana train from Flam to Myrdal, and changed to the Oslo-Bergen train to Finse, where we picked up our bikes. The bikes ended up costing 1100 NOK (roughly $175) for a one-day rental!!! (Sometimes it’s really difficult to find information in Norway.)

On the Flamsbana at Myrdal station

Finse, at 1,222m, felt like a different world. There were a few houses scattered around the desolate landscape, which was still partially covered in snow in mid-July. The first ten kilometers of the ride were fairly challenging - there was some snow crossings and uphill sections, but the views made it completely worthwhile. 

Near the Finse train station

Our bikes

Crossing a snow field

A couple of hours later, we reached a more forested area with waterfalls everywhere. It took us much longer than expected to reach Myrdal (about five hours), which was about halfway, distance-wise, to our destination. I was pretty exhausted - it was my first time mountain biking, and I did not like the rocky stretches of the road.

About half-way down

Luckily, the rest of the ride was all downhill. And after about a dozen very sharp turns (where we had to walk our bikes), it was easy and smooth riding all the way down to Flam. What a great way to end the day! We dropped off our bikes at the train station, where they would be transported back up to Finse, and went for celebratory beers! Surprising, Flam had a great brewery and restaurant.

One of the sharp turns where we had to walk our bikes

We're in Flam valley! You can see part of the village behind us. This last stretch was easy and fun. 

Southern Norway: Part II

All of our photos from the Norwegian Fjords:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103620108216329120374/albums/5902811462979677537

The rest of our stay in Southern Norway was beautiful. We had mostly sunny days, which we fully took advantage of for our day hikes. With so many places to hike in Norway, the challenge is picking the best ones that are within our abilities and time limitations. We ended up hiking about half a dozen medium to long day trails during our 2 weeks in Southern Norway, plus a bunch of shorter ones.

Here are my favorites:

Mount Prest, with panoramic views over Aurlandsfjord

We drove up a small road from the town of Aurland, which, to our surprise, opened up to viewpoints around every turn. Even better, the road took us halfway up the mountain. (A side note - there are so many scenic drives in Norway!)

We started hiking at 600m, and went up to 1300m over a gradual 1.5 hour ascent. The view of the fjord improved with every step! The rest of the mountain scenery was pretty incredible too. The round trip took us about two and a half hours. We love these short and sweet hikes!

On the drive up to the trail head

View from top of Mount Prest 

Walking along the trail. It's gorgeous in every direction!

Mount Skala

We started early for this 1600m climb (starting at sea level). We got to the trailhead by 10am, and went up quickly, knowing that it would probably take us a while to get up. We were anticipating at least an eight-hour hike.

The view became amazing about thirty minutes later, as we got above the heavily forested area. The valley and fjord emerged below us. We didn’t stop much on the way up (except for a quick 15 minute lunch break) and made it to the top in 4 hours.

It is a different world up there! Almost everything is covered in snow (we had to trek through a number of snow patches en route), green was no longer visible, and there were glaciers all around us. Amazingly, there’s a lodge at the top that’s open to any hiker who wants to spend the night, with a kitchen, beds and linens, and food. (Norway is big on the honor system. At the lodge, you are expected to leave coins in a jar for taking any of the food.)

We are so glad we did the hike! It was well worth the soreness we endured the next day, and the long four-hour hike down the mountain, which seemed more like forever. 

Waterfall about a quarter of the way up Mount Skala

We made it to the top! Behind me is the lodge, which can accommodate over 20 hikers a night. 

Crossing an ice field

We climbed 1 vertical mile! At the tip of the fjord, you can see the town where we started.

Ramsdalsaggen Ridge

We were ready for another long day hike - our last one in Southern Norway. The day started with a short bus ride from Andalsnes to the trailhead. We would hike up to a ridge and walk along it back to Andalsnes, where we were based.

The hike up was hard work. In about 2 hours we reached the top of the first ridge. Little did we know that there were about 5 more to go. And the hike down wasn’t any easier. In fact, I preferred the climb up compared to the steep descent, which I had to take very cautiously. The views, though, were incredible the whole way. Hiking on a ridge is just the best (if you’re not afraid of heights) - you get almost 360-degree views constantly.

It had been nine hours of almost non-stop walking by the time we got back to our car. We were exhausted, and treated ourselves to a restaurant recommended by a local. Dave had been looking forward to a beer all day. It turns out that this restaurant is also the town’s general store, gift shop, printing center, and yoga studio. And the only things on the menu were a 100g burger or a 150g burger. We had our burgers and beer, but leaving still a bit hungry, we went to the only place that had dessert - the grocery store. We got a large container (probably 2 quarts?) of ice cream and finished it all. Delicious!

A steady climb

Enjoying the Norwegian sun

Breathtaking view!

Decent to Andalsnes - notice the steep drop-off after the cliff. We struggled for 3 hours to get down. 

As we’re waiting for our flight to Tromso, we hope for dry and warm weather up north!

Best of Food in Italy and France

We blew our budget on food last month. We figured we might as well since there won’t be anything nearly as enticing in Scandinavia, where we are headed next.

Generally, everything was delicious in France and Italy. Food is such an important part of their culture that, other than tourist traps, restaurants just don’t serve bad food. We tried to find authentic local eateries whenever possible, and I don’t think we went wrong once. Plus, wine was great and cheap. Most restaurants had great-value house wines by the glass or carafe.

Here are our favorite meals from the month:

Risotto in tomato sauce with prawns, in Saint Paul de Vence, France 

Artichoke gnocchi in Venice, Italy

Squid in squid ink sauce with polenta in Venice, Italy

 Ten-course family-style feast in Panzano in Chianti. We ate every part of the cow. 

And here are some of our favorite quick eats in France and Italy:

Focaccia in Camogli, Italy

Gelato, which is always just around the corner in Italy. This is a gelateria in Nice, France

Fresh produce from markets in France 

And, of course, baguettes and croissants in France. 

Southern Norway: Part I

So far, Norway has been a bit disappointing. We haven’t been very lucky with the weather. On day one, we couldn’t do the hike we wanted in Rjukan because of rain. The next day, it was pretty foggy and a bit drizzly on our hike to Kjeragbolten (boulder lodged between a crack in the mountain). Today, even though we were promised sunny skies, we got another cloudy hike to Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock). The sun came out right after we descended.

So instead of amazing photos of the Norwegian fjords, I have a few decent ones to share. Hope the rest of this segment turns out a little brighter.

Heddal stave church, near Notodden

Kjeragbolten - it's a little hard to tell from the picture, but there is a 2000ft drop below the rock!

On the way down from Kjeragbolten, it cleared up enough for a great view of Lysefjorden

Preikestolen - a very popular hike among tourists