An interesting element of the train ride was clearing customs. Finland is such a trusting nation that we simply got on the train and found our seats. About 30 minutes down the track someone came to stamp our tickets. Another hour went buy and then a team of individuals took our passports one by one and stamped them to indicate that we had left Finland. Then nothing happened for awhile. The first stop in Russia was customs. A team of about 10 people in uniform essentially marched onto the train and past us. It was actually a little intimidating. Then they came down the rows and acquired everyone's passport. It might be irrational, but the 45 minutes I didn't have my passport because it was being scanned in a room made me a little nervous.
While they were analyzing our visas, a guy in uniform came around asking questions. He thought Sally was Russian, which was amusing when he asked her if she was carrying any alcohol or medication in Russian. Next he stopped by me and Todd and asked where our bags were. Once we pointed to them he asked if we had any Euros or US Dollars on us. I told him "some" but was not asked to disclose hour much. Todd, interestingly, didn't bring any Euros so all he had in cash was 50 Turkist Lyra (sp) from their spring break trip.
When we arrived in St. Petersburg, we left the train and tried to find out barrings. Sally had purchased a guide book so we had one map and Todd had stayed in the apartment we inhabited before. The true challenge, however, was that we did not know where we were. There are 5 train stations in St. Petersburg and trains from Finland can arrive at 2 of them. We were at a metro station so stepped inside to find an ATM as a taxi would require cash. Sally spotted a statue and we decided it must be a Stalin monument which would make our station the Finland station (fitting, right?). That meant we were on a different island than our apartment so we wanted a taxi. The first individual quoted us a price of 800 Rubles (one US dollar is about 28 Rubles so I kept dividing everything by 25 throughout the trip). While not cheap, I was fine with paying about $32 but Todd and Sally walked away and started checking out how to get there by metro. It became quite clear we were not going to figure out the public transportation at this busy stop with our luggage and just as we were about to discuss that among ourselves the taxi driver came back and offered 500 Rubles...to ride with his friend.
The car we rode in was a Russian car. Our driver seemed quite proud of his vehicle and kept repeating "Russian car, Russian car". Todd encouraged Sally to speak Russian to the driver. She only knows about three phrases she learned from her grandmother, but all it took was for her to say "have a blessed goodnight" in Russian and he started yammering away. Although it appeared like it could fall apart at any second, the Russian car had a lot of zip and our driver liked to push it. On multiple occasions, I was reaching for a handle in the ceiling to find there wasn't one and I just had to work my core to try and stay vertical.
Keys to the apartment were at a real estate office. The driver took us to the address, but it was apparently the address for the entire block. Citizens of St. Petersburg seemed oddly (in my opinion) proud of how challenging it would be to find one's way in their city as a foreigner. Streets did not have signs so even with a map you could wander lost for a long time. Thank goodness Todd had a phone number to call for the office or we would have never found it - you had to walk through the entry for a restaurant to get to a set of stairs that took you there. Once we had the key we headed down the street toward the Hermitage, the neighbor of our home for the weekend. The sun was shining and I was carrying pounds of luggage (if only shampoo could be something other than a liquid) so my coat and sweatshirt came off as I ran into locals lugging my bags.
I was thrilled to arrive at the apartment. It took three keys to get in: the first was magnetic to open the door, then a lock on the door which required three turns, finally a dead bolt on the door. The difference between the hallway and the interior of the apartment was interesting. One of the mornings we talked about the possibility that they intentionally have the halls look unkempt so thieves do not think robbing would be worth their time. In our case I think the address would be enough for people to assume something of value might be inside, but I'm not certain. The apartment was large and nicely furnished.
Kitchen/dining room. My first thought was a reminder to myself to not drink the water. A few weeks ago some of the students from the wood studio went to St. Petersburg and one girl got girardia (sp) from water she swallowed in the shower. I've had that bug (thanks to Nice, France) and would rather not be its host again).
This is the view from the windows. The windows were interesting because they could open in two ways. They either opened like a door or could tilt, just opening the top portion.
This is where Sally and I slept
The living room where I spread my snacks on the table and Todd slept on the couch (uncomfortable for sitting, Ikea, but Todd oo-ed and aaa-ed about it as a bed)
After we sat for a bit, Todd called his mom (she and her boyfriend arrived in St. Petersburg on Thursday and were excited to meet up with us) and established where they were. He let her know that we were safe in the apartment but needed to buy drinking water and toilet paper. They were about 20 minutes away, so offered to pick up the supplies. We were excited to be in the city so decided to wander a little and wait for their call.
This is looking at the street where we lived. We turned between the yellow and brick facades to get to the entry.
One of the five buildings of the Hermitage - I had never heard of this art museum before preparing to come to Russia. Todd enjoyed saying that "there are the great museums of the world like the Met in NY and others, then there's the Louvre, and then there's the Hermitage". This seemed surprising to me, but after visiting I believe it. While there collection is show stopping....they don't care for the art as well as I would like (more on that on our next day in Russia).
Soldiers walking down the street. It's at a strange angle because I didn't know how they would react to me snapping a shot. While I probably looked really odd, I tried to be inconspicuous. We didn't know where they were going, but I think they were heading to the square in front of the Hermitage.
This is the square. That column is not affixed to the ground in any structural way. It's mass is so great that gravity keeps it standing.
The sea green facade of the Winter Palace (the first building of the Hermitage)
A military band! This is where I think those other soldiers were going. May 9th is a holiday in St. Petersburg and soldiers (I could identify army, navy, and something else) were practicing marching in the square. It was interesting, and honestly a little unnerving, how little the Russian military uniforms have changed since the Soviet era. There were times walking down the street that we would walk past a soldier and I would feel like I had stepped into an old war movie.
We wanted to see about getting a pass for the Hermitage for Saturday, so walked into the palace
Me walking on my birthday in Russia!
This is the Church of the Spilled Blood which we walked by many times. Sally commented that some of the domes looked like soft serve ice cream! We went inside on Monday so those pictures will be posted soon.
The tourist shops across from the church!
We were thirsty so stopped into a place called "friends". The woman at the bar understood enough english to get by but was clearly curt and not all that excited about non-Russians frequenting her restaurant. While we were sitting there, Todd's mom called. They were nearby so Todd left, met her in the car, went to the apartment, and dropped off a lot of water, toilet paper, and paper towels. In the meantime Tom (the boyfriend of Todd's mom Annie) came in and introduced himself to Sally and me. We chatted until Todd and Annie arrived and then everyone met and talked for a bit. Next, we followed them to their hotel where we snacked on some seasoned nuts and olives (I tried an olive just to check but still do not like them) in the bar. Around 7:30pm we split to get ready for our 9pm dinner reservation.
Once we were nearly ready to go, Sally gave me a birthday gift! It was a ring that she and I had found on our shopping day in Helsinki but I had avoided buying. Perfect!
The three of us headed to the Stroganoff Palace to eat dinner at the place where beef stroganoff originated. We learned about "Tom Time" as we waited for 30 minutes for Annie and Tom to arrive. As we sat, a woman brought us little appetizers and I had my first caviar. It was salmon caviar with some salmon and was not that bad. The texture of breaking the little eggs was a bit odd, though. When Todd called them we learned that their alarm hadn't gone off to wake them from a quick nap but they were on their way.
For my 24th birthday I ate dinner at a restaurant where the menu did not have prices for the first time in my life. We had a team of servers who often moved in unison. They first brought each of us a little stand to set near our plates and then a set of 6 pieces of paper per person. We were initially overwhelmed that this was our menu which included a cold started, warm starter, fish, meat, and dessert listing. As it was my birthday, Sally suggested I go first but I deferred to Annie because I didn't know how many courses we were supposed to order!
Once everyone selected a starter and an entrée, a treat from the chef arrived. It was a sturgeon stuffed olive stroganoff (which meant it came in a glass that looked like it was meant for martinis covered in a fantastic sauce). I wanted more and was instantly glad I had ordered the beef stroganoff in hopes I would get to eat much more of the sauce. They next brought very small breads. These two items looked like they would be hard like pretzels, but were actually quite soft. A larger version arrived with our starters. I chose a traditional Russian dumpling with meat for my starter. A set of sauces came with my selection: horseradish, vinegar, and sour cream. As a good tourist, I tried them all once and then ate the remaining ones with sour cream. Fantastic.
After the starters we received a sorbet (I think?) which was red in color and meant to cleanse our palate. We think it might have been cloudberry flavored. It had the color of raspberries but was not that tangy. The true treat of this course was the garnish. I do not recall the name, but a small orange tomato came on the side of the glass. It tasted sweet and we debated if it was a fruit or vegetable so had to ask the server. Everyone loved them.
My main course did not disappoint. I was surprised that my beef stroganoff came as beef with a sauce containing some vegetables and mashed (creamed, really) potatoes on the side. Each flavor was wonderful. It seemed curious, however, that this dish which apparently people enjoyed so much they took the notion and made their own at home, has transformed into the hamburger helper version with a white cream sauce and pasta. This is clearly the high class version.
In the middle of the meal, someone let it slip that it was my birthday so plates of small desserts arrived along with some fire (a very dramatic kind of firework candle). Each of us promptly at the sweet tomato garnish again. My favorite of the desserts was a rich ball of chocolate (predictable, I know).
After dinner we walked to Annie and Tom's hotel and went up to the bar on the 9th floor for some celebratory champagne. It was a little chilly outside, but we enjoyed looking at the lit sights of St. Petersburg from the roof. A few days later it was even more interesting because the buildings were not just beautiful but had stories that we would learn on the next two days of tours.
Amazing! And well descibed
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