White Nights

Wow. I'm writing this from the Russian river boat (but transcribing it to the blog from Germany.) It's 11:30 PM and still bright as day outside. I only have to use the light when we go through the locks along the river. I know that it stays light all night, since Matthias won't let me draw the curtians (afraid he might miss breakfast or something!) Last night I woke up at 2AM and could see across the river - pretty awesome!

(Family getting ready to board the boat in St. Petersburg. Not pictured: photographer (me.))

Russia is quite fabulous. I highly recommend a trip, though not necessarily a river cruise. We didn't have nearly enough time in St. Petersburg and our stops along the river were mainly tourist traps, though we did get to see lots of old wooden churches and one pretty "typical" Russian town. The river scenery is nice, too. Matthias thinks it's better than the Chilean Fjords, but I take exception to that. Also, the weather has been pretty grim - cold and wet. So much for bragging that we didn't have winter this year. We're getting it now!

On the family front, we are doing pretty well. My mother taught Matthias' mother how to play Solitaire (I think Sudo-ku is next!) and Matthias keeps busy translating conversations between our fathers. My mother's German is holding up pretty well, and mine is getting better. A good thing, since we didn't realize when we booked the trip that the entire cruise (tours, menus, etc.) would be in German. The Roses are coping well, however, and it's a good experience for us seeing that the world - or at least the tourist industry - does not revolve exclusively around the English language.

St. Petersburg did not disappoint - it was wonderful. We took a couple of tours included with the cruise and although I couldn't understand the tour guide, the sights were terrific, and I taught myself to read Russian (Cyrillic Alphabet) while in traffic on the bus. We saw spectacular palaces and churches, along with the Ermitage, and also spent an afternoon walking around on our own discovering Russian cafes and fast food.

We arrive in Moscow in a couple of days and will have to say goodbye to my parents adn then to Matthias' parents as we begin our bike tour and much needed diets! Pictures to come soon, of course.

And, in case I don't get to say this later...Happy 40th Birthday to Linda on the 19th of June!! Wish I could be there to help celebrate (but just to help celebrate.) Also, a belated 40th birthday greeting to Steve. Geez, we're all getting old!