St. Petersburg, Russia--The Hermitage

Do you know what the largest museum in the world is?

The Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.

This is just the main building--the Winter Palace.

The museum owns over 3 million pieces of art and less than 1/3 of it is on display.

From floor

to ceiling

this place drips with opulence.

and a LOT of gold too! 

We were warned to pick one floor, or one period of art

and just focus on that part of the museum.

Did we listen?
NO.

Did we attempt to see almost every one of the 1 million items on display?
YES.

Did we succeed?
NO.

Did we almost die trying?
YES.


We did heed the advice to eat before entering!

Unfortunately, on this lovely summer day in St. Petersburg, we were not the only ones to have the idea to visit the largest museum in the world.

I don't know if you can get a feel for that line, but it is LONG. Like 1 1/2 hours waiting in line long. My kids were troopers.

See those people breezing by on the left side of the photo? They purchased their tickets on-line. (Smart.) I tried to do that before we left Helsinki, but I couldn't purchase youth tickets and I didn't want to pay more than I had to--foreigners already have to pay 4 TIMES what Russian Nationals pay to enter the museum!

Guess what?

Kids are FREE.

ACCCCKKK!!!

My advice (should you find yourself at the Hermitage Museum in the near future)?

1. Buy your tickets on-line before you go.
2. Eat before you go in.
3. Don't try to see it all.
4. Hold your childrens' hands.

Apparently, it is NOT cool to touch centuries old artifacts or artwork. 

It is also NOT cool to use a flash.

Also, if you are going to hand over your camera to your eldest child because you are on sensory overload and not feeling well, make sure you give him the sticker that indicates you paid to take photos inside, or said camera might possibly get confiscated.

The General Staff Building sits in front of the Winter Palace. Together, the buuildings of the Hermitage complex form a large central plaza.

Changing Tastes

It's funny how your tastes change the longer you've lived somewhere.

We've only lived in Finland for seven months, and still, my tastes have changed.

I already loved Marimekko when I arrived in Finland. In fact, for many years, I've had a piece of Marimekko fabric hanging in some part of my house.

That iconic poppy print hanging in the window (printed in many, many shades) is loved by thousands around the globe--me included. The question is...did you know Marimekko is a Finnish company?

I wasn't, however, immediately in love with the Iittala glass products that are ubiquitous here in Finland.

The clean, simple lines sold at steep, steep prices just didn't do anything for me.

That was then.

This is now.

I have converted.

After sipping wine out of beautiful Iittala wine glasses, or sneaking cookies and candy out of Iittala candy dishes, how can you not come to love this glasswork that is oh-so-Finnish?

I especially love the Aalto vase.

"Since its unveiling in 1937 at the Paris World's Fair, the Aalto vase has been an international sensation. Its mysterious shape has been the subject of much speculation; some say it is based on Aalto's sketches entitled, "The Eskimo Woman's Leather Breeches." Others speculate that the fluid shape might be inspired by the lines of the Finnish landscape."  (from aalto.com)

For me, the vase reminds me of the islands scattered around the Baltic Sea.

If you want to know how the vase is made, click here:

A little boat ride...

Finns are BIG boaters! On the one hand, it makes sense since there is so much water surrounding the country and so many lakes within the country.  On the other hand, it's a little surprising to me due to the fact that there are really only two or three good months to be out on the water. But I've decided that Finns are much heartier than, say for example, Chicagoans. I used to sail and there is no way I would be on the water on some of these cooler Helsinki days!

But I was pretty excited when one of Rob's colleague's at the University invited us to take a little ride on his boat with his wife and him.

When I saw the boat, I was a little concerned our family of five wouldn't fit--but never fear...

...with the kids and Laina in the front and Rob, Veka and I in the back, we all fit!

There are so many islands to visit in Helsinki! It's so much fun to just motor from one big rock to the next! But you really need to know what you are doing. Some of those rocks barely break the surface of the water!

(Of course I had visions of us hitting the rocks and all being catapulted out of the boat into the water!)

We stopped for a little while on a "public" island.

The view, as always was stunning--see all of the islands?  That's one of the things I love about Finland!   

I guess the view in the water was pretty interesting too! 

Thanks to our hosts for a lovely afternoon!

Hardangerfjord

No words...

The kids loved dancing at the front of the boat as the wind was quite strong up front!

We took this boat trip on Joey's 12th birthday.  What a lucky boy!

Beautiful Bergen--gateway to the fjords!

This is some seriously gorgeous country around here.

I didn't know that Bergen is usually cloudy and rainy.

We had a cloudy day (and a half), but mostly, it was just stunningly beautiful.

I think I could actually use the phrase "achingly beautiful"--whether the weather was cloudy, or not.

We took the funicular to see the city from the top of the mountain,

(Can you see the path and the station at the top of the mountain?)

We were treated to beautiful views, excellent hiking and even a little bit of canoeing on a mirror-like lake.

We hiked back down to town on foot.

(Potty break.)

And then explored Bryggen.

These (really old) buildings are shifting and sinking, but they are being preserved as well for their historical importance and beauty.

Check out the condition of this doorway.

Our hotel was right across from Bryggen (the old buildings), the fish market and the souvenir stalls.

The kids weren't too thrilled with the fish market and the whale steaks, 

but they loved the souvenir stalls!

I think we are ready for crazy hat day at our house!