Category Archives: Places I’ve been

Welcome to Russia! Welcome to St. Petersburg!


Our first morning in St. Petes – and it’s lovely – cool and crisp – but clear. Our hostel – The Suricata – is located in the back of a courtyard and we feel far removed from the hustle of the city. It turns out that this is a typical construction design for buildings near the city center. There is a gateway off the road – that leads under one side of the building into a center courtyard. Then all the rest of the building faces this courtyard. Even the flats that have windows facing the street have their entrance doors off the courtyard!

The yard doubles as a children’s play ground and a car park for the apartments, flats and condos that fill the buildings. Each section has it’s own entrance off the courtyard – generally there are only 2 flats to a floor – and the max height appears to be 4 stories – that limit related to the distinct lack of elevators!

Our hostel is located on the 2nd floor – one flight up from the ground. This is the primo level because on the ground level are generally stores and shops – and as you go higher – you have more stairs to climb.

But back to elevators – We noticed it first in the metro – but as we’ve visited places around the city – it’s become even more obvious. There are very few elevators in St. Petersburg – even in the museums. Handicap friendly – Nope.

Anyway – the door to the stairwell that leads to our hostel is directly across from the gate – so we are quite far from any traffic noises. There are windows on only one side of the flat – because there is another building that abuts ours – but it is entered from the street behind us. In buildings like the Hermitage or Winter Palace – the same building design is repeated – just on a grander scale. And of course – there’s no building backing up on a palace – so they have windows on 2 sides in many rooms. One side overlooks the street (or the river in the case of one entire side of the Winter Palace) – the other side of the room overlooks that omnipresent courtyard.

The owner of the Suricata is on hand to greet us – he wants to be sure that our dates will work out – and I guess he’d like to be paid. But since he insists on cash – this is a very cash oriented society – he’s going to have to wait. We need to find an ATM.

Unlike the Cat’s Pajamas – there is no option to buy breakfast at the hostel. They do provide (for free) Tea, Instant Coffee, and some basic cooking supplies like oil, salt and sugar. One day they even offered us Oranges. But generally this is a fend for yourself food situation – so we will have to find a local grocery store – and soon. For today – we make do with breakfast from the local food shop – and head out to the Hermitage.

Following the advice on the internet – we bought 2 day tickets on line – and we want to see what the fine print has to say about what we can and can’t do. We are easy walking distance from the Winter Palace – so we amble over and check things out.

Even being pre-warned about the crowds doesn’t do the mob scene at the Hermitage justice. It’s pretty unbelievable. But there are people who speak English, although it takes us visits to several different desks to find them. Certainly buying tickets ahead was brilliant – that makes things a lot easier.

Some important notes about tickets bought ahead. They are for 2 consecutive days. No options. So you do want to be sure to pick your first day carefully. We decide to wait till Tuesday to start our Hermitage tour – that will give us Tuesday and Wednesday – Wednesday being the day the Hermitage stays open late. Since today is Saturday – we leave the crowds behind – and head out to walk the city.

Suffering from a severe lack of breakfast – we go back to that wonderful pastry shop and check out their lunch options. I have the Russian version of dumplings, IT had Stronganof, and MP enjoyed a Borcht. All 3 – delicious. For dessert we had, of course, more of their yummy pie. I had a Latte. Then MP had a latte. Then we both had another. Poor IT – she only drinks tea.

Next job – find a larger grocery store – and we do. It’s quite close to our hostel – prices are reasonable – they even offer meal options to go – roast chicken and various sausages. And a fairly decent wine selection with about 20 different Russian wines. There is also a huge selection of different Vodkas. We’re in Russia after all!

We decide to brave the metro again – it should be easier without suitcases – and travel to Dostoevsky’s Flat. On the way we visit a cathedral, a local food market (It’s going to be bread, cheese, sausage, cucumbers, tomatos, strawberres, and wine for dinner tonight), and of course get just a bit lost. I think getting lost is going to happen a lot. The good news – there are always people around to point you in the right direction – even if they don’t speak a word of English!

Dostoevsky’s Flat is really interesting only to fans of Russian Literature – but it does rather forceably remind one of how lucky we in North America to live in our fancy homes. Despite his fame, and probably because of his gambling problem, Dostoevsky’s flat is remarkably small and simply furnished. Interesting stuff. There’s an audio-tour in English, and across the hall from the flat is a collection of images of places mentioned in his books.

After our visit – and of course a mandatory break for tea and Russian pastries – We then move on to what turns out to be the highlight of the day – Russian Orthodox Services at the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Our Savior.

We arrive shortly before services begin. The bells are ringing – summoning the faithful to church – and the lights of the Cathedral are on – making the mosaics and gilded twirls and whirls of the decorations glow. Icons are strategically located around the nave – covered with silver and gold beaten panels to enhance their beauty. The faithful – mostly women – are all standing around quietly, waiting for services to begin. All women have their heads covered – all men are bare headed. And there are no chairs and no pews. Not for the congregation, not for the priests.

Fortunately – this Cathedral is quite large, very famous – and is aware that it draws faithful from other lands. Thus it does provide a small rack of those small folding chairs that you sometimes see in Museums. We get one each – I don’t think even MP – the youngest of us – can stand for the entire 2 hour service – and surely neither I nor the Intrepid Traveller is up for that!

The altar in a Russian Orthodox Church is ‘hidden’ behind a Iconostasis – an elaborate carved dividing screen that holds at least one if not more icons. There is a gateway in the Iconostasis that can be opened to show the altar to the congregation. When the gateway is opened – the lights above the Iconostasis are turned on to show that G-d’s light shines on the world. And this is how the service starts.

The lights above the Iconostasis are turned on – and the female choir in the choir loft behind our heads begins to sing. The altar doors open to reveal one priest with two helpers praying at the altar – his back to us. He begins to sing – and swings an incense burner.

Eventually he is joined by 18 other priests and helpers – who take turns swinging the incense burners (there are 2), singing in the most magnificent voices imaginable, and marching around the church in loops so that everyone can see them and so that they can bless all the icons on display.

At certain points during the service, Church lay people roll out carpets for the priests to stand on while they read the bible and do the sacraments in the center of the church – right in the middle of the congregation.

Throughout this entire time – a total of 2 hours – the congregants remain standing. At the end of the service – as if on some mystical cue – the congregants move to one side of the church and line up for blessing. One by one the main priest paints the cross on their forehead with holy oil, and they kiss a cross on his sleeve. Since there are at least 500 particpants – this takes a while. Next to the main priest stands an altar boy holding a bowl full of pieces of bread. Each person takes one after they are blessed.

About 1/3 of the congregation now moves to the other side of the church, and lines up again – this time for confession. It’s done in the open – although many times the priest puts a cloth over the head of the person confessing to give them both privacy.

Amazing experience. The singing of the priests and the choir are outstanding – the emotional commitment wonderful to behold. I’m privileged to have been permitted to take part.

We walk home slowly – past the Church of Spilled Blood – glorious in the glow of a late setting sun at just after 9:00 PM. Days start early and end late in St. Petersburg during the White Nights.

What a wonderful way to be welcomed to Russia.

Signing off – MR, The Intrepid Traveler, and of course – The Soup Lady.

Ah plans – such great plans we had for St. Pete’s


When I was doing my research on St. Petes – the best hostel for our purposes seemed to be the MIR. It is extremely well located – 2 minutes to a metro station, 4 minutes to the Hermitage – and it offered private rooms. I carefully took 2 rooms – one for the Intrepid Traveler and I to share, and one for MP and her suitcase. And they were extremely helpful and efficient at getting us the papers needed for our Visas.

In Russia – in order to get a visa – which is required before you leave home – you must know where you will be staying, and of course you must have your tickets to leave. No problems if you are using a travel agency based in Russia – but if you are an independant traveler like MP, IT and myself – well – not that easy. So while in Canada, I had relied on the wonderfully efficient folks at MIR to get me the necessary paper work – and do it again when we realized I’d given them the wrong names.

So – we arrive at the airport and must admire the size of MP’s suitcase – it literally dwarfs both IT and my tiny carry ons (MP is travelling for 10 days, we’re travelling for 4 weeks – go figure). To get to St. Pete’s – you have several choices – Taxi for around 900 ruples and bus/metro for 68 ruples. We choose bus/metro! What we don’t know is that MP’s suitcase needs it’s own ticket. One for her – one for the suitcase – on the bus, and on the metro too! Hence the nickname!

We quickly realize that there is a HUGE difference between the metro’s in Berlin and those in St. Petes. In Berlin, every station has an elevator – plus escalators. And they are all well signed and easy to find. Not so in St. Pete’s. Ignoring the issue on Cyrillic – which since it’s their language, one expects them to use it – the Russian Metros just don’t have elevators. We did find some escalators in the biggest and deepest stations, but certainly not everywhere – and often they are connected by stairs.

Since both the Intrepid Traveller and I have issues lifting our suitcases – tiny as they are – and MP is dragging Mrs. P, well the lack of elevators is going to be a problem.

Only it turns out – it’s not!

MP tells IT to just wait at the bottom of the staircases until she carries Mrs. P up the steps – she’ll come back for her suitcase. But before she can get back down – and often even before she gets to the top – a young Russian gentleman has noticed IT’s issue – and has grabbed her bag and is carrying it up – or down the steps. Over and Over again! We’re impressed. Is it her white hair? IT says she thinks it’s her bewildered expression!

In any case – we navigate the Metro – figure out fairly quickly how to recognize the first few letters in Cyrillic for each station name – and get where we are going – the front door of the MIR hostel.

As advertised – it’s perfectly located – right on Nevsky Blvd.

Unadvertised – it’s also up 5 flights of stairs – with no elevator.

Ensuite bathrooms or not – this won’t work. The Intrepid Traveller and I stayed in a 5 floor walk-up in Sicily – it almost killed us. And we’re older now. We can’t stay here.

MP and I walk up and up and up, go thru security to enter the hostel (video ID required) – and I throw myself literally on the feet of the hosts. Fortunately the hosts speak excellent English – and they take pity on us. They will both cancel our reservation (no refund on the deposit however) – and find us somewhere else to stay. They call around while I search the internet. It’s a challenge. We can’t find any where that has space, 2 rooms, and ensuite bathrooms – and under 3 flights of stairs. It’s impossible in the hostel world of St. Petes.

Finally – the MIR folks find one that can give us the 2 rooms – but we will be sharing the bathrooms. And the reviews aren’t great – noisy, and small and not well located. But at least it’s a bed for the night. MP and I drag our suitcases and our tired bodies back down the 5 flights – and together the 3 of us head back towards the Metro.

My nose suddenly does a sharp left turn. What is that delightful smell? It’s a Pastry shop – and what a wonderful pastry shop it is too! Traditional Russian Pies – some with meat, salmon, onion and egg – and some with Strawberry, Cherry, Cranberry, and Apple. And coffee. Good coffee.

No lunch – little breakfast – and 5 flights up and down have me feeling completely drained – it’s time to stop. So we do. And it’s delicous. And the lovely young waitress speaks excellent English. Sigh – things are looking up in St. Petes.

The name of this haven – Stolle – and afterwards I look it up in Tripadvisor – it’s #88 of 8,034 restaurants in St. Pete’s. Pretty good nose, eh?

While MP and the Intrepid Traveller relax over their tea and crumpets – I search the net for another option – and I find one – the Suricata Hostel

It’s about 7 minutes walking from where we are – only one flight of stairs to navigate – the half-a-dozen reviews are all positive – and at this point. I’m ready to try anything that doesn’t have a description that includes noisy. But how to make sure they have room? And we have reservations elsewhere. It’s back up the 5 flights of stairs to the only people I know in St. Pete’s that a) speak English and b) have a phone that isn’t calling Canada first.

The folks at Mir come thru again – they reach the owner of the Suricata – and we’re booked into a 4 bed dorm – holding all 4 beds for just the 3 of us. Yes we’ll have to use a shared bathroom – but there’s only one short flight of stairs – and the reviews are good.

We’re off.

The Suricata is a brand new hostel – I think we are the 2nd guests – and everything still has it’s IKEA labels attached. We are the only guests – so it’s really a fairly large apartment for 3. The bathrooms aren’t en-suite – we have to walk past the extremely friendly security and front desk and consierge all rolled into one very pleasant young Russian man – to get to the bathroom or the showers – but the beds are nice, the room has a huge window, and there’s a washer! The kitchen is tiny by hostel standards – and if they ever get the dorm rooms (there’s one with 8 beds and another with 10) filled – there won’t be enough room or toilets for everyone – but for us – for now – it’s perfect.

We’re home.

For dinner we wander the streets, eventually finding what turns out to be the most standard of designs for ‘low-cost’ eating in St. Petes – a cafeteria. But it’s a nicer cafeteria – with friendly helpful ‘chef’s’ behind stations – and prices clearly posted. I have a chicken dish, The Intrepid Traveller feasts on a version of a sauage roll and MP enjoys veggies and chicken dish as well. We’ll actually probably coming back – the combination of easy to understand what you’ll be eating – even if the seasoning – while delicous – is surprising at times, and the low cost is hopelessly appealing!

Bed time for bunny rabbits – tomorrow will be a busy day

The Soup Lady and her traveling companions – the Intrepid Traveler and Mr. Piatgorsky signing off.

Travel isn’t just about Museums – sometimes you must do Laundry


It’s our last full day in Berlin – and there is a ton of things still on our list to see and do. Unfortunately – one of them is Laundry. Can’t get away from the fact that eventually either you wash clothes or people start to move away from you in the Metro. Which, on consideration – might not be the worst idea.

Anyway – laundry. While it’s awesome that the Cat’s PJ’s has machines – and they aren’t $$ (just 4 euro’s for the load – wash and dry) – they are slow. Really slow. So it’s a relaxing morning – I get some blogging done, The Intrepid Traveler reads – and eventually the laundry is hanging in our room. We just couldn’t wait for the dryer to dry everything completely.

It’s almost lunch time before we leave the hostel – and our first stop is the Karstat Department store. It’s right across the street from the hostel – and it’s huge. And amazing. I love the houseware department – German and Italian plastic ware are so cool. There’s the complete selection of all the top designers – and we spend a good 30 minutes just handling all the beautiful things. Eventually – big shoppers that we are – we pick out a 1 euro knife to have on hand for cutting fruit. Then it’s on to the Museum of European Cluture.

Never heard of it? Not a surprise! It’s not really a museum – it’s 4 rooms in a larger museum dedicated to Ethnocology – and there’s a gigantic exhibit on Canadian First Nations! We quickly walk thru – admiring their considerable collection – and thinking – what must the Germans think of Canada – Land of Indians? Do they think we still have cowboys? Oh well – I guess our efforts at explaining the issues related to East and West Germany are probably even less informative.

The display related to European Culture is fairly interesting – lots of stuff I really didn’t know – including the fact that Doner’s were invented in Berlin. Yes – Doner. Those omnipresent huge meat things that stand vertically in a rotisserie in Turkish Fast Food restaurants. Who knew it was a Turk living in Berlin who invented that? I have to say they have been yummy eating here.

There is also a very interesting exhibit on WWI – everything is made of grey felt and chicken wire – definitely inspires respect and remorse in the heads of the viewer.

Our next stop is the National Art and Decoration Museum, which has a huge section on Fashion. Unfortunately – we’re going so slowly that we arrive with under an hour before it closes. We zip quickly into the Regency section – I snap a picture of dancing shoes – I hear tell of an amazing ball being held in Brussels in just a few weeks – I really could use some new shoes.

Just across the mall from the Art and Decor Museum is the ‘Old Master’s’ Museum of Berlin. And it is a stunner. And open an hour longer than the Art and Decor Museum. So we zip in there – and hit the highlights. I’m a huge fan of their Venus – and there are some Rembrants and Rubens that you just don’t want to miss. We also spend a good 15 minutes enjoying the Proverb painting by Brueghel the younger. So good. And they also have a Hermonious Boch. Sigh.

Dinner is at the Tex-Mex (yes – again) – this time we are meeting up with a friend from Montreal – and it’s the one place I know for sure is good, not expensive – and I can find! Dinner is great – The Intrepid Traveller and I split a single meal – the portions are that big.

Home – Bed – early up for our flight to St. Petersburg, which goes swimmingly. No problems – even though we’re flying Areoflot – and I admit to a bit of concern about using a Russian Airlines. Turns out I should not have been worried.

We are standing at Baggage Claim when my female friend from Africa – Mr. Piatgorsky – sneaks up behind us to give us a hug, and a high 5 welcome to St. Petes!

Why Mr. Piatgorsky? Turns out she’s travelling with a huge – really huge – suitcase. And Mr. Piatgorsky loved to travel with his cello – to the point where he’d buy the seat on the airplane next to him for his cello. Needing a name for the reservation – and not being married – he would reserve his seat for Mrs. Piatgorsky! I’m going to call her MP for short!

Anyway – we’d planned to met up – MP is spending 10 days with the IT and myself in St. Petes. We’ve already made our reserations at the MIR youth hostel – 1 private room with bath for the IT and myself to share – MP is getting 2 beds – one for herself, one for her suitcase.

Ah – if only things worked out as planned…

But you will have to wait till tomorrow to hear how things go down in St. Petes!

Signing off – The Soup Lady – and her travel buddies – The Intrepid Traveller and Mr. Piatgorsky!

Palaces of Tears, of Queens, and of Famous Paintings – ah, it must be Berlin!


Day 3 in Berlin dawns bright and cold – given our plans for the day – more museum visits – it’s perfect.

Our first stop is a brand new ‘museum’ – called the Palace of Tears. It’s located right behind the Main Train Station in Berlin – and it served as the ‘Border Station’ during the days of the iron curtain. It has been carefully restored to look just like it did during the Cold War – where it was the main crossing station between East and West. Thru a combination of interactive exhibits, free audio guide, multi-media displays, and written text – the conditions facing people who wanted to travel between East and West were explained.

At the end of the exhibit – there’s a brief section on the events leading up to the falling of the wall – and I will admit to leaving the museum with tears in my eyes. Very very moving.

We now head for one of the two major palaces open to the public – Most go to Potsdam to see San Souci – but not us! Nope – we’re going to see the Sophie-Charlotte Palace (aka Charlottenburg Palace). It’s a bit closer to Berlin – and reportedly has far fewer crowds. And is just as big. We figure if we can do it quickly – we’ll try for Potsdam too – but that is a pipe dream.

The trip to the Sophie Charlotte (aka Charlottenburg Palace) is fast and easy – I admit to a love affair with the Berlin Metro. So well signed – every station has elevators and lifts – and the stations, the stair cases – even most of the elevators are wonderfully clean. Most importantly are the multiude of pre-warning signs. As you leave a line heading for the next line at a transfer station – there’s a sign telling you when the next train at that future line will be leaving in each direction. Consider how handy that is – you know before you start the hike whether or not to rush. Cool.

Anyway – the Sophie Charlotte Schloss is huge. And it was totally ruined during the war. The roof was gone, the insides essentially gutted. And it has been completely rebuilt. Most of the moveable interior funishing and paintings were safely stored during the war – so those are the originals, it’s the incredible flourishes and swirls on the ceilings, and the glorious wall paper (not to mention the walls, floors and ceilings) that are ‘new’. Fortunately, the Sophie Charlotte had been well photographed prior to the war – it was already a museum – so there was lots to work with for the restorers.

And the results are wonderful.

There are 2 huge sections to the building, the older more intimate section that was built before she became Queen, the wing that was added by her grand-son – Alexander the Great, and of course the magnificent garden. Most beautiful room – the ball room with it’s high ceiling, green paint carefully chosen to make the dancers feel they were dancing in a garden – and in their day – mirrored windows so as you danced, you could see the reflections of other dancers. The impact is amazing.

There were 2 paintings that particularly caught my eye. One I’ve seen copies of many times – Napoleon on his horse crossing the Alps by David. As per Wikipedia – source of all knowledge – The version produced for the Château de Saint-Cloud from 1801 was removed in 1814 by the Prussian soldiers under von Blücher who offered it to the King of Prussia. It is now held in the Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin. So this time I was seeing one of the 5 existing originals.

Glorious.

But even more intriguing – in the next room is a strikingly similar painting of Blucher – also on a rearing horse. According to the audio guide – Blucher – fresh from the win at Waterloo – commissioned an artist to create a painting of him that mirrored that famous one of Napoleon – and for many years – the two paintings hung side by side. Today they are in seperate rooms – but easily close enough to be admired one after the other. Also in the room with David’s Napoleon is one of the famous one’s of Napoleon as Emperor – clearly also spoils of war!

Another fascinating fact – when Napoleon conquered Berlin – he slept in Queen Luise’s bedroom in the new wing – which has been redone to look as it looked when he was there. When she returned to power – she refused to sleep in that room – so her darling husband – the King – created a new bedroom for her – closer to his own. Nice, huh?

After walking our feet off at Charlottenburg Palace – we checked out the three other famous museums that are clustered at the entrance – the Berggruen Museum, The Collection Scharf-Gertenburg, and the Brohan Museum. We carefully tour all 3. My clear favorite was the Berggruen – color me pink, but any museum with 85 Picasso’s is going to make me happy. I loved it. The Brohan Museum was much smaller – and featured a lovely collection of Art Deco objects. I would happily take any of the tea sets if you want to get me a birthday gift. The Scharf-Gertenburg was much more difficult to appreciate. It’s collection of works by Surrealists like Max Ernst and friends is interesting – but hardly joyous. Most intriguing to me were the series of etchings on a Lady’s Glove – and the glorious Egyptian Arch that just happens to share space in the Museum. Overall, however, I ended the visit feeling sorry for artists that suffered so much for their passion.

Clearly 6 museums in one day – at our speed of travel – is a challenge. To describe us as exahusted would be an understatement. We slowly dragged our bodies back into rush hour on the Berlin metro, made our way back to our hostel – and while Jill rested up (and set up plates and silverware for dinner) – I bravely went out to hunt down food.

The Cat’s Pajama’s Hostel is located in a funky area of Berlin – lots of inexpensive options – including the omni-present Doner establishments. I spot one that not only has a Donner machine – it has a chicken rotisserie – and there are 3 chickens on the spit. I order one (wait 10 minutes please), find a bottle of Spanish red wine for 2.5 Euros, and hunt down some pastries. Back to my chicken restaurant – for my chicken and a huge salad. We feast well tonight!

We are joined for conversation by a young Australian, our quiet but passionate male Argentine friend, and the young Pole who was defending Democracy against the Russian the night before. Tonight our conversation is mostly about walking tours – they had all taken different ones and were comparing notes.

Tired, full, happy – we tottle off ‘early’ at around 10:30 for bed.

Tomorrow is another day.

Signing off – The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveller.

The Pergamon, the DDR, and the Jewish Museum – Such a busy day!


Tuesday is serious Museum day

We opt for an early start – grab breakfast at the Cat’s Pajama’s and head out for the Pergamon Museum. Even though we know that the name sake exhibit – the Pergamon Altar – is closed for re-hab until 2018 or so – there are still stellar things to see at this museum – most notably the gates to Ninavah – or Babalyon – depending on your reading text. Guide books and fellow travellers have warned us about long – long – long lines – so an early start is pretty key.

We end up arriving just 10 minutes before opening time – and the line is very short. We didn’t opt to buy tickets on line – we have student passes to present – and since they will get us a 50% reduction – we’re keen to use them. Note to other traveller’s – we bought the 50 Museum pass option – for 12 Euros. It’s good for all the Museums on Museum Island – plus 45 other Museums scattered across Berlin – including our 3rd stop of the day – the Jewish Museum. We’ll pay it back in savings by tonight.

So – after waiting in line, buying tickets, doing the mandatory leaving of the backpacks in the locker routine – at about 10:45 we’re finally standing awestruck in front of the gates.

These are the smaller gates – the larger ones being too big for the museum to display – and still they are massive. They tower over the crowd – and while we are hardly the visitors of yore – and there is nary a camel to be seen – it’s easy to imagine walking across the hot sands – seeing these gates raising like a mirage in the distance. Incredible.

There are several other highlights in the museum – an intact market gate from an ancient town in present day Turkey, a guest room from a house near Mecca, and parts of the wall surrounding a palace. Massive pieces of art – carefully dug in pieces out of the ground, shipped to Berlin to be lovingly put back together in rooms dedicated to their display. The Pergamon well deserves it’s reputation as a place not to miss.

From the Pergamon we walk slowly back past the Berlin Dom to the DDR museum. This tiny independantly run museum was one of the highlights of my last trip to Berlin – and it didn’t disappoint this time. Hours later we surface – having learned a ton about what life was like in East Germany – what clothes people wore, what rules they had to follow to get ahead – and just a tiny bit about how hard it was to leave.

We make our way back to the Metro – and from there we go to the last museum of the day – the Jewish Museum.

We arrive there at 4:30 – thinking we have tons of time since the museum closes at 8:00. Wrong. So Wrong.

This Museum recently added a new wing – twice the size of the original museum – and the architect created a space that is entirely unique in the world. You know you are in for a visual treat from the moment you see the Museum. There’s the Baroque original (If it’s not Baroque – don’t fix it), and seemingly completely separate is this massive steel structure that appears to have slashes across it’s face – as if it were attacked by a giant beast. This is the new wing – from above it looks like a lightening stroke, from the ground it looks and feels tortured. Stunning.

You enter the museum just as you would any other – thru the Baroque section. But after you get your ticket and do the mandatory stowing of the back-pack – things change. You are directed to start off by descending a long, fairly dark staircase and find yourself at the bottom in a space with 3 distinct paths – the Axis of Continuity, the Axis of Exile, and the Axis of the Holocaust. The Axis of the Holocaust is a dead end of course.

The Axis of Exile ends in the Garden of Exile – another masterpiece of architectual design. Walking in this space makes you dizzy and dis-oriented – exactly the feeling that the designer intended – since that is how many refuges feel when they arrive in a new land where they know no-one, don’t speak the language – and must survive.

Following the third axis takes you to another seemingly endless staircase up leading to the start of the main exhibit.

The theme of the exhibit is Jewish life in Germany in the last 2000 years – and it starts of course in Isreal with the disaspora. The exhibits follow the experiences of the Jews – thru the inquisition, the Black Death, the good times of acceptance, the bad times of rejection. It is fascinating – and big.

We are just at the 1/2 way point when they close the museum around us – offering us tickets to come back the next day. We are stunned. Where did the time go? But they are closing – and so we head home for left over Fried Chicken, involved and detailed conversations with our fellow hostel guests – including a rather serious for the circumstances lecture on the future of socialism from an intense young Russian. Exhausted but pleased – we head up stairs for bed.

Signing off too tired to think… The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveler.

Whit Monday is a holiday in Berlin – Another surprise!


All the stores are closed – as are the banks, the post office, most offices – and I’m guessing government buildings. Good news for the tourists – at least most restaurants are open – and museums normally open on Monday are open today too. Whew – for a minute I thought I was back in Bali celebrating Nyepi – only with less preperation!

We’d planned to do the Berlin Basics today – Check-point Charlie and the Topography of Terror Exhibit being first and foremost on our list. Check-point Charlie is silly – 2 guys dressed up as soliders – posing with any tourist willing to tip them. I guess the good news is they are being nice about it – smiling or being serious as the tourist requests. But it’s really silly stuff.

More interesting – and well worth reading – are all the official signs talking about where the wall was – and tracing the route down Zimmerstrasse thru the carefully placed cobble stones. We walk the Wall to the Topography of Terror – a free exhibit that traces the history of Hilter and the SS from 1933 till the end of the war. Stunning, informative, horrifying, intriging, alarming – and unforgetable. The mood in the large space is somber – as befits the topic – and the timeline starts off like Hilter did – slow and careful – picking up speed and horror as time moved on. A must see exhibit.

We leave there to check out the Gropius House – but the special exhibits on this month don’t appeal to us. Next stop – a quick peak into Potsdammer Plaza – and then a stroll towards Brandenburg Gate.

A wildly unique building attracts our eyes – that plus a sign that says free Science Museum. Even better – it’s open. So we stroll on in. It’s a display put together by Otto Bock Inc. – famous for prosthetics. And it’s all about the human body and how our brain controls our legs and hands. It’s fascinating. I particularly found the beam walk simulaton intriguing. It’s really easy to walk a beam that appears to be flat on the ground – another story altogether to walk that beam when the visual tells you that you are high above a city scape.

Walking on – we admire the Brandenburg gate – and the crowds of tourists admiring the gate. Been there – seen it. We move on.

Our next stop is a fabulous mini art museum – The Guggeneim – Deuche Bank Museum. It’s a modern art exhibit space – free on Monday’s – that this time is featuring an artist who asks questions and then attempts to get the audience involved in his answers via video footage.

One stunner – he goes to a flea market and displays a collection of palm tree branches for sale. Full sized palm tree fronds. Eventually – after a lot of curious looks from the passers by – the organizers ask him nicely to leave. Granted the palm tree branches are used – but hardly the stuff of yard sales. He morfs this experience into a discussion on group definitions. What is – and What isn’t – a flea market appropriate item.

Another challenge has 5 people trying to play one piano at the same time. In another video – 4 potters try to make a single pot together – with strange results. I’m not going to describe the rest of his work – but you get the idea. Challenging questions – with probably no really good answers.

Moving on – we opt to collapse into “The Digital Eatery”, which kindly gives us hot water for free to go with our slice of cake. They have a virtual reality simulator – which of course I must try! The first program is a jet fighter in outerspace – Once I put on the glasses – I can see my body wearing a space suit, my arms manipulating the controls of the space ship – and of course my surroundings – a meteor shower with targets to hit.

I loved it – even if I couldn’t actually hit any of the targets – in fact – I never even found them! But it was still very very cool.

We continue our walk – ending the day at the Haut Banholf – and eat a surprising great dinner at the Tex-Mex Cantina. 6.90 Euro (about $8 Canadian) for a fried chicken dinner large enough to feed 2. But we didn’t know that – so I ordered Pork Chops – same price – same huge size. Well – it’s going to be left overs for dinner tomorrow.

We drag out tired bodies back to the metro and head home to the Cat’s Pajama’s. Tea, Blog and Bed for Bozo….

Signing off – The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveler

Carnival Time in Berlin – Who Knew?


I couldn’t have planned the timing of our trip to Berlin better if I had tried – but I’m ahead of myself a bit. I’ll back-track and then move forward in time sequence.

Our landing in Berlin at the smaller airport of Schoenfield was uneventful – luggage arrived, bus to metro organized – no problems at all.

We opted to take the bus in all the way to Hermannplatz – we could have switched to the Metro – but riding the bus gave us time to get a feel for the outer limits of Berlin – probably the only time we’ll actually see where ‘real’ people live!

Once we arrived at Hermannplatz – finding the Cat’s Pajama’s hostel was also simple. And what a lovely hostel it is too. And yes – Pet very very friendly! But that doesn’t bother us a bit.

Our room is a small, but a very nicely located double -on the third floor with shower en-suite – Overall – it compares nicely to more expensive places – it even has a 27″ flat screen TV (not that we’ve even turned it on yet). First time I’ve seen that in a hostel. And at least every other day maid service. In a Hostel! Top that Marriot.

As expected – there’s a huge kitchen, 3 full fridges for people to store their food in – and there’s a party happening tonight. Free bratwurst and Free beer – all you can eat and drink.

Nice way to be welcomed to Berlin, eh?

Turns out that this is the start up to Whit Sunday – or Pentacost. The Intrepid Traveller knew this was a big deal in the Catholic Church – what we didn’t know is that it’s a big deal in the Hermannplatz area. Once a year – on this Sunday – there is a huge – huge – huge Parade! It starts at noon on Sunday – and lasts till 9:30 in the evening. Over a million people will be watching. And it all happens right outside the door to our hostel. It’s a diversity parade – if you have a group – you can join. The ‘floats’ and I use that term very generously – range from wagons pulled by the participants to highly decorated vans and trucks. The music is loud and raucous – the dancers in many cases barely clad. Head dresses and tail feathers with thongs of various sizes were the norm – not the exception. There were groups of drum core teams, there were lots and lots of folks representing various Native tribes – from all parts of the world. Africa, South America – you name it.

It was the Berlin version of Mardi Gras on a penny-wise budget – but playing to an audience of over a million. The Intrepid Traveller and I can’t think of anything in Montreal that would pull such a crowd.

Before the parade started – we had to go to church of course. I picked the Cathederal of Berlin – I mean – why not. And we picked High Mass. So we were treated to a full orchestra, a choir of about 30 young ladies and a male soloist, the church organ with it’s over 7000 pipes, the current arch-bishop of Berlin, 5 more priests, countless alter boys and girls, enough incense to full the huge church – and confirmation!

It dawned on me about 1/2 way thru that the only way to really enjoy church music is when it is played to an audience of devotees. And it is glorious. The building resonated with the music – the audience hung on every note. Magnificant.

So – Pentacost services, Carnival Parade – and for dinner – Doner and Pizza. Hey – it’s Berlin.

Signing off to plan tomorrow’s adventures.. The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveller.

Roissey en France – More than just a Transit Stop


I adore walking around small towns in France – the cobbled streets, the ever present gardens, the tiny shops selling interesting things – it’s just plain fun.

So the Intrepid Traveller and I decided to schedule our trip to Berlin so that we had almost a full day – plus a full night – in Roissey. It’s about 45 minutes by train from Paris – and seconds from Charles De Gaul Airport. Planes fly overhead morning, noon, and night – carrying people to and from just about everywhere in the world. In order to cater to their needs – Roissey en France grew from a tiny village occupied with farming to the Hotel packed destination it is today. But city planners have worked hard to keep the millions of tourists at bay.

The hotels that surround Roissey have clearly been zoned away from the traditional city center – you can see the ‘ring’ road on the map – and all modern development is prevented from corrupting the traditional city center.

The Roissey Department of Tourism has worked hard to make sure that visitors understand the age of the city – and there are wonderful old pictures – dating from 1905 and 1910 that show buildings that still exist – in all their former glory. We walked from huge plaque to huge plaque – identifying the pictured buildings – and admiring the elaborate dress of the country folk who posed so proudly next to their drug stores, post office, or the Marie. Even the original schools are still proudly in use – dating from before 1905. It’s easy to compare the pictures – with their stern looking teachers and stiff postured students – with the present buildings with their modern renovations.

Our wanderings included visits to the 2 local ‘depaneur’s’ or grocery stores. I needed a toothbrush, forgotten at home during the rush of last minute packing, and besides – these are fun to visit.

Tiny, cramped, with products stacked from the floor to the ceiling – they featured ‘Made in France’ products – a huge fridge full of French Cheeses – and an elaborate selection of French wine (starting price – 2 Euros or $2.65 Canadian). I loved the cookie isle, although fortunately the Intrepid Traveller was there to restrain me. You can’t eat what you don’t buy – so we settled on a fairly larger slice of Brie du Meaux and a Camenbert. We’ll visit the pastery store for bread tomorrow before flying out.

The wonderful thing about small towns in France are the attention paid to common spaces – and Roissey is filled with gardens that are supported by locals and open to the public. We toured the cemetary with it’s war memorial (Roissey was the site of much resistance fighting during World War I), checked out the local Sports facility – soccor field, Boules Courts (18 folks were playing in this area – without benefit of lines or boxes – how they kept from forgetting whose Boule was whose’s – I’ll never know), Play ground, Tennis field, Outdoor Swimming Pool, and community garden. The lilac’s were in bloom, the air fresh, and the walking lovely. Such a pleasure.

Naturally each hotel on the ring road made an effort to keep their clientele’s money safely in their hands – so each hotel offered a bar and a restaurant featuring pretty pedestrian fare – at very high prices. Not our thing – so we went looking for something more local. And not surprisingly – found plenty of options – running from outdoor pizza parlors to sushi and a surprisingly upscale place featuring foie gras and local game! We opted for the tiny, but charming Aux Trois Gourmounds.

Our Dinner at this local Creperie featured a jug of Red Cider (made from local Red Apples), a ‘dinner’ crepe stuffed with steamed potatoes, roasted onions, and lardons and served with a dollop of Creme Fresh, and dessert crepes – Nature with just Sugar. Oh it was delightful and in our price range – under 20 euro for 2.

Best of all – that night there was a free Schubert Festival – Piano, Full 50 people Choir, mini orchestra, Clarinet, etc. It was being held in the local Church d’Eloi – built in 1655 and a gem of that style even today, and we felt that was a must attend. It was delightful – particularly the Mass with a wonderfully full throated Soprano in the main role. Lovely. The church was packed – we suspect mostly friends and family of the performers. The effort was outstanding, the music delightful.

Tomorrow is a travel day – we need to get from Charles de Gaul to Orly – and from Orly to Berlin. Fortunately, both the hotel and the department of Tourism in Roissey agreed on the easiest way to do this.

Take the free shuttle back to Terminal 2E. Walk to Terminal 2F, exit 8. Find the correct bus stop – and board the Air France Airport Shuttle to Orly. Cost of the bus – 21 Euro per person. Travel time on the Bus 1 hour and 15 minutes. Piece of cake!

So up at 7:00 – Delicious breakfast (french croissants and all the coffee I could drink), then a quick walk to the village to buy bread and check out the 4 stall farmers market. There was a cheese truck with probably 100 different cheeses, a vegetable/fruit stand where we bought vine ripe Breton tomatoes that smelled of summer, a meat stand selling uncooked Chickens, Ducks and Foie Gras, and a Rotisserie Truck.

I found that truck the most interesting. There was a large rotisserie machine built into the truck – electric – with chicken’s roasting. In front was a display stand with the cooked chicken parts on sale. It really looked (and smelled) lovely.

Trip to Orly was uneventful, boarding Easy Jet almost boring in it’s predictablity – and now we’re on our way to Berlin.

Signing off for the landing at Schonnefield…. The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveller.

On the road again…


Travel is one way to discover who you are when you are not at home!

This time the Intrepid Traveller and I are doing a city tour. For those who have faithfully followed our adventures around the world – you will know that this is a tad unusual. Generally we are more ‘country’ centric – rather than ‘city’ centric. But I can easily explain the difference.

Reason for city tour #1 – we’re getting older. I hate to admit it – but it’s much harder to visit a country than a city. More short stays are hard on old backs and tired knees.

Reason for city tour #2 – we really, really wanted to see one city in particular – St. Petersburg. I know tons of people who’ve been there – and I’ve never heard one of them say – we stayed too long in St. Petersburg. So we figure – 2 weeks is just about a minimum for a city that large, that unique, that different! We shall see of course.

Reason for city tour #3 – I will never be the only driver of a rental car again. Never. I’m a bus, metro, train kinda gal – renting cars with the expense and responsibility involved – nope. So moving between cities is going to be public transit – and in this case – plane!

So – our city tour is centered on 4 cities.

City #1 – Roissey en France. Yes – lowly little Roissey – hard by the Charles De Gaul Airport, and primarily known for it’s zillions of cheap bedrooms for tourists in transit – it’s our first stop. Ok – it’s really a transit city for us too – but we’re taking a full day to explore it before we move on.

City #2 – Berlin. Ah – the sausages – the pretzels – the beer. Well – since the Intrepid Traveller doesn’t ‘do’ beer – perhaps we’ll have to work around that highlight. And of course the Berlin Wall. Our real reason for including Berlin this time – it was on the Intrepid Traveller’s Hit List – and who am I to not want to fulfill her wishes?

City #3 – St. Petersburg. The point of the trip – the highlight, the raison d’etre. 2 weeks here to savor the sights, visit the museums, and go to the Theatre.

City #4 – Brussels. Why Brussels – well, we needed a city that Air Transact flew from non-stop in order to get the Intrepid Traveller back to Montreal. And we needed a city worth visiting, and we really didn’t want Paris. Option – Brussels. Besides – I hear Napoleon might be massing his troups to the south – who am I to avoid good battle?

So that’s the plan – let’s see how it all plays out.

Signing out to fly to Roissey en France (aka Charles De Gaul Airport) – The Soup Lady and the Intrepid Traveller.

9 Lessons on Feeding the Body – on the Cheap!


Ah restaurants! One of the intense joys, and most frightening aspects of extended travel in an unknown city is deciding where to eat. I’ve picked winners so good I was blown away – and losers so bad, I feared for my digestive system. But along my culinary journey into the unknown – I have learned some important lessons – which I happily share.

Lesson 1: Believe in the Impossible – I’m a budget traveler – which means I travel on under $50 a day – a seemingly impossible task actually. I’m definitely getting tired of reading how travel under $100 a day is impossible. Not true! I’ve done 8 big trips in the past 10 years – and trust me – budget travel is possible. You can try almost everything a country has to offer – aside from the seriously touristy junk – just by living more like locals – and less like accidental tourists. Just have faith.

Lesson 2: Grocery stores can be your Friends – Seriously – that’s where locals shop, right? And many grocery stores these days cater to locals who have no time to cook at home. Often you can score entire meals that just require a bit of re-heating – but are properly prepared, and come with friendly advice. In a grocery store in Thailand we happened on a clerk with time to spare – and she gleefully gave us a full guided taste tour of all the offerings! When she finished – we stuffed! Best Dinner, ever! Another advantage of grocery stores – price tags! So you know what things cost without having to bargain. That’s a lot easier on a poor language frustrated budget oriented foreigner. Yes you might get a bit better deal at the markets – but the advantage of knowing before you hit the cash that you’ve stayed on budget is a huge plus – particularly the first few days.

Lesson 3: NEVER eat in a restaurant with only tourists as guests. Consider – if all the restaurant is catering to are tourists – what does it say about their repeat clientele? If the locals are there – there must be a reason. My favorite places are filled with happy locals – I fondly remember a breakfast in Puerto Rico where the local police force were enjoying the Puerto Rico version of donuts and coffee. Hot food, quickly served, Delicious.

Lesson 4: Avoid Buffets like the Plague – I’ve never really understood Buffet eating. First off – I have a fairly tiny appetite – so I’ll never eat enough to make it worth the price. Second – who ever saw locals in a buffet? Even here in Montreal – I’m very picky about going to a buffet – and if I do – you can be sure it’s going to be amazing. Third – Hygene issues abound. People put their hands on the food – and then decide not to take it. Yuk. And they cough and sneeze and blow their noses right over what may become my dinner. Yuk again. Ordering from the kitchen doesn’t guarentee that hygene rules will be respected – but at least my food is only exposed to the kitchen staff and servers – and I can hope they have been well trained. Exceptions to this rule – I do like buffet breakfasts – particularly the ones included in my room rate. Why – because I love eating fruit and drinking unlimited cups of coffee!

Lesson 5: Never eat in an empty Restaurant. I mean – why would you want to go where no one else has gone. What does that say about food turn-over? Unless the kitchen is making the food literally to order – an empty restuarant means that the food is sitting, cooling down, increasing in bateria count – waiting for someone to enter. Nope – not for me. I want a restaurant with a good crowd – at least partly locals – and a positive vibe. I’ve traveled with people who feel sorry for the hostess of an empty restaurant – but not my style – and hardly my recommendation.

Lesson 6: Avoid Hostess out on the street trolling for customers. Come on – be serious – why do you think they are out there? Because business is great? I don’t think so. They are out there because business is bad, and they think this will improve matters. But I don’t want to eat where business is bad – nor do you!

Lesson 7: Share the meal. In Europe, at lunch time, restuarants will often have a 3 course special. The Intrepid Traveller and I have discovered that there is enough food in one 3 course lunch to serve us both. Problem – not all restaurants are willing to serve one ‘lunch’ for two people. So – we ask. I’m actually amazed when the host says – “No Problem” – but it happens more often than not. Result – Delicious food and on budget!

Lesson 8: Don’t be afraid to ‘eat in’. A bottle of wine (2 Euros in most of Italy), Sausage, cheese, bread… You are feeding the soul when you eat like this – and it’s easy on both the budget and the feet.

Lesson 9: Walk Out if you must. Oh – this is so hard for us to do. We try not to be trapped in places we can’t afford – but it has happened. And the trick is to realize that you are in the wrong place, appologize and leave. Yes – it’s embarassing – but at least you are being honest. Be sure to look a bit ashamed – I always imagine the other diners are feeling a bit sorry for you.

So – enough advice about feeding the body – although I can’t resist just reminding my loyal readers that the best advice ever is just to be curious – be willing to take chances, and follow the locals. Budget travel doesn’t have to be cheap travel – and you can eat really well if you find the right places!

Signing off – The Soup Lady