Thursday was our last full day. Really, it was our last day at all. We’d all be leaving fairly early on Friday morning, having accomplished nothing more than a quick breakfast and the last of our packing. We met at 9am at the flagpole with our hiking stuff because today we were going to the … More Our Chalet: walking to the woodcarver on Thursday
After our busy day on Tuesday and our late night, Wednesday started in a leisurely fashion. Instead of being summoned to breakfast at 8am by a bell, we had a casual drop-in brunch from 9.30. It had the usual breakfast items of toast and cereal but it also had two baskets of miniature croissants and … More Our Chalet: Lazy Wednesday
Our first full day at Our Chalet is Tuesday. Monday is spent flying to Switzerland, taking two trains along foggy lakesides and a final bus ride into increasingly perfect mountain views. Then we get settled in and introduced to our new home. On Tuesday we’re up early for the Pinning Ceremony, a celebration of international … More Our Chalet: Tuesday up the mountain
The last city on my itinerary was Perm. Why? I can’t remember. One thing I really like about Iceland’s Snæfellsnes peninsula is that it’s a chilled day, away from the worst of the tourists, seeing the scenery and not having to worry about any particular Major Must-See Site. That’s what Perm is like. In Moscow … More Perm: fighter jets & fallen leaves
After Ekaterinburg, I moved on to Perm. I’d opted to travel by train – I can’t remember if I’d looked at planes and discovered it wasn’t possible or if I just thought they were close enough to do it but for whatever reason, I made that decision. I could have bought the ticket online beforehand … More Trans-Siberian Railway 101
This is the first of the Russia blogs I’ve actually written and I’m still in Ekaterinburg right now. In the giant jacuzzi in my own apartment, actually. For context, I have my own 17th floor apartment overlooking the city and it has a huge jacuzzi and I even have my own private sauna in my … More Ekaterinburg: Religion & Romanovs
Murmansk is a little baby city, only 103 years old, built for industry. That means pretty much everything is functional and built cheaply. There are no decorative survivors of the Imperial era hiding up here. Murmansk is a city for work. But if you walk half an hour or so uphill away from the port … More Up by the lake in Murmansk
Moscow and St Petersburg were pretty straightforward. They’re major world cities with good tourist infrastructure, I’d been to both of them before and I was staying in boring but predictable and safe international chain hotels. Murmansk was a little different. The first sign was that about 80% of the passengers on my plane were men. … More Finding options in Murmansk
I’m not a big museums fan. I’m not a high art or culture sort of person. At the risk of sounding like a brat, I’ve been to the Louvre, I’ve been to the Hermitage before. It’s not my thing. But in St Petersburg, I felt like I really should make the effort to go to … More A day at the Hermitage
There are two main churches to visit in St Petersburg, once you’re done with all the other delights like the Peter & Paul Fortress, the Hermitage labyrinth and more palaces than you can imagine, many of them now home to the sort of staples a big city like this needs more in the twenty-first century … More Great churches in St Petersburg
I Am A Polar Bear 