Stockholm - What a Gem!

So much for “wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen”, the medieval charm of Tallinn, or the extravagance of St. Petersburg, the gem of this cruise for me was Stockholm.  I loved it and would love to come back and spend more time there. 

May 9^th, our cruise ship docked in Nynashamn that is unfortunately about 70km and, depending on the traffic, around a 45 minute drive from the capital city of Sweden.  Cruising into the port, the scenery was very reminiscent of home – small rocky islands with conifer trees.  It really could have been the Gulf Islands!

Upon arrival, there was a bit of a delay in being allowed to leave the ship because they were trying a new system to replace the need for tenders.  Basically, the new system consisted of pontoons supporting a concrete “sea walk”.  We found out later that this walkway was 250m long and 4m wide.  It was the first time it had been used here and was so much more efficient than tenders would have been.  It allowed people to get on and off the ship without waiting for a boat.

Along with my Aussie friends, I had purchased a ticket for the Ho/Ho bus which seemed the easiest way to deal with this port – although there might have been a less expensive option.  Oddly enough, on the 45 minute drive into the capital, the scenery looked very much like the drive up island at home.  There was almost no difference, except perhaps in the style of some of the buildings. 

When we got to Stockholm, we stayed on the Ho/Ho bus for about 6 stops before deciding to get off and explore the city on foot.  My first impressions of the city were very positive.  Of course, having a river running through its centre appealed to me.  Later we found out the entire Ho/Ho route took about 4 hours so we were really glad we got off! 

We walked into the Old Town which was charming.  The best thing about it was that it was a pedestrian zone.  We stopped for coffee before heading on.  There were lots of little independent and unique shops and I took a photo of a police officer using a Segway.  That was different! 

We basically spend the rest of our time in the city perusing the shops along the pedestrian shopping street – both in the Old Town and then on the other side of a bridge to a more modern part.  The pedestrian street also runs between the two sides of the Parliament building.  We saw the Opera, National Museum and many other classic buildings.  Everywhere we looked there were impressive vistas.  Of all the ports of call on this cruise, this was my favourite.  I would like to come back and spend more time here.  Of course, if the weather had been different, the city might have made a different impression on me.  It was just a city that had a good feel to it and I spoke to a lot of other passengers who felt the same way.  It was too bad it was so far from the cruise ship.

We stopped at a little café for a light lunch (it wasn’t cheap – about €17 each – but the quiche was very tasty.  Although the ship’s departure had been delayed by an hour, we were happy to catch an early bus and be back well before departure time.  As it was, the traffic in the city was very busy so it took longer than coming in did.

Later I found out there is a lot more in this city to see including the Noble Museum – and the Abba Museum which, yes, I would have honestly liked to see.  Without a stable and robust WiFi on board, it is difficult to do any research before we arrive in these ports.  While I looked up a lot of information before I left home, I didn't have the time to check out Helsinki and Stockholm.  I would highly recommend getting “all the ducks in a row” before leaving on a cruise.  Otherwise, you are almost “trapped” into using ship excursions when there are often lots of other interesting and probably more economical options!  Of note, that a day or two after we left Stockholm, those us who had bought the Ho/Ho excursion on the ship were refunded $32 USD because Holland America admitted we could have bought the same ticket cheaper on shore!  Point made!

Below are the notes provided by the ship for Nynashamn and Stockholm:

Located in Stockholm County, this small town serves as a gateway for visitors on their way to Stockholm.  The port is bustling in the summer with visitors on their way to the popular island of Gotland or stopping over from a cruise on the Baltic Sea.  Tourists also flock to another island of the Nynashamn archipelago, Oja, which houses an outdoor sculpture exhibition and Sweden’s oldest lighthouse.  Stick around the city center and stroll through quaint shops featuring local goods.  Grab a frothy beverage at Bedaro Bar, play a couple of games at Bowlinghallen, or dine on a delectable meal at Hembygdsgarden right next to the city’s historic center.  Nynashamn offers a wealth of outdoor activities.  Go for a leisurely hike through the countryside, enjoy a relaxing canoe ride, or for the more adventurous, give yoga paddling a try.  Stick around in the city or take a trip out to Stockholm, which is just about an hour away.  Hop on either one of the two trains leaving every hour or hire a taxi for a private ride.  Upon arrival, head to Stockholm Stadshus (City Hall) and see where the Nobel Banquet is held every year.  From the tower, enjoy a panoramic view of the city below.  Next, make your way to Stockholm’s oldest attraction, Gamla Stan.  Here you’ll find one of the best preserved medieval city centers in the world.  Wander along cobblestone roads and peruse shops selling local trinkets and antiques.  Don’t miss the most visited museum in Scandinavia, the Vasa Museum, featuring sunken warship, the Vasa.

Stockholm was the last port of call on this cruise before the ship returns to Rotterdam.  Although there is a second leg of this cruise which will take some passengers on to Oslo and the Norwegian fjords, I disembarked on the 12^th.  In the meantime, the 2 “at sea” days allowed me to recuperate from what has been a busy itinerary and to get ready for the next chapter of my holiday – a weekend in Rotterdam – before I head to Paris.  No peace for the wicked!  

In hindsight, I wish I had seen more in each of the ports we visited but I am pleased I saw what I did.  One, or even two days, in a port is not sufficient time to see a city and give it proper consideration.  I guess, however, it is better than not seeing it at all.  I know I have missed seeing a lot and, of course, would have loved to get out of the cities and explore more of the countryside around each of the ports we saw. 

Neutral on Helsinki

Following our two-day visit to St. Petersburg, our tour of the Baltic continued with a stop in Helsinki (May 8^th).  Talking with other passengers, the consensus was that we needed one “at sea” day to recover from the exhausting visit to Russia before we took on another port.  Unfortunately, however, the geography isn’t conducive to that happening!

The port was about 3 km from downtown Helsinki and the shuttle bus was €10 return or €7.50 one way.  I was with my new Aussie friends and we chatted with a taxi driver.  For €15 he drove us into town; that seemed the easiest solution.  We were dropped in a main square near a market.  We looked around the market a bit before walking to the Lutheran Church.  It is on a bit of a hill overlooking the sea.  After the opulence of the churches in St. Petersburg, this one was quite stark and unadorned.  It seemed more appropriate to me as a place of worship, not that I am an expert!  Some reading material on the ship said it was the unofficial symbol of Helsinki. The taxi driver had also pointed out the Ferris wheel across the harbour.  One of the "cars" on the wheel is brown and he told us it is actually a sauna!  Really? 

Note the brown "car" which apparently is a sauna

We just walked around for a few hours.  It was nice to have no schedule or plan, although in hindsight, I would have like to do the boat tour around the harbour.  We did see the train station, another square, and an upscale pedestrian street with all the usual upscale shops.  The city seemed to have an easy feel to it and, after Russia, this was a pleasant change.  Walking around, we also saw the “arts and culture” area where there were modern buildings with a theatre, convention centre and museums.  We slowly made our way back to the older part of the town where the cab had dropped us.  We stopped at Kappeli, a well-known and beautiful café in Esplanade Park for a break.  It is a very pretty restaurant in the style of an orangerie.  As we continued on, I took photos of the Uspenski Cathedral which is the largest Orthodox church in Western Europe (with, of course, golden domes) and the city’s Ferris wheel with one car that is a sauna; yes, a sauna!

Next we had a look around the old market hall which has lots of stalls selling mainly local food products but also some souvenirs.  

We then had a discussion about whether we would walk back or take a taxi.  It was a lovely day so we decided to do the latter.  The walk back was mostly along the shoreline and some of it reminded me of walking along Beach Drive near the Oak Bay Marina because of the little islands off the shore and the sailboats moored nearby.  There were also some interesting rock formations with grey-black and pink-orange stone layered together.  It was very striking.  As it turned out, the walk was further than we expected so by the time we got back we had walked over 17,000 steps! 

I am not sure what my expectation was of Helsinki but, like Finland, I am neutral about it.  I don’t think I would return here but, at the same time, I have nothing negative to say about it either.  It was pretty and the people we met were lovely.  Maybe, I was just still tired!  I later heard that a visit to the Rock Church here is a must - missed that one!  I think some of the other shore excursions might have been interesting, like a boat trip around the harbour or a day trip inland.  However, the Holland America excursions often seem over-priced to me so I decided against them.   

For additional information, here are the ship notes for Helsinki:

Located directly across the bay from Tallinn, Estonia, this capital city lies on the southern peninsula near the Gulf of Finland, with its inclusive islands nearby.  Settlement dates back to the mid-16^th century when Swedish King Gustav wished to compete with what is now Tallinn.  Residents who lived in the neighboring towns were ordered to migrate to Helsinki to improve productivity and, in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, Helsinki finally reaped the fruit of its labors.  Industrial, construction, and transit developments grew, as did the influx of immigrants, and the city would eventually go on to host the Olympics in 1952. 

Wander through Senate Square and marvel at the Neoclassical design of Carl Ludvig Engel, who took on the challenge of designing an entirely new city center.

Stop for a bite or beverage at one of the many cafes or restaurants lining the streets.  Visit one of the most popular destinations in the city, the Helsinki Cathedral.  Built in the mid-19^th century, the structure was also designed by Carl Ludvig Engel and features four small domes surrounding a large green one.  Wander the Seurasaari Open-Air Museum, or peruse picturesque architecture alongside an old wooden church.

Is There Such a Thing as Too Much Gold?

Our second day in St. Petersburg (May 7^th) began with a canal ride.  This seemed fitting given that the city’s nickname is “The Venice of the North”.  We started in the Neva River going past the Hermitage, the Admiralty and the Peter and Paul Fortress which we had seen the previous day.  With most the buildings lining the waterways being former palaces, it is no wonder it is reminiscent of the Grand Canal in that Italian city.  We continued into a smaller canal and saw the Summer Garden and buildings of the Winter Palace along with more smaller palaces.  It was all very grand!

 

The Winter Palace

The Fortress

The Winter Garden

After the canal tour, we were taken on a short tour of the city including a stop at a large souvenir store for shopping.  I bought a book on Russian fairy tales.  We also drove along Nevsky Prospekt (which means avenue in Russian), the city’s famous main shopping street.  Of course, there were the standard high-end stores like Max Mara and Prada. 

After that, we headed out of the city into the countryside.  The scenery seemed to be mostly row after row of Communist-style apartments, some shopping malls, and spare looking forests.  

After about 45 minutes, we reached Peterhof, the summer residence of Peter the Great.  This estate features meticulously maintained gardens and a collection of gold-statued fountains.  The front of the palace was impressive with its Neptune fountain and gardens (which I am sure would be much prettier if spring had been further along).

However, it wasn’t until we walked around to the back (probably actually the front) did the real impact of this site make its massive impact.  With ornate stairs lined with golden statues and amazing fountains leading from the palace down to a canal which flows to the Baltic, visually it was beyond gorgeous.  Gold was sparkling in the sunshine everywhere you looked.  Against the blue sky, the scene made for some pretty amazing photos.  Anyone could be an expert photographer here!  Originally, the canal would have been used as the main approach to the palace.  We continued on walking through the lower garden where there were more fountains as we made our way back to the van.

After a lunch stop, our next visit was to Catherine’s Palace located in a town renamed Pushkin after Russia’s “William Shakespeare”.  This Rococo palace was the summer residence of the Russian Tsars.  The blue and white exteriors were a contrast to the green and white of the Hermitage (the Winter Palace of the family).  

The palace represents the peak of imperial opulence – and there sure seems to be a lot of that around here!  I lost count of the gilded rooms but two that were very impressive were the throne room (not sure that is what it is called) and the Amber Room which is totally walled with amber.  During the war, all the amber was taken from the room and stored – somewhere which is not unknown.  The room was restored afterwards and that cost was about $11 million.  Unfortunately, no photos were allowed in that room but it was very impressive.  We learned about the Romanovs and their family tree dating from the 1700s and also about the damage done to this palace by the Nazis during the siege of Leningrad.  It was amazing how many of the treasures the Russians managed to save but there is an estimate that over 60% were lost.  On retreating, the Germans left bombs in the basement and there was also a fire that destroyed some of it.  Thankfully, the palace has been painstakingly restored over the last 70 plus years to its former glory.

We continued going through numerous other rooms including a study, dining room and bedroom as well as a very impressive staircase.  We gradually made our way downstairs, through a photo gallery and out the back to the gardens.
  

From there, it was a short walk to the van.  The entire group seemed pretty tired – I know I was – and, when given a choice between another photo stop or heading directly back to the ship, the majority opted for the latter  shouting “the ship, the ship”!  Back at the terminal, there were no lines and Passport Control took about 1 minute which made me wonder what all the fuss and delay was about yesterday!

I have seen a lot of palaces and mansions all over Europe but I have never seen anything quite so extravagant and opulent as these buildings in St. Petersburg.  To be frank, I found it almost sickening in its splendor.  Enough already!

As an aside, this private tour (with a company called SPB) was excellent.  The only negative is that was missing from the tour for me was any detail about WWII and the difficult history of this city during that time, other than the brief mention of trying to save the artifacts and treasures.  I will be giving the company a positive rating on Trip Advisor.

Below are the notes from the ship commentary on St. Petersburg:

Located at the tip of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea, St. Petersburg is Russia’s second largest city and serves as a major European cultural hotspot and a bustling port for the area.  Often described as the most “western” Russian city, St. Petersburg offers a gateway for trading along with an industrial focus on oil and gas grade.  With so many sites to see it will be hard to know where to start.  You’ll want to visit the Hermitage, which is the largest art museum in the world.

Founded in the 18^th century by Catherine the Great, the museum holds close to 3 million items, including the largest collection of paintings in the world.  Head to the Griboedova Canal and marvel at the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood.  With its gold draping, intricate architecture, and haunting mosaics, this church has often been called an icon of St. Petersburg.  Prepare for long lines but plenty of photo opportunities abound inside and out.

Wander the historic city center, which was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1991, and peruse collections of Baroque and neoclassical buildings.

Head to the shore of the Neva near Trinity Square and visit the oldest remaining historical building, which was erected for Peter I in 1703.  Make your way to Peterhof Palace and Garden and wander the grounds that were built for Peter the Great.  See more than 80 original statues and sculptures and a two-story building that displays many historical artifacts.