08 MAY 2018 TUESDAY COPENHAGEN

Arrived in Copenhagen after a layover in Toronto at 10:30am. Princess met us at the airport and efficiently brought us to the Scandic Copenhagen hotel, conveniently located in the center of the city near the main train station. The hotel was nice but the room looked like it was decorated with cheap IKEA furniture and the twin beds were topped with 2 inch thick mattresses. Noticed a lot of high rise construction and graffiti stained buildings on the trip from the airport.

After a short rest, we met up with Liz and Kevin and adventured into the city in search of food. We departed the nearby tourist center with the Copenhagen card that provided public transportation and admission to 83 attractions for 569 DK. Ann Elise from Princess recommended a food marketplace near Tivoli Gardens where we ate open faced Danish sandwiches of salmon, fried fish, and meatballs.

We strolled through Tivoli Gardens on our way to the Canal Tours. Tivoli is a small but very pretty Victorian themed amusement park. Beautiful spring flowers amid gardens, lakes, fountains, and aerial rides. It is the second oldest theme park in the world established in 1843 and it provided the inspiration for Walt Disney. The Strøget pedestrian walkway and its multitude of shops led us to the next attraction.

The one hour Canal tour was a pleasant way to see a large part of the city from the waterways that lead to the ocean. It also provided an opportunity for a few Zs after the 14 hour flight. The canals ranged from a quarter mile across to only 50 feet in some areas and took us past Amalienborg Palace, the Nyhavn historical part of the city and the iconic Little Mermaid  statue based on the fairytale by Hans Christian Anderson. The tour ended near the entrance to the Christianborg Palace that was once home to Danish Kings and is the seat of the Parliament, Prime Minister, and Supreme Court. The palace tour took us through some not so memorable rooms but interesting nonetheless.

We headed back through Strøget and paused at Irma’s market for some Danish chocolates on the way to the Scandic. Dinner was at a nearby Pho restaurant before heading back to Tivoli to see the famous night lights. Unfortunately, it doesn’t get dark until after 9pm so we didn’t get the full effect of the park at night.

 

09 MAY 2018 WEDNESDAY COPENHAGEN

Had a very nice breakfast at the hotel before jumping on the Metro train system on the way to Helsingør and the Kronborg Castle. Kronborg is famous for being the castle in Shakespeare’s Hamlet and is situated on a beautiful bluff overlooking the ocean near the border of Denmark and Sweden. The moated castle has a very well maintained exterior and a number of rooms and display areas open to the public. The 145 staired canon tower, the underground catacombs, and the grand ballroom with its large beamed ceilings were the most interesting. Lunch was at another nearby street food marketplace.

Next stop was the Louisiana (pronounced Lushana) Museum of Modern Art, a half hour bus ride from the castle. Very interesting museum that had a remarkable display of Picasso ceramics. Unusual that it wasn’t a large structured museum but a connection of different types of small buildings that wandered around a beautiful garden setting. Not being an artsy person, it was more curious than awe inspiring. Another beautiful location along the coast. Hopped back on the Metro and exited at Nørreport Station in search of the Rosenborg Castle. Getting there after closing, we quickly detoured to the Round Tower and another tall spiral climb to the top viewing platform and a panoramic look over the city.

Another mode of public transportation, the S Train subway, took us back to the hotel. Dinner was unexpectedly good at Café Vivaldi near the Radisson that concluded our 18,000 step day.

 

10 MAY 2018 THURSDAY EMBARCATION

Today was a national Danish holiday, Ascension day, celebrating Christ’s ascension to the Mount of Olives. Many stores were closed as I searched for chocolates to spend the last of my DK. Discovered that the Copenhagen Planetarium was right across the street from the Scandic so we made a quick visit just prior to meeting the Princess shuttle to the cruise terminal.

Check in on the Regal was incredibly fast in stark contrast to our experience on the Majestic. The Regal, despite being a sister ship to the Majestic, is very different from the perspective of eateries and especially the Sanctuary that replaces the Hollywood Conservatory at the forward, upper deck of the ship. Spent the afternoon exploring the ship before settling in for dinner and the night production show. The upgraded mini suite, M521, is unnecessarily large for just two people and includes an actual bath tub that I don’t remember ever seeing before. There’s a constant low level vibration when lying in bed that is irritating and causes a sense of anxiety. Mary Grace is our steward for this cruise.

 

11 MAY 2018 FRIDAY OSLO

I was very surprised by the limited Princess excursions in Oslo which were all city museum tours. The Best of Oslo wasn’t the worse tour ever but the other one our guide didn’t show up. The Viking museum displayed three Viking ships that were used for local and exploration voyages. The Fram museum had a large schooner of the same name used by the Norwegian explorers on their arctic voyages. The folk museum was an outdoor exhibit of different types of log cabins used by early Norwegians. Lunch was a feast at the Soria Moria Hotel. The Vigeland Sculpture Park was a little odd featuring a Monolith tower and many sculptures of naked people and children in strange contortionist positions. The bronze Wheel of Life also represented people in different life relationships. The Holmenkollen ski jump hosted the 1952 Winter Olympics and has been re-built many times. Karen and I were the only ones in our tour group to attempt the ride to the top of the jump in the limited time we had at the park. We barely made it by spending less than 30 seconds at the top and catching the same elevator back down. Turned out to be a hot day despite forecasts to the contrary. The city center tour back to the ship was interrupted by short snoozes.

 

12 MAY 2018 SATURDAY

 

13 MAY 2018 SUNDAY WARNEMUNDE

It was unfortunate that morning fog closed the port of Warnemunde and delayed our berthing by 4+ hours. Our Berlin excursion was cancelled and we were left to explore Warnemunde on our own. It was a shorts and t shirt day and all I packed was cold weather gear. Extremely disappointing to lose today’s excursion after losing Moscow to the FIFA games earlier. Warnemunde was a poor substitute as it was just rows of shops along a canal with the highlight being a McDonalds. After a couple of hours in the sun, we headed back to the ship. Thought about visiting nearby Rostock to see what a Hanseatic city looked like but got lazy as the day wore on.

The evening production show, Born To Dance, was a very well done history of broadway choreographers.

 

14 MAY 2018 MONDAY

Pickle ball day. Disappointing dinner at the Crown Grill. Ribeyes fell short on quality.

 

15 MAY 2018 TUESDAY TALINN

Talinn is a beautiful, quaint Estonian city. We spent much of the day strolling through the city and admiring the architecture and cobblestone streets. We peeked in the ornate Russian Orthodox Basilica but weren’t able to take pictures. We viewed Toompea Castle, the Dome Church, and Palace Square. There is a long and short road that connects the upper town to the merchants of the lower town. Spent too much time at the City Theater wandering up and down the many staircases to see the various small theater rooms. Don’t remember much more than a lot of walking and hearing historical facts from our guide Ingrid. Estonia is one of the independent republics that seceded from the USSR in 1991. Prior to that it was ruled by Germany, Denmark, and Sweden. It’s language is most similar to Finnish.

 

16 MAY 2018 WEDNESDAY ST PETERSBURG

We woke up in St Petersburg to a view that resembled a Soviet missile and sinking ship across the harbor. It was actually a controversial tower, the largest in Europe, and office building that threatens the city center’s status as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city center roads are lined by a collection of Baroque style architectural buildings from the early 18th century.

Today’s marathon excursion was spectacular, showing off St Petersburg as one of the world’s great historical cities. An early 6:15 start headed us to Peterhof Palace, created by Peter the Great in 1714 and inspired by Versailles in France. The main Grand Palace was a stunning, long but narrow building punctuated by gilded Russian onion spires at both ends. Unbelievable amount of gold decorated many of the rooms that displayed art from many of Peter the Greats visits and military victories. Outside the back terrace was the Grand Cascade, a beautiful garden bisected by a canal that runs to the ocean. The Samson fountain is the centerpiece of the garden where we witnessed a grand water show. The 150 fountains at the Palace are all powered without the use of pumps but from an elevated reservoir collecting water from nearby springs. We were caught in a thunderstorm as we circled the Lower Gardens.

We returned to the city for lunch at the Biscuit Restaurant and some boisterous entertainment before heading to the Peter and Paul Fortress. The Fortress is associated with the Bolshevik revolution and the main cathedral and bell tower houses the tombs of most of the Russian Tsars. Beautiful ceilings and more gilded displays.

The Yusupov (Moika) Palace is famous for being the location where Grigori Rasputin was assasinated. Guards dressed in Imperial era uniforms lined the stairways. The tremendous art collection here matches that of most museums. Rasputin was an unpopular self proclaimed holy man and healer to Alexander II. He survived poisoning and being shot before finally dying from a third gunshot wound in 1916.

The unusual evening tour started with a stop at the Carriage Museum where the carriage that Alexander II was assassinated in is displayed. Close by is the magnificent Catherine’s Palace where we toured many beautifully decorated rooms, none more spectacular than the Amber room. We enjoyed a symphony by a six piece orchestra in the grand ballroom and followed the costumed royal couple into the courtyard where a marching band greeted us. Dinner was at a dining room at the Palace with the customary vodka, champagne, and wine pre dinner drinks. Dinner started at 9:30 and we were back in our rooms near midnight.

Konstantin the Great was our tour guide extraordinaire who bewildered us with so many facts about everything we saw and was especially adept at keeping us on pace during the hectic day. He was very knowledgeable, spoke great English, and reminded me of a shrewd KGB agent.

 

17 MAY 2018 THURSDAY ST PETERSBURG

Another early start after only a few hours of sleep had us headed to a river cruise before 7am. The river boat took us down the Neva river past the Hermitage, the Peter and Paul fortress, the summer Garden, and the Aurora cruiser from the 1917 revolution. We turned onto the Fontanka river by the Big House KGB Leningrad building. We cruised by Peter the Great’s Summer Palace, Paul I Winter Palace, and the Faberge Museum where you can find five Imperial eggs. We headed back to the Hemitage museum on the Moika River.

The Hemitage is the second largest museum in the world and is as awe inspiring as the Vatican. We admired the Golden Peacock clock in the small Hermitage building and wondered at 6000 year old artifacts in the Treasury room. The Diamond room displayed diamond encrusted miniature figurines. The most significant pieces of art include two DaVinci Madonna paintings, Michelangelo’s Crouching Boy, and Rembrandt’s Return Of The Prodigal Son.

After more vodka at lunch we entered The Church Of The Savior On Spilled Blood, built on the location where Alexander II was killed. The church has gaudy onion spires modeled after St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow. The interior has over 7000 square meters of mosaics and the church was constructed in just ten years.

St Isaac’s Cathedral was our last stop and it may have been the most spectacular. Peter the Great was born on St Isaac feast day. The cathedral has a gold plated dome similar to that of the US Capitol. Spectacular frescos, mosaics, columns, and gold figures cover every inch of the interior. There is a set of huge bronze doors inspired by the Gates Of Paradise doors in Florence. The interior is as amazing as any other European cathedral that we have visited

 

18 MAY 2018 FRIDAY HELSINKI

The entry into the port of Helsinki is dotted with dozens of extremely small flat islands/rocks. Helsinki is not a historical city due to so many fires and wars in its recent history. It is a small city of only 600k people in a country of less than 6M. It declared independence from the Soviet Union in 1917 after the Russian revolution. It previously was ruled by Sweden for over 600 years and Swedish is still an official language. 70% of Finland is forested and contributes to 20% of all exports. Finns claim to be the worlds biggest coffee drinkers and ice cream eaters in the world. Finns also claim that Santa Claus is from Korvatunturi, a fell in Lapland, where he has his secret workshop.

Today was a cold and breezy day in the 60s. An hour and a half drive away is the town of Porvoo (pronounced Porovo). It is a quaint city with an old town with buildings from the 1750s. Near the old town we took a cruise in the Gulf of Finland on Sandra D, a 95 year old scow that has seen better days. We disembarked Sandra D near Haikko Manor where we enjoyed a pleasant lunch with a family from South Carolina. Haikko Manor is a hotel and spa located on expansive grounds next to the Gulf. Porvoo and Haikko were pleasant places to visit but not sure why we needed to spend three hours of driving to see it.

Back in Helsinki we had a half an hour to walk around Senate Square that has a Cathedral, City Hall, and the University surrounding a Statue if Alexander II. The Rock Church was clearly the most interesting thing we saw today. It is a church built into the side of a very large rock where two sides of the church are the actual faces of the rock. The amazing ceiling is 22 kilometers of coiled copper in a circular pattern. A driving tour around the city completed the days events. Today’s tour would tell me that Helsinki is not a very interesting city with very little to make it stand out. Can’t believe we saw so little in 7 hours. Mariana, our guide, curiously carries what looks like a retro 12 year old Nokia phone.

 

19 MAY 2018 SATURDAY STOCKHOLM

The port of Nynashamn entry is more beautiful than Helsinki. Passed many forested islands on the way to the terminal. Rather than docking at a fixed pier, Nynashamn has a 260 meter floating walkway that retracts and extends out to the ship in the harbor eliminating the need for a tender embarkation.

Stockholm is an hour bus ride from the port. The city is actually an archipelago encompassing 14 islands, the largest being Fjäderholmen where we stooped at Fjällgatan road lookout for a pano of the city.

Kungsholmen Island, the second largest, is where we visited Stockholm City hall, which looks more like a museum than an administration building with statues in the courtyard and a park along the Baltic. The first floor Blue Hall hosts the Nobel ceremony yearly where five Nobel prizes are awarded, all except the Peace prize which is awarded in Oslo. The second floor is also a large hall completely covered in gold mosaics of abstract historical figures.

A short drive away we see a statue of King Carl XI in front of the Royal Palace. He ruled the Swedish Empire from 1660-1697. The Royal Silver throne is prominently displayed in main hall. The Palace used to be the residence of the Royal family until 1980. It was also the seat of Parliament and housed both Church and State. The largest residence room is the Charles XI gallery in the King’s side of the residence. It is the most Baroque styled room in the Palace and was used as main dining room for Royal events and The Nobel dinner today. Leaving the Palace, a short walk through Gamla Stan Old Town takes us to the Great Square that is adjacent to the Swedish Academy that selects the Nobel Literature laureate.

On the third largest island, Djurgården, a medieval castle like Nordic Museum stands next to the Vasa Museum. The Vasa was a double canon decked war ship built in 1628 that keeled over and sunk 1300 feet into her maiden voyage. She was the largest, grandest, and most armed ship built by Sweden for the war against Poland by King Gustavus Adolphus. She wasn’t raised until 1963 and is the largest timber ship ever recovered and restored. Passed the Royal Dramatic theater and the ABBA Museum on the way back to the ship. We said goodbye to Tanya in Stockholm who was an excellent guide today.

The Bravo! production show was very good since an operatic theme was much different than normal shows.

 

20 MAY 2018 SUNDAY AT SEA

Another Pickleball adventure. Had lunch at the Ocean Terrace Seafood Bar and their seafood sampler that included sushi, sashimi, crab meat salad, tuna poke, and vodka and tequila oyster shooters. Surprisingly very fresh fish and delicious.

Later in the evening, the ship provided an amazing sight as we crossed under the Great Belt Bridge that spans one mile connecting the Danish islands of Zealand and Funen.

 

REFLECTIONS

This cruise had perfect weather and sea conditions. Never saw any whitecaps the entire cruise and every city was sunny and warm except one St Petersburg day and Helsinki which weren’t bad at all. This was only the second cruise of the season and many guides mentioned that there was lots of ice in the waters just a few weeks ago and marveled how green it was. The five port days in a row was too much, needed a break. We never lounged on the balcony and only used it to take a few pictures. The daily internet plan and messaging on this ship was very nice and made one feel as connected as you are at home. The photo gallery was back to printed pictures. Wish I frequented the very reasonable gelato bar more often. Jeff was a pleasant waiter but not very engaging or efficient as others we have had. Mary Grace, who has relatives in Maui, was a bit reserved but made our room to our schedule, not hers.