Maybe I'm a sucker when it comes to Santa, but I had a great time at Santa's village - the real Santa's place, I might add, just north of Rovaniemi in Lapland. Our Travel Director's tour through China, Mongolia and Russia ended in Helsinki, so we couldn't leave Finland before a quick trip to the north to see the jolly gentleman. The ten hour train journey was lovely and relaxing after our tiring travels. The time actually went too quickly for us. We had our own p...

Just when I thought things couldn't get any better, they did. We arrived in the beautiful city of Helsinki blanketed in fresh white snow gleaming under sunshine. During our orientation tour the light kept changing as the clouds changed and the sun shone through in different strengths and angles. As the light changed, the landscape seemed to continually make dramatic changes, each moment more breathtakingly beautiful than the last. The climate is cold and icy, bu...

St Petersburg is synonymous with the Russian Ballet, so to have experienced a night at the Mikhailovsky Theatre to see The Nutcracker is something worth bragging about. The dancers in their gorgeous costumes and Tchaikovsky's famous music played inside this beautiful theatre lived up to all my expectations. It was a festive family affair, with many children filling seats and everyone dressed up, glad to shed their winter coats and expose their fine evening wear. ...

Four nights in Moscow is not enough. In such a beautiful city you need much more time, but just to have been here at all I count myself lucky. After three nights on the train we felt utterly spoiled upon booking into the newly renovated Metropol, a beautiful old hotel just off Red Square and opposite the Bolshoi Theatre. We were served champagne in the foyer on arrival and then luxuriated in a long hot shower before dining in their main restaurant. The restaura...

Much excitement abounded as Tuesday evening approached and we boarded the train we have dreamed of for so long. Train #1 on the Trans-Siberian is very modern by Russian standards with its clean, new carriages. The cabins are similar in size to our previous two rides through Mongolia and China, but the toilets are much nicer and, as they are chemical ones, can be used even when the train is stopped at stations. No paper is allowed in the bowl though. It must go in...