We're at the end of our 2 day stay in St. Petersburg, Russia.

After recieving strict instructions about how to get into the country, stay safe, then return... we followed these rules to the tee and had no problems!

Our first tour was a 10 hour marathon city tour. We saw the main sites by bus and on foot. The STUNNING Spilled Blood cathedral, St Peter and Paul fortress and cathedral, St Isaacs (the 4th largest cupula in the world), Catherine the Great's AMAZING palace and grounds, et al. We had really smart, and inviting guides who took us around the city and talked (almost) non-stop about the history, culture, Tsars and city-wonders.

That night, we ended the day with an authentic Russian folk song and dance troupe onboard. It was such a treat!

Today, we did the "Coles Notes" version of the Hermitage/Winter palace. You think we wimped out? Apparently, if you were to spend 1-minute at each piece of art or artifact in the museum, you would be there for 70 years! So, we did it in 4 hours. You're on our side now.

There is alot to take home about our observations and time here. It is very clear that hundreds of years of often tumultuous history has both shaped and instilled the culture for people who live here. Eye opening. Truly. We have tons of stories, ask us any time.

We feel a WORLD away from what is familiar. Home has never felt so far away, but we are loving the experience. However, we did see a Toronto Maple Leaf shirt being worn in the Hermitage today which brought a smile to our faces, a taste of home!

Tomorrow: one of the world's "most liveable cities", Helsinki Finland. We are extremely excited to check out another one of the gems of the Baltic region!

Best to all,

Chris and Jude