3-18-07

3-18-07

This is going to be a long blog entry. I’d really rather not have to write it, but it’s obviously been a busy past week. Just know that it’s as painful for you to read it all (If you make it all the way through) as it is for me to write it. My original plan was to call home first and talk to my parents about the trip, so that way after that I would have everything that we did organized in some kind of fashion. But Marina’s on the phone. So now I’m just grappling, trying to figure out where to start. I looked at my pictures for some help, but they start in Stockholm, so I guess I’m on my own. We’ll do this chronologically.

Woke up early Monday morning, showered, finished packing, and ended up being a little late meeting Hillary and Becky at the train station. There was a large group of loud American college students who also looked like they were going to be on the same train as us. Turns out, they were. It also turns out they’re all from Ball State. Apparently the school of Architecture has a special program where students visit 23 countries in like 100 days and study the varying styles of architecture. We found this out because we shared a cabin with a girl on the program, who just happened to be from Yorktown. Small world, I know.

Easily the best part of the train trip was when we crossed the border. I had been joking with Hillary and Becky that I thought crossing the border was going to be like that scene at the end of Roger Rabbit when the wall breaks open and you see into Toon Town. A big cartoon sun, smiling animals singing to us, that kind of thing. Well, I was close. We crossed the border and the clouds parted, the sun came out, and a gigantic rainbow stretched across the horizon, no lie. We just kept looking out the window and laughing, it was so nice to get out of Russia.

Arrived in Helsinki and had an expensive Happy Meal before finding the Viking Line ticket office and purchasing our ferry tickets. We had like two hours to waste, but luckily we found a coffee shop with internet and got drinks and hung out there for a while. Unfortunately for Becky, Helsinki is a city that loves its cobblestone—streets, sidewalks, the whole deal. This was a problem because she had a rolling suitcase and we were all starting to go insane from the noise she was making by the time we got to the ferry terminal.

I should take a moment to describe the weather when we got into Helsinki: Icky. Thought it had been sunny at the border, there was low cloud cover and a dense mist in the air in the city, which made walking incredibly uncomfortable. We were all happy to get inside the terminal and into our cabin aboard the ferry.

“Ferry” is what they call it, but it’s technically a cruise ship that they’ve put on ferry duty. This means there’s a variety of restaurants and the like to keep passengers busy. We opted for the cheapest tickets. We were below the car deck, and partially below the water line. We were in steerage, aka: The first to go.

The cabin was small but comfortable. It was depressing, however, that they put curtains on the wall with only a blank white wall behind them. We kept them shut. (On the way back to Helsinki, however, there was a poster of a coastline behind the curtains, so we kept them open.) The sea wasn’t frozen, of course, but there were big chunks of ice floating in it, which we watched for a while from one of the upper decks, and then felt by leaning up against the wall by Hillary’s bed. I’m telling you, we were way down there.

Food was overpriced but we were hungry, so we ate. The ship is lined with slot machines, so after dinner I decided to rid myself of some Euro change. Before extinguishing my meager change, I won 40 Euro. It was all in change, of course, so everyone around me noticed as it piled in the collection tray, clanging and ringing like bells. It was awesome. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to duplicate that. Luckily, I was wearing my hoodie, so I had somewhere to pile all my winnings. Throughout the course of the night, I would jingle them, much to Becky and Hillary’s chagrin.

The next morning, we sent Becky to check what the weather was like. She came back with bananas and the news that there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and it was gorgeous. We dressed quickly and went out onto the chilly and windy sun deck. We were working our way through the Stockholm archipelago, and Becky was right, it was gorgeous. It was so refreshing to be out in the sun and breathing clean, fresh air.

We arrived in Stockholm and, after some wandering, found our hostel and checked in. I think the next part of my tale is best told by me, as written at night in my bed at the hostel in the Hello Kitty notebook I got with my Happy Meal in Helsinki. It’s probably illegible to anyone but me.

I am writing this in the darkness of my bed in our hostel in Stockholm. Somehow I managed to get the one bed without a reading lamp. No matter. Perhaps it’s for the better as it disguises my Hello Kitty! Travel diary. So, Stockholm. Freaking amazing. I really don’t think it’s just the transition from cloudy, dirty St. Petersburg in March that makes this city so appealing but that doesn’t hurt.

As the boat arrived in Stockholm yesterday morning, we watched from the sun deck. The coast was like the coast of Maine. Rocky, with lots of islands, and dense pine forests. Gorgeous. Literally, the sun hasn’t stopped shining in Stockholm. Well, I suppose at night, but tonight I made a stunning revelation. I saw stars. STARS! I haven’t seen stars since Repino. At first I could see only one, but then I just kept seeing more. It didn’t compare to a field in Jay County or the shore of Lake Monroe, but it was really special.

Stockholm on the whole is special. The architecture is beautiful, accented by the city’s archipelago nature, such that anywhere on the water provides a Kodak-worthy vista. We keep finding places to just sit and watch the view in front of us and talk. The conversations aren’t deep or soul-searching, they’re of the usual type we’d have in St. Pete, but there we’d be having them inside Chaynaya Loshka. Here we’re having them at City Hall on the water’s edge or sitting on craggy rocks on one of the smaller islands watching cruise ships come in.

And the people—my God. All so friendly. So many of the speak such good English it’s humbling. And, creepily, all of them have American accents. In Russia, I’m used to British English if I get English at all. But my God, so many of these people sound like they’re from the Midwest or something. It’s crazy.

They certainly don’t look like it, though. Everything you’ve heard about the Swedes is true. They’re all gorgeous. Okay, maybe not all. But everyone’s faces are elegant and symmetrical. It’s kind of intimidating. It’s also weird to see so many old people. Well, in Russia there are plenty of pensioners, of course. But old Swedes are living it up. It’s great!

What’s also great—DIVERSITY. Sweden has a large immigrant population and, quite frankly, it’s refreshing. Despite Russia’s vast borders, its population seems monotone. So—what have we been up to besides absorbing the happiness that surrounds Stockholm? Lots of shopping, I bought a hat with ear flaps, but don’t worry, it’s tasteful. Hillary and Becky both bought coats, too.

Morning—Continuing from where I left off. We’ve wandered the city a lot, especially Old Town—Gamla Stan. Its quaint shops and narrow streets are like something out of a Disney movie but without the cheesiness. It was in Old Town that we found the restaurant Taco Bar. Good Lord, I’ve gone too long without Mexican food. So tasty and served with a smile. Can’t get much better. We also visited City Hall (Where the Nobel Prize Ceremony is held) and the Vasa Museum. The Vasa was a 17th century warship that sank in the harbor on its maiden voyage. In the 60s it was raised and a museum built to house it. It’s an impressive sight, but I fear it was too dark for my pictures. We’ll see when I upload them later.

The plan for today consists of the historical museum and IKEA—quite Swedish. Unfortunately, I have seen no mention of the Swedish Chef anywhere. This country should take more pride in one of its most important cultural exports. I did hear “Dancing Queen” in the 7-Eleven yesterday, so at least I’ve had SOME kind of ABBA encounter in this country. They need a statue or something. I think I’m going to recommend that tomorrow, our last day, be spent in the large city park on one of the islands…

And that’s where it ends, quite ominously (Drums in the deep, anyone?). A few comments on things I wrote: Discussing Stockholm’s beauty and how it relates to its physical nature, I really got the feeling that Stockholm was a city IN nature, as opposed to St. Petersburg, which merely has nature in the city. A park here and there, a river, etc. The canals, such a defining characteristic, are manmade. Perhaps because of Peter I’s careful planning of how the city was to begin, it hasn’t organically grown around its environment in the way that a city like Stockholm has, leaving its natural elements exposed and beautiful.

My pictures from the Vasa Museum are quite dark, but you can make them out. The historical museum was interesting but I wanted more from it, the exhibit on the Vikings felt stunted. That said, I do want to check and see if IU offers some kind of Viking history class. IKEA was great, we had some tasty Swedish meatballs.

On our last day we didn’t go to the city park, mainly because we were all just so tired. We didn’t take public transportation a single time in Stockholm (Other than IKEA’s free bus to and from the store), so that meant a lot of walking. Sleeping in a room with 7 other people generally doesn’t make for a good night’s sleep either. So reluctantly, we sailed away from Stockholm Friday night, and from the sundeck we saw a sundog, as if Stockholm was saying goodbye to us.

Didn’t win anything in the slot machines that night, and then the three of us watched downloaded episodes of Grey’s Anatomy on Becky’s computer and got all caught up before falling asleep. Woke up without enough sleep as we were coming into Helsinki. The weather was exactly as we had left it, but this time with snow. We took the tram to the Olympic Stadium, where our hostel was located, but it was slower than I thought and I was running late.

You see, my father has friends who live in Helsinki and I had communicated with them via email and was going to spend some time with them during my time in Helsinki. Denis was to meet me at the hostel at 11, we arrived at the hostel at 10 til. They had lost my reservation so it took some time to check in, and Denis arrived mid-check in, so he had to wait a bit.

Then when all that was sorted out, I went with Denis back to his and Salla’s apartment. We ate and talked about all kinds of things—their two year-old daughter, culture shock, taxes, and technology. Salla made a delicious chicken pie and I filled myself up. I’m sure Becky and Hillary preferred Stockholm, as it was sunny there and warm. But in those few hours in Denis and Salla’s apartment, I was more comfortable and more at home than I had been in a long time—Russia tends to always put me on my guard. It was nice to have a little taste of home half a world away. I was absolutely exhausted from traveling, but I really had a great time.

Denis made sure I got my train ticket and knew how to get from the hostel to the train station before dropping me off back at the hostel. Becky, Hillary, and I went out for dinner and then watched the most recent Grey’s Anatomy and went to bed early. Unfortunately, not everyone else in our dorm did. I’m not sure what the girl next to me was doing. It sounded like her luggage consisted of plastic bags within plastic bags, and she had to riffle through each one to find something. Needless to say, I didn’t get much sleep before waking up at 5am to get on the train back to St. Petersburg.

The train ride passed without incident. Although, when I got back into St. Petersburg, I had sudden heartburn. I think it was the warm, fuzzy feeling that had carried over from Denis and Salla’s hardening into something sharper and more Russian. It’s tiring to be on your guard all the time, but I’ve gotten used to it. I’m sure I’ll have a great deal of reverse culture shock to deal with when I get back home, but that’s not til May. I suppose that’s actually rather soon, 7 weeks away, in fact. It’s weird how it sounds like so long and so short at the same time. What I do know right now is that I have a grammar test on Tuesday (LAME!) and since I finished both my books (One from the CIEE library, the other from an amazing Science Fiction bookstore in Stockholm), I’ve got nothing else to do.

I guess this entry could’ve been more painful. Let’s hope for an uneventful week so that I can settle back into my routine.