by Oliver | Nov 17, 2015 | Trans-Siberian Railway, Travel Posts |
Nizhny Novgorod is among the largest cities in Russia. For many decades it was known as Gorky, for the Russian Writer, Maxim Gorky. The Soviet Union deemed it a “Closed City,” meaning no foreigners were allowed to visit. This was due to military research and...
by Oliver | Nov 16, 2015 | Trans-Siberian Railway, Travel Posts |
Today, I departed Moscow toward Nizhniy Novgorod on the first leg of my Trans-Siberian Railway trip. Anxiety did not escape me. The Cyrillic alphabet, compounded by my inability to converse in Russian, does not nurture seamless navigation. My biggest fear is missing...
by Oliver | Nov 8, 2015 | Travel Posts |
A sleepy Helsinki Sunday morning ushered in the holiday of Father’s Day for Finland and my departure from Nordic Area of Europe. I headed further east by high-speed train into Saint Petersburg, Russia! The High Speed Train Hello Cyrillic Alphabet Russian Immigration...
by Oliver | Nov 7, 2015 | Travel Posts |
My impression of what Helsinki was going to be like proved to be wrong. Helsinki was spared much of the destruction World War II had brought the rest of Europe. As a result, I was expecting an older looking city with a winding medieval layout. After a few minutes my...
by Oliver | Nov 4, 2015 | Travel Posts |
Tampere, Finland is about two hours inland from Turku. It’s the largest city in the Nordic region of Europe not along a coast. In the 1820’s, the arrival of the textile industry ushered in the Industrial Revolution for Finland. This has left its mark as the city...
by Oliver | Nov 3, 2015 | Travel Posts |
My journey from Stockholm to Turku was much different than the monarchs and pirates took from previous centuries. My journey was a regularly scheduled ferry service, which takes about 11 hours. Rather than a warship, I boarded a cruise ship, with a bow that opens up...
