Home Sweet Home

Well, dear followers, we are home at last and how sweet it is. A hug from Mary Ellen, a nuzzle from Adam our cat and all is well with the world. Long trip home and very tiring but managed to not crash till 9 last night but was up by 5 this moring and hungry. A good sign after having survived food poising in St. Petersburg on my last night and a major heat wave in Moscow that saw Ange and Greg being overcome by the heat, being sick to thier stomachs and seeking refuge in an air conditioned hotel their last night. I toughed it out at the Moscow Home Hostel with very little air moving and hoofed it down to a tram to catch the 7 a.m. express train to the airport. We were in the air by 11 and back in Toronto just after 1:00 local time and were greeted by cooler temperatures (by Moscow standards) and a gentle rain.

“This is a serious abnormality. The Russian weather service has never measured such temperatures in Moscow in July,” said Dmitry Kiktyov, Deputy Director of the Hydrometeorological Center of Russia.“According to our calculations, it hasn't even reached its peak yet.”

Found the above on line this morning and it about summs it up. Will do some posts of pictures from the trip today and through the week so stay tuned. I have lots to share from a very wonderful trip. There was so much to see and the people, for the most part, where wonderful.

I will be creating separate blogs for each segment of the trip to better summarize my experiences and impressions for any of you who might be considering travelling to any of these areas in the future. I have a ton of pictures but will be selective to share only the best and most interesting.

Next year is our fortieth wedding anniversary and Mary Ellen and I are looking into details of a Baltic Cruise with friends and relatives for next summer or early fall. This would include as stop in St. Petersburg and a chance to see all that this very beautiful city has to offer. I now have some insight and first hand knowledge so it should be fun. Stay tuned with details.