Book Club

The Boulder Literary and Wine Society. (Formerly Best Book club Ever - although still currently the best bookclub ever, just not in title.)

Est.: October 2008

Members: roughly 12-15

I have been meaning for some time to devote a blog to the book club. I know all the connotations that a book club brings up; old spinsters, sitting around discussing the merits of literature while quietly discrediting their peers.

Definition: A book discussion club is a group of people who meet to discuss a book or books that they have read and express their opinions, likes, dislikes, etc. It is more often called simply a book club, a term that is also used to describe a book sales club, which can cause confusion. Other frequently used terms to describe a book discussion club include reading group, book group, and book discussion group. Book discussion clubs may meet in private homes, libraries, bookstores, online forums, pubs, and in cafes or restaurants over meals or drinks.

Our book club? I’d like to think it is so much more than the definition, or the knitting circle that one visualizes. Ours is a mix of women, some from work, some from soccer – some just friend’s of friends. We have a few scientists, which always make the discussions interesting, and I believe we are all extremely intelligent and articulate women. Sometimes I laugh to myself and want to yell out “NERD” when the possibility of time travel, or the speed of sound is being adamantly argued. Or when for example we read Stephen King’s “The Shining” and Michelle brought in a wasp nest for us to explore (complete with dead wasps and larvae still in the honeycombed tomb). But really, I think we’re all just closet Nerds who love getting together once a month for book review, excellent food and of course, copious amounts of wine and girl talk.

Our latest book which prompted our book club name change as Homage, was “The Guernsey Literary and Potato peel pie society”. So far this was the best reviewed book that we’ve read. I embarrassingly have to admit that I shed a few tears when I realized I was almost done with it. What?! I missed that these people wouldn’t be a part of my everyday life, and I just loved the voices of the characters, I know we would be friends if we ever met. I highly recommend it to anyone who hasn’t read it yet. Beautiful and simple; it is like a warm cup of tea on a cold evening.

Although our discussions often wane from the subject matter of the book – we do a great job of analyzing and sharing our feelings in a respectful setting, Not that debate isn’t encouraged – as we have many loud and a few more quiet members who both passionately argue their points of view. I won’t even go into the latest argument that involved iphone and website references. Needless to say, we were detoured off point.

The book club is like soup for our souls. Or like sports for women – a boast of self esteem. It’s the perfect pick-me-up on a bad day, or a positive group to discuss the trials and tribulations of men, dating, and relationships. We even add the occasional Movie night when a book we have read is also made into a movie. “The Shining” was a Halloween fear fest; while we all snoozed and laughed at the horrible Wuthering Heights. The most popular one so far was Twilight’s New Moon, last night. I think even if you were team Edward or team Jacob initially, after the movie we were all proud supporters of both leading men. Even our token lesbian member was a fond supporter of Jacob and his abs!

Thanks to everyone in the Book Club. The perfect reason to read, laugh and evolve. I am so proud to know everyone in the Boulder Literary and Wine Society – it’s made me a better person, and is always a good excuse for food, drink and discussion.

Special thanks to co-founder Kate Brandon, with whom the idea of a book club became a reality. And to Hope Serrell whose own alcoholic book club proved the inspiration.

I look forward to many more Books, Movies and drinking.

Thanksgiving

So, Steve and I decided to road trip to California for the Thanksgiving holiday.

I asked Steve along the way if there was anything he wanted for Christmas. He responded "a plane ticket home on Saturday."

I guess not everyone is cut out for road tripping.

October Wedding

Close your eyes for a moment. (wait, now you can’t read this can you?). Okay, never mind. Relax for a moment and imagine if you will, a sound - a musical sound. Ominous at first and then… catchy. Like the Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s island, you wonder why they are there – but then start to enjoy it so much you don’t mind the lapse in plot and eventual demise of our castaway formula. So too this sound will be tasteless at first, but then it will propel you into the past (doollooloo loo – dooloolooloo) the image in front of you becomes wavy and BAM! You are back at the beginning of October.

It’s a cold winter’s day. El Nino (or is it la Nina this year?) – has created a winter snowstorm at the beginning of October. The sky is overcast and heavy – bulging with a heavy cold that weighs it down like a wet blanket on the sky, a slanket that wraps its arms all the way around the mountains and plains. It’s the kind of day you want to stay in bed to enjoy. Today however, is Kirsten’s wedding day. You’re at an age now where the week, the month, the year is broken down not into mile stones (I lost my first tooth, I started school, I turn 16) but rather into events to coordinate a wardrobe or dinner around. Today is such an event. You’ve bought a pretty blue dress and actually (gasp) curled your hair. The wedding is at a little church just on the outskirts of Boulder. The church is old – old enough to have a black furnace in the middle and candles as the only artificial light source. The wood floors creek and the puritan-eque pews moan with each shifting body. The ceremony is lovely (as ceremonies tend to be), and the bride is beautiful (as brides tend to be). And you know that it is more than just love radiating throughout the church – it is the joy of a crowd ready to celebrate – the kind of celebration that can only be consummated with rich food and plentiful alcohol.

And so you tip toe out the church and through the crispy snow in your dangerously high heeled shoes and drive with your friends to the Greenbrier. A restaurant that could be centuries old – that could be resting on the top of a mountain, all wood and rich warmth. It reminds you of being inside a fireplace, or walking through the country bear jamboree. It is nestled on the side of the foothills – but feels secluded and quaint. The Greenbrier also creeks like the pew and the church, but not in respectful silence, but in a creaky chatter, adding to the conversations among guests. Wine and Beer, along with pate and bruchetta are passed around and cheers erupt as Kirsten and James signal the parties’ official commencement with their arrival. The evening flows into scattered images. New York strip steak with blue cheese – a cake that looks like Boston’s Fenway Park – Aunt Kathy, who, a little too inebriated for her own good tries to cut in during the first dance! - The most interesting man in the world “Steve”, with friends laughing around him. Photos, cigars, - Dancing, always Dancing.

And as the evening wears on – and your feet start to ache and the music slows to a stop… you have already begun to reminisce and look forward to the next wedding – and hope it will be as good as this one.

Michelle, AJ, Rachelle and Sarah

Aunt Kathy - we ♥ Aunt Kathy.

Dancing... dancing....

AJ and Kirsten.

The most interesting Man in the World.

Murray the Murano

So, I’ve been stalling the blog updates because our month has been so full of fun and excitement, and I was hoping to update things chronologically. However, due to Kirsten’s wedding photos not being up yet… we’ll skip that big celebration and go to through the rest of our busy month… but one blog post at a time…

First and foremost, we did replace poor Eddie Bauer. He was a good car… a kind car, but he wasn’t as reliable as he should have been and thus we bit the financial bullet and traded him in (once we got him back and before he could go on another jaunt). We sent Eddie to greener pastures and invited a younger, gentler soul to come live with us – introducing MURRAY, a gorgeous crossover with (gasp) Air Conditioning and HEAT!. He’s a navy blue 2006 all wheel drive Nissan Murano. We can’t wait to trek to the mountains to go snowboarding in the luxury of heated seats and amazing traction control!

Murray! Oh Murray you handsome little devil you. We’re so glad you decided to come to our family and live with us. We’ll keep you clean and well gassed. And never you mind about that other car Eddie. Sure, we loved him… and got him back… but we knew that he was on his last leg. He’s now at a car farm somewhere, revving his engine and doing donuts for eternity.

(and yes, we name our cars... ever since I was little. .. anyone remember Jenny? The bullet? Lewie?)

FOUND!

Dear 1995 Eddie Bauer edition green Ford Explorer,

Thank you for coming back to us. I know you must have been scared those two weeks you were gone. What did you do while you sat on the sidewalk in front of the houses on 9th and Mapleton with your windows rolled down; were you cold? Scared? Did you enjoy your little hiatus? You sat there all alone as leaves blew about, and parking tickets accumulated on your cracked windshield. Did you know that you still had half a tank of gas? You could have driven for miles…. And yet, you were only half a mile away from home. Weren’t you worried that someone would take the CDs inside? Or the long board that Steve rides to soccer? I guess you weren’t scared since that didn’t happen. Was it confusing that someone took you, but left you in perfect condition? Oh Eddie – we were so worried about you, and yet you were so close all along! I can’t believe it wasn’t until they were going to tow you away that they realized you were stolen. Well little one – we’ll do our best so that doesn’t happen again. We will lock you tight and love you… (until we trade you in for a newer, safer car). Oh, what was that? Did I mumble something about a trade- in? No…. not you. You sit tight in the driveway and enjoy life, don’t wander away again! We love you little fellah… thanks for coming home.

Steak Cookies, Texas and Thieves

More on the latter later I hope – as the full story no doubt is in development. Granted, of course, that the car eventually turns up. Come here girl – come home!

This past week was an eventful one for us Fezler's. Last Thursday was my monthly book club meeting. My book club is the best book club on the planet, and yes, I believe we rival even Oprah’s book club. It rotates between the houses of the members with the host providing the wine, and the attendee’s providing an array of potluck type items. I’ll blog more on the book club later, as I hope to include some pictures of the group. But, I did want to include a picture of the steak cookies I made for this event (if you read the book it would make sense – The Dog’s of Babel).

On Friday night we flew out to Houston, TX to visit my high school neighbor Colin and his wife Kerri. It was a surprise for Colin, so Kerri picked us up at the airport and drove us to meet Colin and his friends at a local bar. Shawn Gaide (another Indonesian friend) and his new wife Katie also drove in from Austin for the surprise. We walked into the bar and Colin was extremely surprised and confused to see us all there. I’m not sure if it was us walking in, or his slight level of intoxication, but either way it was a joyful reunion for all. The whole weekend was a blast, just catching up and visiting. We got to stay with Colin and Kerri in their adorable Houston home and meet their dogs Josie and Bella. I think Steve’s a little jealous though – as Colin has a whole room separate from the rest of the house called the Man Cave. A huge 52 inch plasma, comfortable couch and giant tobacco huka reside in the sports decorated lounge.

Tuesday morning I went for a run with Delilah at about 10 in the morning. I got home at 10:30am with enough time to check work email, wrap up some details and jump in the shower. I went to the driveway at 11:30 after a shower and noticed that the car didn’t seem to be there any longer. I think I laughed at first and tried to wrack my brain for where I would have misplaced it. Hmmm, no I think it was there – where it always is. After about 3 seconds I decided I better call the police. So, there is a search for a 1995 Ford Explorer now somewhere between Colorado and the Mexican Border (I kid, I kid) – but seriously the car is missing and now I have to pump up my bike tires since that appears to be my main point of transportation. Wish us luck in finding the car!


Sarah and Colin with matching sunglasses (he stole them from Kerri!)















Health, Shawn, Colin and Steve with an afternoon beer.

The Lessons I've learned...

Its not that I’m overly confident – I don’t think. Perhaps its just that I’m not that smart… anymore. I figure, hey, I’ve done it once and survived – how hard can it be? Maybe its just that in the past I’ve been lucky. Or, that I was in relatively good shape, and managed to feel alright. I don’t claim to be fast, or brave, or intelligent – and clearly my latest race effort has justified that. On a whim, or rather as an impetus to get my running back on track I signed up for the Boulder half marathon. These are the things that I learned yesterday…

• BBQ’s, Beer Pong and general shenanigans do NOT make one fast – especially the night before a race.
  
• Sheer Will does not replace training
  
• Reese’s Pieces don’t count as pre-race fuel
  
• 13.1 miles at altitude with rolling hills is not a “fun time”.
  
• If you’re going to run, try to do it at sea level
  
• Short shorts and a hot day = chaffing.
  
• Bloody Mary’s don’t count as daily vegetable servings.
  
• Bratwurts, chips, beer and pizza sticks aren’t really carbo-loading
  
• Taking a break from running for over a month is not tapering.

I ran this race with headphones, since all my friend’s were smarter than me and refused to sign up. The songs ironically called out my impetuousness “Hurt so good” among many others. Although the race was painful, I would say I learned some valuable lessons and my running is back on track – if, for no other reason, than to avoid the pain of having been severely under trained. I guess this was a lesson I had to learn the hard way.

Day 17 – Going Home 8/25

Amsterdam, to Philadelphia to Denver.

Noooooooooo! Tears streaming down our faces!

Okay, Not really – but the end of our trip has finally come. Slowly, thoughts of finances, work, obligations, cleaning, cooking – these all flood back to our head.

We woke up at 6am, with enough time to grab a final buffet breakfast and fresh coffee on the pavilion deck of the ship. Then, off on a bus to be deposited at the airport. No one to bring us drinks here – or to say “Mr. Steve, Mrs. Sarah – how was your day?”. No seven course meals waiting for us. Oh boy was this a GREAT TRIP!

So, we are sitting at the airport awaiting our flight to Phili followed by a flight to Denver. Total travel time – over 13 hours.

It will be good to sleep in a bed with the correct number of pillows. Steve’s one complaint was a general lack of large quantities of pillows. And it will be great to hug Delilah and force her against her will to cuddle with us. I hope she didn’t have too much fun at Kirsten and James’s house with their dogs.

All-in-all I would say a successful holiday. We packed about as much into it as any two people could. And got a heck of a lot out of it as well. It was wonderful – 5 stars – 2 thumbs up – and we would recommend the trip to anyone! And now I can say I’ve been to:

Holland
Germany
Denmark
Sweden
Finland
Russia
Estonia

And, enjoyed every moment.

Drawn on the plane ride home....

Day 16 - 8/24 North Sea

Our last full day on board the Celebrity Century. An overcast and choppy day at sea as we travel back to Holland. This is the first day I actually felt a little queasy with the rocking back and forth of the ship through the waves. To make the day even more challenging, I actually talked Steve into going to the Tango class held in the theater. So much fun – and I think we were pretty good by the end (and contrary to what Steve might suggest I did NOT have to beat him up to get him to go – he was a willing participant!). The waves made it extra difficult but all in all, we tangoed like pros. Although, we did take our shoes off to avoid stepping down on each other too hard! After Tango, a quick lunch as I ran off to scarp booking. I didn’t stay, just grabbed the pack (hey, we paid good money for this cruise – reminder to self- take shower cap, shampoo and lotion).

Ryder cup finale was held today. The first putt was a tough one. I fell apart. Steve cemented his lead. Next chip was better. Steve ended up winning the whole thing, while we had a shoot out for second place (Me with about 4 other 50 -70 year old men). .. ended up not winning second. But thank goodness my skilled husband won – he got enough loot for the both of us. Celebrity chap stick, t-shirt, visors, mug, pens , and best of all… A TRAVEL PILLOW! (this win was a bit cosmic, since we’d been considering buying a travel pillow for the long flight home).

Dinner was again amazing – if not a little bitter sweet. We didn’t want to leave! You’d think after 16 days of vacation that we would be ready! Except for missing Delilah we were totally willing to stay on as Cruise staff. Ahh – this really was the best trip that either of us has been on. So much fun, adventure, relaxation and being spoiled. The show was again very good. The string quartet performed beautifully, along with our favorite a-cappella group the Neptunes (Steve had be-friended a few of those guys around the ship.) We said our good byes to all the lovely couples we had met and sadly went back to the room to pack up and sleep before our early morning departure.

Day 15 – Copenhagen 8/23

Yet again, another fantastic day in Scandinavian Europe. We woke up bright and early – heading straight to breakfast in the buffet upstairs. At 8am the ship was cleared for arrival and we set off into the city on foot. It took about 45 minutes at a leisurely pace to make it into the heart of Copenhagen. The maps that we get from the ship are (pardon my French) SHIT (as they hold no major streets and only point us tourists to shopping districts), miraculously though, most of these beautiful cities are laid out intuitively and we headed in the direction we thought we ought to head. Right by the city center was a canal boat tour. As we hadn’t done one yet – and the price was more than reasonable, we decided to see the city from the relaxing vantage point of the canal (jump on- jump off). The boat was an excellent way to relax, get our bearings, and see a good portion of the city. We saw Hans Christian Andersen’s “the little mermaid” or Den Lille Maufrue – as the Danish call her. She has been sitting by the sea since 1913.

A note of interest:
Copenhagen is the largest city in Scandinavia. The Danes are famous for The Little Mermaid, Bacon, Carlsberg beer and Marauding Vikings.

Our aim for the day was to see as much as possible and that included the Tivoli Gardens. But as we walked through the city we happened to walk right by an Ice Bar! Based on the Swedish ice hotel, it is an entire bar built of ice. They even served our drinks in ice. So much fun – and it is so cold in the bar that they give you giant parkas and gloves to wear. Steve even ordered the reindeer appetizer. It was an awesome experience - although I’m not sure I’d want to spend the night in a hotel made of ice.

After the ice bar we worked our way to Tivoli Gardens. Tivoli is a famous amusement park and pleasure garden. It is said that Walt Disney got his inspiration for his theme parks from a visit to this 20 acre wonderland. It was cute, and although incomparable to the Disney franchise of today, you could see that Tivoli having existed for over 160 years would have been quite impressive. Steve and I walked around and had some beer and lunch at the pavilion. We had a delicious Tuborg lager (the beer here is so good!) and split a chicken sandwich in a curry sauce ( I love curry!)

After Tivoli we walked around a little bit and passed by a youth soccer tournament, right in the square! It was so cool. They had 1 on 1, 3 on 3, and 5 on 5 competitions in these little courts. The kids were between about 6 and 15 years old and just about all of them were far more skilled than just about anyone we’ve played soccer with in the states. It was humbling to say the least!

We walked again back towards the port, extremely exhausted from our fun filled adventures. We passed by the little mermaid once again and spent all our money at Tivoli earlier before being able to try one of the red sausages we’d heard about. One day is not nearly enough for Copenhagen, but I think we did a good job trying to get everything in. We’ll be back again, after all Steve is ¼ Danish!




Sarah's fish face at the ice bar.














Steve and Sarah... burrr!














Steve and his drink.



















Tivoli Gardens













At Tivoli.














The Palace (Hamlet!)















The Little Mermaid

Day 14 – At Sea 8/22

Steve and I are just beginning to get a bit sad that the trip is winding down. He won’t even let me say “what a great vacation!” and quickly shushes me. “Sarah, don’t say it – just enjoy that we are still here.” This day however, did start out quite rough as both of us had enjoyed a little too much to drink the night before. We missed the formal brunch and instead ordered in room-service. Steve then went up to play the Ryder’s cup while I took a nap. He also managed to squeeze in a bit of blackjack (imagine that!). Steve got a hole in one today at the Ryder cup and won a celebrity cruise visor. Yeah winnings!

Tonight was the final formal dinner here on board our ship. As the older couple at our table (Peggy and Bob from Texas) were invited to dinner with the captain, it was just James and Helen who ate with us. Excellent service and food as always… lobster & beef wellington. And a grand parade of baked Alaska at the end as we all sang Auld Lang Syne. I was almost in tears! More so because all these wonderful dinners are ending and not the sentimentality of the song. I do enjoy being waited on and not having to cook!

The show tonight was very good. Songs from around the world with lots of singing and dancing. Mom, they even had Irish dancing! There was a Russian couple that did cool cirque de soleil type act using a large cloth from the ceiling and spinning, falling and tangling all together. And a Latin American song from those old Disney cartoons where Donald duck is in south America.

After the show we strolled around a bit, and had to stay up late enough to enjoy the crossing of the ship under Öresund Bridge. This bridge connects Sweden to Denmark. We had to pass at exactly the right time (low tide) because the clearance is so close. We went to the top deck at the front of the ship – and BOY was the clearance close. For a moment I thought we might crash (titanic type scenes played in my head), it was as if you could reach up and touch it as we passed. We survived without incident and it was extremely cool to have passed underneath one of the longest cabled bridges in the world at 7,845 meters.

Steve with Frog- legs... ewwe!

Day 13- Tallinn 8/21

The day started very early (again)! We docked at 7am and by 7:45 Steve and I were out and about the streets of old town Tallinn in Estonia. What a gorgeous day to explore – it was sunny and warm! Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, is one of the oldest cities in the Baltic sea, founded in 1154. It lies on the northern coast of Estonia on the Gulf of Finland and is an important industrial, political and cultural center, as well as a busy seaport.

Its old town has remained remarkably unchanged for the past 600 years, making it one of the most attractive cities in Europe. Because we woke up so early, Steve and I got to see and explore most of the city without many other people and tourists around. We even ate a wonderful breakfast of coffee (the stuff at this one particular shop was powerful) and danishes. By 10am however, it started getting busy. We decided to have a beer in the town square, and ended up meeting with our dinner friends Helen and James who were on the cruise for their honeymoon from Leeds, England. From our view point we could see just about all the main structures. The town hall built in the early 15th century was right across the square. We also saw a number of churches and castles built in the 13th century and several 15th century towers. It was just like being tossed back in time. The whole town was lined with cobblestone streets rising and falling like ocean waves. You had to definitely watch your step while wandering around.

We saw everything in old town as we wandered through shops and windy streets, before heading back to the ship for our late afternoon departure to Denmark. It was so lovely out that we ate a late lunch in the top deck by the pool and then Steve had a quick dip in the cold pool and we both sat in the hot tub for a relaxing soak, enjoying the sun and atmosphere. After that we went back to the room for a power nap. Good thing too – as the evening quickly escalated into far more drinking that either of us had planned! Dinner was again incredible and we went to the show in the theater with amazing Motown vocals from a woman who is popular in the UK. After dinner they had trivia and dancing in one of the bars (although it was Trivia from the 60s and 70s and I think we were a little unfairly matched to the people who were actually alive during those eras!) – then Steve talked me into going to the casino with him for black jack. It was really very fun & Steve has managed to make some good friends with a few other couples that were gabling. We tried to learn how to play craps, but quickly saw our money disappear and decided to stick to Black Jack. We didn’t win… but we didn’t lose too much either, so all in all it was a good end to another perfect day.

Beers in the town square.

Onion dome Church.

Tiny door or optical illusion?

The old church.

Steve on the streets of Tallinn

Day 12- St Petersburg 8/20

This morning began early – 6:30am so that we could eat a quick breakfast and then head out for Day #2 in Russia. Our tour today is a full day focusing on the Hermitage Museum. We boarded our coach and found several of the couples on this excursion had actually done the trip to Moscow yesterday (this excursion was $700/ person where they took a 1 hr flight to Moscow to tour the red square, cathedrals, metro and have a find dinning dinner.) Our tour guide today had overseen the Moscow trip as well, so we rightly assume she was one of the best guides. Today’s tour was much more historical than political (contrary to yesterday's excursion), and we arrived at the Hermitage just before it opened. The Hermitage is in the Winter Palace, one of the most famous structures of Imperial St. Petersburg.

What an incredible palace! Gold gilded marble with rooms and rooms of fine art. Hermitage got its name because Catherine the Great stayed in the palace with all her artwork and refused to allow the public to see it. Hermit! Another interesting note is that it has the largest collections of Rembrandts in the world.

It was again another whirl wind tour as we swiftly traveled through room after room of art, antiques, and documents throughout the Hermitage. It was an impressive collection that included Picasso, Van Gough, Da Vinci paintings, Michelangelo, and hundreds of other works from Masters around the world.

Following the Hermitage we drove to the church of our Savior on Spilled Blood. This is the magnificent onion shaped domed chapel with amazing colors and mosaics that is the typical representation of Saint Petersburg. Following that stop, we visited a few shopping areas and picked up some nesting dolls as gifts. Back on the coach for our lunch we went to a beautiful stone restaurant and were fed typical Russian food (including a shot of Vodka and glass of champagne). Steve was in for a treat, as the older coupled next to us weren’t up for their vodka. So he took a few extra shots! Na zdorovje! (cheers) We got a small salad, a potato leek soup, and chicken with rice. The best part though was the entertainment. A beautiful Russian woman in traditional dress singing Russian folk songs with a small band.

Following lunch, we drove to see St. Isaac’s Cathedral. This Cathedral dominates the skyline of St. Petersburg. Seen from far out in the Gulf of Finland, the dome is covered with pure gold. It was built between 1818 and 1858 and is decorated with 14 kinds of minerals and semi-precious stones. It is also home to the only stained glass window in Russian Orthodoxy. It was an impressive sight.

Back and exhausted we ate another amazing dinner (DUCK!) and wine – then set sail for Estonia. What an incredible opportunity to see Russia. Although it wasn't our favorite city on this trip, it was an amazing experience to have.

This woman is appalled at Steve's drinking!

Click on the photo - its not a painting but a mosaic- amazing!

Sarah at the Church of Spilled Blood.



















Steve at Sarah at Lunch in Russia.















At St. Isaac’s Cathedral.

Day 11- St Petersburg 8/19

We left Finland behind last night and traveled through the soft white light of the Baltic sea to Russia. Steve and I had a late night, the blackjack tables were hot last night and Steve won over $100. Woo hoo! Our excursion didn’t leave until 1pm, so we were able to sleep in a bit and get brunch before going down to the pier towards Russian Immigration. Entering Russia for the day was much like going through immigration at the airport. They stamped our passports and scrutinized us, though it was obvious we were here with the cruise ship tour. We then boarded a bus and headed off for our tour. We signed up for the Lenin & Russian Revolution tour. We began by driving past the Peter and Paul fortress on our way to the Lenin museum. The Lenin museum is in the current Saint Petersburg government buildings. We were struck by the lack of advertising, pedestrians and general commotion from the city. It did seem like we entered a third world country. The courtyard to the museum was beautiful, but the building smelled musty and dank. It was hot in the Lenin museum, but we were over whelmed by the history they presented and didn’t get restless until the end of the tour after we saw several of the rooms Lenin slept in (boring), and where his work for the revolution started. In general, as St. Petersburg was once Leninburg, its obvious that Lenin is revered by the Russian people and still regarded with “god” like awe.

After the Lenin museum we drove by the battleship Aurora. It was used in several of the revolutions, WWI & WWII. Hopped on board for a quick look around (Also present by the ship was a baby Bear! Kate – did I see more bears in Russia than you did in Alaska?) The bear was eating nuts and leashed with a muzzle… pretty sad actually. From Aurora we drove to the Kshesinskaya Museum. This is Russia’s Revolution museum which used to be a private residence of a woman (Kshesinskaya) who was a very wealthy Ballerina who came to Russia and became the mistress of many famous men including Tsar Nicklaus II… the Museum was very interesting and really helped to explain the revolution, the move to socialism, and the implications of these policies on Russian life and culture.

It was a long day in Russia! We finally got on board the ship with just enough time to change for another fabulous dinner.

Baby Russian Bear - also available right by him were bear-skin hats (Ohhhhh!)

Sarah in front of the Battleship Aurora - this ship sounded the alarm for revolution.

Steve holding up the lifeboat on the Aurora.














Sarah and Steve by the Statue of Peter the Great.














Maritime - a ship by the Aurora.