The Wandering Pope

Peterhof outside of St. Petersburg Russia

I've always wanted to visit the Scandinavian countries and my husband is a history nut which leads to lots of "discussions" about our next vacation destination. Luckily for us, some friends invited us to join them on cruise that would satisfy both of our interests.

To be clear....I am NOT a cruise person. Being on a boat with several thousand strangers and a guarantee you'll see the same annoying family or couple every where you go isn't my idea of fun. (Not to mention the time I came home with chicken pox after a cruise...at age 35.)

To be fair, I had only been on the mainstream cruise lines (NCL, Princess and Royal Caribbean). This time was completely different in all of the best of ways.

I've included some of the highlights here but fair warning...this is a long post. Our trip was almost two weeks after all! If you just want to see pictures, scroll to the end.

About the Ship

S.S. Marina

We did the Baltic Bliss itinerary on Oceania Cruise Lines ship Marina. The ship holds around 1,200 passengers with a guest to staff ratio of almost 1.5 to 1. The ship never felt crowded and we never had a hard time finding a seat or more importantly...a drink.

Daily canapés onboard

We boarded in Southampton which meant an hour drive once we landed at London's Heathrow airport. Rather than booking through the cruise line, we arranged private transportation for the four of us through Viator. We were met at baggage claim and had no issues getting to the ship on time. We also saved several hundreds of dollars by arranging this ourselves.

The check-in process at Southampton was extremely easy. A porter met us when we pulled up, we provided our stateroom number and he took care of our bags for us. We checked in, got keys to our rooms and headed on board.

We opted for the larger Penthouse Suite category which included a sitting area, balcony, walk in closet and full size bathroom with tub and shower. The money spent on a larger room was well worth saving our marriage and avoiding a potential maritime incident as a result of too much "together" time in a cramped space.

Dessert Burger!

While it is definitely a splurge, there are nearly fifty Penthouse Suites on board. We had a butler and could order room service from any of the restaurants on the ship. Daily canapés, laundry service and preferential reservations were also included. The room had an incredible amount of storage and the bed was as comfortable as anything you would find at a Four Seasons or Ritz.

I never thought I would say this about a cruise ship but the food was insane. Not in terms of the amount of food available (of which there was plenty) but in terms of quality and taste. I did not have a bad meal on board. In addition to the main dining room, there were four specialty restaurants on board (Steakhouse, French, Asian and Italian) as well as a wine dinner at La Reserve which rivaled anything you would find on land.

Italian Martini Nightcap

There were multiple bars on board but our favorite was the Martini Bar. We went to a martini tasting our first day then returned before and after dinner every night thereafter. The alcohol costs for both cocktails and wine were surprisingly reasonable. They try to get you to purchase a drink package when you board but given that we were in port 9 out of our 10 days, we found that we were better off purchasing drinks on an individual basis. And to be clear...the four of us certainly did not limit ourselves to one or two drinks a day!

We never made it to the nightly show (see above re: the Martini bar) but we did manage to make it to the Horizons bar for late night entertainment. This is the only negative thing I have to say about our experience on Oceania. The band and entertainment options were terrible (well...except for the day I won over $200 at bingo). The average age on our ship was probably in their 50's. Instead of playing hits from the 70's and 80's they played music geared towards people IN their 70's and 80's.

Cooking class

In addition to standard amenities like a spa and fitness center, the ship also has a library, art center and culinary center. My husband and I took a class on how to cook seafood and it was as instructive and interactive as anything you would find at Sur la Table. He even enjoyed it!

We booked a couple of tours through Oceania and booked a couple of others on our own. Overall, the tours through the cruise line were good but I much prefer being able to do my own thing rather that have to keep up with a group.

Overall, our experience on Oceania was amazing and we will definitely book another voyage with them.

Our Itinerary

Oslo, Norway

Approach into Oslo

Our first stop was Oslo, Norway. We didn't dock until noon which meant we were really able to enjoy the journey through the fjords on our way to the city which was breathtaking (especially when you live in Dallas).

Sunset on the way out of Norway

We did a tour through the cruise line which took us by bus to the ski jump where the 1952 Olympics were held. This was pretty cool and offered great views of the city. We then boarded a boat for a cruise of the harbor including the Opera House. Along the way we passed a small island with a light house where a wedding was occurring. There was also a sky writer practicing aerial moves overhead which added additional appeal.

We spent the remainder of the day wandering around Oslo. The harbor is lined with shops and bars as well as the Nobel Peace Center. Oslo is a fairly industrial city but is relatively clean and safe.

Copenhagen

We arrived in Copenhagen at 1pm and were bummed that it was raining as this is a beautiful city. We did another tour through the cruise line which included a canal cruise, a stop at a cafe to try "smushi" and a stop at the Royal Palace. We actually left the group tour at the Palace and opted to explore the city on our own. By explore I mean stopping at several cafes to sample local beers and food.

While disappointed by the rain, I loved what I saw of Copenhagen and can't wait to return and explore more!
Berlin, Germany

The official stop in Germany was in Warnemunde in Rostock, Germany. While there are things to do here, most cruise passengers head to Berlin.

Charlottenberg Castle

Because my husband is a history geek, we opted to book a private tour rather than go through Oceania. We chose Red October because of the flexibility of the itinerary.

Our driver met us when we disembarked and we headed out to Berlin. We had our own van and he made a stop at a German convenience store for coffee. It took about two hours for us to reach Berlin where we met our tour guide at the Charlottenberg Castle.

From there she took us on a tour around the city. Our first stop was the German Parliament then we headed to the Brandenburg gate which is next to the US Embassy. The hotel is where Micheal Jackson famously dangled his child over the balcony is also located by the Brandenburg gate. Never thought that would be travel highlight of mine but it strangely was.

Walls. Bad idea then. Bad idea now.

The real highlights were the Holocaust Memorial and the Berlin Wall. The Holocaust Memorial is so simple yet complex in the way it is designed and evokes lots of thoughts and feelings as you explore it. The same can be said for the remnants of the Berlin Wall and the accompanying museum. While there are only small portions of the wall remaining, the route is marked by double cobblestones throughout the city. It's also interesting to see some of the differences between East and West Berlin.

Holocaust Memorial

Our final stop was at Checkpoint Charlie. This was surprisingly commercialized and had a Hollywood feel to it complete with character actors with whom you could take pictures.

After a quick lunch, we headed back to the ship ready to book another trip to Berlin.

Visby, Sweden

When we first saw the itinerary we had never heard of Visby and thought it was a "throwaway" day by the cruise line (similar to the "private island" days you find on Caribbean cruises). We could not have been more wrong.

Visby is on the island of Gotland, Sweden and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We explored the city on our own and loved it. Its a popular vacation destination for Swedes and I can definitely understand why.

The walk from the ship to the town was about fifteen minutes and there signs to direct you to the heart of the city. Visby has a historical wall that surrounds the town center and has some beautiful church ruins. The streets are narrow and wind up and down hills. Shops and restaurants are everywhere and there was a flea market at the town square when we were there.

Helsinki, Finland

Senate Square

Once again we did a tour through the ship but we got a taste of Helsinki as well as the some of the countryside in Finland.

We started off driving through Helsinki with a photo stop at Senate Square. We were there a couple of weeks after President Trump and Vladimir Putin had their historic meeting. As you might imagine the square was full of Trump and Putin souvenirs which detracted from the experience for me. However, the buildings were beautiful and the city is on a harbor where a large flea market was occurring. I wish we would have had more time to walk around.

Boat ride from Porvoo

We then headed to the city of Porvoo which is the second oldest city in Finland. It was cute and had
an old medieval church on the hill which was neat but overall the older part of the city is only comprised of a few square blocks so we are able to fit it all in an hour.

Porvoo sits on the Porvoo river where we boarded a boat and took a river cruise to the Haikko Manor for lunch. The boat trip was the best part of the day and afforded some great views of the houses along the river. We boarded a bus and made our way back to Helsinki where our last stop was at the Temppeliakukio Rock Church. This was actually pretty cool as it built completely into the side of a huge rock and makes for some great acoustics.

I'm glad I can say I went to Helsinki but it is not high on my list to visit again.

St. Petersburg, Russia

Day One:

Hermitage

I honestly wasn't sure how I felt about going to Russia given the political events of the past few years. I'm glad I put my concerns aside as St. Petersburg was amazing. We arrived at 7am and didn't depart until 5pm the following day which meant we really got a chance to experience a lot of the city.

Once again, we opted to take a tour through Red October rather than go through the ship. This was the best money we spent the entire trip. A visa is required for Russia but Red October took care of everything for us. There is a lot of paperwork but they prepared us for having everything in order for our two days in St. Petersburg.

St. Petersburg or next
James Bond movie?

In all of the other ports, we simply scanned our cruise boarding card with the staff prior to exiting the ship and walked into town. In St. Petersburg we had to go through customs. I'll admit this was the first time that I have ever been nervous going through customs anywhere. The customs agents are all business and while they weren't mean they are clearly trained to be serious instead of friendly ambassadors for their city.

Customs took all of five minutes. There were at least seven other ships in port when we arrived but each ship has it's own "customs house" which meant little to no waiting. When you exit customs there are lots of little shops just like any other cruise port.

Our tour guide Julia met us along with our driver Dmitri. She spoke fluent English and was a great fit for us and our admittedly sick senses of humor. Any concerns we had immediately went out the window after spending an hour or so with her.

Our first stop was the Hermitage. We were provided early admission which was key as we walked right in. Later in the day we drove past it and the line was wrapped completely around the building....and it's a really big building.

The art and artifacts at the Hermitage are amazing. The staff does a good job of keeping visitors moving through the exhibits without feeling rushed. It was interesting though that the windows were open with little to no air conditioning or protection for the exhibits.

In Dante Veritas

From the Hermitage we drove through town on our way to Pushkin to visit Catherine's palace. We made a quick stop at the courtyard of the Mikhailovsky Castle where there was the most fascinating sculpture exhibit called In Dante Veritas by Vasily Klyukin.

As drove through town, three things stood out. First, the world cup soccer tournament had recently taken place and the entire city has floral sculptures of soccer balls which was interesting. Second, as you headed out of the historical area of St. Petersburg you begin to see a lot of the Communist buildings. It really is like being in a spy movie as they are big, concrete masses with few windows and drab, grey exteriors. Finally, and most surprising to me was the fact that if you don't pay attention to the Cyrillic wording on signs you could be in any large city anywhere else in Europe.

World Cup Time

As we neared Pushkin, the palace traffic was horrible and you could not get near the place. We realized that it would be wall to wall people so we called an audible and headed to the nearby Grand Palace in Pavlovsk. While we would have loved to have visited Catherine's palace, we got to see so much more in a much less crowded environment. It also had amazing art and the gardens were gorgeous.

We definitely made the right call as it allowed us time to chill out and simply experience the city. We were scheduled to do an evening river cruise and we had time to walk around a few neighborhoods and have drinks at a sidewalk cafe beforehand. I feel that one of the best ways to experience a new city is to simply go someplace local and just sit and enjoy your environment.

Our river cruise was perfect. We had the entire boat to ourselves and the weather was amazing. We went up and down the canals and even had two guys on jet skis race past us which was unexpected. Seeing the city from the water is an absolute must because you don't get a true appreciation for how beautiful and big things are from the land.

Dinner

Afterward, Julia had made reservations for us at a traditional Russian restaurant. While our waiter spoke English, we were the only non-Russians in the place. The menu had lots of things you would expect like Borscht and Goulash but also things that I could eat. While they had wine, vodka was clearly the drink of choice. The vodka list rivaled the wine list at most N.Y. Steakhouses and most people had ordered an entire bottle of vodka for their table as we would traditionally do with wine.

After we left, Julia received a phone call that one of us had left our credit card at the restaurant. Luckily we were able to turn around and head back to retrieve it. It was such a pleasant surprise because I can think of a lot of places where that would sadly not have been the case.

We headed back to the ship around 10:30pm to rest up so we could do it all over again the next day.

Day Two

Peterhof

Day two started with an hour and half drive to Peterhof Palace which is called the "Russian Versailles". Wow. It was beautiful and every stereotype you've see about Russian emperors loving red velvet and gold is supported here. The palace was great but the surrounding gardens are just as amazing.

From Peterhof, we chose to take the hydrofoil back to St. Petersburg as it only takes about thirty minutes. It was very cool to see the different parts of the countryside from the water on the way back.

Church of Spilled Blood

Our next stop was the Church of Spilled Blood which is where Alexander the II was assassinated. The temple has the most amazing mosaic work that I have ever seen. The exterior is just as beautiful as the interior although it was disappointing that there was scaffolding on one side of the church due to some restoration work being conducted.

From there we headed to prison. Luckily for us it was the just the Peter and Paul fortress which is really a museum. It was so interesting because you could visit the old barracks, go to a the cathedral where a lot of czars are interred or you could sunbathe. Yep, the fortress sits on the water and there were a fair number of people in bathing suits working on their tans.

Soccer Stadium

Because of all of the publicity surrounding the world cup stadium, we couldn't end our visit without a quick stop. We weren't able to go inside but that thing is definitely a piece of work. It was in a very pretty area of town with several country clubs nearby and was a nice glimpse into modern Russia.

Overall, St. Petersburg was my favorite stop of the trip. It was fascinating both historically and culturally and really served as a reminder that we shouldn't judge the people in other countries by their leaders just as we hope they don't judge us by ours.

Tallinn, Estonia

Tallinn

Our final port was Tallinn, Estonia. Similar to Visby, we initially thought this might just be a "phone it in" type of a stop. However, we loved this quaint town.

It's the largest town in Estonia and the old town is a preserved medieval city with a wall and everything. The newer city is actually the home to a lot of start up companies and is considered to be the "silicon valley" of Europe.

Where's Herbie?

We did a short tour through the ship in the morning which included a stop at the tunnels which run underneath the upper town. We also made a visit to the orthodox church while services were occurring which was fascinating. On a more quirky note, there was a parade of VW Beetles to celebrate something....we never did quite figure out what but it super fun to see them driving through town.

There is a big square in the lower town that is lined with cafes and performers. It was a great place to enjoy local cuisine and beverages and do some serious people watching on the last day of the cruise.

Stockholm, Sweden

City Hall

We docked in Stockholm at 8am but we weren't done. We knew that Stockholm had some great sights to see so we hired a private driver to take us around until we had to head to the airport for a 5:30pm flight.

Thomas from Stockholm Guiding met us as the dock and off we went. It was great because we could leave our luggage in his bus while we saw the sights.

Streets of Stockholm

We started off with a visit to the Evert Taube statue which provides an amazing view of City Hall across the water. He then took us to an overlook which allowed us to get a birds eye view of the city and on the way back we stopped at the coffee shop where Steig Larsson did much of the writing for his Girl with the Dragon Tattoo book.

From there we visited the City Hall which is where the Nobel Peace banquet is held every year. It was cool to see that because we had seen the Nobel institute in Oslo. We walked through the cobblestones streets then had lunch on the waterfront at a great spot called the Miss Behave bar.

Vasa Ship

Our last stop was at the Vasa Museum. I had initially wanted to go to the Abba museum and was bummed that I was outvoted but this turned out to be really cool. The Vasa was a big warship that was built in the 1600's to much fanfare. When it set sail it didn't even make it a mile before it sank. It was discovered at the bottom of the canal in the 1950's and was surprisingly mostly intact. They raised her, refurbished her and built a museum and it really is very cool.

While we were only there a few hours, our takeaway is that Stockhom is a beautiful city full of beautiful people and we will definitely be back!

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Bike, Bike, Boat

We wanted a non-stop flight back to Dallas and it's not a "connection" if you spend two nights so off to Amsterdam we went.

We stayed at the Kimpton DeWitt which was in a great location near the train station. We didn't get in until that evening so we just had a low key dinner at the hotel restaurant. The food at Wyers was good and worthy of stop even if you don't stay at the Kimpton. We finished with a nightcap at House Bar which had a cool speakeasy vibe to it.

The next day we headed out to wander around a bit before an Anne Frank tour. There was a huge flea market that spread out over multiple city blocks that had some amazing jewelry and musical items in addition to other stuff you see at a flea market. We were supposed to meet by the Anne Frank statue for our tour and in the process learned a very valuable lesson. Dutch can be extremely confusing due to large number of consonants in the words and the similarity of some many words. We also learned the value of reading every detail of a Viator tour before booking it. Bottom line is we'll have to check out Anne Frank next time.

Canal tours

The day turned out to be beautiful so we took a canal tour to see the sites from the water. With extra time since we didn't make the Anne Frank tour we visited the Dutch Holocaust museum which was small but extremely well done. The afternoon was capped off by a visit to the Van Gogh museum for which we had the foresight to purchase "skip the line" tickets in advance and were able to walk right in.

That night we did the obligatory "walk through the Red Light District" along with every other tourist who has no intention of ever doing anything in the Red Light District. As expected, there were lots of scantily clad women in all shapes and sizes in windows for your viewing. What I was not expecting was the complete apathy displayed by them. Most were on their phones or texting and a few were even sitting there eating pizza. I guess there is a fetish for everything.

Amsterdam has more bicycles than people which adds an additional layer of danger as you navigate through town. Overall it's a fun city and I'd go back again.

Summary

This was one of the best trips we have ever taken. We visited so many cool places and met some amazing people. I even changed my mind regarding cruises.

There is a big world out there and I can't wait to see where our next adventure takes us!

Pictures

OSLO