Russia, Poland and Boltic States Trip in May & June 2018

We joined a Russia, Poland and Boltic States trip organized by Ben and June Ou.  They worked with Europa Holiday Tour Company for this trip.  The trip started on May 23 and ended on June 5 covering Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Russia.  In Russia, the main attractions are St Petersburg, Moscow and the Golden Ring.  Below is the route map provided by Europa Holiday:

The detailed itinerary is as the following:

Wednesday, May 23, 2018 - Travel to Warsaw, Poland

Thursday, May 24, 2018 - Arrive Warsaw and check into hotel

Friday, May 25, 2018 - Warsaw City Tour, then travel to Mikolajki, Poland

Saturday, May 26, 2018 - Visit Trakai Castle, then travel to Vilnius, Lithuania, Vilnius City Tour

Sunday, May 27, 2018 - Visit Hill of Crosses, then to Riga, Latvia, Riga City Tour

Monday, May 28, 2018 - Travel to Tallinn, Estonia, Tallinn City Tour

Tuesday, May 29, 2018 - Tallinn City Tour, then travel to St Petersburg, Russia

Wednesday, May 30, 2018 - Visit Petershof Palace, Katherine Palace and Neva River Cruise

Thursday, May 31, 2018 - St Petersburg City Tour

Friday, June 1, 2018 - Train ride to Moscow, Russia, Moscow City tour

Saturday, June 2, 2018 - Moscow City Tour

Sunday, June 3, 2018 - Visit Russia's Golden Ring (Vladimir and Suzdal)

Monday, June 4, 2018 - Visit Segiyev Posad (Zagorosk), then back to Moscow

Tuesday, June 5, 2018 - Travel back to the US

Ben and June did a wonderful job on coordinating with Europa Holiday Tour Company to request Johnny Tan (who led our Spain and Portugal Tour in 2016) to be our tour manager.  Eruopa Holiday also recruited couples from California and New York to form this group of 21 members.  The accommodation (lodging and meals) were just superb. We all had a wonderful time in this entire trip.  Thanks to Ben and June.

BTW, Ben already shared his wonderful photos with everyone, and I have to borrow many of his photos for this blog.  Thanks, Ben for sharing!

Wednesday, May 23, 2018 - Travel to Warsaw, Poland

It was a typical travel day on long flights with the struggle between napping and watching movies on the plane.  Air France’s onboard movie selections were limited. BTW, one of the major complain about Air France is the process of seat assignments. With over $1K ticket purchased per person, they don’t even give seat assignments when you purchase the tickets.  It only allows you to select seats 30 hours prior to the flight.  The luggage checkin procedure regarding the weight restriction is another issue for frequent travelers like us.  Overall, I will try to keep away from traveling with Air France in the future.

We arrived at Warsaw airport in the morning of May 24.

Thursday, May 24, 2018 - Arrive Warsaw and check into hotel

When we arrived at Warsaw, it was a very smooth process in regard to meeting our tour guide Johnny.

After check-in to the hotel and a brief rest, most of us followed Johnny to walk around hotel areas to visit the Palace of Culture and Science.  It is Poland's tallest building, with its 44 floors. It is 237M in hight including the antenna on the top of the spire added in 1994. The construction work of this building started on May 1, 1952 and completed on July 21, 1955. It was a gift of Soviet Nations (by Stalin) to the Polish Nation and it was designed by Lev Rudnev with featuring Polish details.  It was purposed to have 120 meters in height. However, ambitions grew and finally a taller building was erected. Apparently it is loved by many but hated by some because of it's Soviet roots and communist heritage. Nevertheless, it is at the center of Warsaw and can be used as a guide of directions when you wondering around Warsaw downtown.  

Back of the Palace of Culture and Science

Front of the Palace of Culture and Science

Warsaw City Sign next to the Palace of Culture and Science

We stayed at the Westin Warsaw and had dinner in the hotel.  

Westin Warsaw

After dinner, there is still plenty of sunlight for us to wondering around.  Some of us visited the nearby Świętokrzyski City Park, and some of us ventured out further to the Saxon Garden State Park with Piłsudski Square next to it. In the Piłsudski Square, there is a Unknown Soldiers’ Grave for the unknown soldiers killed in World War I.  It is guarded by two uniformed guards. We were lucky to be there to see the change of guards. 

Saxon Garden State Park

Unknown Soldiers’ Grave

Friday, May 25, 2018 - Warsaw City Tour, then travel to Mikolajki, Poland

After breakfast in the hotel, we visited the Royal Lazienki Museum first. It is a magnificent garden complex built by King Stanislaw August Poniatowski during the second half of the 18th century. It features the Lazienki Palace which is a neoclassical(新古典主義) palace along with gardens, canals and ponds. There is a Chopin (famous composer) monument which is a great site for photo moment. 

Garden of the Royal Lazienki Museum Complex

Chopin Monument 

Then we visited the Old Town of Warsaw (UNESCO World Heritage Site).  It was destroyed in WWII and rebuilt later, and now it is one of the most prominent tourist attractions in Warsaw. The heart of the area is the Old Town Market Place, rich in restaurants, cafés and shops. Surrounding streets featured medieval architectures such as city walls, the Barbican (a semicircular fortified outpost) and St. John's Cathedral. 

City Wall Entrance

City Wall next to the Barbican

Later we visited the Marie-Curie’s birthplace.  She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person and the only woman to win it twice, and the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different sciences (physics and chemistry). The Curie family legacy of six Nobel Prizes was started with her.

Marie-Curie's Museum

Inside of the Marie-Curie's Museum

With Marie-Curie's Statue

In front of the Marie-Curie's Museum

Then we visited Warsaw Mermaid, St John's Cathedral, and the Holly Cross Church.  Warsaw's Old Town is a charming place with a lot of photo opportunities.  We certainly took advantage of it.

In front of the Warsaw Mermaid

St John's Cathedral

Warsaw's Old Town Square

Warsaw's Old Town Square

Warsaw's Old Town Square

We had lunch at Stolica in the Old Town.  After lunch we had the bus ride to Mikolajki, a popular holiday and water sports destination. We stayed at Hotel Mikolajki which is a conference and spa hotel located on a natural island – Bird Island – in the middle of Lake Mikołajskie.  From each room, there is a wonderful view of the lake and it's beautiful surroundings.  We took the opportunity of taking many photos before and after our dinner at their restaurant.  

Lake Mikołajskie

Lake Mikołajskie

Lake Mikołajskie

View of Lake Mikołajskie from Hotel Balcony

Boat Dock of Lake Mikołajskie

By Lake Mikołajskie

Lake Mikołajskie Night Scene

There were a lot of talk about getting up early for sunrise photos the next morning.  Unfortunately, it rained during the night, and there was no sunrise at all. But we all had a very impressive stay.

Saturday, May 26, 2018 - Visit Trakai Castle, then travel to Vilnius, Lithuania, Vilnius City Tour

In the morning, we had a long bus ride to Trakai, Lithuania.  We arrived Trakai around noon and had lunch at the Bona Pizzeria by the lake with an amazing view of Trakai Castle.  

Trakai Castle and Lake Galvė

 In front of Trakai Castle and Lake Galvė

This is a castle on an island in Lake Galvė. The construction of the stone castle began in the 14th century by Kęstutis, and around 1409 major works were completed by his son Vytautas the Great. Trakai was one of the main centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the castle held great strategic importance. This castle was constructed in 3 phases. The first is in the second half of the 14th century, the castle was constructed on the largest of three lake islands for the expansion and strengthening of the Trakai Peninsula Castle.  During the second phase, two wings were added and on the southern side a 6-story donjon was build.  The donjon had movable gates which separated the palace from the forecastle.  The principle construction material was so-called red Gothic bricks.  The third phase in the 15th century, the walls of the forecastle were strengthened to a thickness of 2.5 meters and raised with additional firing galleries along with three major defensive towers on the corners. Our local tour guide showed us the chapel, the inner yard of the palace, and its wooden stair galleries.  

The Chapel

Front View of the Trakai Castle

Then we traveled to Vilnius of Lithuania. In Vilnius, we visited the Old Town, Gediminas Square, Cathedral and St. Anne’s church.

Gate of Dawn

The Church of St Theresa

Vilnius Old Town Square

Vilnius Cathedral and its Bell Tower

Cathedral Square

We stayed in Radission Blu Lietuva.

Sunday, May 27, 2018 - Visit Hill of Crosses, then to Riga, Latvia, Riga City Tour

After breakfast, we traveled to the Hill of Crosses in northern part of Lithuania.  It is a site of pilgrimage.  The precise origin of the practice of leaving crosses on the hill is uncertain. Over generations, not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny sculptures and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but estimates put it at about 55,000 in 1990 and 100,000 in 2006. On September 7, 1993, Pope John Paul II visited the Hill of Crosses, declaring it a place for hope, peace, love and sacrifice. The hill remains under nobody's jurisdiction; therefore people are free to build crosses as they see fit.

Hill of Crosses

Front View of the Hill of Crosses

Then we had lunch at Audruvis Restaurant in Joniškis, Lithuania. There is a straw roof house next to it and it was a nice spot for photos.

Lunch at Audruvis Restaurant

Straw Roof House next to Audruvis Restaurant

After lunch, we traveled to Riga, Latvia.  We had a city tour to walk around Old Town which has been included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1997. Old Town Riga features gorgeous Medieval-era buildings, narrow cobble-stone streets, and many unique sacral structures. We visited Town Hall Square, Riga Cathedral, St. John's Church and St Peter’s Church.  The House of the Blackheads probably is the most photographed building in Riga. It was built in the 14th century and it was the wealthiest and most prestigious place in all of Riga at the time. It was completely destroyed in the Second World War and only rebuilt in 1999, the new building being an exact replica of the original.

House of the Blackheads

St Peter’s Church

St John's Church

Our local tour guide also showed us the Three Brothers which is a trio of historical buildings known by locals. 

Three Brothers

She also showed us the Cat House. The Cat House is known for the two cat sculptures, with arched backs and raised tails, on its roof. It is said that the owner of the house who was refused membership of the Riga Tradesmen’s Guild. He wanted the cats to be placed with their tails turned towards the house of the Great Guild, which is nearby, as he held a grudge against its members. It was later ordered that the cats should be turned so as to face the guild house.

Part of Cat House

She also showed us the Bremen Town Musicians Statue   Legend said if one can touch the chicken on the top, it will bring good luck to him/her.  We tried and it was hard.

Bremen Town Musicians Statue

Then we walked through the Esplanade Park to our hotel Radisson Blu.  On the way, we saw the Nativity Cathedral which is a huge Orthodox Church with shining gold domes. It was a truly remarkable building.  We also saw the Freedom Monument which is the symbol of their independence and freedom from the Soviet occupation. 

Esplanade Park

Freedom Monument

Nativity Cathedral

We had dinner at the hotel.  After dinner, some of us went up to the Skybar on the top floor and had a relaxed time.  We also had wonderful top view of the Nativity Cathedral.

Top View of Nativity Cathedral

Relaxing in Skybar