Baltic farewell

This Odysseys Unlimited tour was certainly too upscale for me, with 5 star hotels and meals in exceptional restaurants. A bit lost on me, being used to cheap motels, not a meat or salmon eater, more of a peasant in my pedestrian tastes. The Saint Petersburg Grand Europe Hotel was literally quite grand. A pianist played during our buffet breakfasts, there was turn down bed service, and our farewell dinner was in the caviar bar.

 

During the siege the hotel served as a hospital, and anyone fortunate enough to work there probably had access to slightly more food, but nowhere near enough calories to sustain health.

Overall the tour was good, based on the comments of the other tour members, but my own experience was shortchanged by initial jetlag from my inability to sleep on planes, and the quick onset of what turned into a bad head cold. I really got tired of the palaces, the crowds, the slow pace, museum back, the not very good alternatives for vegetarians, my hacking cough and congestion. My interactions with the other folks were limited by my being sick for more than half the trip but they were mostly a pleasant and thoroughly middle class privileged crew. 

Even now back in Northampton I'm still not over this cold.  I did see things and had experiences I could not have done as a self-directed tourist, given the language limitations and since the tour guides were so helpful and informative. I have been particularly intrigued with Russia since college history courses, but obviously also from growing up during the Cold War and subsequent events after the fall of the Soviet Union, and more recently from watching the TV spy drama "The Americans": this trip was enlightening. I knew something about how much the people of these countries have suffered, but it was difficult to fully comprehend until actually being here.