St. Petersburg Again

This time St Petersburg, Russia was not my son's experience but my own adventure, though a very brief one. I like to say that I spent a day and a half hopelessly and gloriously lost. Twice young English speaking women came to my rescue. One went many blocks out of her way to take me to the hostel door. The other took me to the subway station, even swiped her own card to make sure I got on the right train. I gave each one a magnet, my way of thanking them, and was surprised at how pleased they were to receive it. At that point, I decided that my magnet project should be less about spreading them around the world and more about giving a gift.

The bus ride from Tallinn through Russia was a memorable experience. Once we crossed into Russia and got into the countryside, that far-north road really went to pot. Literally. We slammed and banged into huge potholes, weaving often to avoid others, not slowing down at all. The first time the driver pulled into the other lane to pass, I just about had a heart attack because a car was coming right at us. Our driver didn't slow down, nor did either of the cars involved. They simply moved over to create a third lane right down the middle. Let me tell you, that really took some getting used to!

Is Russia dark and deprived? Not from what I saw. Would I go back? I certainly would but would prefer a traveling companion familiar with the cyrillic alphabet.

Little girls in pink posing in front of the Hermitage Museum.

Church of the Spilt Blood

St Petersburg street scene

Latvia and Estonia

In each of these countries I left the magnets on hostel refrigerators, one in Tallinn, Estonia and the other in Riga, Latvia. I still hadn't come to the idea of gifting them in a more personal manner. I will comment briefly on each country.

My experience in Latvia is limited to Riga, known to Europe's youthful party goers as a must place to go. I am not one of those. Old town is extensive and beautiful even though much of it seems to have been rebuilt after the bombings of World War II.

The market is next to the bus station, much of it occupying buildings that were once several zeppelin hangars, or so my guidebook said. Its my favorite market in all of Eastern Europe with whole buildings dedicated to meat or cheeses and breads. You wouldn't believe how many varieties of potatoes and mushrooms are available there, not to mention clothing, utensils, handcrafted items, even antiques. I bought nicely decorated mittens and socks from a woman knitting behind her table. We also bought bread and cheese for the bus trip to Tallinn.

Riga from the steeple of St. Peter's

Riga Old Town street scene

I love Estonia. It doesn't have the extensive array of medieval to deco era architecture of Riga, Prague, Budapest and so on, but it has such a good fresh feel to it. I am reminded of the US in the 1950s, a time when it was widely believed that if one lived a good, honest life and worked hard that tomorrow was a brighter day. Since the withdrawal of the Russians, Estonia is free of occupations and proud to be their own country.

In Estonia they are kind to their beggars. One morning I was having coffee and watching the nearby businesses preparing to open for the day. A lady came out of a little restaurant with a plate in her hand, hurried down the cobbled street and presented it to the elderly woman sitting in an archway with her alms cup. The plate contained a big sandwich.

Estonians are really into flowers. There is a sizable flower market near the castle wall and one can see so many people walking around with bouquets. They leave a flower at monuments and other sites they have a feel for.  I think this is an Eastern European tradition.

I feel safe in Estonia, even in Tallinn, its largest city. Walking through old town late, late at night, even passing groups of drunken young men did not set off alarm bells in my head. Nor did walking alone through empty downtown streets at 4am with a backpack, obviously a tourist.

Tallinn flower market at night

 

Lithuania

The plan was that I would join my son after his semester in Russia and we would travel south into Kiev, then onward. Visa problems prevented that so we agreed to meet in Lithuania. This is the point where I began to think it would be fun to see how many countries I could get a magnet in. My project became official.

I flew into Kaunus where I experienced my first Ryanair landing and was startled when the whole plane broke into applause when the plane came to a screeching, shuddering stop. Now Ryanair has adopted a bugle call...gotta give these Brits credit for humor! I stayed overnight and left a magnet there.

In old town I found attractive little ceramic figures, like shaped tiles with characters stamped on them, and went into the shop to buy. The owner explained that they were given as gifts to the guests at weddings. I gave her a tile and told her that people had been giving them as hostess gifts. She gave me a little tiny canvas bag and said, "Now you have some Baltic amber."


What really drew me to Lithuania was the woodcarving tradition. On my agenda was the Hill of Crosses which began as a simple shrine that the communist government tried to remove. First one cross, then a few more added, then it was destroyed but more crosses showed up. Then it was walled off and even more crosses appeared despite severe penalties for those who might get caught. I understand the communits government was even planning to channel the Baltic in order to flood it...but then came Glasnost and control of personal expression was lessened. Whew! Let me tell you, there must be a million crosses on that little rise of ground. They come in every possible style, cover the ground, crawl up trees...it is amazing to behold. No wonder it has become a Mecca of sorts.







The cross I made to plant in memory of my family

My next destination was Devil's Hill on the Curonian Spit, a little sandy strip in the Baltic where Lithuanians go for vacation, or so I was told. Devil's Hill proved to be a very pleasant hike through the woods with whimsical carvings around every bend. These looked like they could have come straight out of Aesop's Fables.

Moscow and Voronezh

The next magnet traveled to Moscow with my son who gave it to his friend, Sonya. This was at the time that Russia was celebrating the turning back of German troops during World War II. I will not try to translate Victory Day as the Russians would say it so will leave it as is. As expected, there was a parade of troops and military equipment as well as fighter jet flyovers.

Victory Day in Moscow

Oh! those onion domes.

After Moscow, Adam went to visit a couple school buddies, Volva and Anya, in Voronezh, further to the south. Voronezh's claim to fame is that Peter the Great created the Russian Navy there. Volva's father was a professor at Voronezh State University, which was the sister University to Tartu University in Tartu, Estonia where Adam first studied abroad. He introduced Adam to the Dean of International Relations who told him he was the only American ever to cross his threshold. There was quite the competition over which family would take in Adam for the night.  He woke up to breakfast, was taken out to the Russian bath houses, had grandiose lunches with the entire family (including cousins), was taken on little excursions and basically treated like royalty.  It must feel like some great honor to have people fighting over who would be his host. Adam gave a magnet to Anya's grandmother who served him tea and little pastries.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Imagine going to school here!

Imagine extreme cold. Imagine daylight that last only a few hours. Why anyone would decide to spend a winter semester in Russia is beyond me, but my son did just that. He had an arranged homestay that gave him a strong Russian mother, a philosophical Russian father and a Russian sister who romantasized everything which drove him crazy, and a very fat Russian cat. 

On one of his adventures, Adam went to the Monument To the Herioc Defenders of Leningrad on the day commemorating that event. In an underground exhibit he listened to a chorus sing old battle hymns, met survivors of the seige and talked to old women showing photos of their husbands lost in that battle. He regrets that he was not better able to understand them.



Monument to those herioc defenders.

Another of his adventures found him at a lake where he talked to some ice fisherman. They invited him to join them, gave him vodka then coffee then vodka then coffee and they had a fine time. Here Adam is showing off the one fish they caught and let him reel in.

The magnet, a ladybug, was left on the refrigerator of his Russian family's apartment.

In The Beginning...Ireland

It all began when my son, Adam, was accepted for an semester overseas. I am a potter of sorts, so he hit me up for gifts to give people as he took the long way around. His first stop was Ireland where he met with a college buddy whose brother was studying in Dublin.

What do college students do in Dublin? They visit the Guinness Brewery where they not only learn how the brew is made but they learn the proper way to pour the perfect pint and are even awarded a certificate of accomplishment. Then they sampled the brewery's products at the glass bar with an incredible view of the city. 

They took a tour of a famous old prison and this was Adam's comment on that: "We went
to an old jail that was famous for being the place where the Irish revolutionaries were executed by the British in the early 1900s.  It was a slightly creepy place and extremely cold.  It was made so that air would be flowing through it at all times and it made it a very very cold place.  I would hate to be crammed into one of those cells with only a thin blanket, a candle, and a Bible. 

Kilmainhan Gaol

A short distance from the prison, the boys ducked into a tavern to get out of a sudden heavy downpour and ordered bowls of  Irish stew to warm them up. A magnet was passed to the proprietor.

What's It All About...

This blog is about a personal project I've been working on for years. My aim is to get a magnet into every country and island on earth. At first I left them on refrigerators in hostels. Then I offered them as thanks for small favors, like helping me find my way in a foreign land or offering a smile when I needed one. i am now shameless in my venture, and very aggressive, I might add. I send them with scientists doing research, aid and government workers, soldiers and people going on cruises. Nobody dare mention travel in my presence! Each person who carries a magnet is requested to tell me about where they left it and take photos. Very few actually do.

In passing these magnets out around the globe, I am constantly surprised at the reaction to receiving such a small gift. Sometimes I hand one to someone I know but often it is a stranger. Often the recipient simply thanks me. Other times I've had both cheeks kissed, been given small gifts in return, and on accassion, the reaction is startlingly enthusiastic.

In this blog I will attempt to track these magnets and offer stories and photos from some of the places they go, the people who take them and those they give them to.