return of the blog

So, being sick for the last 3 weeks has meant that I've had very little of interest to write about. Unless everyone would enjoy reading about me coughing non-stop... but probably not. I've just been sitting around, blowing my nose, trying to organize our apartment (we're nearly done, thank god), and sleeping a lot. For a few days there I actually forgot that I was in Russia.

Fortunately, my film was developed and posted on Shutterfly just in time to remind me. After the cruel embarrasment of getting film developed here, and them doing a mediocre job of scanning it, and it costing a ton of money, I'm back to sending it to Shutterfly, because (warning: shameless plug ahead) they do a great job, I don't have to think about it, and them developing it, scanning it, posting it on the site for you and returning your negatives only costs $3.99, INCLUDING shipping. Can't beat that. Sure, it does take weeks to send it overseas, but it also takes weeks for me to earn enough money to have it done by locals, not to mention work up the vocabulary. So Shutterfly it is.

My point being- a couple days ago I got the exciting message in my inbox that my last 5 rolls of film had shown up. Hooray! Since nothing interesting happened to me recently, I'll take this opportunity to tell you about the stuff I did months ago.

The oldest event of note was our trip to Peterhof. Peterhof was the country home to the tsars and is best known for its incredible gardens. We'll definitely have to make multiple trips to see everything, but we had a good start. It's across the Gulf of Finland from the city, and the best way to get there is by hydrofoil.

Off to the right is the hydrofoil we took, approaching the dock-



It's about a 45 minute trip across the gulf. Not much to see on the way, just some distant apartment buildings, oil rigs, and other boats.

Here's us on the boat-



And a view out the side.



Peterhof can be reached by land, but it takes much longer, and most importantly, you miss out on approaching it by way of the gulf. The walkway from the dock follows a long canal with multiple fountains...



and at the end of the canal is the palace, with more fountains. All the gold can be blinding in bright sunlight.





As if that weren't overwhelming enough, the rest of the grounds are also glorious. In about 3 1/2 hours we did a "quick" run-through of just the lower gardens.

More fountains and plants...



yet more...



and even more.



Yes, even the Gulf of Finland itself seems cleaner and more beautiful here.



I can't imagine the kind of upkeep the place requires, especially back when royalty were staying there. But I'm thrilled that they DO maintain it. Unlike the dacha, it's actually a relaxing escape from the city, complete with fresh air.

We can't wait to go back this fall, when the leaves change... it's sure to be breathtaking.

More photos to come in future blogs!