2014 - Day 36 (St Petersburg to Oslo via Helsinki)

Starting this blog sitting at Helsinki airport as schedules dictate that we have to sit for 6 hours for our connecting flight to Oslo. Better inside than out though as it is 8 degrees outside and very grey and drizzly.

Left our St P's hotel at 10.00 with car transfer to the airport - only about 3/4 hour on a Sunday morning.

When we had booked into the hotel 3 days ago, the receptionist had said "We will do our best to change your pre-conceptions of Russia!!"  Well, the hotel only partly succeeded, the St Petersburg bus service failed and the Russian passport system completely failed to change any pre-conceptions we may have had! As mentioned when we arrived, the booths at the passport check are frosted glass - de-personalising and quite eerie - lots of people standing in lines in front of opaque glass. This morning's effort was actually quite funny. Went like this:

• lined up in  one of about 12 lines  facing the frosted glass and lights.
• got to within two of the front and it became apparent that the person being checked had a problem
• uniformed officer opened the door and escorted said person away
• we waited while other lines moved
• we kept waiting.
• officer wandered along so asked if we should change lines -   "Nyet, wait!"
• eventually decided to  change lines anyway.
• Officer returned to booth but no action - other people started lining up in anticipation.
• Nothing happened there but our new line moved slowly.
• Roller door on our original booth suddenly rolled shut! People in that line swore!
• Our line got to Elizabeth's turn and stopped.
• We waited - and waited
• Little man in uniform came along and said "computer problem"
• After about another 10 minutes green light showed for Elizabeth to move in.
• At the same time roller door on original booth opened again!
• Just checking our departure took about 3/4 hour!!

Eventually boarded our "fly be" (Finnair) flight over the Bay of Finland to Helsinki where part1 is being written - we get to Oslo at about 8.30 tonight so will update then.

OK - made it to Oslo (now 9.30 local time, 11.30 St Petersburg time) so been a big day. Wait  made longer at Helsinki as local time went back  hour. Had lunch and did some reading so time went OK. Flight to Oslo loaded and took off right on time and we had a lovely flight - due west so the sunset just stayed in front of us all the way. Beautiful clear air as we came into Oslo - 8 degrees.

Express train into Oslo central took half an hour and cost A$65 so per kilometre the most expensive train tip we've ever taken! Very nice train though. Welcome to Norway folks. Got directions to the hotel from a pleasant rail worker at the station so found ourselves here no problem.

Trivia: Although he had the magnificent "Peterhof" constructed at huge expense, Peter the Great preferred to live in a four room bungalow in the palace grounds - which is still there - from where he could better keep an eye on the Gulf of Finland from where he was certain the Swedes would attack!

Cap report: caps are in the suitcase, woollen cap out for the next week at least I think!