Oceania Marina Visits St. Petersburg, Russia

Posted on December 30, 2014 by M. Timothy O'Keefe

Exploring St. Petersburg, Russia

Probably the main reason we book the Viking Trails cruise is the Oceania Marina three-day visit in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the free tours offered for this port. Linda and I each schedule six Oceania St. Petersburg excursions two months before departure. Normally, the tour packages would cost close to $1,000 for each of us.

Aboard the Marina, we meet frequent Oceania passengers who ignore the ship’s no charge tours in favor of using a local tour agencies like SPB which caters to smaller groups. Among those touring independently are the new friends we made the first day over lunch. Understandably they do not want to be herded around with 40 other Oceania passengers as on previous cruise tours. That may have been a problem elsewhere but in St. Petersburg, our large bus tours aren’t a problem.

On my two prior visits to St. Petersburg, I enjoyed having complete freedom to explore the city on my own at any time of day or night. That’s not an option now due to Russia’s high visa fees for independent U.S. travelers. At the moment a personal visa costs between $200 and $300 a person. Cruise ship passengers, however, do not need visas for stays up to 72 hours as long as they join government-authorized tour operators when they go ashore.

Marine Facade Terminal, St. Petersburg

We arrive in St. Petersburg early enough for a 9 a.m. tour departure. We dock at the mouth of the Neva River beside a cruise terminal with the odd name of Marine Façade. Well, the terminal building is a façade of sorts, filled with lots of empty space that easily could be made to accommodate much greater numbers of passengers. Outside, in front of the cruise terminal, is a huge expanse of barren ground temporarily occupied by a flock of sea gulls. No doubt lots of development is planned for this land, too.

Immigration & Russian Politics

As in the Cold War days, Russia remains security conscious. In St Petersburg, we must not only carry passports ashore but pass through immigration in the terminal each time we leave and reboard the Marina. Returning to Marine Façade, the cheerful morning atmosphere disappears, replaced by a cold official reception. The immigration officers are all business. They never smile, never offer a hint of friendliness. These passport stampers act annoyed at our presence.

Perhaps they are, considering the disdain Russian President Vladimir Putin has for President Obama. St. Petersburg is very Putin friendly. This is his hometown, where he was born, where he graduated from law school and, according to one Russian guide, where he routinely allocates generous projects to benefit his city. Moscow may be the capital but Putin also has an official residence here at Konstantinovsky Palace, also called Putin’s Palace, which is open to visitors.

Russian presidential residence, a.k.a. Putin’s Palace

The Russian immigration staff may appear permanently grouchy but the average Russian in my experience is almost always friendly towards American tourists. As one Muscovite told me during the Cold War after we sled raced down a steep snow-covered hill well outside Moscow, “We are all the same. It’s the leaders who create the differences.”

Some of the ship passengers are troubled by their immigration experience. They voice their concern to our guide. She attempts to defuse the cold St. Petersburg greeting by reassuring everyone.“In St. Petersburg there is a saying that only fools smile for no reason.” She explains the absence of smiles also reflects the St. Petersburg temperament due to the freezing Russian winter here which brings 19 hours of darkness during the day. Her explanation seems to mollify those upset, even though I think she’s just advised them to stop behaving like smiling fools.

This morning we visit my old nemesis, the famous parks and palace of Peterhof built by Tsar Peter I (Peter the Great). Located about 20 miles from St. Petersburg, Peterhof means “Peter’s Court” in Dutch. Peterhof was changed to Petrodvorets (“Peter’s Palace”) in 1944 apparently because Peterhof sounded too German. The Peterhof title returned in 1997 after the Soviet era, although the area around Peterhof is still known as Petrodvorets.

Peterhof’s assembly of palaces and gleaming golden statues, one of Russia’s most recognized landmarks, sustained heavy damage during World War II. By 1947, the grounds and structures were largely repaired and for the 300^th anniversary celebration of St. Petersburg in 2003, everything was restored fully. Which means the gardens and statuary will be more impressive than my last visit, and I was thoroughly impressed then.

My Peterhof Curse

Peterhof, built at the beginning of the 1700s, is most famous for its spectacular series of spewing fountains spread over several acres. No pumps of any type ever powered the fountains. Instead, large reservoirs built at palace level above the statues provide the immense water pressure to power the fountains and the famous statues depicting ancient gods, goddesses, horses and fish. Peterhof’s most important formation is The Grand Cascade, a series of terraces, fountains and statues that stretch downhill from the Grand Palace to the Marine Canal.

Despite two previous visits, I have not a single picture of the palace or the fountains or the statues. Oh, I definitely tried to take photos each time I visited, several years apart. I even used different pairs of Nikon SLR film cameras on each trip; I always carry two cameras in case one fails. A lot of good that did. On both visits, cameras that worked perfectly before and immediately after my Peterhof visit inexplicably stopped working while at Peterhof itself.

The cameras simply would not function there. Naturally I changed camera batteries, did everything I knew how to do to make those damn cameras take a picture. My equipment seemed cursed. Or perhaps it was me. No one with me experienced any camera malfunctions.

I never suffered such complete camera paralysis anywhere else, at home or while photographing on all seven continents. Another similar camera disaster can’t possibly happen again today. I’ve come loaded for Russian bear, carrying three cameras this time. It’s inconceivable every one of them mysteriously will break down again.

Also, the weather is perfect this morning. I take that as a good omen. This time, no camera or anything else possibly can ruin my Peterhof visit Third time is the charm. Has to be.

Oceania Marina Visits Helsinki

Posted on December 26, 2014 by M. Timothy O'Keefe

Classic Architecture And Strange Art

We have a promising day with bright sunshine, blue sky and only a few small clouds when the Oceania Marina enters Helsinki harbor. A Celebrity cruise ship follows in our wake, passing between the small ice age islands forming the harbor entrance.

Helsinki Harbor entrance

From the cruise dock, we take a shuttle bus provided by the Helsinki Tourist Board to Market Square, a major landmark near the city center and by the harbor edge. Stepping off the bus, we’re greeted by the statue of a tall cartoonish pink-colored man peeing into the harbor.

Our first Helsinki landmark! Although prominently displayed, the statue is here only temporarily. The previous summer the statue (or is it a mobile fountain?) known as Bad Bad Boy was featured in a different Finnish city. Not everyone in Helsinki is happy to have the statue here. A member of the Helsinki tourist board is embarrassed to admit the statue locally is known as “The Peeing Man” or something similar. He says it’s temporarily present for an upcoming Helsinki fringe/arts festival.

The statue is decidedly arresting, and its location near several government buildings could also be a political statement. Hmmm…what if this was moved to Washington, D.C., and the Bad Bad Boy’s spray aimed at Congress. Most Americans would love it, based on the opinion polls of the last two years.

The Bad Bad Boy Statue

Classic Helsinki Highlights

Behind the “The Peeing Man “ statue the historic green and gold onion domes of the Uspenski Cathedral rising above a small grove of trees a few blocks away. Uspenski Cathedral is the largest Orthodox Church in Western Europe. Its golden cupolas and deep red brick facade gleam in the sunlight, a popular photo subject for the numerous tourists roaming the cathedral’s grounds. Uspenski cathedral, built between 1862 and 1868 and designed after a 16^th century church near Moscow, is one of many lingering but still popular monuments related to past Russian dominance. (By treaty, Finland was annexed from Sweden to Russia in 1809 as the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland until Finland gained its independence in 1917.)

It’s a short downhill walk from Uspenski Cathedral to Senate Square and the Helsinki Cathedral, two more of Helsinki’s best-known historic landmarks. Helsinki Square is a large open area bordered by the University of Helsinki, Government Palace as well as Helsinki Cathedral, the Square’s main attraction.

Bikes lined up below Helsinki Cathedral

The neoclassical cathedral, also known as Toumiokirkkor and the Church of St. Nicholas, is also designed after another Russian church, this one in St. Petersburg.

Most countries topple the statues of their former rulers once they gain freedom, so it’s surprising the statue of Russian Tsar Alexander II is still a prominent Senate Square landmark and that the statue’s base is richly decorated with flower baskets. Tsar Alexander II obviously earned enduring gratitude from Finns as a result of his reforms that increased Finland’s autonomy from Russia. Once Finland gained its independence, there definitely was talk of removing the statue, yet Alexander II remains, a very popular place for family photos and selfies.

There’s a festive air in Senate Square today, as if everyone is waiting for a marching band or a rock concert to start. Concerts indeed are held here but not today. Time for us to move onto Helsinki’s famous bronze mermaid statue locally known as Havis Amanda.

The Mermaid Trapped in a Box

Where is the celebrated bronze mermaid standing on seaweed as she rises from the water? The statue, Helsinki’s unofficial symbol, is nowhere to be seen in the wide open spaces of Market Square. We learn she has been “disappeared” by city officials for reasons that sound like a bad Saturday Night Live comedy sketch. It seems the Helsinki Art Museum chose an artist to hide the iconic image inside a big black box—the Hotel Manta–which also is considered an inspired work of art. To me, Hotel Manta looks as “inspired” as a cheap prefab plywood box. I don’t get it. Or the idea of removing the mermaid statue from public view by another art object. This is like New York City deciding to hide the Statue of Liberty inside a black skyscraper.

Art hides art as Hotel Manta obscures the famous bronze mermaid

However, it soon becomes apparent the real purpose of Hotel Manta is to be a cash cow for the city. There’s now a 3 euro fee for the privilege of viewing the caged mermaid standing inside a hotel room instead of outside under the sun. Even more money is generated by renting out the hotel room at night for those wanting to sleep with the mermaid inside the fenced off, elevated observatory over Market Square. (The hotel stopped taking reservations following the summer season.)

Ironically, the mermaid’s confinement to a hotel bedroom may have fulfilled the worst fears of some Finns when the mermaid first appeared in Helsinki in 1908. Those objecting to her nudity considered her a “whore.” Made to pimp for tourist money, some might say that’s what she’s become. We like to think the hotel is present to raise money for any needed restoration of the statue so she can return to the outdoors, though we saw no indication the hotel was only a temporary prison.

Taste of Finland

We wander to Market Square’s famous outdoor summer market known for its variety of crafts, souvenirs and food stands. Wonderful looking vegetables and fruits, most far larger than the ones we ever see back home, are displayed in numerous stalls.

The popular summer market in Helsinki

The most striking souvenirs are colorfully dressed dolls and other crafts from Lapland, Finland’s northern most region. Lapland’s inhabitants are known as the Sami, the indigenous people who have maintained their traditional language and culture. They are best known for their distinctive colorful clothing, for raising reindeer, traveling by dog teams and the wintertime Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi on the Arctic Circle.

The Sami make wonderful dishes with reindeer meat. During my several visits to Lapland I developed a strong fondness for the region’s famous stew of reindeer, lingonberries and mashed potatoes. One of the things I hoped when we arrived in Helsinki is we’d find Lapp food so Linda could taste it. At a tented restaurant selling “Lapland Food” she agrees to order the stew. Then she smells the delicious aroma of ground reindeer formed into meatballs. That not only smell scrumptious but has a flavorful spicy taste. When we order, although Linda’s choice may be more flavorful I remain loyal to the reindeer stew . I’ve wanted to taste reindeer stew again for a long time.

This simple meal will be a perfect memory of Finland. Our time in Helsinki ends as jet lag catches up with us big time. It’s like we feel hung over and it’s time to take care of it. We don’t want to feel like this tomorrow in St. Petersburg. It’s back to the Oceania Marina and a long uninterrupted sleep.

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Settling in on Oceania Marina Baltic Cruise

Posted on December 21, 2014 by M. Timothy O'Keefe

As much as we ‘d like to sleep through the first hours of our Oceania Marina Baltic Cruise, the call to the lifeboat drill interrupts our nap. Aftertwards we start to unpack before grabbing something to eat and sacking out again. Finding places to store clothing takes longer than normal since the drawers are not placed near the closet but scattered throughout the stateroom.

The hunt-and-seek for storage may reflect the imaginative design needed to squeeze both a bathtub and shower stall into our 282-square-foot stateroom. The computer desk,located near the veranda is.an unexpected storehouse It has several side shelves and nice deep drawers.

Terrace Cafe Offers Nightly Lobster, Steak, Sushi

The Terrace Café is our choice for dinner. Serving ourselves should be faster than any other dining option including room service. The Terrace Café is surprisingly empty, perhaps because most passengers have gone to sleep, are seated in the main dining room or sampling one of the Marina’s five specialty restaurants.

Cruising through the Stockholm archipelago

With so few people present, we easily find a window table for two. It has a good view of the Marina’s passage through the Stockholm archipelago, a cluster of islands and rocks leading to the Baltic Sea. The larger landfalls, popular summer vacation spots, contain not cottages but sizable homes.

At the buffet, Linda is elated to find fresh sushi and sashimi in the salad bar. I’m more interested in the cafe’s grill that prepares cooked-to-order steaks and lobster tails. Since the Terrace Café serves many of the items on the main dining room, it becomes a favorite dining spot. The café is more relaxing than the main dining room with its harried waiters and sometimes long waits between courses. Besides, in the cafe it’s easy to combine several entrees or quickly replace a disappointing one and not disrupt the pace of anyone else’s meal.

Back in our cabin, a card placed on a bed pillow contains the unwelcome news that we’ll lose an hour of sleep tonight when the ship moves into a new time zone. How much sleep we’re likely to get is debatable. Jet lag is bound to play havoc with us. It was a mistake to take a nap before the boat drill. Better to stay awake until afterwards, order room service and then call it a day without much unpacking. Sleep, wonderful sleep, so taken for granted.

Marina Concierge Lounge Sparse, Disappointing,

Not unexpectedly I awake the next morning at 6 a.m., four hours before we arrive in Helsinki. I decide to check out the concierge lounge before breakfast. The lounge is accessible 24 hours but not staffed until around 8 a.m. The lounge is about the size of two inside cabins. with a desk near the entrance door and a computer for any passenger on the concierge deck to use.

On this trip, that computer isn’t likely to be in much demand considering the free internet in the cabins. Next to the computer is a small stack of Helsinki maps. These same maps are available downstairs when we disembark. At almost all other Baltic ports, the concierge lounge contains better, more detailed city maps than any brought aboard by local tourist boards. Oceania Marina Concierge Lounge

Overall ,the lounge resembles a mini-library with a reading room. Full size copies of today’s major newspaper from the U.S., Canadian and British are displayed on a table beneath a large flat screen TV. Behind the TV is a long counter stocked with chilled juice dispensers, coffee, tea, pastries and cookies.

Although various web sites claim the concierge lounge serves daytime sandwiches and evening canapés, it offers only cookies and pastries during our trip. Unlike the concierge lounges on some other ships, wine and beer are not served in the evening. Unless you want to read a newspaper or consult with the concierge staff about what to see in port. there is little reason to visit. For concierge class, the lounge isn’t much of a perk .

I glance at my watch. Time for Linda to get up and for us to go to breakfast before arriving in Helsinki.

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Oceania Marina Lacks Stockholm Terminal Berth

Posted on December 15, 2014 by M. Timothy O'Keefe

Never a second chance to make a good first impression

Deplaning in Stockholm, we move through immigration and customs amazingly quickly. No serious concerns about terrorism here. At the luggage carousel, we meet an Oceania representative collecting luggage for passengers taking a bus tour of Stockholm before boarding the Marina. We tell him we’d just like to go to the passenger terminal and nap in a chair before the ship is ready for boarding. He assures us the Marina’s terminal not only offers a comfortable seating area but also a café. Sounds perfect. Little did we know that of all the cruise ships in port, Oceania Marina lacks a berth at the Stockholm terminal.

Our 28-mile taxi ride to the terminal may be lengthy but we see mostly highways and only a small bit of Sweden. The small bit of Stockholm we view reminds Linda of Stieg Larsson’s famous Millennium series, a best-selling trilogy starting with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. She imagines heroine Lisbeth Salander walking the streets we pass. Her vision of Lisbeth looks like Noomi Rapace, the Swedish actress who starred in the original movie.

Our taxi driver is an interesting man. An immigrant from Iraq, he says he abandoned Baghdad in 2005 after his two supermarkets were set on fire a second time. He says he has no plans ever to return despite close family still living there. His family reunions aleays take place in a European country..

Arriving at the cruise port, we find the Marina is not at the Vartahamnen 523, the terminal address provided by Oceania. The port section, known as Vartahamnen South, has five quays but they are all dedicated to ferry service. Our driver takes us to the northern port section and soon locates a Holland America ship with a Celebrity vessel docked behind it. The Marina is located opposite them, easily identified at a distance by its white smoke stack with a big “O.”

Oceania Marina’s absent Stockholm berth–why?

Instead of the promised cruise terminal, we discover a curiously long column of Oceania passengers just outside the fence gate leading to our ship. As our taxi draws up, several passengers quickly approach our driver to secure a ride back to the airport. It’s 8:45 a.m., which seems late for so many people still to be disembarking. We pay our fare with a credit card and grab our luggage. Our cab driver greets his new passengers with energy and pleasure. He is surprised to pick up a new fare so quickly.

Still early, the temperature is chilly and the overcast sky has the look and feel of rain. We ask the way to the terminal building. Terminal? There isn’t one for Marina passengers. The only terminal is located at the pier opposite us where Celebrity and Holland America ships are berthed. We are advised to wait outside the fence gate. Fortunately there is a tiny gift shop there with only five plastic chairs and a large wooden deck already occupied by others waiting to board. We sit on the deck edge which feels as hard as the plane seats we had flying over. With hours to wait before we can board the Marina, we pass the time people watching and getting to know our new shipmates.

Disembarking passengers have formed a taxi line of 40 to 50 people..With new people taking the place of those able to depart, the line doesn’t shorten for more than hour. Taxis, slow in coming, depart sporadically with handfuls of people. It’s almost 90 minutes before the last person to catches a ride. I’ve never witnessed such a haphazard disembarkation procedure.

After a sleepless SAS flight, this bed is what we seek most.

Oceania cruise staff have no explanation for the lack of a cruise terminal or the lack of any facilities; nor do they seem to care. Their attitude and the situation don’t reflect well on Oceania’s claim to offer a “luxury experience.” Nor does it match our previous Oceania experiences.. Makes us wonder what to expect once on board. Will it be better or worse? Can’t believe we’re questioning our wisdom about booking Oceania for this cruise. Fortunately the darkening sky still only threatens rain.Around 11 a.m. a large truck arrives with baggage from the airport. Once the truck unloads, we add our luggage to the pile to be taken aboard.

About 20 minutes later, wonderful news! A large canopy is erected at the ship’s gangplank and officials assemble under it so we can begin boarding. As expected, no staterooms are ready yet but we learn that a full lunch buffet lunch is waiting at the Terrace Café on deck 12. Finally stepping inside the ship, Linda and I agree the Marina’s interior is classy but décor is hardly foremost in our minds. Where are the restrooms?

Terrace Cafe best part of the day

At the Terrace Café, the buffet reassures us how good dining on Oceania can be. Although Linda limits herself to soup and a salad, I graze the hot courses. It will be the next day, when I’m more awake, that I discover I can have a fresh, personally prepared Caesar salad at the salad bar for lunch or dinner. Claiming a table near a window, we have a birds-eye view of those still waiting to board. The weather has changed. Anyone standing outside the canopy leading to the ship is standing in a light rain. Strangely, there are no umbrellas being passed out by the crew..

After lunch, we remain at our table to talk with another couple as everyone waits for an announcement that rooms are ready. The couple, from the northeast, was on our SAS flight, also in SAS Premium Plus. We compare note on our experiences. They didn’t sleep much on the flight, either, due to SAS’ hard seats. It is 1 o’clock when the first rooms are ready for occupancy. They are the ones in the top category: the suites. At 1:30 our concierge category is announced. The bulk of the rooms are ready just before 3 p.m.

As planned, our room is just a few decks below the Terrace Café and convenient to elevators. Our stateroom is impressive. Nice and spacious. A laptop computer with unlimited internet is on a small desk for our use. A bottle of champagne chills in an ice bucket. Our bathroom is expansive, offering both a large tub and a sizeable shower stall. Unexpectedly, we find we have a mini-fridge stocked with an assortment of soft drinks (no charge). Also two impressively large bottles of water that will be replaced every day. This is going to be very nice.

Our luggage soon arrives but we leave it unpacked. One more thing to test: the comfort of the bed. It must have been suitable since we instantly fall asleep, only to be jolted awake two hours later by a blaring announcement to prepare for the lifeboat drill.

Abruptly, normal shipboard life begins .

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Married Middle Name Difference Causes Cruise ID Nightmare

Posted on December 12, 2014 by M. Timothy O'Keefe

By Linda O’Keefe

Passing through immigration in Stockholm, I can finally relax. I’ve arrived at our departure port so no more worry about being denied boarding by an airline. My concern? The full name on my passport is different from the full name on both my flight reservations and the Oceania cruise manifest. This inconsistency is my middle name. It’s partly due to the conflicting ID requirements on the state and federal levels, a situation many married women may encounter when they travel internationally.

Passport name vs maiden name

A woman’s U.S. passport is supposed to have her middle birth name. My Florida driver license usses my maiden name for my middle name. That is due to the marriage license requirements in the county where we were married. It requires a woman to use her maiden name for her middle name.

I’ve had to work around this ID contradiction ever since when it comes to overseas travel. Men are lucky. They never deal with this problem since their names usually remain the same for life.

Obviously I should have booked the cruise under my “passport name” as I usually do, not my “Florida name.” For my flights overseas, I wondered if I would be able to use my tickets. The airlines and TSA also woul;d expect my airline tickets to match my passport. Overlooking this mistake until the last-minute is inconceivable. It puts me in a great panic about whether I will be denied boarding in Orlando or Newark going to Europe or on my flights coming back.

Will I ever get out of here, Orlando International Airport?

My first call was to our travel agent. She says she can’t make ticket changes since Oceania issued them. And Oceania probably can’t make a name change at this point but if it did a new ticket likely would come with severe penalties. Worse, she indicates it’s unlikely I’ll be able to board any flights. Her suggestion is that I call the different airlines to report my problem and check the TSA website. But there are no guarantees these steps will get me on an airplane.

This is turning into a horror story. I call TSA and encounter a recorded message with more options than toothpaste brands at a grocery store. Eventually I speak with a real person, a woman who asks my name. Then I hear only computer keys clicking. Her next question: “Where are your flights going to?” I reply “Orlando to La Guardia (incorrect) to Stockholm.” Silence again on the line. Then, “Mrs. O’Keefe, you are flying United to Newark (she caught my error) and then SAS to Stockholm on August 20 and returning British Airways from Amsterdam to Gatwick and BA Gatwick to Orlando on September 4th.” Now it is my turn to be silent. She knows all this better than I do because of just my name? Good to know the government can be on top of something as small as this so quickly.

The TSA call is the smartest thing I could have done. The TSA representative is extremely helpful and informative, assuring me this was not a big deal and that it happens all the time. Her advice is to carry my Florida driver license, my social security card and a copy of my Florida marriage license with my passport to show as much ID as possible.

Will flying to Euope even be possible?

Checking in at Orlando International, a woman at the United counter immediately questions the middle name differences. I’m ready, full of explanations and a fistful of documents. The problem quickly disappears when a supervisor is called: a female supervisor. What luck! She has the same middle name problem and is questioned about it sometimes at OIA—where she works. We’re part of the same sorority!

I receive boarding passes for both Orlando to Newark and for Newark to Stockholm. The tickets are stamped with the notation my documents are checked. Ironically, and happily, my home airport is the only place on our entire trip over where the middle name problem comes up. I could not stop worrying about be turned back until I board the Oceania Marina.

Once on board, I’m given my official ship ID card–which carries no middle name. That’s more than convenient. It means I will have no problem in St. Petersburg where I must pass through Russian immigration and show my passport and ship ID card each time I leave and return to the ship.

In the 13 or 14 years Tim and I have traveled together internationally, this never was a problem. It came up only now because four years ago we were married. Thus, it’s all his fault!

Tim: Linda and I both wrote this post together and I am responsible for much of it. I also wrote the last sentence. I am the guilty party who made the reservations using her driver’s license and not her passport. But she should have noticed my mistake at the time.

Tim & Linda: A learning experience for us both and this silly mistake won’t be repeated. All international bookings will carry Linda’s passport name, her middle birth name. Thanks, State of Florida, for all the confusion.

Travels With Tim O'Keefe

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Monthly Archives: December 2014

Oceania Marina Visits St. Petersburg, Russia

Exploring St. Petersburg, Russia