Welcome to Arkhangelsk (Russia)

Our eighth port of call ... new-to-us Arkhangelsk, Russia ... Archangel, in English. A short overnight cruise from Solovetsky Island and up the Northern Dvina River brought us to our destination.

A snafu with the paperwork submitted by the operator of our private tour delayed our disembarkation from Nautica briefly. Apparently, the officials were expecting us to fly into the city, not cruise in! Turns out the travel agency had, in fact, submitted updated paperwork, but the correction had not filtered down to the port authorities.

Once the bureaucratic red tape was resolved, we got off the ship and got in a van to explore the area. The rest of the day went smoothly!

[The “welcome” image I am including with this post was taken later in the day, but I thought it was appropriate here despite the issues with the paperwork. Welcoming visitors with bread and salt is an ancient Russian tradition ... bread for good health ... salt for prosperity.]Read more