Back in the USSR - for the first time.

What a manic day. Sleep only arrived at 1am when the taste free zone that was the retro disco subsided & then the rowdy drunks rolled in afterwards. Other than the noise, the cabin was surprisingly comfortable & it was at 7.30 that we surfaced to discover not ocean views but dockside views of presumably St Petersburg. Much earlier than expected & much sunnier. Back for picnic breakfast & a little hurried repacking to hear a garbled announcement indicating that only VIPs would be disembarking at 9 - the Ps would commence at 9.30 hmmm - how would the transfer view that? In fairness I had told the hotel that passport control would take a while & there was no point the transfer being there at 9. How true that would prove. 9.30 came and went & there was no movement nor announcement. Finally at 9.45 we were off but everyone had to funnel into 1 staircase off the boat - that took a while. Then we had to guess which queue was the non-Russian immigration option - the one that wasn't moving & proceded to not move for ages. It was a minor victory just to get in the building. 10.45 came & we were no closer or so it seemed. Once within sight of the passport posts, we thankfully made a correct choice & were through in 90 mins. Transfer located - relief but by now the clouds were rolling in. Not for him though. He had to contend with St Petersburg traffic on an army day. Cars with flags flying around & google telling him all roads are red. Eventually wound up at the hotel over 3 hours after the boat docked. Not good & to top it off the price quoted had almost doubled because he had to wait so long - I said not to wait! Still it was a far less stressful way to get to the hotel & I would have my revenge... Settled in, thankfully having early access to the room. Wanted to take in a game at St Petersburg's stadium - supposedly the most expensive in the world, so sought advice from the receptionist. She suggested we could go through the process online together. Happy days. Both my cards got spat out. Worrying days. She said the alternative was to have them delivered - no extra cost. She'd phone, check & get back to me. She came up later - not happening. She offered to pay on her card & we could repay her. Way to go the extra mile. Concerned by the card issue so first port of call on exploring was a cashpoint. Google showed up 3 nearby. None seemed to exist on inspection. Even more worrying. Decided to wander a little more & hope one turned up. Thankfully a Dutch bank did & the card worked. Cue much relief. Off to the shop - megre pickings but sorted breakie. Back for a chill before a little more exploration - Hermitage & a recommended eaterie. The Hermitage was impressive & ludicrously busy as were the roads - still (car park like) Food, thankfully, proved a little cheaper & English was indicated & understood. Went back via the Church of the saviour of spilt blood - snappy title. Unfortunately the main spire was shrouded in scaffolding & raindrops were beginning to fall - might be giving the fireworks a miss.Read more