Trip to Russia...

[bobjeffreson]

I always enjoy the pics of the Casey family's trips to new places. In April I was able to cross off my wish list, a destination that has always fascinated me...Russia. We visited St Petersburg, Novgorod and Moscow.
What a buzz it was to stand in Red Square and walk inside the Kremlin. It wasn't that long ago that being a civilian in the Kremlin probably meant you weren't ever seen again.

Me in front of St Basil's Cathedral on Red Square.....this was a cold dull day. When the sun shines on the onion domes it its truly amazing!


Red Square Moscow....BTW... Red means Beautiful...nothing to do with the colour of the bricks...


Inside the Kremlin looking towards the main entrance gate tower. The cobblestone roadway on the right is "off limits" to everyone except "Party Officials"......go figure?? and it's patrolled, so nobody accidentally strays onto forbidden territory! Police with whistles keep you on the straight and narrow!

[Mike Casey]

amazing looking trip there. We would love to go one day too. I hope we have some over seas travel in our near future...

[bentley marshall]

great looking place bob ....must have been cold your hir has frost on it

[K]

Bob: Trip of a lifetime! I miss the place quite a bit (and no I'm not Russian, but I have paid income tax there).

Kevin

[bobjeffreson]

" I hope we have some over seas travel in our near future..."

Mike,
Mate.... get you and your family "down under".....I'll look after you in Sydney! Hey it's not far......
...only a 14 hour non-stop plane flight from LAX..... ...but worth every mile.
How about putting yourself in this picture??

[MRS QSL]

Yes! Yes, yes, YEEEEESSSSSS! One of the places on my "must visit" list is Australia. I'll start packing right this second if you can convince Mr. QSL.

The Russia trip looked amazing. The architecture is incredible! Did you have any trouble with the language (I assume you aren't fluent in Russian)?

Make sure you let us know if you are going to be in California. It would be an honor to meet you in person.

[bobjeffreson]

Mrs QSL,
Russia is truly AMAZING!
St Petersburg is fantastic....it has more waterways than Venice Italy. The Hermitage Museum has more art work in the basement than the Louvre has on display. To view everything in the Hermitage is said to take 8 years!!! I was there 1 day, so that puts it into perspective!
Novgorod is between St Petersburg and Moscow. Been there since the 8 century..... I saw structures that were built in the 10 century....holy smoke ....that's old when one considers that Australia was really only known to the rest of the world since 1770.
Yes the language was difficult....outside of the hotels there was no English or at best, very limited. We travelled by train from Helsinki in Finland to Moscow on Russian trains...no English AT ALL .... but we managed it!
The Moscow Underground Metro was confronting.......everything in Cyrillic... Russian....and no English WHATSOEVER. Cyrillic bears no resemblance to English and there was no translation anywhere. But you have to use it to get around Moscow, because of its sheer size. So we did... carefully...getting on the wrong train only once. The Metro is also a "must do", as many of the stations are works of art in themselves......superb pieces of architecture from the 1930s, when the system was built.
I'll actually be in California on the 5th August... but in San Fransisco airport, for a transfer, on the way to Knoxville Iowa for the sprintcar Nationals...Next time!
Hey..... I'd like to redo the drive down the coast from San Fran to LA. My wife wasn't with me the last time I did it, so she wants do that trip one day.
Oh, and thank you for your kind words.
Bob J

[MRS QSL]

I had no idea St. Petersburg had waterways or that the museum has so much on display. Wow!!!! It's mind boggling. 8 years!! I don't think I can get that much time off...

I'm really impressed you managed to scoot around so easily considering the language issues. That's one of the reasons I'm not keen on going to Japan or China. I want to start out in countries where the alphabet at least looks a smidge similar to English. I took a few years of Spanish in high school and college. I can at least ask where a restroom is if we find ourselves in Mexico or Spain.

August 5th is our son's birthday. It's too bad you won't be closer or at least here longer. Definitely let us know the next time you are around. We did the drive down from San Francisco to LA for our anniversary one year. It was gorgeous! We've talked about doing it again or at least making the trip up to San Simeon as we'd like to visit the castle once more.

I'm really glad you shared your pictures and stories. I LOVE to see travel pictures (especially of other countries). (Hint, hint for anyone who has been or lives out of the U.S.)

[bobjeffreson]

No No....go to Japan.
That was our first trip to a country by ourselves, that did not have a language with recognizable characters. We were not on a guided tour. I put the whole trip together over the 'net. It was the best time .....not a problem the entire 2 weeks. English is spoken and encouraged. Many times, be it at Temples, Gardens, Tourist sites, we were surrounded by young school kids, wanting to practice their English skills. The most amazing thing was that after the 5 to 10 minutes of conversation, we were usually given a small gift as a "thank you".
There was always a teacher near by, who would come up to us and thank us for taking the time to talk to his or her students. One of my fond memories of Japan.
Japan is so easy to get around as English is everywhere and the train and bus systems work like clockwork. We travelled to Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. The train we travelled on between Osaka and Tokyo is called the Shinkansen. The thing runs at nearly 180 mph and it reasonable priced for tourists. It's quicker and cheaper than taking a plane. It so smooth that you cannot see your drink moving .....was a blast....so freaking fast...you'd love it.
Kyoto has more United Nation Heritage listed buildings, temples, gardens than any other city in the world. It just so beautiful...
Do yourself a favour and GO.l

PS...Mrs QSL said... "I LOVE to see travel pictures (especially of other countries). (Hint, hint for anyone who has been or lives out of the U.S.)"
ME TOO.......

[MRS QSL]

OK. You twisted my arm. I'll go to Japan.

[bobjeffreson]

Mrs QSL....
Some shots to help twist that arm some more...

The Golden Palace in north Kyoto...one of the numerous World Heritage listed buildings in that city. Everywhere you go in Japan, there are just stunning gardens...



Geisha girls out for a stroll...not an uncommon sight in Japan...



The city of Kishiwada, south of Osaka, has a Festival where the men pull these huge carts, weighing many tons through the narrow streets, to thank the Gods for good crops. We were mesmerised by the spectacle of this event.


Hey... put Kishiwada into you tube and see some great videos of this event.
You had better start twisting Mr QSL's arm!!!

[MRS QSL]

I didn't realize how beautiful Japan is. The Golden Palace picture is absolutely perfect. Wow!

I don't know how to twist Mike's arm any harder. Sigh. One day we'll have more time and hopefully more money to travel. I have my eye set on the grand voyage with Holland America (131 days going around the world), but I'll take any opportunities to travel that come my way.

Have you been anywhere else? Any good shots of Australia?

We haven't been to many countries and you've probably already seen most of our pictures, but here are a few. I couldn't find the Canada ones on my computer. They must be on Mike's.

[bobjeffreson]

Julie,
I've been extremely fortunate over the past 35 years to have experienced many places around the world. From travelling around Europe in a VW Kombi for 9 months..... to standing on the Great Wall of China..... to walking beside Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe..... to sitting in the passenger seat of a NASCAR at Daytona, doing some seriously fast speed......... Walking on the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland...... to drving the wrong way in the Homer Tunnel in southern New Zealand.....I'll bet Mr B Marshall has never done that!!!
Thanks for the interest in my pics. I'm happy to post more anytime.
Bob J
Now some Aussie shots...
Bondi Beach.....a 30 minute bus ride from Sydney's CBD



Forster....1 Mile Beach....200 miles north of Sydney. My wife Kay parent's live amongst the houses on the very right of shot. The Australian continent is surrounded by beaches like this.



Eastern Water Dragon....these amazing lizards, that grow to 3 ft, can be found living very close to the city on the northern edges of Sydney Harbour.

[MRS QSL]

You have done so much. It's wonderful. You are definitely a very lucky man.

I love the pictures. Thanks for posting. I had no idea Australian water was so clear. California water is certainly not.

Hee, hee. The lizard is cute. We have a bearded dragon that looks a lot like that (only more spikey and, well...more bearded).

Do you have pictures of any of your other trips? I'd really like to see more.

[bobjeffreson]

Julie,
Not as big as the unit you were in when it broke down........
My son's partner Laura doing some reading on the motorhome I hired out of Hamburg Germany in 2007 for our 3 week drive to
Berlin, Prague, Hanover and Hamelin where the Pied Piper is supposed to have done his deed...
The people say they even know the day in 1284 that the 100 or so children were taken...I think the jury is still out on that one!!!!



This campsite was very close to the centre of Berlin. It was all asphalt except for the grassy bit we are parked on....but hey it was close!!!!

The Jewish Holocaust Monument in Berlin....a chilling experience. This place is BIG, maybe be 3 or 4 football fields in size. Blocks are set at different heights, at different ground levels, so when you walk around....one minute you can be seen...the next minute not. The irony of the laughter of children hiding from one another, made the place even more compelling!



Before we hit Europe we cruised the Nile river for 5 days..
Here's the family group at the Temple at Karnak...This Temple makes the Parthenon in Athens look like a pile of misplaced rocks....I'm the one taking the photo of my son's partner, taking the photo of us!!
Us being L to R...my wife's sister Dale, Kay my wife, Emma Dale's daughter, me and my son James. Laura is taking the shot



Across the river from Karnak and Luxor are the Colossi of Memnon. These two 60ft dudes have been there for nearly 3500 years.....I reckon the look like something out of the Star Wars movies...George Lucas must have seen these at some time...what do you think????