Russia Baltic Danube Cruise - Maher Escorted Tour 2019

Having farewelled our lovely Baltic States guide Marianna and driver Viktor last night, we meet our new guide Fil and driver Mariusz. Fil is originally from Latvia and now lives in Krakow. He is young, energetic, on the ball and his English is perfect. He also speaks Latvian, Russian and Polish. I have a feeling we will be in excellent hands for our Polish sojourn.  We leave Vilnius and drive south, the lush green countryside stretching on either side of the straight roads, the occasional roundabout transitioning traffic smoothly at the junctions. After a comfort stop - “coffee in, coffee out” Fil calls it - at the old Lithuanian/Polish border, which is a collection of derelict buildings, relics from the communist days, we swoop into Poland in our big shiny blue bus.  We pass neat and tidy houses and miles of green fields.  There is every tone of green imaginable.  “Pol” means fields ... Poland = land of fields. Makes perfect sense now we know this. We ...

We are in Lithuania, day 13 and country no. 5 on 29th July (this blog is way behind real time but I’m working on catching up!) Breakfast is delicious but we’re all getting a little worried about the amount of food we’re eating so trying not to overdo things at the start of the day. We set off on a tour of the city - population 550,000. A new president was recently elected - after 10 years with women in the position, this time it’s a man. The President can do two terms of five years, then must step down. Cathedral Square is the heart of Vilnius. Most citizens are Catholics, with Russian Orthodox as well. It’s a very green city, with 44% of it being Parks and forests. But it’s also quite pink - many of the buildings and churches are pink. In fact, at one time all the buildings here were pink! Lithuania is totally flat, there are no mountains. The highest point is just 300m. There are five universities, 3,000 lakes and 18 rivers. We go into a rather lovely [pink] Orthodox c...

A small selection of some of delicious meals we’ve enjoyed in the Baltic states. Breakfast, lunch or dinner - Every meal has been superb. Even beer and snacks at the roadside cafe! Check out the psychedelic pink Baltic soup!

After a very nice breakfast we hit the road. Crossing the bridge to make our way out of Riga, we get great views of this river city. There is a big market which is open from 8am every day and not too far from our hotel - note for next time, early breakfast and market stop before leaving town would be ideal. People are keen to buy mementos and there’s nothing like a local market for treasure hunting and rummaging, even with limited time.  We stop at Rundale Castle, another beautiful Palace that is in the middle of the countryside. Painted in lemon, white and gold (the entrance gate is tangerine), it’s a mini Versailles. We go through the many rooms and galleries, all sumptuous with a new and colourful delight around every turn. There are frescoes, mirrors and trompe de l’oeiul ? (clever 3D painting technique); rooms of pastel, others of vibrant colour. All the decorative work is carved of wood, intricate and substantial. The piece de resistance is the large ballroom which, in s...

We set off after breakfast, driving south through Estonia towards Latvia. En route there’s a beach and spa resort town called Parnu and we spend time paddling in warm water amongst the holiday makers and families who flock here during the summer. The beach is pretty crowded but it has a nice vibe. A boardwalk takes you towards the sea, almost to the water’s edge. No surf here. The sand is cool and pale and soft and fine. After all the walking we’ve done on tour it’s nice to take our shoes off and feel sand between our toes. The water is warm and very shallow; you have to go out a long way to get wet. The roads are straight and our bus driver wants to pass everything in front of him, even great big trucks. Even three great big trucks in a row. We lurch out and around any vehicle in front of us, sometimes cutting it reasonably fine. He’s an experienced driver and we’re in good hands but it’s still a little unnerving. There is some grimacing. Everyone is passing everyone, but not in th...

It’s the 10th day of our trip. The weather is perfect. We meet our local Tallin guide, another lovely lady called Anastasia. We walk around the old town which is quite busy with trucks offloading goods to stores and restaurants. They need to be gone by 10am. We pass the flower market with blooms in all colours including the national cornflower - the colour of which matches Elaine’s top perfectly. The Chemist here is the oldest in Europe; it’s like an old apothecary with a modern touch, items are cheap and staff are helpful. The bus then takes us on a tour further afield in the city. We stop at the Song Festival stadium; it’s picturesque, practical and versatile. Attractive and acoustically perfect, it would be a fantastic place to watch a concert. Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Madonna - they’ve all played here. During the Song and Dance Festival (held every five years) 30,000 Singers come together to perform here, and thousands more come to watch and listen. Singing an...