Curacao and Aruba

From Caracas I flew to the capital of Curacao, Willemstad. I immediately liked this colourful city and its charming people. Especially interesting was to look passing huge oil tankers on their way to the oil refinery, from a nice street bar "Iguana" at the quay. The same time you got a nice look on those island beauties walking lazily by. One day on Oct.10, "The Columbus Day", this young state celebrated their first Anniversary of independency with many speeches and loud music.
One early morning I was on my way to Oranjestad on Aruba to meet my diving son Tomas and his three friends, who were just arriving there from their diving adventures from Bonaire. At midnight I was back in Curacao,in my beautiful 18th century style hotel village "Kura Hulanda" which means Dutch Garden. My time in Willemstad and elsewhere on the island were mainly sunny and relaxing and I did enjoy these two weeks mostly very much.

Flying to Caracas, Venezuela

On Oct.4 I was heading with Lufthansa to Caracas. I like to mention this company because its overwhelming higher level in everything compared with the famous French air carrier company I flew with to Havanna last January.
I had been in Caracas once before, year 1975. I remembered it as a blooming city with lots of fun. Now it was mainly boring city with all kind of restricting regulations. People did not smile, even those beautiful girls looked too serious and less sexy than before. And when leaving after a couple of days for Willemstad, Curacao, you had to pay just taxes worth of about USD 75.
The positive happening was at the Frankfurt airport in a wine bar, where I met a charming lady from Dallas, who almost promised to visit me some day in Helsinki.

Cruising from Dubrovnik (Croatia) to Istambul (Turkey)

Just few weeks after my luxory Russian cruise I left for Mediterranea to start a journey with a ship with Finnish flag. "Kristiina Katariina" is a nice, clean and friendly vessel but you cannot compare it with "Volga Dream" by any standard.
We spent first evening and the next day in very charming Dubrovnik. It's old city and the massive fortress, partly destroyed 1991 in the war against Serbia and Montenegro, have been totally rebuilt. Colourful small cafes, restaurants and boutigues make an amazing temptation for all visitors.
Next day on Sept.12 the boat already was in the harbour of Durres in Albania.It was a small town, not especially atractive, non-communicating and no credit cards. In all the opposit of Dubrovnik. In one our I had seen most of it, and went back to the ship for a nice cool beer on sunny deck. We then had a beautiful day at sea just to relax before Piraeus in Greece. There was a hot day, I did not like to go to Athens because even hotter there and crowded with other million tourists. And I have seen Akropolis several times. After a small sightseeing in Piraeus by my own, as always, I was back onboard. Then next day there was Mykonos, this unbelievable island with its wind mills, pelicans and nice bars. During my big trip four years ago I spent nine days there.
We then had an other beautiful day at sea before arriving to Istambul at noon on Sept.16. I have been in this very interesting city also before, so I left all museums and tourist attractions to other people, and was just strolling there without any special goal. We then still had an other day in Istambul before flying back home in the evening. Nice trip but nothing special to remember.

Lake Onega

Next morning on August6. we sailed northwards of lake Onega (Finnish Äänisjärvi)to reach Kizhi island. We arrived there after lunch and went ashore to admire beautiful and very decorative wooden churches from 18th century, masterpieces of old handwork.
In the evening we left Kizhi and turned to South to be next day on Vytegra channel further to lake Belozero and river Sheksna before joining the Volga.
It was great to experience this magnificent river before arriving to old vice-capital of Russia, Jaroslavl. This city has been in worldwide news this week because of the flight catastrophe which killed the entire team of Lokomotive Jaroslavl icehockey players. Many of them World Champions, Olympic stars, Russian champions and wellknown during their carrier in NHL.
Jaroslavl is a very beautiful 1000 years old city with around 640.000 inhabitants.
We visited the market place, some old churches and palace, where young ladies played amazingly music from 18th century, when suddenly two young girls invited me and an other gentleman to dance polonaise with them. After a short hesitation but inspired by the young beauty and backing audience I managed to do my part very well, according to my friends.
Next day we visited a small town called, Uglich, and it's so called Blood Church, which was built in memory of the murdered 10 years old son of Czar Ivan the Terrible.
Early next morning we landed near Moscow to hurry to the airport, and did finish this
excellent and very friendly Russian cruise of seven days and 1300 km.

Trough different waters

We left St.Petersburg during the dinner along Neva-river towards lake Ladoga and the Pähkinälinna fortress, built by Novgorodians in 1323 and, where the first peace treatment of many between Sweden and Russia was made also in August 11,1323. By midnight we reached the fortress, and started to cross Ladoga, the largest lake in Europe. Next morning we had reached river Syväri (Russian Svir), where Finnish and Russian troops had heavy fights in 1944. The river brought us trough beautiful almost uninhabited landscapes to lake Onega, second biggest in Europe. That evening our group had a marvellous crayfish party on the deck under sky with a lot of Vodka and wine.

Cruising from St. Petersburg (Russia) to Moscow

Early in the morning on Thursday, August 4.our group of 13 couples plus me entered the new fast train "Allegro" from Helsinki to St. Petersburg. After 3,5 hours we stepped out at Finland station into beautiful sunshine. We then had a bus sightseeing tour in this very attractive old capital of Russia. Definitely this city, which was built just over 300 years ago by zar Peter the Great, is one of the most beautiful cities in the
world. After the bus tour we had a couple of hours to enjoy the life in surroundings of the famous main street " Newski Prospekt" before boarding our luxory cruiser 5-star m/s "Volga Dream".
I'll have to discontinue untill tomorrow.

Visiting Savonlinna Opera Festival

On July 12. my longtime friend and godfather of my younger son Tomas, Mr.Peter Gloystein arrived from Duesseldorf , Germany to Helsinki. He had been a year earlier my
host at Bayreuth Wagner festival, so it was my turn to invite him to Savonlinna. This small east Finnish town hosts nowadays annually a famous opera festival since 1912 for two weeks time in a beautiful medieval fortress. We enjoyed the operas "Tosca" of Puccini and "Don Giovanni" of Mozart, which performances we both liked very much.
During the day between operas we sailed on fantastic lake Saimaa with a more than 100 years old steamer having a most wonderful Finnish Summer weather and some nice drinks.

World famous opera singer Matti Salminen at Finnish Club

We have finally got Spring here after a very cold and all-time record breaking snowy Winter. My life since back from Cuba has been quite peaceful,nothing much to report.
However yesterday evening at Finnish Club of Helsinki was memorably. Mr Matti Salminen, who with Miss Karita Mattila are Finland's internationally most well known opera singers, has recently joined our club. It was an excellent evening, the club was naturally fully booked and his performancy concerning of songs from his native city of Turku was magnificent. Turku is by the way the Cultural Capital of Europe Year 2011.

Cuban holiday

Last week I was back from a eleven days trip to Cuba. We were a group of nine and seemingly very satisfied one. We spent five days in Havanna, and visited also Cienfuegos, Trinidad, Santa Clra and Pinar del Rio, which was the only new place for me. As always Cuba was very friendly, and the drinks good in quantity and quality but cheap. Weather was mostly perfect but of course on that day we supposed to relax on the beach, the sky turned its back to us. We had to watch a heavy tropical rain for hours from the "all-included" hotel bar and restaurant, sipping masswise local delicious drinks.
We had lot of fun, even some very pleasant "cubanas profesionales" tried to seduce me during our stay in Havanna, but I kept my trousers tightly on me.
Havanna had changed a lot since my last trip, four years ago. The old part of the city had been almost completely restored or renovated. The city also was filled with European, Canadian and South American tourists especially from Venezuela.
For me was new that you could follow with Spanish subtitels CNN, BBC and Deutsche Welle among other TV stations, not just in your hotel room but in the bars too.
The rural countryside was like it always has been beautiful but poor.
And the music is there, always and everywhere. We had luck one evening to get a table in a restaurant, where world famous "La Buena Vista Social Club" was performing for two hours. Of course we did visit places which Ernest Hemingway made popular "Floridita" bar and "Ambos Mundos" Hotel, even staying there for one night. As before also now many people called me Papa, his nickname, and some asked if I would be related to Hemingway due very similar looks.
I love Cuba, and I do not think it was my last visit there.

Bridgetown in Barbados

That was the final port of my cruise on Dec 3. Actually a very pleasant cruise, where you during your lazy and sunny days had time and imagination to enjoy with some glasses of inspirations or reflections into your former life, with the most important persons of your past, especially of women.
I have known many women in my life, in whom, I most honestly think, I was in love with. However I cannot say, who was the most important for me, to routes of coming roads. But many of them changed my way.. Who did mostly effect in my life? She was definitely not my late wife, because I then, when I met her, I already was 39.
We were marrid for 25 years, and I honestly miss her very much, even what happened during our last years due her sickness.
But I also did have several excellent bosses during my young years , who at their time could turn my way or ideas about my future to happy direccions.I really was lucky to work under such exprienced peronalities, who teached me how to care and handle things in difficult circumstancies.
I have had good friends too, and still have, but I cannot think that anybody of them did effect directly in my life's turns during the years someway.
I grew without a father, the years after the war were difficult to everybody, and we children did only understand or sense something, if anything.
As a very young boy I started to plan my life myself, turning my back to my mother, who in my opinion never took care of me, except food and clothes. The love was missing, or I needed to much.
So as young as possible I started to travel. To find the world, which I sensed very romantic. I was 11 years, when I went to Stockholm alone,living with my aunts family, but walking on the streets of big city for days alone. With 16 I studied the night life of Copenhagen,and a couple of years later at Reeperbahn in Hamburg.
And almost noboby knew Casablanca, when I was there 1965.
I could continue with a long list, maybe one day.
Now with 70, I am going to live further an adventurous life, because just a few weeks ago in Bridgetown, a young lady of Indian origin from Trinidad promissed to me 30 more years to live. She told me, that it is in their family a long tradition to see the future. I then asked, if I could buy a drink to her for those good news.
Instead, she was so happy for me, that she started to buy drinks to me, saying that, if she would be free, and her boy friend not next to her, she would marry me, or make love to me on the beach immediately, because I shall find a new love very soon.
So, that was the speciality of Bridgetown, much bigger and interesting city than those on the other islands. I had been there nine years ago, and found myself in the same marina bars as then, with two new T-shirts including some rum punches, and preparing to return to total winter back North. Most of the last 6 days I spent on the southern part of Bridgetown, called Hastings, just walking around the beaches or relaxing at funny Kevin's Mobile Bar at the beach, where I also met this lucky lady of mine. Kevin was a Jamaican born, British nationality, very nice, very good looking gentleman, who really could take care of customers, everybody in his bar had a good time . I didn't count, but he absolutely had at least 50 different kind of rum punches each to be served for USD 6.
I stayed in a cosy hostel "Pirate's Inn" nearby the beach or Kevin*s. Very friendly, clean and economy with nice swimming pool. There I also met a very friendly Hungarian couple Robert and Tamara. It is a pity, we did not have more time together. But we might meet us again in Budapest or Helsinki.
Again back Dec.11 in snowy Helsinki !
Next from CUBA!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!