June 29-30, 2019
Just before we arrived at the end the Curonian Spit, we stopped for dinner at what looked like a lodge surrounded by cabins. The restaurant had a fun atmosphere created in part by the heads of a dozen or so African animals on the walls. While we were waiting for our food, the bombastic Russian owner, dressed in camouflage pants, a dark t-shirt, and black gloves, invited Bob to sit in a chair "that used to belong to Kaiser Wilhelm and then to Hermann Goering, head of the Luftwaffe." It was a large armchair with pretty new upholstery, and we suppose it could have been the Kaiser's and Goering's chair, but we were a little skeptical.
The owner brought us a glass of complimentary wine as we were waiting for our food, which we refused, explaining that we don't drink any alcohol. He was very insistent, but we continued to refuse it, and we were afraid we had offended him.
To start the meal, Bob ordered a really good egg, cucumber, and pickle salad . . .
. . . and I had a delicious fresh sauerkraut salad.
Bob was delighted to discover they had one large fresh eel that they would bake for us. (We discovered later that they charged us $70 for it, a huge amount given what we were paying for other things in Kaliningrad.) It was AMAZING (once I could get over its appearance)--tender, moist, and so flavorful. The spine was still in but easy to cut through for individual portions and then to remove. Unlike most regular fish, there were very few little bones.
Maybe he was feeling guilty for the hefty charge for the eel, but as we left, the owner pressed a bottle of Kvas on us, insisting it has "no alcohol." (It does, about 1-2%, and is nasty stuff.) We accepted it and later gave it to Elena, who said her husband would enjoy it.
When Bob asked the owner of he could take his picture, he responded, "Oh no, no! Special forces!" and patted his chest. 😆
Our last stop was at a village of about 14,000 inhabitants that used to be named Cranz until the Russians took over after World War II and renamed it Zelenogradsk. You can see its location marked by the red pin in the map below.
We arrived in Zelenogradsk at about 10:00 PM. Our flight didn't leave until 2:55 AM, so we had some time to kill. Nothing was open, and we were surprised by how many locals were out for a stroll, enjoying the cool air and each other's company. The downtown streets were blocked off to create a walking area, which gave it a very European feel. This is no longer a European city, however, as this life-sized statue of Lenin testifies.
Before World War II, Cranz was a favorite tourist destination, but the War ruined that. Lately, however, there has been an effort to bring back tourist dollars. To do that, the city has adopted a theme: cats.
Cats, both real and imagined, are everywhere. (See the two sitting on the park bench below?)
Loving murals as I do, there was a lot to love in Zelenogradsk.
. . . but there are also stations where tourists can purchase food to help feed the kitties. We saw many Kitty Kondos like this one:
Everything was exceptionally well-maintained, and the cats themselves (the real ones) looked healthy and happy. The city has actually hired a woman to take care of the approximately 70 strays. You can read about her here. I'd like to know how (or if) they control the cat population.
Elena dropped us off at the airport at around 11:00 PM. We had a long wait for our 3:00 AM flight, so at some point I paid $2 for a walnut-sized scoop of what I thought was very dark chocolate ice cream. It wasn't. Up close it looks like black licorice, but it wasn't that either. I have no idea what it was, but it was so bad that I couldn't eat it.
We were flying home through Moscow (It's a challenge to fly in and out of Kaliningrad), and so the first leg of the flight was about 1 hour 40 minutes long. Then we had a SIX HOUR layover. (Did I mention it's hard to fly in and out of Kaliningrad?)
We were in a section of the Moscow airport that didn't have a lot to see, other than a few banners . . .
. . . and one or two shops. Bob would have loved to have taken some of this home--rabbit, bear, and horse meat--but he was pretty sure it wouldn't make it through customs.
I wonder if we could have gotten through with the canned meat? It was nice that they had a sign in English for us.
Our flight to Los Angeles was supposed to leave at noon. At around 10:45 I checked the gate and saw that a huge line had formed. The gate had a second level of security, checking everyone's carry-on as they entered the boarding area, and it was a madhouse. The boarding time came and went, with the line still stretching to infinity and beyond.
We found out that the flight had been delayed when they stopped letting people in the boarding area. When they finally resumed, they were no longer checking bags and it went pretty quickly.
The seating layout was 3 - 4 - 3, and Bob and I got the two middle seats in the center section--the worse possible place to be for a ten-hour flight. Bob (who often gets the sniffles on the plane and so was trying out a face mask) hunkered down right away and slept for a good part of the flight.
There is a ten-hour time difference between Moscow and Los Angeles, so we actually arrived home only two hours after we left (by the clock).
Overall, this is one of the most diverse, most interesting, and most exhausting trips we've taken.
Just before we arrived at the end the Curonian Spit, we stopped for dinner at what looked like a lodge surrounded by cabins. The restaurant had a fun atmosphere created in part by the heads of a dozen or so African animals on the walls. While we were waiting for our food, the bombastic Russian owner, dressed in camouflage pants, a dark t-shirt, and black gloves, invited Bob to sit in a chair "that used to belong to Kaiser Wilhelm and then to Hermann Goering, head of the Luftwaffe." It was a large armchair with pretty new upholstery, and we suppose it could have been the Kaiser's and Goering's chair, but we were a little skeptical.
To start the meal, Bob ordered a really good egg, cucumber, and pickle salad . . .
. . . and I had a delicious fresh sauerkraut salad.
Bob was delighted to discover they had one large fresh eel that they would bake for us. (We discovered later that they charged us $70 for it, a huge amount given what we were paying for other things in Kaliningrad.) It was AMAZING (once I could get over its appearance)--tender, moist, and so flavorful. The spine was still in but easy to cut through for individual portions and then to remove. Unlike most regular fish, there were very few little bones.
Maybe he was feeling guilty for the hefty charge for the eel, but as we left, the owner pressed a bottle of Kvas on us, insisting it has "no alcohol." (It does, about 1-2%, and is nasty stuff.) We accepted it and later gave it to Elena, who said her husband would enjoy it.
When Bob asked the owner of he could take his picture, he responded, "Oh no, no! Special forces!" and patted his chest. 😆
Our last stop was at a village of about 14,000 inhabitants that used to be named Cranz until the Russians took over after World War II and renamed it Zelenogradsk. You can see its location marked by the red pin in the map below.
We arrived in Zelenogradsk at about 10:00 PM. Our flight didn't leave until 2:55 AM, so we had some time to kill. Nothing was open, and we were surprised by how many locals were out for a stroll, enjoying the cool air and each other's company. The downtown streets were blocked off to create a walking area, which gave it a very European feel. This is no longer a European city, however, as this life-sized statue of Lenin testifies.
Before World War II, Cranz was a favorite tourist destination, but the War ruined that. Lately, however, there has been an effort to bring back tourist dollars. To do that, the city has adopted a theme: cats.
Cats, both real and imagined, are everywhere. (See the two sitting on the park bench below?)
Even the pedestrian crosswalk sign honors the village's feline inhabitants. The sign for "go" is a green walking cat, and the sign for "stop" is this red sitting cat:
Fanciful fish food is frequently found frying for the felines:
Elena dropped us off at the airport at around 11:00 PM. We had a long wait for our 3:00 AM flight, so at some point I paid $2 for a walnut-sized scoop of what I thought was very dark chocolate ice cream. It wasn't. Up close it looks like black licorice, but it wasn't that either. I have no idea what it was, but it was so bad that I couldn't eat it.
. . . and one or two shops. Bob would have loved to have taken some of this home--rabbit, bear, and horse meat--but he was pretty sure it wouldn't make it through customs.
I wonder if we could have gotten through with the canned meat? It was nice that they had a sign in English for us.
Our flight to Los Angeles was supposed to leave at noon. At around 10:45 I checked the gate and saw that a huge line had formed. The gate had a second level of security, checking everyone's carry-on as they entered the boarding area, and it was a madhouse. The boarding time came and went, with the line still stretching to infinity and beyond.
We found out that the flight had been delayed when they stopped letting people in the boarding area. When they finally resumed, they were no longer checking bags and it went pretty quickly.
The seating layout was 3 - 4 - 3, and Bob and I got the two middle seats in the center section--the worse possible place to be for a ten-hour flight. Bob (who often gets the sniffles on the plane and so was trying out a face mask) hunkered down right away and slept for a good part of the flight.
 |
| My trendsetter hubby--wearing a face mask before it was cool (and when we could still buy them on Amazon) |
There is a ten-hour time difference between Moscow and Los Angeles, so we actually arrived home only two hours after we left (by the clock).
Overall, this is one of the most diverse, most interesting, and most exhausting trips we've taken.
- We were gone for 22 days.
- We visited 6 countries: Canada (layover in Montreal), Iceland, Greenland, Denmark, Poland, and Russia.
- We had 11 different flights: LAX to Montreal (Canada), Montreal to Reykjavik (Iceland), Reykjavik to Ilulissat (Greenland), Ilulissat to Kangerlussuaq (Greenland), Kangerlussuaq to Copenhagen (Denmark), Copenhagen to Gdansk (Poland), Gdansk to Krakow (Poland), Krakow to Warsaw (Poland), Warsaw to Kaliningrad (Russia), Kaliningrad to Moscow (Russia), and Moscow to Los Angeles.
- We stayed in 9 hotels.
- It took me almost 10 months and 52 posts to write about everything we did--by far the most I've ever written about any of our travels.
We were fortunate to have good weather almost every day, mostly outstanding guides, some really incredible food, and some wonderful travel friends--both Bob's partners and their wives for the first half of the trip and each other for the second half.
Congratulations on a job well done and finishing. You are tenacious in keeping at it. It will provide a record we can enjoy in the future. By the way, my grandfather spent time in Cranz, so I loved it for that in addition to the cats. I also loved the eel. It was amazing.
ReplyDeleteFor flights, we also had two sight-seeing flights in Ilullisat, one out to see the glacier and the ice cap and one over to Disko Island.
ReplyDeleteOh, right. Make that 13 flights!
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