Lost in translation in Russia

Our trip to Moscow started in near disaster... With all the time changes we neglected to change the time on or alarm clock, with the consequence that we over slept by an hour and literally had to run to the check-in counter with minutes to spare (the bonus here was that they forgot to charge us the 60 euro baggage fee - score!)

Being brave, we figured that we'd tackle the Russian public transport system and find our own way to our hotel using the bus and the Metro... The only problem was that everything is written in Russian (we call them hieroglyphics) and nobody speaks or understands English! Needless to say, it took some time and a couple of u-turns to get to our destination. We chose to stay in a English chain hotel - because we figured it would make communicating easier - but even ordering a coffee proved impossible...

We had the absolute luck of being in Moscow on the day of Valadimir Putin's inauguration AND the 9 May celebrations of Victory Day. We happened upon the parade and saw real tanks and military vehicles driving through the streets of Moscow - WOW! The sounds were indescribable!

Even with all the difficulties, Russia proved to be an awesome country, especially when it came to politics, history and architecture... Food, not so much. Soups and pancakes were probably our favorite meals, but it seems like Russians prefer canteen style food and that traditional cuisine really consists of preserved or slow(over)cooked food...

What we did love was the Caviar and Vodka - now we understand how people survive in Russia ;) they drink Vodka like we drink wine.


Riiighttt... So THIS is the bus we need to take to the city...


So pleased with ourselves for making it out of the metro alive :)


A forest close to our hotel. Love tree :)


Luckily some menus had images of the dishes!


Soups and kebabs.


Probably our favorite building in Moscow, St Basil's Cathedral - so over the top!


The Kremlin.


Red square - what an awesome space!


The gardens across the city (and especially inside the Kremlin) are stunning!


We could't believe our luck seeing tanks in the streets during the Victory Day Parade!


Old soviet style underground pub.


Voted the ugliest statue on earth - Peter the Great.


The shops in the Metro tunnels are about 2 x 3 meters in size - selling everything from pastries, to cigarets to underwear.


Best thing about Russia... Vodka! And Caviar - yum!!


O, and the bubbly is surprisingly good too! (celebrating two weeks of being married :)


Babushka dolls.


Russia has amazing buildings everywhere, like the Saviour Cathedral.


One of our best meals... Soup and pancakes.


We found a love tree for our lock :)

Moscow was a city of many contradictions, some memories are awesome (like the tanks!!) and others not so much... But all in all it was a great experience.

Next stop... China! Can. Not. Wait!

Location:Moscow, Russia

Tanks on the streets of Moscow, celebrating Victory Day in Russia

We just happened to be in Moscow on the day of the 67th anniversary of the allied victory over Nazi Germany. Thousands of people lined the streets to watch the victory parade in memory of the millions that perished in the fight against Fascism. This is just a little of what we saw:

What an amazing day! Completely unplanned, we experienced Russia as one would imagine it - powerful, patriotic and militarian.

Location:Moscow, Russia

Living it up in Latvia

Riga is the capital city of Latvia, a small Eastern European country on the Baltic Sea, bordered by Lithuania and Estonia. Having been occupied by many different countries over the centuries, Latvia became an independent state in 1991, and since then have been carving their own identity in a big way.

Charming, packed full of history and scenically beautiful, Riga was a treat. We walked, we cycled and we tasted many of their local delicacies.



A traditional hearty soup called Solyanka, made with tomatoes, meat, olives, capers, lemon juice and pickled cucumbers - this soup really hits the spot!


Local beers at a Latvian restaurant called Citi Laiki where we dined on pork chops drenched in a boletus mushroom sauce (it's a Latvian past time to forage for wild mushrooms in the forests) and beef rolls stuffed with pork meat and brown bread.


Black balsam cocktails at the Skyline Bar - stunning views of the city and a fantastic vibe with trendy young Latvians mingling and dancing the night away.


A pretty little tea house on the river where you can choose from a large selection of tea leaves (or beers) and spend the day chilling on one of the couches snacking on sugared nuts.


On our way to the market to taste some of the local produce. (Many of the buildings are seriously worn and in need of some tlc)


Central Market, rumored to have been hangers for German Zeplins, but actually just built using parts of them, hosts over 3000 stalls - we loved the food section.


Hooves, nipples, ears - they cook using the nose-to-tail principle, nothing is wasted.


Because Latvian summers are plentiful and the winters are practically dead, they make use of preserving methods like pickling, sugaring, drying and smoking.


Pickled and brined everything.


Smoke dried Lampry... Nasty little blood sucking eel-like fish, it tastes much better than it looks!


Our picnic of market goods, from pickles to black bread to smoked cheese to wild garlic leaves - yum! Luckily our guide Marcus could direct our shopping in the market, otherwise we never would have known what we were eating :)


Yes, we are on bicycles, and yes, it was raining. Good times.


Beer tasting!



Black balsam, a potent thick local aperitif made from herb (here it's served with hot berry juice and orange wedges). Then we drank them as shooters... And the evening went south from there!

Now it's off to mother Russia... This is going to be interesting!

Location:Riga, Latvia

Reindeer, fish and cold weather in Helsinki

We swapped the hot weather, picnics and beer in Prague for freezing cold weather, pickled fish, coffees and snuggling in Helsinki. It's spring in Finland, and by that we mean the coldest winter's day in Joburg! Us Africans are just not built for cold weather... The Finnish seemed to be super excited at the promise of spring by eating ice cream!! and wearing short sleeved clothes... When it was 5C outside! We, on the other hand, wore EVERYTHING in our suitcases - and were still freezing!

The strangest thing about Helsinki is that one would imagine a place that cold to be dark and dreary, but in actual fact it is one of the brightest, slickest cities we've been to - where the sun (more like a bright light that doesn't generate heat) only sets at 22:30! The people of the city are sophisticated and seem to take the cold weather in their elegant strides, even riding vintage cycles in skirts and high heels. What was also seriously impressive was the ease of communicating with everyone - English is their third language, and they speak it more fluently than most English do. One of the biggest down sides of Helsinki is how expensive it is... There really aren't many budget or middle-of-the-road options, it's pay up or nothing. It's not a holiday destination that is light on the pocket.

We stayed in a fantastic hotel on katajanokka island - an old prison that was built in 1837. The entire hotel is prison themed, even serving breakfast on steel plates! The room was cosy (still with steel bars over the windows), modern and had some of the most comfortable beds we've ever slept in - great in a city where snuggling is imperative :)

Here are some of our highlights:
PS Read our post on the restaurant Juuri we visited, the food was fantastic!
PPS The the Fins have a very strange way of writing, we couldn't make out a word, for eg Luomumaksalaatikkoa is the finnish word for organic.



Outside our prison hotel, wearing LOTS of layers!


Real bars! Creepy but cool.


An amazing dinner of Sapas at Juuri where we tasted Reindeer!


Beautiful church on a hill - perfect refuge from the cold.


We drank lots of coffee on the sidewalks.


Stark white cathedral in the center of the city.


Spring is almost in Helsinki - although it doesn't quite look like it...


Ice cold 'long drinks' in a theme park actually help against the cold.


Breakfast in the hotel on steel plates - lots of cold fish, pickles and rye bread.




Fish & Chips on the street; grilled Salmon, fried Vedance, potato rounds and dill mayo - delish!


They have these ice cream stalls all over... Seriously??


A little spot of sunshine, coffee and pastries. :)



Daffodils have popped up all over the city - so pretty!


Wiets attaching our heart lock to the 'bridge of love' :)


Picnic spread in our hotel room.

Location:Helsinki, Finland

Sapas at Juuri Reittio & Baari, Helsinki Finland

An understated personal bistro style restaurant in the heart of Helsinki dished up one of the most memorable meals of our trip so far.

Juuri describes Sapas as 'small Finnish appetizers whose roots lie in the hand-made cooking and Finnish food traditions'. We opted to share a selection of Sapas over a bottle of house wine, wondering if the bite-sized dishes would be enough to satisfy out South African appetites... and indeed they were!

The evening kicked off with a selection of artisan breads: Focaccia with honey, Hard bread with fennel and Rye bread. Then our choice of Sapas started arriving:

Flat crispy bread with smoked vendace fish mousse and beet salad
Akvavit marinated salmon and sour cream
Small vendaces in spiced oil
Smoked baltic herring tartar with red onion
Vendace roe from Puulavesi with dill brioche
Fresh sausage à la Juuri with vodka mustard
Game vorschmack with creamed sour bread
Smoked reindeer tonque with raising pyre
Pastrami of duck breast and cucumber mustard salad
Organic liver cassarole with raisin pyre

The images don't do the dishes justice... flavoursome, well balance, beautifully presented and utterly delicious! Well worth a visit if you ever find yourself in Helsinki :)

Location:Helsinki, Finland