DAY 14: Third Day on the QM2

They have repeatedly informed us that this is not a cruise ship, but an ocean liner and today the difference is clear. We woke up this morning with the ship rocking. We turned on the TV to check the weather conditions and it said the winds were up to Force 10 and the waves were peaking at 12 feet. Had we been in a cruise ship, they say, we would have slowed down considerably and it would have been rather uncomfortable. One of the kids in Katie’s group does get seasick. All over the ship I hear people swapping remedies. None of us have succumbed, perhaps because we are so used to motion. Walking with loaded trays of food for kids at lunchtime, is a challenge, but otherwise we are faring the rough seas well. Todd attends the Sunday service led by the Captain. They closed with the hymn “Eternal Father, Strong to Save” which had these reassuring words:

Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bidd’st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep:
O hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea.

Well, maybe not so reassuring words, after all. We cross the halfway point of our voyage just after lunch and by dinner all is calm.

DAY 13: Second Day on the QM2

Life on board is developing a relaxing routine. We have figured out the ship’s internet system and are madly typing to get caught up on blog and e-mail. We still haven’t figured out a place to stay in NYC, but we are trusting that God has something in store for us. The waiters at dinner are bonded with our kids and bring them extra portions of dessert. Christopher has a special fondness for lemon sorbet and our waiter has somehow managed to find some, even though it’s not on the menu. Pretty amazing, as it’s not like they can send a busboy out to 7-11 to pick some up. The attention and extra treats is small consolation for Andrew who is pretty tired of getting dressed in a tie for dinner. This is saying a lot for a kid who wanted to sleep in his suit jacket when he first got it! Because of the kids, they have put us in the back corner, near the kitchen, but we don’t mind as we are next to the window with a spectacular view and close to the food.

DAY 12: First Day on the QM 2

First impressions of life on board: We are very pleased to find out that our cabin attendant, Ruslana, is from Ukraine and speaks Russian. She takes a great interest in Katie.
The kids are enjoying the kids’ program. There are only about 100 or so kids on board which does little to bring down the average age which is probably somewhere around 75. The other passengers seem at least tolerant, if not charmed by the youthful exuberance of the kids, especially when they are dressed for the formal occasions. Todd has managed to rent a tux, complete with shoes that a previous voyager left behind. Katie has her silk dress from e-bay that she has worn to all her school parties. For budget travelers, we sure clean up nicely and are perfectly presentable to meet the captain.

DAY 11: Anchors Aweigh!

All packed, ready to go and into the car for the short-ish drive to Southampton. The kids are really primed for the Queen Mary 2 and I am hoping that she will not disappoint them.

The line of cars to the boarding point on Dock 8 seems endless and moves slowly. We drive into a building like a hangar, draped with hundreds of Union Jacks and are directed to a spot to unload the car. We are tight on time to return the car to Avis, so we quickly unload and then Todd races off to find the car return way back at Dock 4. I am prepared to sit and picnic with the kids curbside while we wait. Before I know it, our suitcases are whisked away by uniformed attendants and sent ahead on board. The air is festive and pretentious and I am feeling a little awkward about feeding the kids their cheese sandwiches on the curb in this atmosphere. Somehow pulling out a bag of Doritos seems almost sacrilege. But they are hungry so we are nibbling discreetly like little mice. Then a nice family with McDonald’s bags comes and sits next to us and all is well. They are Canadian, have been living in England for three years on assignment with the military, are returning home overland and are also waiting for the dad to return from Avis. Of course Todd and the dad both run up together having shared a taxi from the car return. So we are off to a friendly and serendipitous start. (Todd’s note: When the Canada Dad learned I had been driving and Julia navigating for three days across England, he asked, “And you’re still married?!?” He said NavSat and GPS had saved his marriage, but Julia must be a much better navigator, as we never got lost.)

There are huge lines to check in but they pull those of us with kids out ahead and send us to the front. How VERY civilized! Just like Russia. The kids are about to burst with the anticipation of it all and I am really hoping that the Queen Mary will not disappoint them. Christopher asks as we board what class we are in. Sorry to inform you, babe, but we are in the lowest class. Shovel your own coal. The guys that drowned on the Titanic. But as we arrive in our rooms, he exclaims: “Wow! Third class on the Queen Mary 2 is like First Class on another ship!” Taking the kids on all those car ferries has prepped them well to appreciate how special this ship is. Andrew is thrilled that he no longer has to share a bunk with his sister.

One of the first things on board is the lifeboat drill. They have warned us ahead of time, but as the ship alarm sounds the kids fly into a total panic. We are still at the dock, and even if the ship were to sink, our cabin would still be well above the water line we tell them, but to no avail. Christopher will have at least three days’ worth of irrational fears after this exercise, but we know where the life jackets are and how to don them, anyway.

At 5 pm we drag the kids onto the chilly deck in order to see the departure.

This is it! The big moment! In my mind I imagine it from all the movies, the crowds lining the quay as they wave farewell. The champagne corks flying. The band playing. Only there is no band, and because of security reasons, there are about 3 people who work for port on the quay. Oh, Queen Mary, please do not disappoint me! It takes about half an hour for the thrusters to push us away from the dock and into the harbor. We have no tugs to help. And the progress is slow, but smooth. Then we are slowly gliding down the very long harbor out of Southampton. Then, at last the mighty ship whistle. It is the whistle from the original Queen Mary and it can be heard for nine miles. Three load blasts announce that we are finally underway. Those blasts resound deep in my heart and it takes my breath away. Through the harbor the sailboats and smaller ferries dance around the ship, like dolphins, people waving. Oh, she didn’t disappoint us! We are on the Queen Mary 2! The most elegant of ships sailing away on a transatlantic voyage and it is every single bit as exhilarating as I imagined.

DAY 10: The Famous Isle of Purbeck

No long drives today, for which we are all truly thankful. We are also very thankful for the Yates family, who so generously loaned us their summer house for a few days. Turns out we are not really backpack travelers, after all, as we get to stay in homes instead of hostels. The house is charming, hundreds of years old and yet, tastefully modernized and very comfortable. It also has all those quirky features of old houses, like the location of the bathroom/chapel which made me giggle each morning.

Everyone is thrilled with the place, except Christopher who complains that it is too big and he feels lonely. It is not that the house is so big, but more that he has gotten used to sleeping in train compartments and ships’ cabins, with his whole nuclear family within arm’s reach. Seriously, what kind of long-term psychological problems are our kids going to suffer because of this trip?

We have only one real day here, and though there is SO much nearby that we would like to see. We choose to make our pilgrimage to Brownsea Island to visit the birthplace of Scouting. We take photos of the boys next to the Robert Baden-Powell commemorative stone (he’s buried, of course, at Westminster Abbey) and load up on Scout patches. A walk across the island seeking the rare Red Squirrel, the model for Beatrix Potter’s Squirrel Nutkin and now extinct on the English “mainland,” and other fauna and that is our day. The evening is spent doing laundry and preparing for our big day tomorrow, boarding our beautiful ship and heading for the US at last.

DAY 9: Nottingham to Swanage

Off early armed with maps and Google directions, set for a very long day of driving. First stop is Warwick Castle, which we visited a year and a half ago with my parents. This time the sun is shining and it is a beautiful day. We have brought along a yummy picnic from the Marks and Spencer convenience store downstairs at the TravelLodge, (I’m a big fan! What a great store!) and we arrive just in time to see the trebuchet demonstration – then the Eagles and Birds of Prey. They have a Bald Eagle (born in England, they point out) and a Snow Eagle, one of which Todd had seen on the fjord in Norway. The boys want to climb on the walls and Katie of course wants to see princesses. Warwick is a perfect castle, really, with thick walls, dungeons and nicely appointed interiors. It is all you ever imagined a castle should be and I am glad for the chance to revisit it.

Then we head off down the back roads and country lanes retracing our steps from our previous trip and find ourselves at the farm where Todd, Christopher and I stayed before. No one was home but we said hello to the dogs and chickens, then moved on for a quick peek at Rose Cottage where Katie and Andrew stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. It doesn’t seem right not to have grandparents with us for this part, somehow. All the same, it is nice to have some familiar touch points along the way.

Now, for the hardest part of our trip: the drive from Chipping Camden to Salisbury. There are no direct roads and the Google directions remind me of the guy who says “you want to turn right where the old barn used to be until they tore it down ten years ago.” – completely mystifying. That and there is about a six inch shoulder between the road and a stone wall on my side of the car – throw in the local wildlife: numerous bunnies, a pheasant, and a vine-entangled deer that insist on taking the right-of-way and three restless kids in the back seat and I am pretty close to a nervous breakdown. Todd is (rightfully) terrified of dinging or scraping the exterior of the car and I am hoping that the Avis people won’t notice the deep gouges left by my fingernails in the dash or the deep compression in the floor where I have sympathetically braked on every turn.

We do arrive safely, if not serenely at Stonehenge. Like the Mona Lisa, it is much smaller than it looks in the photos and one of the few highways that we have seen today runs right by it. The kids, though, are more innocent and so are duly impressed with the site and I refrain from asking “Where is the real Stonehenge? You know—the BIG one?”

The kids especially enjoy the audio commentary. Katie listened in stereo.

Then back into the car and another couple of nerve-wracking driving hours before we arrive in the charming town of Swanage on the Jurassic Coast (no dinosaurs in evidence, but real white cliffs) where the Yates, whose son was in Todd’s Cub Scout Den in Moscow, have loaned us their summer house. More on that tomorrow, as I am still trying to recover from the PTSD-inducing drive.

DAY 8: Newcastle to Nottingham

Heartbreak! As we pull into the harbor at Newcastle we realize we forgot to bring our coals! A kind lady board informs us that all the mines are closed now, so they could probably use some, too. Rats!

There is a LONG delay getting off the boat because there are so many passengers. It’s hard to believe that they will discontinue this ferry after this season, as it sure seems popular! We had hoped to see some friends in Newcastle on the way, but with the delay disembarking, and the confusion of the ferry terminal, it was just as well that they weren’t there when we landed. Sorry, Diane and kids!

We were thinking that I would stay behind and Todd would run out to the car rental place and come back for us, but we decide in the end to just pile into a taxi and all head out together to save time. Good Idea. This way we get to meet Trevor Jones the super taxi driver/tour guide. He has just recently returned to Newcastle after a stint in the US and he loves his hometown and is glad to show it off. He turns off the meter and takes us on a quick driving tour of the city on the way to Avis. The Avis lady is worried that we have taken so long to get there, but we have enjoyed our time with Trevor.

As it turns out, Todd has enjoyed his time so much, that he has forgotten to orient himself to driving on the left. It’s a little hairy starting out and I get the giggles remembering the Kevin Kline character in A Fish Called Wanda who insisted on driving his huge American car on the right and shouting profanities at those who get in his way.

But, we have our maps and our Google directions, which are occasionally helpful and away we go to Hadrian’s Wall and an old Roman Fort. The kids LOVE that they can actually climb on the ruins. They are so interested in learning about the Romans, in fact, that it makes us feel a little better about spending their college money to get here.

Then back in the car and we drive like the wind to Nottingham, skipping Sherwood Forest and so much else, but we have 2 days to drive the long way across England, which is almost criminal, but alas can’t be helped. We have another ship waiting for us in a couple of days.

DAY 7: Ferry to Newcastle

Well, it is not the finish line yet, but this leg is a slight downhill slope, anyway. First, though, we get a refresher course on the power and sovereignty of God.

We started out from the Intermission Hostel with vague directions by bus to the ferry terminal and because it is Sunday, all the schedules are screwy anyway. By the time we finally did find the bus stop, the bus was gone and the next one wouldn’t be along until after our ship had sailed. We try to stop a taxi, but he won’t give us a ride because he doesn’t have car seats for children. So, here we stand, on a lonely street, early on a Sunday morning and our boat leaves in about an hour. We need help! We gather the kids and pray specifically for a taxi that will stop and take us, even without car seats. Then we pack up our bags and start moving to a busier street. We don’t make it to the corner before another taxi. He pulls up and yes! Of course! He has built in, pop-down children’s’ car seats! He is on his way home after working all night and decided to stop anyway for us. We cram ourselves in – I end up sitting on Katie’s lap, rather than the other way around, and in a few minutes we are at the car ferry terminal and ready to board the King of Scandinavia!

As we walk towards the gangplank the kids are greeted by a young woman in a pirate outfit. Yes! There is shipboard entertainment for kids! We have a full day to play and rest aboard ship. The kids take off on a treasure hunt. There are stories and crafts about Orcas, though no actual orcas are spotted on this trip.

There is also a pool and a playground, so Todd and I tag team. That way the kids get to play and we both get a chance to relax and even nap a little. At the meals the boys especially get their money’s worth from the buffet and Andrew has repeatedly sighed “This is the life!” And it is!

DAY 6: Norway in a Nutshell/ The God of Hospitality and Travel Arrangements

The longest day of the year and by far our hardest travel day. We drag the kids out of bed early and head out. The kids are chanting “train, train, boat, bus, train: in preparation for the day. “Norway in a Nutshell” is Norway’s “must see” tourist attraction, a combination of rail, boat and bus touring that gives you mountains and valleys and fjords all in one (long) day’s travel. We look forward to it, but we have worries about this day.

Sometimes it is hard to have faith when things are going well. We forget our dependence on God, who is sovereign in all things, even travel arrangements. But there are still elements of our trip that are uncertain and this leaves room for God to display His power and provision for us (or room to worry, depending on how you look at it).

Potential Worry #1 is finances. As I mentioned earlier, the exchange rate is brutal. In our reckoning for this trip we were supposed to have a large amount of cash available as a result of our apartment sale. But that transaction has been put off until the fall and so we are feeling a little more cash strapped than we had planned. Having wonderful friends to stay with in Oslo has been a double blessing – NOT having to pay for a hotel or dinner AND a great encouraging time of fellowship! Thank you again Masvies!

Potential Worry #2 is related to #1 and that is we still don’t have a place to stay in Bergen. Todd has been searching the internet but has not found anything affordable. Our lonely planet book mentions a Christian Youth Hostel so he puts in a call. The girl who answers the phone tells him that they do not have a room for families, but just one big bunk room for everyone. The kids are not too keen on sleeping with total strangers, so it is back to the drawing board. Every place we try, though, is booked or expensive, so it’s back to the hostel. Amy, meanwhile has been praying that we would call back, because she and her teammates have decided we could stay in their downstairs apartments. More on this later.

Potential Worry #3 is seat reservations. This was a problem on the Stockholm-Oslo train, but on this route they have only guaranteed our seats on the first leg of a 5 leg trip. I am not keen on the idea of fighting our way onto a crowded train at the end of an exhausting day, but there is not much I can do about it, so off we go:

Train 1: Oslo to Myrdal. Beautiful, uneventful and we have our seats reserved for this part.

Train 2: Myrdal to Flam: breathtaking, and yes, plenty of seats. This is the train that on a 12 mile run drops 3000 vertical feet to sea level and goes through twenty tunnels. When you are not in a tunnel, you are looking at stunning waterfalls and a gorgeous valley.

Boat: Ferry up the Narrow Fjord to Gudvangen. The most crowded past of the trip and here we have to stand, but OH, so lovely!

Bus: Gudvangen to Voss. Actually, the nicest views of the trip, I thought. AND we have warm seats! Poor Andrew slept through the best part.

Train: Voss to Bergen. We were able to get a quick snack and then board the non-crowded local train to Bergen.

Shortly we are trudging with our stuff through the streets of Bergen and up to the doorstep of the Intermission Hostel. We are warmly greeted by Amy, Stephanie, Joy and Liz, Wheaton students who are doing a summer mission project at the hostel. The promised apartment turns out to be their apartment that they are vacating on our behalf! What’s more, since we are not taking up any beds in the hostel, they refuse to take money from us. I am amazed at God’s provision for us through these faithful young women! All these worried and yet God is master of it all and had so ably worked everything out for us in plenty of time.

DAY 5: Midsummer’s Eve in Oslo

We have slept, dried out, been fed and we are ready to head out again to explore even more of Oslo. The clouds have even lifted and the day looks promising. First stop today is the Akerhus Castle. We have seen it many times from the harbor, but have never ventured inside and it is quite fun. There are many great museums and we still have our museum cards! First we try the Resistance Museum, which is amazing. Christopher has studied WWII before but it is all new to Andrew and Katie. WWII was such a clear struggle between good guys and bad guys that they both catch on immediately and are captivated by the fight against the super villain Nazi’s.

Back out to sun-drenched 21^st century Oslo of a quick breath and then back in time to tour the castle interior, which was nice, but the views were even better. Back outside again and across the parade grounds to the Armed Forces Museum and more Nazi’s. By this time the boys are pretend shooting Nazi’s around every corner and Christopher is coming up with plans for a new, better, stronger UN. I am wondering if Katie is going to have Nazi-related nightmares and I am also thinking, perhaps this last museum wasn’t such a good idea after all, though the boys clearly loved it.

A change of scenery: we take 2 buses to get out to the Viking Ship Museum which was a highlight last time. The kids, though, are completely museumed out at this point so opt for a frolic on the front lawn instead.

We come home early, in time for laundry and packing. The first rain of the day appears, but only just enough to produce a rainbow. It is close to Mid-Summer Eve and Nils has invited his brother and family over to celebrate with traditional Norwegian creamy porridge. Nils’ brother Torkin has been a missionary for the last 15 years and has recently returned to Norway to plant a church. He and his wife Inger are absolutely charming and we have a wonderful time hearing of their lives and their current project. All the kids are enjoying each other as good cousins do, older ones looking after the younger ones. It was a privilege to end our time in Oslo with a family gathering. We intended to get the kids to bed early but it is just too hard to tear them away from their friends so we let them stay up late again, knowing that tomorrow morning will be excruciating.

DAY 4: Oslo/ Rain, Rain, Go Away!

We are off to a very slow start this morning, resting, getting caught up on e-mail and just enjoying NOT being in motion. After lunch we set out to make the most of the two-day “Oslo Card” museum passes that our hosts have VERY generously given to us. We start the day with a sprint for the train and the pace hardly slackens.

First, we hit the great trilogy of sea-faring museums: the Maritime Museum, the Kon-Tiki and the Fram. Like the Wasa in Stockholm, these were places we had visited six years ago and I was sure the kids would love it. I was right, too – especially the Fram, which is also my favorite. What’s not to love about polar expeditions, especially when you can actually climb all over the boat? The Kon-Tiki, I am sure, will make us very grateful for the comforts of the Queen Mary 2.

It is late by the time we are done admiring the voyages of others and it is drizzly as well. Still, as we head back to the main harbor by boat we can SEE the ski jump high on the hill and it has been strongly recommended that we see the view of the city from there, so we decide to grab a quick snack for the kids at Burger King and then run up to the ski jump for a quick peek from the ski jump before heading home. Bad Idea.

For one thing, while we are well aware of the weakness of the dollar, the strength of the Norwegian Crown is something we hadn’t really grasped yet. A quick snack at Burger King turned out to be a rather costly affair with chicken nuggets coming in around $1.50 per nugget. The water, anyway, was free, and, unlike in Russia, clean enough to drink. The kids’ tummies are full and our wallets empty, we head off to find the train that will take us to the ski jump.

Bad Idea #2. Actually, the train up the hill was VERY lovely and took us through neighborhoods that reminded us of the hills back home. It’s been kind of weird to imagine a commuter train running along Grizzly Peak, but that’s the basic idea. This would have been a good time to stop – but we press on, figuring that we have made it this far so we can’t stop. It’s raining now and we begin the climb from the tram stop to the museum. It is quite a hike and we arrive at the top dripping and gasping. It is a wonderful museum of skiing in Norway and I am seriously wishing the Beyars could be with us as I know Joel especially would think this was cool. Stopping now at the museum also might be a good idea, but it’s onward and upward. Up the elevator first and then a steep and slippery staircase all the way to the top of the ski jump looking for the legendary Great View of Oslo. Alas, it is a vision that will elude us. We stand at the glass-enclosed summit, shivering, panting and completely surrounded by clouds. We can only see the faintest outlines of the ski jump track and it’s terrifyingly steep. Now it is not raining but something closer to a squall. We retrace our steps down to the museum and find ourselves killing time, trying on Viking Hats in the gift shop, hoping that the storm will pass.

It becomes clear that this will not pass anytime soon, so we brace ourselves for a cold trot down a steep mountainside. As we approach the stop, a train pulls away. We are good Muscovites, though, and don’t despair because we know another train will be along shortly. Thirty very long and wet minutes later the train did finally come. We arrived back at the Masvies’ late, soaked, exhausted and hungry. But we DID make good use of our museum cards.

Day Three: The Kindness of Strangers, Stockholm to Oslo

The helpfulness and hospitality of Scandinavians is so well-known that it seems terribly cliché to write about it. But the reputation is so well-earned and we have seen it demonstrated so admirably that I have to mention it anyway.

Thank you tram lady! As we prepared to board our first tram as backpackers the doors kept closing on us. I kept pressing the open door button while Todd tossed bags quickly through the doors. A young woman stepped forward and grabbed one of the 2 heavier suitcases, carried it on board and stowed it for us. I would have been grateful if she would have pressed the open door button, but this was totally above and beyond the simple act of kindness and much appreciated!

Thank you, Stockholm tour guide! As we approached the royal palace we stopped to get oriented and a kind gentleman stepped up and asked if we needed help. He then told us that the guard would be changing in the next ten minutes and walked us over and told us where to stand. He directed the boys to the bathrooms and the chatted with us for awhile until he took off to help others. He did this all simply because he loves his city and wants to make sure that everyone who comes there has a good visit.

Thank you, guide to the train station! We had stashed our stuff in lockers at the train station in the morning, but in the afternoon, coming from a different direction we decided to ask directions to be sure. In most cities, helpful people will point the way. In Stockholm, our kind guide took us the pretty way, past a church and walked us the whole 4 blocks to the train station and made sure we could find our train.

Thank you, Sophie and family! As we boarded the train to Oslo, we were a little nervous about finding a place for our stuff and for ourselves without any reserved seats. The train came in and we started hefting suitcases. Pretty soon, we noticed that we were hefting suitcases and children alongside another family and so we started schlepping each others’ things. They HAD reserved seats, but so did another couple that was already sitting in them. It turns out that the train had double booked. It was total chaos, but by the time things started settling down, the train was rolling, all the seats were full and our kids had made friends with this other family and were jumping around together. Sophie, the mom, was traveling with her 3 boys from Paraguay, where her husband is a diplomat, back to her home in Sweden. Her father was traveling this last leg with her to help. What a total hero to travel with 3 kids by herself for 2 days of almost non-stop air travel! They disembarked the train about an hour and a half outside of Oslo and waved on the platform as we pulled away. Sigh, another good-bye and the kids are getting pretty sick of good-byes.

And then there is the kindness of friends:

What a welcome sight to see Katrine’s face on the platform as we arrived in Oslo! Katrine and I got to know each other in a Mom’s Bible Study in Moscow. She and her family moved back to Oslo last July. It was great to see someone familiar again and to be staying in a home after nights of trains, boats and hostels! Thank you Masvie family!

Day Two: Stockholm

Second day, second capital, second currency.

I will try to keep this short as I am falling behind and I will try to let the pictures do the talking.

We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast on the back deck of the ship as it meandered through the Stockholm archipelago.

Andrew did get his day at the zoo. We arrived in time for the feeding of the wolverine (Sorry Uncle Tim) and it was actually kind of adorable with big floppy feet and bright eyes. We also saw Lemurs up close and personal. Maybe a little too close as all the signs were warning us to be careful as they might bite. It was our one rainshower of the day and so they were huddled together to keep warm, and oh so cuddly.

We have no photos of the Wasa museum, but that was one of the things I really wanted the boys to see in Stockholm. It was perfect: spooky ghost ship, skeletons...the boys LOVED it!

I don't know how Todd found the AG Chapman, where we stayed, but it was utterly charming. It's a ship that has been renovated as a hostel. We were not able to find a bunk on the ship, but we had a nice room in the main building and there was a nice little restaurant where we could eat dinner and enjoy a lovely view of Old Town and the palace. The kids were restless so we let them play in a nearby park while we finished our dinner. They quickly made friends with a group of people gathered to play an old Viking game called Kubb. They showed us how to play and during the course of the conversation we discovered that one of the group is getting ready to move to Moscow in August. So, HEY Pokrovsky people! Keep your eye out for a wonderful family from Sweden with 3 kids heading your way soon. The husband works for IKEA and I bet if you invite them over for Shashlik they will teach you how to play Kubb. It's gangs of fun!

We were going to have a pool to see who could guess in what city Andrew would lose his tooth. Todd guessed Chicago, I guessed New York. Before we could get it posted here, Andrew made losers of us all and yanked it out in Stockholm. The Tooth Fairy has been stymied to know what currency to leave for him!

Day One: Helsinki

NEVER, have I been prouder of my boys than today:

Christopher: We arrived in Helsinki at noon (we officially said good-bye to Russia at 9:48 AM but the border guards were so cheerful and friendly, it hardly seemed like a border at all). Now, we begin our first test as a back-pack travelling family: getting ourselves and luggage, via public transportation to the ferry terminal. I have already lectured the kids about forgetting things and as we stand on the platform waiting for Todd to bring out the last suitcases Christopher asked "Hey, where's my jacket?" I sent him back on board to get it and caught Andrew smirking that his brother was already in trouble. Which is when I asked Andrew anout his hat. Smirk gone, he climbed abourd the train after his brother and then I noticed Katie's hatless head. Hmmmmm. Not such a good start.

A few minutes later we stood all present and accounted for, including all bags, jackets, hats, shoes, toys, etc. Time to suit up. I opened up Katie's stroller and set Katie in it. Katie is really big enough to walk on her own power, but in Scandinavia both the stroller passenger and the stroller pusher ride free on public transport, so the stroller is really a large and cumbersome bus pass. So, Katie in the stroller, a day pack and a picnic bag are slung over the handles, Todd and I each put on a backpack and grab a wheeled suitcase, Andrew grabs his and Katie's little wheeled carry-ons while Christopher takes his own. I can manage the suitcase and the stroller for awhile, but it's awkward and so Todd tells Christopher to swap with me and take the stroller. I can see Christopher start to protest, but he immediately thinks better of it and hands me his bag and takes the stroller. Out the train station, up a steep hill, across two bumpy traffic-filled streets including over tram tracks and numerous curbs -and did I mention that the bags were really heavy and Katie isn't exactly a tiny newborn herself? NOT ONE WORD OF COMPLAINT from our hero!!!!! No panic attack as the light changed while he was still struggling to get the stroller over the curb. Instead he quietly and calmly maneouvered his sister around the streets of Helsinki, on and off trams, cheerfully telling us of dreams he'd had and things he wants to invent along the way. BRAVO, Christopher!

Andrew: Our monkey, offered to push Katie's stroller, especially after he saw the candy I slipped to Christopher in gratitude at the ferry terminal, but alas it is just too heavy for him, so he had to find other challenges. Andrew had his heart set on going to the zoo in Helsinki. Our wedding reception was at the Oakland Zoo, so I have a thing about zoos as well. We only had 5 1/2 hours in Helsinki and take away time to stow our stuff at the terminal and then later time to board, we had very little time to see anything at all. Standing on the the dock we had a decision: to pay $50 for the family to take the boat to the zoo OR take the boat/bus that we already have passed for to the island with a cool fort. Even I was opting for the boat but Andrew held on to the end for the zoo. He took being outvoted very well, though, and cheerfully took on the fort as any energetic, healthy 6 year old boy should: running in and out of tunnels, inspecting all the cannons and LITERALLY climbiing the fortress walls.

Some of you are no doubt asking "Isn't this the same boy who fell in the the tub 2 weeks ago and needed four stitches? Is it wise, or even responsible for his parents to let him be rock climbing?" I'm right there with you. Helsinki has an excellent hospital and healthcare system as many of our friends from Russia can tell you but we don't have the time to avail ourselves of their services. So I watch with my heart in my throuat, my stomach doing somersaults, my hads gripping the stroller handles and my tongue clenched between my teeth because climbing the walls of the fortress is something Andrew needs to do and so I need to let him do it.

TODD: is abosolutely brilliant. Many of you know that and other may think I am biased, but the inspiration and engineering of this trip is pure genius and Todd gets all the credit as the rest of us are along as support staff.

We arrive at the ferry terminal in plenty of time to collect our stuff and begin schlepping it aboard the ferry with 1,000 other passengers. Todd says "This will be the longest 8 minutes of the day" and it was. I am not exactly sure of where we are headed once on board so I am trying to keep everyone together and not lose sight of Todd. It is a futile effort and just as a clump of Chinese tourists elbow thier way in front of me I hear a man whoop-whooping and look up just in time to see the flash as the official cruise photographer captures the moment - worn out, sweaty, irritated, surrounded by pushy Chinese. Oh, yeah. Can't wait to see how that picture turns out.

One short hour later, though, we are showered, refreshed and enjoying the all-you-can-eat Viking Buffet. The boys piled their plates high with all forms of salmon, dolmas and other delicacies so that when they discovered the hotdogs at the kids' section there was no more room on their plates. What good restaurant boys! After a feast fit for Vikings we sit together in front of the windows at the front of the ship and watch as our ship, The Gabriella, slides past the rocky islands into the Baltic. It is stunningly beautiful and even the kids are content to sit for awhile and marvel. Todd looks over at me and says "23 hours ago Nick called to tell us he was waiting to take us to the train station." My first thought was "Nick who?" Not that we have forgotten Russia. Truth be told, my next question might have been "what's a train?" I was that caught up in the beauty of the moment. We have not forgotten, but oh, we are consoling ourselves quite well indeed!

Well done, Todd!

Sunday Evening: And we're off!

READY! Well, not quite ready. As Nick calls to tell us he's waiting downstairs to take us to the train station we are scrambling to water the plants, , stuff the last few things into the already bulging suitcases, taking care not to forget important things like leaving the keys to the Beyar's apartment for the next housesitter.

We make it to the car, but then Todd says he needs to stop at the old apartment to drop something off. Christopher says "Can we PLEASE stop calling it the old apartment. Old means itæs broken or cracked or something. Let's call it the previous apartment!" Point well taken and extra credit for good vocabulary, Christopher!'

We dash off to the train station as the sun is setting (around 10pm) and the lighting over the gilded domes of many lesser known churches on our way is glorious. And Iæm wondering if I AM ready. There is still so much we have never seen, so much we wanted to see again, friends we did not get a chance to say farewell to... but the fact is, we would never have the time to do it all and I AM ready as I ever will be, even if it doesn't feel quite ready enough.

SET! As we arrive at the train station and begin unloading more kids and suitcases than can be easily managed by two people, we are met bytthe cheery faces of friends who took up the challenge to see us off at the station. Oh! what a wonderful sight! Christopher's good friend Victor was there! Katie and her pal Tehillah hopped excitedly around the suitcases. Andrew and Tehillah compared loose teeth. Even baby Zoe giggled and cooed despite being kept up so late. As our train pulled in everyone grabbed a bag and before I knew it all was safely stowed and we still had plenty of time to take photos and enjoy being together a few minutes more. As soon as it was time to board the train, Hugo gathered us in a circle and prayed for our journey and our future. I cannnot imagin a more perfect send-off! Thanks you so much to Hugo, Rika, Victor, Tehillah, Zoe, Sasha, Mandy, and Kari! And thank you to others who couldn't make it but sent their best wishes. We both received and appreciated them!

GO! At precisely 10:50 pm the train started rolling slowly out of the station. Dear Victor ran alongside waving for awhile, but slowly we pulled away and Christopher fell into my arms, sobbing. Soon we were all sitting in our compartment, tears flowing as Moscow quietly slipped past us in the window. THAT, my friends, Todd explained, is why we are taking this trip. To be able to shut ourselves in the compartment and cry together, to acknowledge to ourselves and to our kids that it HURTS to let go of so much and tears are absolutely appropriate, to grow together as a family as we grieve is all priceless.

After the tears are dried and the jammies are donned we finally settle down to sleep, something is different about our family. We are TEAM KERNS and we ARE ready for the Amazing Race that is set before us.

Project Mueshka Part the Third

The eagle has landed. Or in this case, the cat. We have yet to hear all the details of the flight, but his four feet are safely on American soil though he yowled the whole way and escaped at least once from his carrier. He quickly asserted his role as the alpha cat in the Moore household and seems none the worse for the trip. Haven't checked in with his escorts yet, to see if they survived the voyage as well. Hats off to Grandma Dee, Joy, vets Yuri and Valera, new cat hosts Grandpa John and Grandma Darlin' for a successful cat transfer. Anyone up to taking him to Florida in August?

Moving Day

The movers have come and gone, taking everything with them, including things like the "Petey the Parrot" Pinata left over from Andrew's birthday party and several chair cushions that I had promised to a friend. Even Todd's shoes were not spared and were sucked into the packing vortex before he could snatch them back. Fortunately he has other pairs as traveling halfway around the world barefoot was not the sort of kitschy travel story angle we were interested in pursuing. Andrew is thrilled about the Pinata being packed. It almost makes up for having to throw away all the chestnuts.

For now, though, we are mostly done with our work. We have moved into our friends house across the street and have begun our last week in Moscow as tourists. I don't have to worry about what to do with a gutted pinata until we get to Florida. I'll post photos the next chance I get to the computer.

In other news: the boys had a fabulous day at baseball; Andrew rounding the bases a few times in t-ball and Christopher getting his first hit of the season, making it safely home, and his Dad coaching the undefeated Moscow A's into first place! Yea, Team! While we waited for the trophy to be awarded Andrew entertained the team by having his stitches taken out.

Mueshka is airborne as I write. He was very stressed out about the move and had resorted his usual drooling, panic attack response to the cat carrier. The vet gave us some tranquilizers but warned us to test them before flying. Good thing we did as the tranquilizers had a reverse effect on him. We came home from a wonderful dinner out at the Pushkin Cafe to a wide-eyed babysitter who recounted how the cat was climbing along the backs of the chairs, trying to eat the legos, and had nipped at Katie. We decided the tranquilizers would be better served if we gave them to Grandma and just hope for the best. He made it as far as passport control without incident and we will hear in a few hours how the rest of the journey went.

Stitches

We are winding down our time in Moscow and are beginning to check off our list some of the things that we love to do or have always wanted to do and never done. Monday night we took Katie to see her first ballet, the Nutcracker. She was transfixed and declared that she would like to dance like the Sugar Plum Fairy with her Daddy. Yesterday we went to the Tretyakov Gallery, one of my favorite places on earth, and drank in my fill of Russian Art all afternoon. For dinner we went to our favorite restaurant, U Pirosmani. It is a fabulous Georgian restaurant that overlooks the pond in front of the Novy Devichy monastery. Bill Clinton seems to have enjoyed his visit there based on the photograph posted in the entryway along with those of all the other dignitaries and stars that have stopped by in the past several years. And tonight we are off the the circus.

One of the things we had never done in Moscow (until this week) is a mad drive to the medical clinic on a late night with a bleeding child in the car. On Saturday, after a busy day of baseball and birthday parties, the boys were soaking in the tub when Andrew decided to climb on the sides of the tub to crawl over Christopher to get to the other side. Bad idea. He slipped, fell on the edge of the tub and put an inch wide, very deep gash where his left eyebrow should be. Fortunately Todd arrived on the scene first and was able to get a towel over the wound before I saw all the blood. He's the Eagle Scout and is way better at that sort of thing. He handed Andrew over to me and I held him to try and get him calmed down while Todd called around for help. While we waited, Christopher and the cat hovered over Andrew, both crying. Christopher, sobbing, was begging me to tell him a way he could help. Mueshka kept sniffing the back of Andrew's head and gave him a couple of licks to try and comfort him. It was terribly sweet! FORTUNATELY this all happened when we have a few extra adults in the house who were able to watch Katie and Christopher while we ran Andrew across town to the International clinic. FORTUNATELY, it was a Saturday night and there was virtually no traffic on the roads and so we got there very quickly. The fact that this happened the night before Todd was preaching and we were hosting a big good-bye party/sale, was not quite as fortunate, but you can't have everything.

So, 4 stitches from a very kind doctor at the International SOS Clinic and Andrew was feeling much better. He was an absolute hero and bore the pain of all those shots of novocaine and the needles like a brave little soldier. We were hoping the experience would slow him down some, but he is still every bit the monkey and climbs and swings from anything in his path.

Today I am packing up our clothes for the big trip as we move over to our friends' house tomorrow. They will be gone at a conference for over 2 weeks and have graciously allowed us to housesit so we can stay in a furnished, comfortable apartment for the last few days in Russia. (THANK YOU BEYARS!!!!) This morning I took the kids over so they could play together and I could pick up the keys and instructions. After hanging out for awhile, it was time to say good-bye. This is something that I have dreaded for almost a year, since we first began to think about leaving here. I thought I was going to be OK and that with all the logistical details and chaos I would be able to distract myself. As we left, though, Katie and Nadya clung to each other with Nadya crying. Katie sniffled and explained "Nadya is my BEST friend." Emma stood by with a sad face and soon I was crying, too. Now, I should be packing, but I am here writing and wiping away tears and wondering.... where's the novocaine and is there anyone that can put stitches in my heart?

Dear Beyars! Thank you for being a part of our lives here and for sharing so much with us. We love you all so much and earnestly pray that our lives will intersect not once, but many, many times in the years to come.