St. P Day 2

Definitely tired alreaday in the morning. We didn't manage to leave the hostel until noon. In fact, we had our nice brunch at 11:30. Not entirely the best idea timing for visiting cities, especially not a city as large or as amazing as St. P. Got into the light and down the streets eventually and we separated into two groups as each of us wanted to go to different locations. Dominik, Janos, Inga and me went to the Mosque at first. It was the first Mosque I've ever been to, a very interesting experience. Felt a bit shy because I didn't have a scarf on my head, but otherwise I just carefully observed. Inga posed a question about if these people really understood the Koran or not. I believe that even if they did no understand it in its original language, they understand it in their heart. Amazing the power of religion, how it moves and changes people. Amazing even more the power of religion, how it builds beautiful churches and mosques and locations. There were a lot of old people and handicaps lined up outside and a lot of vendors. In a way, the Muslim community seems to be taking care of their poor and the needed much better than seen as the Christian churches, or maybe I just haven't seen enough. To see these people makes me sad, makes me think about how lucky I am and how I should have been far more thankful in my life. As we walked out we talked about religion, but just chats. I bet if we had a Christian in the group, we would have had quite a debate and quite a conversation. Sometimes I wonder if there really is a God up there and if He can really hear our prayers. If there is someone up there, can He hear my prayers?

We walked quite briskly to the Peter and Paul Fortress . On the way we ran into Sebastien, Björn and Sara. At the fortress (under renovation) I started a conversation with Dominik about renovations of buildings. I don't understand the particular need, I mean I like it but I don't understand it, of renovating old buildings. If history is a representation of time, why correct time? Dominik said that if people still live in it, then it is just like renovating your house. I was thinking, if we keep always building new buildings and renovating old buildings, there's only so much space left in the world. Maybe for some of the historical ones, it seems rather fine and brilliant to renovate them because then we can pass the culture on, but on the other hand, isn't it just another kind of nostalgia? Humans are naturally nostalgic. What we have lost we cherish the most, but how often do we really look into the future? We just keep repeating the past, like fashion, like writing, like everything else...

The Peter and Paul Cathederal was inside the fortress. A lot of GOLD! Not extremely impressive except for all the Romanoffs burried within it. Noblity, aristocrasy... The world is full of these class differentiations, even if we try our hardest to break through it, it is still there. The only thing we can do is try to propel ourselves for the higher and the better and let the rest settle as it should.

Got out of the cathederal rather tired and nicely cold. Winter have not left the world entirely at this latitude. We walked over to the City History Museum and walked through the building of the city and the fortress. Apparently there had always been people in the location, just different groups. Saw armory from the BC times and was quite impressed by the degree of protection and agility these armours carried. Compared with the armours from the medieval era or even the more present days, the armours just grew harder and harder to move in. Maybe that is also the way the world had slowly developed, more and more on the appearance, less and less on the actual use. Saw some videos about the revolution, some old army things, some old swords. I was thinking about Exciliber, how one sword lead the kingdom. We all need symbols to hold ourselves together, things to live on, to live by, to believe in. In every way, like Frank had once said, we are all dependent, even if we want to be independent.

Walked to the side of Neva River and looked over to the city. From faraway it is indeed a beautiful city, but it is a harsh place to live in. I wondered inside, silently, how lucky Europe is in this sense. It seems to be such a wonderful place to live in, and its history still intact, no one had stolen anything quite entirely. Pollution is low in Europe, comparatively, but they consume so much of the world. Walked to the Cruiser Aurora but couldn't get in. I wasn't much keen on seeing it in the first place, I wanted more to see the Churches, to see the markets, to see the people, to see the city. If there was time and if I could chose for just myself, I would have chose a cafe and sat there staring at the street for just one afternoon, even if we were there for just three days. Still, the cruiser was impressive in its historical way. Such a small cruiser yet it is the starting place of such a revolutionary part of the world history, the Red October. I felt quite small at the moment, I knew nothing about it, though it probably affected my life more than I imagined.

The walk back was tiring. I am quite a few centimeters smaller than the rest of the group, that makes quite a bit less quick in my walking. For most of the next few days I felt like I didn't just walk briskly, but I was skipping a little here and there, half running most of the times. We saw Lenin's statue, it wasn't impressive. I was a bit disappointed, but also amazed. Such a statue, something that now seems to be passed by for nothing than a man standing there eternally, had once been so forceful and so authoritative. I wondered, as I took pictures, what it would be like if I was a Russian at the time, or even if I am a Russian just now, looking at the statue of Lenin. He looked so small and so like just a normal man, but he had so much power, so much power that he changed the world.

Finally reached meeting point after getting lost with the others. Instead we went into a chocolate museum and saw a lot of different kinds of chocolate cookings. It was more of a shop, really, but still, it was nice and sweet. I was thinking about how people see the city as I observed with hunger the chocolates in front of my eyes. I tried hard to catch up with everyone, but I really didn't want to travel this way. On the way to the meeting point there was a man fishing at the river in the middle of the city. I wanted to stop and just watch him fish, just see what he is doing and imagine why he did it. I can imagine how he brings the fish back home to his wife and they cook it for their three children as the main course of the night. What I cannot imagine is how they eat the fish from the water. Dominik questioned if the fish was even living at all (joking, of course). I don't question it, I was just surprised. At least now I won't complain so much the living condition in Taiwan. And I don't see how anyone can complain about Helsinki at all. We are all just too lucky and too damn lucky to see how lucky we really are.

Lucky first day, that's for sure. We finally reached the Palace Square. I had thought that man were supposed to be better than woman in map reading, but I guess I was wrong. In a way this trip I was glad for all the things my parents had taught me before, they taught me how to survive in many ways, for one, reading a map and remembering the pathes we walked. At first I was wondering why there are so many soldiers walking around (of course I later found that there are just always so many soldiers walking around in St. P) then I was shocked to find something like 1000 soldiers standing in formation on the square, surrounding our meeting point. My first reaction is if something was wrong, then I hear the music and noticed the shouting and saluting. We walked right into some ceremony appearantly. Unfortunately I have no clue what exactly it was, but it was impressive. All the soldiers standing there. They were freezing cold, that was for sure. It took about 15 to 30 minutes before the marching ended. By that time we've already walked to the front of the soldiers and I could see the band. These were not scary people, but just lively young men. One band performer started a penguin march right as soon as they were dismissed. To wave off the cold, Dominik said. Just regular soldiers and one day if they are lucky they will find themselve with a gun in their hands fighting for someone else's benefits. It's always someone else's benefit, it seems.

Started looking for a Internet Cafe so Inga can write to Frederico to see if he's going to join us in Russia or not. Found one, and it happened to be the rebirth party of the cafe, so, it was free. Everything was free. Free drinks, free food and free Internet. Russian parties, hum... You see a lot of really rich and posh people in St. P, people who walk around spending money like as if they don't care less. You see girls walking around looking for guys to spend the night with. You see such a society based on consumerism, commercials everywhere... It's like Taiwan, but not entirely. People here are also rather friendly, though I would have preferred a lot less staring...

Went and tried to find a Georgian restraunt, but it was full. Left and went looking for other places to eat, but couldn't find any. Or more like everyone was too dependent on books instead of just trying things out by random. I felt actually quite at home in St. P because it was a real metropolis like Taipei, and in the same chaotic situation as in Taipei, not the same peacefulness of the other European Cities I've visited so far. Ended up at a bliny chain store, not particularly interested in the food, but since it seems to be a popular fast food chain in Russia, it was interesting to attach it anyway. Afterward we split up again and Dominik and I went back to the Georgian restraunt while the others went looking for a bar. I didn't feel like clubbing particularly this night, it was late and I was tired. Had Lavash with hot cheese and egg on it, dumplings filled with cheese and a Georgian lemonade that turned out to be of some weird grass instead. Green drink... not a particular favorite. The food was great, but too much cheese for me, my stomache is still trying to live with it. The waiter was funny. Didn't speak much English and looked obviously annoyed by us non-russian speaking tourists. The funny thing was he actually complained about us in Russian in front of us to another lady. Okay... Dominik understands a little bit, I think, of Russian.

Positivity: 8

Great day...