The End!!

Sadly, this is my last post to the HHS Orchestra Tour 2012 blog:( This has been an incredible experience, one I think will be fondly remembered forever. The kids behaved (for the most part:)) like wonderful young adults. You should all be very proud of your children!!

So, today was one last free time to explore the beautiful city of St. Petersburg. When we left this morning it was a snow/rain mix and windy. But once again, the kids were troopers, and didn't let a little Wisconsin-like weather dampen their spirits. We split the kids into groups of what they wanted to do. Since today was the Orthodox Easter, several children and adults wanted to re-visit the monastery to attend a service, while others went to the city market, the Curiosity Museum, the mall, or just explore. We had to be back and ready to go at 2:00. We then left for the town of Pushkin, to visit the summer palace of the Czars, Katharina's Palace. It is the most impressive palace I have ever seen, and I have seen a few on previous orchestra tours. By the time we got to the palace, the sun was shining brightly. The palace was spectacular. The grounds would have been too had everything been in bloom. I'm sure you will see lots of pictures, as the kids were clicking away furiously with the cameras and cell phones.

After we left the palace, we drove a couple of miles to the border of Pushkin and the town of Pavlovsk, where we had a fantastic, 5 course dinner at Restaurant Podovorje, which just happens to be Prime Minister Putin's favorite restaurant! I have some pictures of that that I can show you as well. You won't believe the simplistic beauty of this place. The meal began with breads, meat, cucumbers, and some sort of spread with thin strips of meat. Don't know what it was, but it was very good. There were also stuffed tomatoes and pickled vegetables. Next came cream of mushroom soup, followed by more rolls and Borsch. Now, that word alone has given me the willies for years, but it was fantastic!!! I checked with my boys Ben, Tim, Noah, and Tom, and they loved it as well. They showed me the empty urn that they shared:) Next came something that we concluded was either a stuffed cabbage roll or a stuffed grape leaf roll, but, believe it or not, that was awesome too. Dessert was a crepe-like pastry filled with pommegranets, (?), which was, yes, you guessed it, fantastic! What a farewell dinner! Then the kids had a few minutes to play on the playground equipment outside the restaurant before having another group picture and then boarding the buses to go back to the hotel. A couple of hours of free time at the hotel, bed check, and here I am. Can't believe this is our last night. From what I can tell, everyone has had the time of our lives. We leave the hotel tomorrow morning at 10:00 for the airport and leave in the afternoon for our journey home. See you all a few hours from now!