From Russia With Love: Luxury Baltic Cruise Stops in St. Petersburg

It wasn't that long ago that the average American had little or no chance of seeing Russia. The once forbidden country now says a resounding "da!" to visitors from the west though, and many arrive at the Baltic Sea port of St. Petersburg in style that would make a czar envious---aboard the Regent Seven Seas Cruises luxury liner Voyager. The super-posh ship sails all over the world but one of its most-beloved runs is a Baltic cruise that departs Stockholm, Sweden calling on ports in Estonia, Russia, Finland and Visby Island before disembarkation at Copenhagen, Denmark (or in the reverse order.) And when I had the pleasure of being a passenger aboard Voyager I was especially thrilled by the fact that this sailing offered a jazz-themed "Circle of Interest" program for music lovers. 

If you have ever taken a cruise you know that you can pretty easily get spoiled by all the food and fun aboard the ship. Most cruise lines offer overflowing buffets, poolside play, games, live music and shows and of course optional "shore excursions" at each port of call. Voyager has all of these things but you have to kick everything up about a dozen notches to imagine the pampering the ship offers. All cruises aboard Voyager are all-inclusive, meaning that the price of almost everything (spa and a few other activities are at an additional cost) has been built into the price of the cruise. This includes adult beverages so you don't have to worry about fishing out your wallet every time you want to sip a margarita by the pool. It's hard to refer to the ship's rooms as mere cabins; my room was spacious enough for a king size bed, a separate sitting room, a walk-in closet and a roomy bathroom. Voyager is also an all-balcony ship so no matter what room you book you can sit outside in privacy and watch the world (literally!) glide by. Then beyond the buffet line are several fine dining options and on a week-long trip you have time to try each restaurant. There's plenty to do after dinner too and on my cruise the entertainment I sought out was part of the jazz-themed "Circle of Interest," live music provided by the Christian Tamburr Quartet. Tamburr is a pianist and vibraphonist who is also a member of the Dazz Band and for the three shows he played on board his band consisted of sax man Seth Carper, bassist Elisa Pruitt and percussionist Brian Sullivan. Tamburr also brought on guest vocalist Amy Baker who previewed songs from her upcoming album as well as covering standards like "Besame Mucho" and Harry James' "I'm Beginning to See the Light." Tamburr and company also got off the ship in St. Petersburg and took a group of us to hear more jazz at the Street Life Café.

I took part in a shore excursion every time Voyager pulled into port. In Estonia I went on a sightseeing tour that included a visit to a fish farm where our group was able to try its luck at catching our lunch. In Finland I went for a hair-raising speed boat ride around and beyond Helsinki harbor and at Visby Island (part of Sweden) I visited a recreation of a Viking village where among other things I learned how to throw an ax like a Viking warrior. The ship stopped in these places for one day each but we anchored in St. Petersburg for three days.
 

I spent as much time in the city as I could; exploring the trendy shopping area on Nevsky Prospekt as well as meeting average Russians by riding the subway, visiting bustling farmer's markets and strolling along streets and canals. 

The Neva River runs through St. Petersburg and I took a boat ride that provided amazing views of the city including of the famous Hermitage Museum.  A three-piece band played Russian music during the cruise; let me hear your balalaika ringing out! And of course I learned how to drink vodka like a Russian. At one touristy place I sampled five or six kinds of the liquor while eating traditional vodka-drinking snacks but I also found my way to some regular bars to mingle with the locals. 

Then there was the evening visit to jazz nightclub Street Life Café. Here I saw Baraca, a violin-and-tablas duo from Riga, Latvia. The pair played a wide variety of progressive jazz music including, amazingly, a version of Ozzy Osbourne's "Shot in the Dark." Tamburr's band played a smoking set after the Baraca warm-up and also jammed with various side players who hopped on and off stage throughout the evening. 

Street Life Café is a roomy yet intimate club and it has a very unique feature that is not visible from the stage area. If you take the staircase up a floor you'll find a private dining room with a majestic domed ceiling that's painted Sistine Chapel-style but with the faces of jazz legends---Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald and many others---taking the places of heavenly figures. 

Another great thing about St. Petersburg is the availability of inexpensive CDs and DVDs. I purchased new concert DVDs by Bob James and Stan Getz for about $7 each and a wide variety of older rock CDs (Jethro Tull, Uriah Heep, T Rex, Kiss, the Sex Pistols, Kate Bush) for about $5 each. There are lots of music shops scattered throughout the city and there's even one very close to where the ship docks. After every day of adventure it was back to the luxury of the floating palace called Voyager! With the stop in St. Petersburg being three days you can pretty much arrange to see and do whatever strikes your interest in the historic Russian city. You even have time to take a trip to Moscow if you want to.

Voyager will be sailing the Baltic Sea and stopping in St. Petersburg during the summer of 2009. For a complete list of her sailings and other Regent Seven Seas Cruises departures visit www.rssc.com

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