There are two things that disappoint foreigners about my "lacking" Russianness: that I'm not a vodka drinker (or hard liquor, for that matter), and that, having been born and raised in Moscow, I've never been to St. Petersburg.

Well, one of the two changes today, because our ship has arrived in this northern capital! So far, the Neva River gods seem to be keenly aware of my military interests, as our ship is docked close to the famous Krasin icebreaker.