Out there with Tom: Russia is a presence over the Baltics like a menacing grizzly

The Russian Embassy in Tallin, Estonia was plastered with anti-Putin, anti-Russian signs.

Many signs compared Putin to Hitler

In Vilnius, Lithuania, an anti-Putin sign on one of downtown's skyscrapers

The Soviets left brutalist sculpture like this in Riga, Latvia

We just finished a 12 day trip to the Baltic nations, Poland and Finland with our big takeaway as Russia's menacing presence in the area.

We couldn't go anywhere without experiencing Russia's negative impact on these nations, and for the most part, the fear they have for their massive eastern neighbor.

The most visible sign were all the Ukrainian flags flying off government and business buildings.

There is fear that if Russia succeeds in their war with Ukraine that they will be next.

In Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, a giant banner was draped over one of that city's new skyscrapers that read, "Putin: the Hague is Waiting for You."

Naturally, we also saw the damages created by the Nazis from WWII in addition to the horrors of years of occupation by the Soviets. We visited the KGB prison in Vilnius where countless Lithuanians were held, tortured and murdered.

The monument to WWII Polish Underground fighter Witold Pilecki at the WWII Museum

We began our trip in Gdansk, Poland, our second visit there, to see the WWII Museum. Gdansk is where the war began on Sept. 1, 1939 when Hitler used the provocation that Poland wouldn't grant him access to the Baltic Sea from there.

It is an extremely modern building architecturally, and we spent hours there visiting well-curated exhibits about the war.

We also stopped at the Solidarity Museum, where ship workers struck in the late 1970s which led to the breakup of communism in eastern europe in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

We also broke away from the grimness to enjoy this vibrant port city.

We took an extremely modern train to Warsaw for our next stop. The first class fare was about 40 Euros and included a lunch served during the two hour trip.

In Warsaw we fulfilled Katie's wish to see a European bison, which looks very similar to the American bison, and called a Zubr. Poland and Belarus have the last remaining free roaming European bison, but we went to the Warsaw Zoo to find a small herd in captivity. The zoo is famous for having sheltered Warsaw Jews during WWII in the animal pens to keep them from being killed by the Nazis. This was chronicled in the movie, "The Zoo Keeper's Wife."

A European forest bison in the Warsaw Zoo

On the way back to our hotel we visited the St. John Basilica in the Old Town, a center of Polish Catholicism. We went through the catacombs there and viewed the tombs of famous Polish historical figures like Henryk Sienkiewicz (author: Quo Vadis) and Cardinal Wyszynski, who fought the communists for years.

I finally got into Holy Cross Church where Chopin's heart is entombed, and where we heard a very moving choral performance of mostly sacred and patriotic songs.

The place where Chopin's heart is entombed in Warsaw's Holy Cross Church

We started our day with a tour of the Warsaw Botanical Gardens and a visit to Lazienski Park where there is a spectacular sculpture of Chopin.

The monument to Chopin in Warsaw's Lazienki Park

This was a third trip to Poland and I left with a heavy heart, thinking that it was probably the last time I would see my ancestral city and country that I love.

On to Vilnius, a city of parks and museums and a beautiful river flowing through the middle of it. We climbed its high point to an old fortress/castle for a great view. The next day I did the Old Town and a grand church and square, the Vilnius Cathedral, and the baroque St.Casimir Church with its 2,000 plaster sculpted statues. We came upon the "country" of Uzupis, the pretend state within the city inhabited by the Bohemian/artist crowd, where you could get your passport stamped. In the afternoon it was a tour of the KGB headquarters.

I really like Vilnius, but the scooters and electric bikes and Uber Eats motorcycles oron the trails and sidewalks through the city made walking downright dangerous.

On our way to Riga we stopped just short of the Latvian border where there is a religious pilgrimage site on a small hill covered with thousands of mostly wooden crosses. Riga, Latvia was a surprise and a delight. Its well preserved neoclassic architecture is recognized as a UNESCO Heritage site. The city reminded me of a mini-Paris. There are pathways through gorgeous parks that gave the city a leafy feel and which led from the Old Town to the downtown. I could have used more time in this capital. The market was the best of our trip, oddly located in an old zeppelin hangar. The tour guide was the best we had during our trip.

Estonia was a bit of disappointment for a huge amount of tourism that overran the capital Tallinn. Gargantuan cruise ships plugged its harbor, disgorging tourists from all over the planet that clogged the city. Its Old Town was mildly interesting, but the new skyscrapers and buildings showed how far the city has come since Russian domination.

Perhaps the most interesting part of my visit to Old Town in Tallinn was the Russian Embassy where we encountered the only police we saw there. They were watching that embassy where a fence was set up and it was plastered with tons of anti-Putin, pro-Ukraine posters.

I guess I've reached the point where I've seen enough Old Towns in Europe to last a lifetime. Contact with people and current and cultural events are where I'm at.

We took a ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki, Finland, a city that took me for surprise for its mix of dynamism and historic treasures. We stayed in a boutique hotel on the tree-lined Boulevard Street, centrally located with access to parks, shopping, eateries and historic sites.

We toured a Russian Orthodox Church, and a former Russian Orthodox Cathedral converted to the country's Lutheran Cathedral above a great square.

A Soviet cannon left after WWII in Helsinki's Sumenlinna Fortress Park

The Sumenlinna Fortress Park is a UNESCO Heritage site for its massive stone walls

We took a ferry to Helsinki's Suomenlinna Fortress Park and spent hours touring this island and its rugged coast line. I was impressed by the massive cannons the Soviets left behind during its occupation. The fortress was developed by the Swedes.

I've never seen so much public transportation as we encountered in Helsinki: trains, trams, buses, ferries, everywhere all the time. They were really inexpensive. For the day pass I paid 15 Euros and was able to take the ferry to Suomenlinna and use that ticket on the train to the airport, an hour away. I could have used that same ticket on any of the other types of transport all day, too.

I regret that we missed seeing the new public library, but we were so busy that seeing it was out of the question.

The Helsinki train station with its Soviet era statues

The train station square and the monuments on the station itself were impressive.

On the homeward flight between Helsinki and Amsterdam we were seated next to a former Finish member of the European Union, Petri Sarvamaa, who now works in an auditing capacity for the EU. He was a career journalist for Finnish Public Television and at one point was at the station's Washington, D.C. bureau. The two hour flight went by quickly because of his conversation.

Most of the political talk during our 12 days involved Russia, although President Trump came up from time to time as an object of bewilderment.