Welcome to Lovely Estonia!

Early Saturday morning, we were off to Helsinki to catch a ferry to the medieval town of Tallinn, the capital of Estonia.  After a quick 2 hour ride, we seemed to have traveled hundreds of years back in time.  In fact, what was one of the first things we saw?  It was none other than Shrek.  

We spent the day strolling around town and taking in the sights.  Tallinn is a beautiful city that is perfect to tour by foot.  Most of the sight seeing is located in the "Old Town".  Surrounding Old Town, is the original medieval wall that is still mostly in tact.  Tallinn is a "town of two towns".  Inside the city wall, there is also another wall, that separated the feuding upper town from the lower town in medieval times.  

Estonia has seen more than its fair share of feuds.  Its prime location between Russia and Europe, has made it an alluring target for invasion by rulers (Danes, Swedes and more recently, Germans & Soviet Russia).  Estonia was occupied by the communistic government of Soviet Russia until 1991.  How the Estonians persevered during those dark years, is nothing short of amazing.  If you are interested in history, I highly recommend "The Singing Revolution".  It is a documentary (that can be downloaded from iTunes) that details the Estonian's long, hard struggle for independence.  It is pretty sobering to realize that people, not too different from myself, know what it is like to make themselves a human shield in the name of independence.

Today, Estonia emits a lively and energetic vibe.  It is eager for prosperity and the tourist dollar.  There are tons of shops and restaurants sprawling with workers dressed in traditional medieval garb.  The food is quite good too!  We enjoyed our first steak, since we have been abroad, and were tickled to see the meat was Angus beef imported from the US.  Tallinn also has plenty of nightclubs (and is still bustling at 3 a.m. I might add).  Thanks to Grandpa Bob, Mike and I were able to visit a few.  We couldn't stop laughing at the irony of being in Estonia, at an Irish pub, with a bunch of Finns, singing Karaoke to the likes of Bon Jovi and Jon Mellencamp.

Tallinn is a lovely city with a lot of culture.  One day was not enough for us to take in all that Tallinn has to offer.  We can't wait for our next visit.

Here is a great view of Tallinn's medieval architecture.  Some of these structures date back to the 15th and 16th centuries.

The tall tower in the background is the radio/TV tower that gave Estonians their only glimpse of the Western world during Soviet Occupation.  In the 1980's, most Estonians had no idea what a pineapple or banana looked like. (Scandinavia 12th ed, Rick Steves).  This is also the tower the Estonians guarded with their life during the harrowing days, in 1991, when they won their independence from the USSR.

Here is a picture of the wall.  This particular section is know as "Sweater Wall".  Tallinn is famous for its woolen goods as well as amber, linen, ceramics and iron decor.