Sometimes, just looking at maps or the
globe helps in deciding your travels. I was browsing and enjoying looking at
the North of our world. It was sheer curiosity that led me to Tallinn. A huge
fan of waterways, I checked on the map that Tallinn was just two hours away
from Helsinki by boat.
Magnificent choice of ships to Tallinn
So when my trip to Finland was
finalised, I decided that Tallinn was a must. It was two hours definitely but
not by a ‘boat’ it was a majestic ship!! So it was a cold windy morning when I
left my hotel, the Radisson Blu Seaside (www.radissonblu.com/en/seasidehotel-helsinki)
overlooked Terminal 1. The night earlier, from my room that faced the seaside, I could see some ships. The next morning, I had to go to
Terminal 2 to embark on my voyage to Tallinn.
One can take the Tallink Silja Line
ships, Viking or the Eckero ships to Tallinn.
Just this year in February, Helsinki-Tallinn
route’s Tallink – opened up a new terminal building at Helsinki West Harbour. I
made sure I was well in time, as one needs to check-in (can be done online
too), the T2 building is swank, new and once I checked in, I got a ticket with
a code. I proceeded to the escalator, scanned my ticket and the waiting area
was huge with two restaurants and seating. Being off-season in November, there
were not too many passengers but it did get comfortably full at 10 am. The new
LNG powered ship Megastar, glided in so smoothly for the 10.30 am voyage to
Tallinn.
Once all the passengers Tallin
disembarked and we began to walk towards the majestic ship to board. Totally in
awe, I stared at the sheer size. Passengers are taken directly to deck 8.
Comfort Class of Megastar
I was booked into the Comfort Class. A
pretty lady ushered me in after checking my ticket. I thought I was in some
fancy restaurant, only that I was in the Baltic Sea! I walked to the nose of
the ship the sea stretched ahead of me. Seating was on comfortable grey chairs
with dining tables and if you needed privacy, there were enclosures too. I made
myself comfortable and headed to the food counter. Chips, peanuts, biscuits,
cinnamon buns, fresh cucumber, cauliflower with dips were complimentary!!
Drinks included a variety of coffees, teas and soft drinks. Luxury!! For those
who wanted a heavier snack, one could buy a Hessburger (hamburger from
Helsinki) and also hard drinks.
At sharp 10.30 am the ship left,
smoothly. Since it was a rainy day, it was grey all around. I decided to
explore the ship. Walking out of the ‘comfort’ class, I checked the lifts – 8a
was business lounge and 8b was comfort lounge. Opposite this class was the
regular sitting area, followed by a huge duty-free shopping area like an
airport. I went and checked out jewellery, cosmetics, perfumes, clothes, bags .
Then a floor lower was the liquor, the
best!! Couples, families with children were shopping to kill time and stuffing
their bags with chocolates, wines and snacks. Within no time, we arrived in
Tallinn.
Tallinn in two days
Since it was my first time in Estonia,
I decided to have a local guide. Maarja Laiapea
and Jüri Pokk of Saku Travel (www.sakutravel.ee) were both waiting for me. What a warm
welcome!! Since it was drizzling, it was great to have a vehicle and warm
hosts. We drove out in the comfortable Mercedes van. Maarja was soft-spoken and
knew the country really well as she was born here, studied in a town away from
Tallinn and then settled in Tallinn. She mentioned that summers in Tallinn are
really busy, so for five months they have tourists from all over the world, she
even guided some Indian families. Tallinn is a favourite with tourists who are
on the cruise liners that come from St. Petersburg. Once the ship docks, hordes
of tourists descend on Tallinn and see it in a day.
Juri drove us to Kalamaja district
first and it was just five minutes away. I tried to peep at the city through
the rain. Tallinn is bang on the Baltic sea, and the city has a long coastline.
Kalamaja is quiet little neighbourhood just outside the Old Town and is eye-catching
for its colourful wooden buildings. During earlier centuries, Kalamaja served
as the town’s main fishing harbour and was considered as a suburb. The word
Kalamaja means fish house. It was in 1870 that Tallinn got connected by train
to St. Petersburg and it became industrial and there was a huge influx of
workers. After a few years, this area fell out of favour, and it was almost
abandoned. With Tallinn’s improved economy in the 21st century, the
middle-class began favouring this district and it led to it being revived. Most
of the homes have retained their original flavour making it a historical
district.
Since I had heard about the Telliskivi
Creative city, I had requested Maarja for a quick look. Set up in the old
railway area, it is a collection of factory buildings that retain their
characteristic flavour. What is innovative are the wonderful restaurants,
stores, art shops and when the weather is good there are food festivals too. A
must visit is the La Muu, a tiny independent
company making their own ice cream from fresh and local produce.
I chanced upon some
amazing stores that had leather goods, paperworks, restaurants.
The Sea plane harbour and a bit of Russian
history
A short drive on the coast and Maarja pointed
out the garages of the Russians, gray with bright-red doors. It was a concept
the Russians introduced in Tallinn to have a covered ‘house’ for one’s car. We
drove to the Seaplane harbour (even though it is closed till 2018) but I
chanced upon one of the oldest ice-breakers!! This ship is called Suur Tõll icebreaker is at the docking port, near the
Seaplane Harbour. It is one of the steam-powered icebreakers from the early
20th century and was built in 1914 in Poland.
The main museum is housed in a strange
looking building in dull grey with three domes. Very close is the formidable
sea-fortress prison all on the shore of the Baltic sea.
We left and proceeded to check out
some royalty. Since Estonia was under the Russian rule for many centuries, the
Russian royalty had some favourite locales and Kadriog was one of the much
loved places. Kadriorg is famous for its small but beautiful Baroque palace.
Russian Tsar Peter the great built the palace for his wife Catherine the first.
The palace has a well-manicured garden and the gardener lived in a charming
cottage outside the palace, surrounded by the woods.
After a brief glance at the Museum of
Modern Art, a truly modern structure, we drove out to the famous Song Festival
Grounds at Lauluvaljak. The structure is unique and magnificent. It was the
first modern post-war construction in the city, that was completed in 1960.
Song Festival and it’s fabulous stage
In 1869, Johann Jannsen established
the Estonian Song festival, aimed at bringing about a national awakening. The
first stage was built by Karl Burman and had space for 15,000 performers.
Later, a bigger stage was designed by
Alar Kotli, Henno Sepmann and Uno Tölpus, the slope was used wonderfully,
where people would be seated. Today, the Song Festival Grounds are
a popular venue for events. It is best known as the place
where every 5 years the Song Festival is held, in which nearly
25,000 singers take part, attracting an audience of nearly
100,000.
On top of the natural limestone slope
sits a bronze monument to Gustav Ernesaks, Estonian composer and 'father of
song'. His statue, that is almost 10 feet in height, is placed as if he is listening
to the concert. It’s a great place to click a photo and a memory of Tallinn.
We moved from the famous song grounds stage
to St. Bridgets’ Convent. It is a deserted site with beautiful ruins, a medieval convent destroyed in 1577. History goes
back to 1407, when it was built as part of a Swedish religious order. It was
the largest convent then and today the modern building of the St. Bridgettine
Order makes a stark contrast to the ruins.
The Old Town of Toompea and Steven - the local celebrity
Driving along the coast, we entered the Old Town in
a few minutes. And the only way to explore the Town is on foot. It’s best to wear comfortable walking shoes as
the pavements are in cobblestone.
Juri dropped us off at the Toompea
castle. A short walk down takes one to a huge gallery that looked down at the
old town with red roof tops, modern structures on the right and the Baltic sea
in the distance. Known as the Kohtuotsa viewing
platform, most tourists love to stand here and relax. One side was the
modern Tallinn. Tourists from the cruise liners were all around. And as I tried
to get my share of space on the gallery, amidst umbrellas and people. Besides
the fantastic view, even though it was a rainy day, I chanced upon a
celebrity!!
A Seagull!. It seems, later I found out, is called
Steven. He wasn’t frightened at all. In fact, he was posing for the camera.
Grey and white, with a yellow beak, he kept moving on the ledge, extremely
comfortable with the crowds.
Just below the viewing gallery is the Danish King´s
Garden. As we walked up, unfortunately
for me, St Mary’s cathedral was closed on Monday. But a little away is the St.
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, an eye-catching structure, opposite the Parliament.
No photography is allowed inside but the structure is so beautiful even from
the outside that I didn’t mind. Inside, beautiful portraits in gold, the
‘onion’ towers that house huge bells made this building a memory to cherish.
Tiny souvenir shops with Russian dolls
and Estonian handicrafts made out of wood dot the entire Old Town. Maarja
particularly pointed out to one called the Little Red House Full of Bright
Ideas.
We walked down to the Great Guild Hall
where a permanent exhibition, entitled 'Spirit of Survival',
covers 11,000 years of Estonia's history with interactive displays and text in
Estonian and English.
It was time for an
early dinner. Maarja made a reservation for me at the Von Krahli Aed. A small
but very charming restaurant with a great host who helped me choose. I settled
for the vegetarian meat loaf, that came plated beautifully.
I stepped out and
took a taxi to my hotel the Radisson Olumpia (www.radissonblu.com/en/olumpiahotel-tallinn). . I was given a voucher
for my welcome drink and checked into my room on the ninth floor – it said
business class and it was sheer luxury!! A welcome snack awaited me – humus
with crispy bread and chips! The bathroom was super in white with a lovely tub
and large countertop. The bed was so comfortable that I slept a deep sleep in
Tallinn.
Kalev Marzipan Room
and shopping in Tallinn
Next morning, I
decided to explore the rest of the town and do some retail therapy too.
Next morning,
post an amazing breakfast, I decided to explore the sauna and swimming pool
located on the 23rd floor. The view was breathtaking more so it was
a bright sunny day!
My touring started with
the Kalev Marzipan Room. An charming store
that sells marzipan, it also houses a cafe and a museum, and the mascot of
Kalev who had a makeover over the years. Check for workshops if you want to see
how the marzipan is painted and do it yourself.
I visited the Town Council´s Pharmacy that exists from 1422 and is now a great stop
for all tourists. It has some interesting exhibits and stories on how ‘folk
medicine’ was made. A short walk took me to the
Viru gates and I also had a look a few typical medieval merchant´s
houses.
I took a quick look
at the Börsi Passage where Estonia's history is set in the stone path.
I decided to
visit Stockmanns to check out the collections and it was time to bid goodbye to
Tallinn, but not before I visited the new departmental store Nautica at the
quay. A spanking new mall, it has some amazing stores and coffee shops. Make
sure you reach the harbour at least three hours early so that you can do full
justice to the stylish stores housed in Nautica.
