Sailing Into Estonia
After leaving Russia, we didn't travel too far, remaining in the former Soviet Union with a trip to Estonia's capital city, Tallinn. We passed out of the port and followed the signs towards Old Town.
Kadriorg Park
We made our way to the Linnahall tram stop. It took a few minutes on the Internet to purchase tram tickets and caught a tram out to Kadriorg Park to tour the gardens. We spent about an hour there viewing the rose garden and looking at the Presidential Palace and then caught a tram back to Linnahall to begin our tour of Old Town Tallinn.
Fat Margaret
The entrance to Old Town is the Great Coastal Gate. Next to it is the Fat Margaret artillery tower.
The Broken Line Monument
Just outside the tower on a bluff overlooking the harbor is a broken black arch, a memorial to 852 people who perished in 1994 when the Estonia passenger ferry sank during its Tallinn-Stockholm run.
Three Sisters Building
We passed by the Three Sisters Building, an example of a merchant home / warehouse / office from the 15th-century Hanseatic Golden Age. The charmingly carved door near the corner evokes the wealth of Tallinn's merchant class.
St. Olaf's Church
Our tour of scaffoldings of Northern Europe continued as we reached St. Olaf's church. The 16th century, 124 meter gothic steeple once made this one of the tallest buildings in the world and is considered a symbol of Tallinn. Janie was happy the 232 steps to the tower's observation platform were closed for renovation.
KGB Headquarters
In an non-descript building on the corner is the ministry of police, which before 1991, was the local KGB headquarters. The building was called "the tallest building in town" because "when you're in the basement, you can already see Siberia".
Brotherhood Of The Black Heads
Next along Pikk was the Brotherhood of the Black Heads. The Black Heads Society Hall dates from 1440 and was a German merchants' club. "Black head" refers to St. Mauritius, a Christian martyr beheaded in Switzerland in 200 AD.
Great Guild Hall
The mediaeval Great Guild Hall's permanent exhibition discloses the story of Estonian, such as the Gun Room that tells about war and the 'Power of the Elite' that talks about the Great Guild and medieval trade. We were not interested in another museum, but we hung around outside waiting for the Marzipan room to open.
Borsi Passage
While waiting for the Marzipan room to open, we walked down the Borsi Passage. The history of Estonia is written on the street, literally.
Marzipan Room
The Marzipan Room had opened so we went inside and watched Tallinn's favourite sweet being made. All of the marzipan figurines looked far too good to eat but we found a few marzipan hearts and a small truffle assortment.
Tallinn Town Hall
We reached Town Hall and stopped first at the Church of the Holy Ghost (Puhavaimu kirik). Its great clock from 1633 retains its 14th-century design. Dominating the Town Hall is the only intact Gothic town hall in Northern Europe. Built in 1402 as a meeting place for the rulers, the Renaissance spire is topped by an important symbol of the town, the Old Thomas vane. Town Hall's 64-metre tower is where soldiers used to keep watch. We walked around for awhile looking for the Town Hall Pharmacy. Open since 1422, this shop is the oldest continuously running pharmacy in Europe. Our GPS app was not very clear but eventually we found it.
Kiek In The Kok
All of us were in need of a rest stop and a tourist agency sent us up the hill towards St. Nicholas Church. This 13th-century Gothic church served German merchants and knights 500 years ago. The Russians bombed it in WWII. In one night, on March 9, 1944 the area around this church, dense with medieval buildings, was flattened. We didn't have much luck finding the public toilet, but J. R. did spy a gelato shop and, as luck would have it, they had a W.C. So Rebecca and Janie enjoyed gelato while J. R. had an Americano and we made use of the facilities.
We had originally talked about going through the Kiek in the Kok museum, but we had seen a lot of museums, so we decided just to walk by. The museum showcases examples of medieval firepower and displays detailing how the city's walls and towers developed through the centuries and exhibits covering crime, punishment and other facets of old Tallinn. After a quick stop at the Maiden's Tower (Neitsitorn), we began our walk to Toompea. Neitsitorn was built as part of the town's defenses in the 14th century. In the 18th century, the tower was repurposed as a two-story residence and was home to many prominent Estonian artists.
Kuberneriaed
Our mapping program got us a little lost on the way to Toompea hill but eventually we found the pink palace, an 18th-century addition that Russia built onto Toompea Castle. Today, it serves as the Estonian Parliament building, flying the flag of the Estonian republic. The castle itself and its Tall Herrmann tower are a powerful symbol for Estonians. For 50 years, while Estonian flags were hidden in cellars, the Soviet flag flew from Tall Hermann, finally coming down in 1991.
We also visited the King's Garden (Kuberneriaed), initially laid down in 1773 when the Toompea fortress was reconstructed for the use of the Province Government.
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
Much to Becca's chagrin, J. R. wanted to see the inside of the Alexander Nevsky cathedral. We had heard a lot about Nevsky in St. Petersburg. We joined the line to take a quick peek inside. The cathedral was built in 1900 over the supposed grave of a legendary Estonian hero, Kalevipoeg. Built to face the parliament, many Estonians see it as a crass attempt to flex Russian cultural muscles during a time of Estonian national revival in the early part of the 20th century.
French Embassy
Rebecca found the French embassy in Tallinn and had to pose outside.
Vana Toomas Cafe
It had been awhile since breakfast and the cafes in Town Hall Square had looked inviting, so we decided to skip any more sightseeing and go get a bite to eat. We chose the Maikrahv's Vana Toomas cafe right on the square. J. R. had a local beer and Janie had a cider and then we all split a platter of cheeses, including brie, blue cheese, Estonian cheese, sour milk cheese, parmesan, Parma ham, stuffed olives, fig jam and cheese twists, along with a basket of bread. Becca ordered a homemade apple cake with cherry sauce and ice cream which she found to be delicious.
Old Town Tallinn
After lunch, we began the walk back to the ship down Pikk Street, stopping for a few more photos near the church.
Port Of Tallinn
We made it back to the dock and the Reflection just in time for the skies to open up. We talked later to several guests who were caught in the huge downpour, so we were glad we had made our decision to head back when we did.
Martini Bar and Rob Lewis
After a quick visit to the Enchanted Garden, we visited the martini bar again before dinner as we tried to drink our way through each of the signature martinis. After drinks, we attended Rob Lewis' tribute to Phil Collins. He was much better than "Almost Elton" we had on our cruise last Spring (not that it was possible to be worse).
Martini Bar Menu
Dinner
We returned to the Opus Dining Room for evening dinner. We got another drink and joined the last part of the dance mix with DJ Blease and then joined the "Largest Pride Party @ Sea" for some late-night dancing.