Fat Margaret tower
We had a very beautiful day in Tallinn. It was sunny, about 15 C, and a gentle breeze. We spent several hours walking around through the old walled city.
There are seven cruise ships in port that we can count, so peace and quiet was not the order of the day. All the streets were busy with tourists, but for the most part we avoided the worst crowds.
The stone wall of Tallinn
Like Visby, the city is surrounded by a old stone wall; however, here the wall is much less distinct. At many places the wall has become incorporated into the buildings, forming one of their walls. The towers also seemed to me to be higher, and as much of the old city is built atop a hill, the total drop to the plain that makes up the level of the ocean is much greater than in Visby.
View of Tallinn from atop the St. Olav tower
We went into a number of the churches. — and there are many in the city. The first we stopped at is St. Olav’s, which has a tall tower. There are 234 steep spiral steps to the top. I climbed up, but Enid did not. From the top you get a very nice view out over the town. However, it would not be a good place to go if you were afraid of heights, as the walkway (though fenced off) at the top is very narrow. It has a one way direction sign on it, though of course most of the Oriental tourists ignored it, were going the wrong way, and so made it very difficult to get around. Foolishly I walked to the top with my backpack on. Since Enid stayed at ground level I should have left it with her as it was hard to pass people on the stairs with it on.
Street corner in Tallinn
Along Pikk street are old buildings that were once part of the guilds. We stopped in the Tallinn City Museum before lunch, where we saw displays that clarifed the role played by the Great Guild. The museum has good displays throughout Estonian history to the present day. Unlike any place else we’ve been on this Baltic cruise, the Estonian’s pull no punches in showing their distaste for the Soviet era and Russia’s occupation from the 1940’s to 1991.
Porcelain display in the Tallinn City Museum
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
On the way out of the museum we passed the “sweater wall” and I bought a beautiful blue and white wool sweater. It will be perfect for cross-country skiing. We also bought a miniature icon in The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, so we have two souveniers from Estonia.
Wall and tower in Tallinn
After lunch we walked by Freedom Square with it’s large monument to Estonian Independence, and then by the Estonian Parliament and along the walls, with their gates and towers. We tried to find the public market, and made it as far as the train station, but weren’t sure where the market was, so gave up, and walked back to the ship.
Tallinna Linnahall
Right by the dock is the large Soviet era concert hall, the Linnahall concert hall, built in 1980. I walked to the top of the badly maintained stairs to see what the top was like. It appears to be totally unmaintained, doubtless an intentional snub to Russia.