TALLINN - ESTONIA

Four intrepid NZers, along with half the population of Helsinki, boarded the local inter islander ferry ( the size of a cruise ship) and headed to Tallinn, Estonia. We were one of at least 3 ships heading to Estonia for the day, Imagine Cooks Strait having 3 "cruise ship" size ferries heading each day Wellington to Picton.
While us Kiwis headed for the sights of Tallinn, the Finns headed for the bars, got rolling drunk, and smoked endless weed then rolled back onto the ship at the end of the day loaded down (and I mean loaded as in trolley loads) with cheap Estonian booze (and I thought the Finns had some class about them.......sigh......).

Tallinn is a city of two parts, and we headed for the old city preserved under a UNESCO world heritage order. Tallinn is simply magical and breathtaking. I was surprised that the Russians left it so intact.
After dis-embarking, we started our day with an early lunch in a medieval cafe having Elk soup, wild game pie, and old world beer. The service was equally medieval with " busty wenches" serving us, oh arh, oh arh! It was so well done.
We then headed for a Russian Orthodox church, which I couldn't take photos inside, but again, Serena and I lit a candle each to our past cats & the people of Ukraine.
We then explored a number of shops selling Amber (Tallinn is the Baltic centre for Amber) and other lovely gifts.
Later in the day, we went to a KGB Museum, a sobering experience. The building had been a KGB prison up until the 1980s. It had many artifacts and video interviews of dissidents that had survived the atrocities. I didn't take photos there,it was too upsetting. Sadly, all of this is happening again in Crimea and back in Russia.
The cobbled streets, quaint buildings, and magnificent churches made for a day to remember. Estonia, stand strong against the Russian aggression. You have so much to offer the world.
Now on board our ship with 90% drunk Finns and their trolley loads of booze....oh dear........every country has them..........Read more