Estonia - Tallinn
There's no Telling what you'll find in Tallinn
STORY BY VI HUGHES, 2019
There is one thing we learned on our Baltic cruise that stopped for the day in the capital of Estonia, Tallinn – you will need much more than six hours to discover the many hidden treasures of this wonderful city.
Some facts:Tucked in the northern corner of Estonia on the shores of the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea, Tallinn is a beautiful medieval city of less than 500,000 that punches well above its size! In addition to Tallinn being the capital of Estonia it is the industrial, financial, educational, cultural and research centre of Estonia. It is recognised as one of the top 10 digital cities in the world; is the birthplace of such digital giants as Transferwise and Skype; and is home to both the NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence and the European Union’s IT agency. It is only 380 kilometres east of Stockholm in Sweden, 320 kilometres west of St Petersburg in Russia, and 80 kilometres south of Helsinki in Finland and has strong historical ties to all three cities.
However, none of that matters to the traveller when they first set eyes on this amazing city that has one of the most well-preserved medieval city centres in the world. Records of he first human settlements of Tallinn date back more than 5,000 years, and in the 700 years before Estonia became independent in 1918 the country was ruled by Denmark, Finland, Sweden and finally Russia. It is the architectural influences of these countries that make the centre of this beautiful city so awe-inspiring.
STORY BY VI HUGHES, 2019
There is one thing we learned on our Baltic cruise that stopped for the day in the capital of Estonia, Tallinn – you will need much more than six hours to discover the many hidden treasures of this wonderful city.
Some facts:Tucked in the northern corner of Estonia on the shores of the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea, Tallinn is a beautiful medieval city of less than 500,000 that punches well above its size! In addition to Tallinn being the capital of Estonia it is the industrial, financial, educational, cultural and research centre of Estonia. It is recognised as one of the top 10 digital cities in the world; is the birthplace of such digital giants as Transferwise and Skype; and is home to both the NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence and the European Union’s IT agency. It is only 380 kilometres east of Stockholm in Sweden, 320 kilometres west of St Petersburg in Russia, and 80 kilometres south of Helsinki in Finland and has strong historical ties to all three cities.
However, none of that matters to the traveller when they first set eyes on this amazing city that has one of the most well-preserved medieval city centres in the world. Records of he first human settlements of Tallinn date back more than 5,000 years, and in the 700 years before Estonia became independent in 1918 the country was ruled by Denmark, Finland, Sweden and finally Russia. It is the architectural influences of these countries that make the centre of this beautiful city so awe-inspiring.
It’s no wonder that UNESCO listed the Old Town of Tallinn - which was known as Reval from the 13th Century until the middle of the 20th Century - as a World Heritage Site; there are awesome medieval discoveries to be found around every corner, behind every thick wooden door and inside every alleyway and courtyard.
It took around 10 minutes to wander from the cruise terminal to the start of the cobblestone streets that stretched out behind the remnants of the historic city wall, although remnants may be an unjust description because many of the wall guard towers still dominate the skyline and huge sections of the city wall are well preserved, with lots of ongoing restoration work underway.
Archeologists have found ceramics and pottery in the city centre that are carbon dated to about 3,000 years BC and records show that the first fortress was built around 1050, or almost 1,000 years ago. By the 1300’s the city had a population of around 8,000; was a strategic crossroads between Russia and the western and northern parts of Europe; and was heavily fortified, with massive city walls and 66 defence towers.
Given our relatively brief time in port we chose to explore independently on foot and continued to be both amazed and surprised as we wandered through awesome streets whose buildings appeared unattended until we peered into narrow windows, down circular stone steps leading to a basement entrance, or through thick wooden doors to find enchanting restaurants, bars and cafes or every style of retail outlet.
There were thousands of tourists making their way through the city as at least four cruise ships were at the terminals, but it seemed far less crowded than a normal city subway as the streets were unusually wide with relatively few vehicles travelling through them.
Finally we came to the city square that was bustling with markets, bars and restaurants spread across the cobblestones and surrounded by ornate buildings that were hundreds of years old, as well as the main Town Hall that featured, of all things, remnants of steel shackles that held prisoners to the walls, like the old stocks in England.
The markets in the square were fantastic, with so many different locally made items to choose from including souvenirs and clothes that you couldn’t find anywhere else. I loved the linen products. There was everything from beautiful dresses, tops and scarfs as well as table runners and doilies which were great to take home for gifts. I could have spent all day just strolling through these markets.
We also found several cafes that provided both excellent ales and free wifi, so we relaxed for a while and soaked up the atmosphere.
It took around 10 minutes to wander from the cruise terminal to the start of the cobblestone streets that stretched out behind the remnants of the historic city wall, although remnants may be an unjust description because many of the wall guard towers still dominate the skyline and huge sections of the city wall are well preserved, with lots of ongoing restoration work underway.
Archeologists have found ceramics and pottery in the city centre that are carbon dated to about 3,000 years BC and records show that the first fortress was built around 1050, or almost 1,000 years ago. By the 1300’s the city had a population of around 8,000; was a strategic crossroads between Russia and the western and northern parts of Europe; and was heavily fortified, with massive city walls and 66 defence towers.
Given our relatively brief time in port we chose to explore independently on foot and continued to be both amazed and surprised as we wandered through awesome streets whose buildings appeared unattended until we peered into narrow windows, down circular stone steps leading to a basement entrance, or through thick wooden doors to find enchanting restaurants, bars and cafes or every style of retail outlet.
There were thousands of tourists making their way through the city as at least four cruise ships were at the terminals, but it seemed far less crowded than a normal city subway as the streets were unusually wide with relatively few vehicles travelling through them.
Finally we came to the city square that was bustling with markets, bars and restaurants spread across the cobblestones and surrounded by ornate buildings that were hundreds of years old, as well as the main Town Hall that featured, of all things, remnants of steel shackles that held prisoners to the walls, like the old stocks in England.
The markets in the square were fantastic, with so many different locally made items to choose from including souvenirs and clothes that you couldn’t find anywhere else. I loved the linen products. There was everything from beautiful dresses, tops and scarfs as well as table runners and doilies which were great to take home for gifts. I could have spent all day just strolling through these markets.
We also found several cafes that provided both excellent ales and free wifi, so we relaxed for a while and soaked up the atmosphere.
On the way back to the ship we were exploring little laneways and we made a fabulous discovery that wasn’t clearly signposted or indicated at all. We walked down a tiny lane way, inquisitive as to what might be there, only to discover an outdoor theatre that dated back several centuries. The stage with curtains tied back could be seen in front of semicircular rows of seats; there was an area that would have been used as backstage; and steps leading down from the street to the theatre. The whole setting was amazing to see and felt as if we had stepped back hundreds of years with the atmosphere of the bustling theatre seemingly hanging in the air. Today, a delightful restaurant sits unobtrusively at the top of the steps allowing guests to take in the ambiance of centuries gone by while enjoying a coffee or lunch. This was likely where aristocrats or even royalty would have watched performances as stone lion carvings guarded the balcony. As we stepped out through the arch that led away from the Old Town we felt as if we were back in the 21st Century, and reality.
While strolling back to the port we found some local markets which were in a huge warehouse type building. There were two floors full of clothes, shoes and other products at really good prices. As a tourist, it’s always nice to discover where the locals shop.
Over all I really enjoyed Tallin, It didn’t need to have the canals or the coloured buildings that Amsterdam or Copenhagen had to offer, it was just perfect the way it was.
While strolling back to the port we found some local markets which were in a huge warehouse type building. There were two floors full of clothes, shoes and other products at really good prices. As a tourist, it’s always nice to discover where the locals shop.
Over all I really enjoyed Tallin, It didn’t need to have the canals or the coloured buildings that Amsterdam or Copenhagen had to offer, it was just perfect the way it was.