Eesti

Estonia, or Eesti as they say in the Estonian language, is a small country of 3 and a half million people. There are 300,000+ people in the capital city, Tallinn. It is located across the Baltic sea from Sweden. It is south of Finland and west of St. Petersburg, Russia. My friend, Jessica, and I left Stockholm on the SS Victoria for an overnight crossing:

We arrived in to Tallinn 10 A.M. the next morning rested and excited. I have never traveled by boat and this was so fun and relaxing. It feels like a hotel that takes you places as you sleep. Here is Tallinn as we arrived:

Also, here is Jessica near the flower market:

We stayed at a great hostel within the old walls of the old town area. The name is The Old House (http://www.oldhouse.ee/). Here are some pictures of the old town area:

Here is an aerial view from a tower we climbed (The platform on the top of the tower was so scary, I left the platform after taking this shot! Jessica was more ambitious and stayed up there for quite awhile):

The old town is walled and has all of it's original look out towers. They are almost completely intact and well preserved, as you can see:

We stumbled on an outdoor concert with traditional Estonian music one night. It was all Estonians and us. What a treat. From a back window in a museum, Jessica saw a stage and some people singing. We went to check it out. It was an outdoor community theatre in a huge courtyard that backed a whole block of old buildings. We found out there was to be a concert there that night. We went back and listenedthat evening and it was beautiful. A definite highlight of the trip.

So, it was a few days of meandering the old cobblestone streets and eating yummy food. We were able to relax, enjoy our meals and meander in an a way only the parents of small children being away from their kids can. Heaven!

The last day before getting on the ship for our overnight crossing back to Stockholm, we spent our time at a Palace that was built by Peter the Great. It was very Baroque and small, but interesting as a time piece. But, the highlight of the day was a new museum that opened a year ago in the same park as the palace. It is called the KUMU Muuseum (how they spell museum in Estonian). It is an incredible building, designed by a Finnish architect. It house their Estonian art from the 1800's to modern day. What a great building and really a nice collection.

http://www.ekm.ee/eng/kumu.php?id=38

In all, we loved it and enjoyed every minute away. It is a city (and country) that really values it's culture and it's independence, as shown by how they are beautifully preserving and refurbishing all of the buildings within the walled area.

Two thumbs up Estonia!
Yasmiene