Created: 28 Nov 2003
I have always harboured a desire to visit the Baltic countries: Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, motivated by reading Racundra’s First Cruise by Arthur Ransom. As a complete surprise, Sally bought me a trip to Tallinn for my birthday; we took the trip last weekend. This coincided with the second ever Rugby World Cup final that England have been involved in.
Tallinn, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, possibly the ost picturesque old city I’ve ever been to, with two medieval walled towns. Walk a few minutes from the old city and find yourself amongst bleak wasteland neighbouring the harbour, with Soviet relics such as the concrete Linnahall (concert hall) slowly crumbling into the sea. On the seaward side of this lurking mass of grey, there’s a heliport - it’s possible to be in Helsinki in 20 minutes. So from the chic, to the decaying to a jetset area.
Contrasts in foreign places fascinate me. On one level, there is the immediate shock of a foreign culture, as all your senses are assaulted by strange stimuli; everything is new, everything requires extra processing. As sights and sounds become familiar and one ventures further afield, there are new environments to experience.
The old centre is composed of pastel coloured vintage buildings, many of them lovingly restored. However, some are in a rather worse state; turn a corner and one may confront an alley or courtyard littered with rubble, ancient bikes and handcarts with plaster gouged from the walls of the buildings. Raekoja Plats (town square) is a prime example of a beautiful collection of buildings, of various vintages, that could grace the lid of any chocolate box.
Tallinners are friendly, reserved, efficient people (excluding one unfortunate lost booking at the Vana Tom hostel). All those who serve in the cafés and restaurants we visited spoke excellent English and were very helpful. Having read of the 40% Russian minority I was intruged to see if I could spot the difference between ethnic Estonians and Russians. In some cases I am sure I could, although I never asked anyone for risk of offending them and bringing old grievances to the surface. Historically Estonia has suffered at the hands of Russian Imperialists and now the boot is on the other foot, with Russians a disenfranchised minority.
I think Sally’s favourite experience was the hot chocolate at Café Anglais . As for me, I have to say that England winning the Rugby Union World Cup final as I watched in Nimeta Baar was perhaps the most gratifying moment.