Global Wanderer

17/11/24 – 19/11/24

It was cold and dark when we left the Citybox Hotel in Helsinki, but with our stomachs lined with donuts and coffee, we made our way on the tram to the West Terminal harbour, to take the ferry across the Baltic Sea to the Estonian capital, Tallinn. A few companies operate this route, all utilising large cruiseferries – if you’ve taken the InterIslander ferry in New Zealand, you’ll get a sense of what I’m talking about! We were travelling on Eckerö Line, on the M/S Finlandia, for the 2.5 hour journey to Tallinn – a comfortable ship with a few bars and cafes, a supermarket, and a duty free store. Apparently there are a lot of Finns who take the ferry to Tallinn to take advantage of Estonia’s lower alcohol taxes in particular!

The sundeck on the M/S Finlandia – bitterly cold in November!

I must admit, I felt pretty seasick on the ferry – the Baltic Sea was incredibly choppy, and even the enormous ferry was not immune. I walked to the duty free market at the front of the ship and felt almost momentary weightlessness as the ferry crested each wave. Definitely weather-induced, and not typical, as there were local passengers who also looked quite green!

At 11:15am, we finally pulled into the Port of Tallinn, and began the 15 minute walk to our accommodation, located in Ilmarine – just outside the Old Town.

Disembarking the ferry, and walking to the accommodation in Ilmarine – luckily, there was a break in the rain!

After checking in and putting our bags down, we headed out into the Old Town of Tallinn. This has to be one of the best preserved medieval-era old towns I have ever seen – it was almost like something out of a Disney movie!

Different streets around Vanalinn – Tallinn’s Old Town

You could spend hours wandering the streets of the Old Town, which is exactly what we spent the afternoon doing. There are some definite highlights, including the Orthodox Cathedral (complete with those magnificent onion domes), the very creepy statues of the Monks, a coffeeshop with freshly baked cinnamon scrolls, and the raft of embassies and diplomatic compounds located in the area – including the Russian Ambassador’s residence, complete with pro-Ukrainian protest banners and a police presence.

Pro-Ukrainian sentiment was high in this former Soviet republic

After a bite to eat at the Baaltijaam Markets (located next to Tallinn’s railway station), we headed back to the Old Town for a quick look around at night – as you’d expect, everything was beautifully illuminated, and in spite of the weather (it was raining again), it definitely had a real charm to it! The Monks, however, were even creepier at night – they reminded me of the Weeping Angels from Doctor Who!

Tallinn at night

The next morning, after a hearty breakfast, we made our way out into the city for another day of exploration. We took a route through the Old Town, out into a large square complete with a large Ukrainian flag displayed proudly next to the Estonian one on a nearby building – the Estonians are very pro-Ukraine (any wonder why!).

A building in Tallinn’s city centre adorned with a joint Ukrainian/Estonian flag

Our first stop of the day was the Viru Hotel – once an Intourist Hotel catering to the Soviet Union’s foreign ‘capitalist’ visitors, and unsurprisingly the home of a KGB base. We took a tour of the hotel’s secret 23rd floor, used by the KGB to spy on those within the hotel – the guide, Pasha, was very funny with his deadpan delivery, and we certainly thought it was well worth the visit! The hotel’s top floor also gave out fantastic views of the city – banned during the Soviet era because you could see the city centre and the port!

The view from Viru Hotel’s secret 23rd floor

After finishing up at Viru Hotel, we walked back towards the Old Town in a circuitous route, taking us through some of Tallinn’s newer city developments – it’s always fascinating to see how cities manage to blend the old and the new!

Medieval Tallinn vs. Soviet Tallinn (with Modern Tallinn in the background)

That afternoon, we strolled through the Telliskivi District, Tallinn’s hipster area located just past the railway station. Similarly to Helsinki, it was incredibly quiet, but it was still interesting to look at the factories and industrial buildings that had been converted into coffeeshops, bars, and restaurants – always a great use of post-industrial spaces.

Some of the buildings in Telliskivi. On the right is F-Hoone, a bar/restaurant that we ended up eating at on Monday night!

With our time in Tallinn coming to an end, we walked through the Old Town at night one last time – before it began to rain again! One of the government buildings on the hill was lit up brightly in, you guessed it, the colours of the Ukrainian flag! Tallinn was definitely worth the visit – its well-preserved Old Town is certainly a highlight, and I’m glad was able to see it! I can only imagine that in a few weeks time, when it is blanketed in snow and the Christmas markets begin, it will look even more fairytale-esque!