Tallinn: a medieval pearl on the Baltic

29.08.2011 We arrive in Tallinn towards evening on an Estonian Airlines flight from Berlin, via Copenhagen. The hotel, the My City Hotel, is right in the old town centre, a fully renovated 1800s building, very nice and well kept. We have dinner in the Town Hall Square, the hub of the old medieval city, and the view, even at night, is fantastic: pointed red roofs, perfectly preserved houses from the 1400s-1500s, a medieval centre enclosed within the walls with the characteristic round towers. The square is literally packed with restaurants and venues; they all look the same, even the menus. We choose one at random and we're lucky: we dine in a hall in medieval style with staff serving in costume, excellent food and reasonable prices.

30.08.2011 We set off to discover the city, starting from the Town Hall Square with its bell tower and, at the top, little Old Thomas, the symbol of Tallinn, in memory of a young man from the city who had fought for it; in the corner, the old pharmacy, dating back to 1422, the oldest pharmacy in Europe, which has operated without interruption, moving from the remedies of olden times to today's medicines. We then head down Pikk Street, one of the main arteries with its fine buildings, St. Olav's Church, Gothic in style and dating back to the 13th century, with the tall bell tower that was once the highest in Europe, then destroyed in the various fires that struck the city. The Holy Spirit Church with its splendid clock painted on the outer wall and an interior of carved wood. We reach St.

Catherine's Passage, near the remains of the church of the same name, a narrow and characteristic passage with stone arches where there are several artisan workshops. We have lunch in the square again, while it rains; the weather is changeable and changes very quickly, going from a clear sky to black clouds and buckets of rain in a few minutes. In the afternoon, when it stops raining, we go outside the old town, to the new part where there are various shopping centres, such as Solaris, Viru Keskus. We then reach an old industrial area that has been recovered, the Rotermann centre, where there are shops and art galleries. We visit the "New Nordic Fashion Illustration" exhibition, which is part of the Tallinn 2011 events, City of Culture; it features works by Estonian and Finnish designers working in the fashion sector. For dinner we go to StekHouse Goowin, good meat at rather high prices.

31.08.2011 In the morning a visit to Toompea hill, the upper part of the city, along the two streets, one going up and the other coming down, Pikk Jalg and Luhike Jalg. At the top is Toompea Castle, now the seat of Parliament, with its pink Baroque façade from the era of Catherine the Great, although part of the building retains its original fortress features. The Cathedral of St. Mary the Virgin, the main Lutheran church in Estonia, once a place of worship for the German elite, preserves tombs and armour inside. The Russian church of Alexander Nevsky is also here. On the hill there are two or three viewing points that offer a magnificent view of the city from above, with its narrow streets, the red roofs of the houses, the walls surrounding it, and the gaze stretches as far as the Baltic Sea.

We return towards the Town Hall Square, where in the meantime a small market of typical Estonian and Finnish products has materialised, with plenty of heavy woollen clothing, scarves, gloves, hats, all very cheerful and colourful. A small band, the Happy Feet, starts playing jazz music. We go up to the first floor of the town hall building, from which there is a fine view of the square with its colourful stalls. Lunch at St. Patrick's Pub, excellent value for money: for just 10 euros, they offer us a three-course lunch, moreover served with care and refinement... almost unbelievable compared with the prices of the restaurants in the square, which are purely touristy and therefore much more expensive.

In the afternoon we go to the suburb of Kalamaja, known for its typical colourful wooden houses, once the dwellings of fishermen and port workers, then also of workers of every kind, when the city was connected to St. Petersburg also by railway. In this area, along the Baltic Sea, the old Soviet prison of Patarei can still be visited, and perhaps calling it a prison is an understatement, since it resembles more of an actual camp; the visit inside is rather disturbing... especially if you think that it was still operating until the 1980s. Outside, along the beach, there's even a bar complete with deckchairs... as if the place invited you to take a relaxing break!! In the evening, an organ concert at the city Cathedral and dinner at the Italian restaurant Fellini, in Town Hall Square, where we completely waste the savings from lunch, since it's rather expensive!

01.09.2011 In the morning we take the bus to the suburb of Kadriorg, where there is a lovely park complete with a little lake, the Baroque Palace that houses the Art Museum, the residence of the President of the Republic and the Cottage of Peter the Great, where it's said he stayed while waiting for the Palace to be finished. The Kumu Museum, the main museum of modern art in the Baltic countries, is also here. The weather doesn't allow us much more, because it starts to rain; we go back to the city and in the late afternoon, when the weather improves, we take a walk along the walls.

For dinner we let ourselves be tempted by yet another restaurant in the square, the Revalia; this one isn't exciting either, but at least you can enjoy the night view of the main square, which is always a spectacle, and for this reason we eat outdoors, complete with heat lamps and fleece blankets over our legs... as seems to be the custom here; after all, it's still summer, even if the temperature is late autumn!

02.09.2011 In the morning, again using the public buses, we go to another suburb of the city, Pirita, with its 3 km beach that can be enjoyed for swimming purposes only a few days a year; the climate here doesn't allow more. The remains of St. Bridget's convent are also here, dating back to 1407 and then destroyed in the sixteenth century. What remains are the triangular façade, some cells and passages with stairs, and the remains of a peasants' cemetery that was built in the 17th century. We then return to the city and walk again in the city within the walls, always discovering new views and houses with perfectly preserved architecture. A visit to St. Nicholas' Church, dating back to the 13th century but completely destroyed in the Second World War and then rebuilt.

Today it functions as a museum where you can admire the Danse Macabre, where 13 images dating back to the 1500s are kept, the only surviving example of a Danse Macabre on canvas.

03.09.2011 The holiday is at an end; after one last walk in the city, we head to the airport for our return to Italy. Tallinn pleasantly surprised us, with its perfectly preserved medieval architecture contrasting with the modern buildings and the industrial areas recovered and turned into museums or art galleries. Certainly a place that deserves to be seen, even though we devoted far too many days to this city. Two or three can be enough to visit it in a relaxed way and also to discover some hidden corner that the half-day trips organised for those arriving by cruise certainly don't allow you to do.