Travel Diary in Pictures III / Tallinn, Estonia

Pretty late in the game we decided to do a day trip to Tallinn, Estonia, to visit with our New Yorker friends there. It had been quite some time since I had visited Tallinn last time, and my two younger daughters had never been there. The day we had picked for this excursion was cloudy and rainy, but it didn't matter much. We had a wonderful day and learned a lot about the very long and colorful history of Tallinn, which has been occupied by a number of neighboring states and has only had its independence since 1991 after the Soviet Union collapse. Tallinn is quite different now from the time I first visited in 1985.

We took the Eckerö Lines ferry, which was the cheapest option.
Not very luxurious, but it was fine for getting us to Tallinn and back. 

Did I mention it was rainy and cloudy? 

Coming off the ferry at Tallinn this hanging thing is what first catches your eye. Apparently it's a restaurant. Not sure how it actually works..and not too keen to find out either. You would have to pay me a lot of money to eat up there! 

Our Tallin Squad (minus one)

Love the old Tallin and its pretty houses

Tallinn still has a very strong artisanal culture, with a lot of arts and crafts hand made items for sale

The houses in the old town have been beautifully restored

And there is so much nice detail in them

The legendary Wabadus Cafe has been around since the 1930's and sits on the side of the Freedom square

The independence / victory cross memorials flanks one side of the Freedom square. Out tour guide told us that Estonians hate the statue (not least because of the slight resemblance of swastika..) I didn't think it was that bad. But I guess if I'd been grown up in a country that had fought for independence for hundreds of years, I'd a bit underwhelmed too.. Although it does look nice when it is lit up at night.