This is "Old Town" in Tallinn,
the capital of Estonia.
Tallinn is both a very old city and young at the same time.
Notice the office buildings in the background.
Another shot of Old Town, Tallinn with the Gulf of Finland
in the background.
A very elaborate Russian church
The famous wool market at the base of the Tallinn old city wall.
My friend Kadri is on the left.
Tallinn is located on the Gulf of Finland, and so has lots
of coastline.
WHERE PEOPLE LIVE.....
| These houses represent the mostly all wooded homes of Estonia.
The home above of course was owned by the more affluent, and the home below is a common "working
mans" home. Both built in the 1800s. |
| The
photo below shows one of the many Russian high rise "condos" that exist
on the outskirts of the cities of Estonia. The existence of the
Cold War is still very evident in these buildings... and
they to this day are mostly inhabited by Russians who refuse to speak
the Estonian language. The Estonians meanwhile, refuse to
speak to any Russian who feels this way. The animosity between
Russians and Estonians will always be great. |
| Estonians
love the Spring and Summer due to the prolonged darkness of
winter. Almost every Estonian has a backyard garden and every
backyard garden has an outdoor grill. Estonians spend every nice
evening cooking their meal in their garden. |
| The
above is just one of many old German manor homes. The Germans
were involved with Estonia for hundreds of years and were the ones that
made Tartu University famous in Europe. The Russians won the war
and drove the Germans out. |
| This
is a wonderful indoor ice skating rink situated within Tartu's largest
shopping mall. The kids can have fun while mom and dad
shop. Not a bad idea! The shops themselves offer just about
everything our malls do but they are not as large or elaborate.
The cost of clothes in Estonia is about 3 times the cost of clothes
here. |
Boat Cruise.....
| Above
you see my friend Kadri and her father preparing our lunch on a
houseboat that he built. He is a master carpenter and the boat
reflects this. The door you see in the background is the
Sauna. All Estonians have saunas in their homes and since this is
a "home on the water"... he incorporated one here also.
|
The smoked fish... cheese spread and dark Estonian bread was excellent!
FINALLLY, LAST BUT NOT LEAST.......
| How many people go on vacation only to spend time
in the local junk yard? This is exactly what I did when I heard
that a very famous and expensive statue of Lenin had been standing
in the local junkyard in Tartu for some years. All indications
of communism in Estonia have been removed and pretty much destroyed
except this 15 foot tall statue. The statue stood in downtown
Tartu in front of the Military Academy ( Now the military academy
for the Estonian Defense Force.) How ironic that Lenin is now
surrounded by the cast off trappings of everything he stood against.... |