After St. Petersburg, I expected the last of the two stops on the cruise to be, well, duds. Wrong!!!
Tallinn, Estonia turns out to be absolutely charming and quaint. We spent most of the day exploring the walled ancient medieval city not minutes away from the port. ‘The Old City’, as it’s called, is remarkably preserved. The road leading to the ‘gates’ is lined with rows upon rows of vendors selling fresh flowers. The smell of lilacs, lavender, and roses perfume the air.
As with most medieval ports, the city is set on a ridge for defense purposes. We climbed to the three lookout points overlooking the Baltic and managed to snap some breathtaking views.
We spent the whole day wandering around the hilly village and admiring the beautiful amber jewelry displayed in many of the shops (of course, we ended up buying a beautiful set for the Viking’s mom, who turns 89 this August). Our Russian guide, Alex, recommended a restaurant called The Peppersack, and we ended up having a delicious lunch there.
As usual, the sun’s shining, the temps are in the low 70s, and there’s enough of a breeze to keep the sea’s brine and the ever present flowers filling our noses. On the way out, the Viking remembers an amber set I admired at the beginning of the day, and he insists on purchasing for me. Sigh. He still makes me melt after all these years.
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