Monday, June 10, 2013

Tallinn, Estonia and Vilnius, Lithuania

The ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn, Estonia was huge and very crowded. It not only carried hundreds of passengers, but also cars and even a few semis!! There was a lot of drinking aboard and some of the passengers got extremely rowdy! The trip took a bit less than 2 hours and by the time we docked in Tallinn it got rowdier still. Some folks needed help getting off the ship...

The scene at the port was pure chaos, with everyone trying to leave at the same time. Taxis, buses and passenger cars 4 and 5 abreast trying to merge into 3 lanes to head into the city. Doreen and I sat in the back of the taxi wide eyed as our driver weaved in and out of traffic, barely missing a collision with a bus. When we arrived at our guesthouse, we were met by a sweet man who helped manage the guesthouse. He carried our bags in and showed us to our room. We were surprised to say the least. It was described on the Internet as a hundred year old house that was being restored, but we really thought the restoration would be further along than it was. However it was extremely clean and the bed was comfortable so that was all that mattered. It wasn't like we were going to be spending our time in the room anyway. 
After a good nights sleep, we headed into Tallinn to see old town. We had been told by a number of people that Old Town Tallinn was spectacular and they were right! It was extra exciting because we experienced the last day of Old Town Week and the town was in full entertainment mode. There were street performers, flash mobs, puppet shows, live music...every time we turned a corner there was something else to see. We took a time out for coffee and almond porridge at a restaurant and sat and people watched for almost an hour. 
This porridge was whole oat groats cooked in milk and brown sugar. It was delicious and filling! 
We watched a puppet show from behind

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