It was a fairly early start this morning, due to us starting out on the second part of our break. We packed our bags before heading down to breakfast which opened at 8am. The dining area was quiet and we had a good choice of breakfast items again, served with a pot of tea. 

Afterwards, we headed back to the room. We chilled out for ten minutes or so, took our passports out of the safe (always a good idea 👍🏻) and headed down to check out of the hotel. 

An Uber taxi costing nine euros was ordered and arrived within a few minutes. This was to take us to Helsinki’s West Harbour Terminal 2. We arrived ten minutes or so later.  The ferry terminal building is very modern, and it was easy to navigate through with our boarding passes as we had already checked in the day before using the Tallink app.  Note: if you don’t check in online, or use a self service kiosk at the terminal, you will get charged five euros per passenger at their service desk.

We boarded the 2800 passenger Megastar Shuttle ferry at 9:50am, as soon as the gate was open. We soon found ourselves a window table in the Victory Bar. This is a modern and comfortable area with plenty of seating.  Some people had already decided to have their first beer of the day, but it wasn’t for me.

After the wind and rain in Helsinki the night before, the journey was pleasant and there was very little swell as we crossed the Gulf of Finland. The ferry actually left early, at 10:15am instead of 10:30am.  We just settled down and enjoyed the ride. 

https://www.tallink.com/on-board/fleet/megastar

We docked in Tallinn at 10:30am, and arrived at our hotel not soon after. We checked in to Nunne Boutique Hotel but our room wasn’t ready. Instead, we left our bags with reception and went out for a wander.

We passed a memorial that stated “In memory of Russia’s first president, Boris Yeltsin, to honour his role in the peaceful restoration of Estonia’s independence in 1990-1991. The bas-relief was funded by donations from the people of Estonia and inaugurated in August, 2013.

We started off by climbing up some steps to the Patkuli viewing platform, in the area called Toompea, trying our best to protect ourselves from the cold and wind. Up there, it was very crowded with a walking tour of people all clamouring to take a photograph of a herring gull of all things. I just wanted to see the view of the city!

We were really feeling the cold and spotted a bar not far from the viewpoint so we decided to go there. It was below ground level in a basement kind of area. Called Fersen, it is named after the Swedish field marshal Otto Wilhelm von Fersen who inherited the building in 1654. He was among the first members of the Fersen family to be given the rank of Baron. We ordered a light lunch and a drink before heading off again into the Upper Old Town.

The town is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, which confirms that it is a valuable treasure of Estonia. There are so many amazing buildings to look at in the Vanalinn area of the town. My particular favourite was the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

This richly decorated Orthodox church was completed in 1900 when Estonia was part of the Russian Empire. The church dates back to the 19th century Russification policy and was erected directly opposite Toompea Castle to demonstrate Russian supremacy. The congregation of the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate operates in the church. The church towers have an ensemble of 11 bells, among which is the largest bell in Tallinn, weighing 15 tons. Inside, there was a distinct whiff of burning incense. Many people were there to pray and some lit candles. I wasn’t able to take any photographs but safe to say it was another beautiful piece of architecture both inside and out.

We then went back outside and walked around the perimeter of Toompea Castle which is the home of the Estonian Parliament. The castle has a large tower, Pikk Hermann, which is a main symbol of Estonian statehood. This is where the blue-black-white Estonian flag is raised every day at sunrise from the tower to the tune of the national anthem.

It was getting very cold and we decided to go back down the steps towards the Town Hall Square. All that remained of the Christmas market that had been there was the Christmas tree, which was lit up with twinkling lights. It has been a tradition of celebrating Christmas here as far back as 1441. This is when the Brotherhood of the Blackheads, an association of unmarried merchants and foreign traders living in Tallinn, were thought to have erected the world’s very first Christmas tree.

We wandered about some more, and popped into a local establishment called The Beer House, before deciding that we should have something to eat. We had been given a list of recommended eateries by the hotel receptionist and tried a couple of restaurants who were full. We then found a place called La Prima Pizza which managed to squeeze us in. The restaurant was typically Italian and made a change from the more traditional food that is on offer in Northern Europe. Not a reindeer dish in sight!!

https://laprima.restaurant

We enjoyed the food so much that we booked in for a meal on New Year’s Eve.

Once we’d paid up, we wandered back to the hotel taking in more sights along the way. We eventually stopped off at the hotel bar which was lacking a bit of atmosphere but they played some great soul music.