One of the best things about travelling is discovery. Going on unplanned hikes and seeing what you find. That's exactly what we did the day before yesterday! While waiting for the ferry to leave for Stockholm, we went exploring in Tallinn harbour. And that tour was more interesting than we could have imagined!
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Linnahall - an abandoned Olympic venue
We saw the wide stone steps at Tallinn harbour and wondered: what is that? Then we remembered that we had actually been tipped off about an abandoned site on the coast. Linnahall was completed for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, when Tallinn (which was also part of the Soviet Union at the time) contributed a venue for the sailing events.
Today, the grandiose stadium is a windswept and worn place, where graffiti mixes with the sounds of the sea. It was almost peaceful to walk around here and we let our imaginations run wild.
When you look at the arena from below, it almost resembles an Aztec pyramid. What if you could clean it up and continue the pyramid construction with another floor in the centre - perhaps with a restaurant and café?
This is a 360 image that you can spin around in
Patarei - sea fortress and prison
We continued our walk along the sea and were fascinated by how undeveloped, peaceful and partly decayed the coast is, despite being a short walk from the Old Town. Suddenly we came to an entrance to a huge stone building. What could this be? A prison?
Now I've done some research and know that the building was built as a naval fortress in the 19th century. Later, the building was used as a prison, and now it is a memorial to the victims of communism and Nazism. The building is closed and its future is uncertain. Museum? Cultural centre? Hotel?
Suur Toll in Tallinn harbour - icebreaker from 1914
We continued our walk and arrived at the ship. Suur Toll. This Estonian icebreaker was built in Russia and originally named after a tsar. During the Russian Revolution in 1917, the ship was put to use by the Reds - and in 1918 it was hijacked by 57 Finns presenting false identification.
Today you can see the mighty ship in Tallinn harbour, and if you pay €6 you can also look around on board.
Tallinn: summing up
Now we are home again after our Easter trip to Tallinn. We can conclude that Tallinn is a nice little city with a really cool medieval city centre. There are many cosy restaurants, but even though the prices are slightly lower than in Stockholm, it was more expensive to eat and drink out than we expected.
Tallinn is a perfect destination for a weekend getaway and we have gathered our tips and articles on our page about Estoniawhich you can easily find under 'Travel tips' in the menu.
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Aunt Anna on a housewife holiday in Paris
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Lennart says:
Definitely a nice city!
18 April 2017 - 7:05
Mr Nils-Åke Hansson says:
Linnahall my self.
18 April 2017 - 8:11
Birgitta Bäckström says:
A very nice city that we have been to many times.
Even though we live in Umeå.
18 April 2017 - 8:11
Helena says:
Glad you have been to Tallinn several times! Really a nice and pleasant city!
18 April 2017 - 13:47
Ama de casa says:
Looks like you had a perfect and varied weekend! It looked a bit chilly though.
Welcome home again!
18 April 2017 - 9:35
Helena says:
18 April 2017 - 13:48
Mr Steve says:
It's fun to go on unplanned walks that offer endless surprises "around the corner".
18 April 2017 - 12:04
Helena says:
We like the unplanned (although it can be good to plan sometimes too ;))
18 April 2017 - 20:55
Ruth in Virginia says:
It has been very interesting for me to read about Tallinn! I knew that the city belonged to the Hanseatic League, but had no idea how much has been preserved from that time.
When you wrote about Linnahall and the Olympics, I remembered that the 1980 Olympics
was boycotted by the US. It was Pres. Jimmy Carter's protest against the USSR's invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979. 66 of the invited countries did not participate for various reasons - made me think of how different the outcome of the Olympics was in Barcelona. The sailing event was followed by an extraordinary regeneration of the waterfront area.
Grade: A+
18 April 2017 - 13:45
Helena says:
How interesting that you tell us about this! I don't remember this at all, but I read a bit about it when I was researching for the post.
18 April 2017 - 20:57
Marina says:
Cozy to just "stroll around and discover", you can stumble upon a lot of exciting things, just like you did. It really looks like you had a lovely Easter weekend.
18 April 2017 - 14:54
Helena says:
18 April 2017 - 21:02
BP says:
fun with unplanned walks, but still have done your homework so you know what you're looking at.
I like worn out environments and graffiti, quite charming actually. But it's a pity that they concentrate on sprucing up the Old Town and the tourist routes and let the harbour fall into disrepair. It would be smart to "expand the tourist traps" a bit in the other direction, so to speak.
We also found it surprisingly expensive in Tallinn, especially compared to Riga and Gdansk/Sopot. In addition, we also found that the "local food" was much better in Latvia and Poland.
18 April 2017 - 14:54
Helena says:
We thought like you. We also liked walking around here, but we couldn't help but think about how the area could be better utilised. After all, it's close to the city and the waterfront - a great location!
18 April 2017 - 21:04
Matts Torebring says:
Thanks for all the great travel tips you share with us! Who knows, next time we might go roaming around the same places.
18 April 2017 - 17:53
Helena says:
18 April 2017 - 21:04
Husis blog says:
It's really cosy to just wander around cities. The owners always come home with lots of nice photos when they have been out and about. It's a good thing there are new digital cameras because in the good old days the owners developed every picture, and there were a few...?
18 April 2017 - 19:00
Helena says:
18 April 2017 - 21:06
Steel city anna says:
What an interesting place! Of course, a lot of the charm of travelling is all the things you don't plan.
20 April 2017 - 21:36
Travel Friday says:
20 April 2017 - 22:53