Tere tulemast Eestisse

We arrived in Tallinn Estonia early Saturday. Many nations have occupied and ruled Estonia - Denmark, Sweden, Poland,  Germany and from 1710, Russia. It was not until after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 that Estonia finally became an independent, self-ruled nation.

Our ship is on the left of the Princess Cruise Lines' SS Humongous (4000 passengers, sheesh).

We started with a morning guided tour of the Upper Old Town, a Medieval village and UNESCO World Heritage site. It is divided from the Lower Old Town by a tall, stone, gated wall.

Our first stop was the Alexander Nevski Cathedral, a classic Russian Othodox Church.

I managed to take one interior photo before being nearly tackled by a security guard who pointed at a "No Photos" sign that I missed and directed me to the Gift Shop instead. Yes, the church has a Gift Shop (they all have).

Next we visited Lauluvaljak or Song Festival Grounds. Capable of holding 75,000, it's noted for holding the Singing Revolution in 1988 that eventually led to the overthrow of its Soviet rulers.

Our driver offered to drop anyone off in the Lower Old Town rather than at the port. Oddly, we were the only ones to take the offer. With the help of Google maps, we found Town Hall Square, the heart of Tallinn life since the 11th century.

Tucked down a narrow alley was a wonderful surprise - a Dominican Monastery established in 1246, the oldest intact building in Tallinn.

We found our shuttle and returned to port from a city that neither of us had ever thought of visiting, but will not soon forget.

Tomorrow (Sunday) we'll be at sea all day, arriving at Warnemunde, Germany early Monday.

Food

I know our posts are sometimes out of order chronologically because of poor internet access or lack of time, but I DO want to back up and make note of some memorable food moments.

This one is from a little place called Mekk Baar in Tallinn. (Just noticed as I wrote this that the Estonians like to double-up on both vowels and consonants. Sorta like a sttutteerr).

Anyway, we found this wonderful little restaurant on a side street and sat in the tiny (but beautiful) bar with the bartender, a sweet young waitress and a Dachshund named Missy. (Missy was very much in charge but unfortunately, no photo).

The food was local and delicious. (Didn't write down the names of our dishes and can't really describe the ingredients, but we enjoyed every bite.) These northern climates use a lot of herbs, curing and pickling.

My pics don't do the place justice -- in terms of food or hospitality -- but our experience was so good that I wanted to share it.

Geri

Om Mani Padme Hum

We had dinner tonight (Sunday) at Pacific Rim, the Asian restaurant on board the Explorer. Its lobby has a wall of Tibetan Prayer Wheels which adherents spin as they repeat the mantra above.

I chose one to share -

You call THAT a Bernaise ?!?!!

Get out of my sight !!!

(details to follow)

Dam Those Russians

I always enjoy sitting in the Observation Lounge whenever we sail in or out of port, but see little of the passage since it's typically overnight. As we sailed out of St Petersburg, I looked at a Google map.

It looked like we'd be passing under a bridge by Kronshtadt and stayed to watch. As we approached, what looked like a naval base appeared, but no bridge, just a narrow channel.

Just past, on both sides of our ship, this came into view. It's the St Petersburg Dam, built to isolate the Bay of Neve from the greater Baltic sea.

I'm sure it's a coincidence that the structure also funnels every ship entering St Petersburg through a narrow passage next to a military base...

Safely through, the ship headed west to Tallinn, Estonia and we headed up to dinner.

The Hermitage in St Petersburg

As the second largest museum in the world with a permanent collection of three million items, our 4 hour tour could only provide a taste of its paintings, sculptures and furnishings.

The complex consists of 6 buildings along the waterfront Palace Embankment surrounding a large plaza. You enter and tour the Winter Palace first.

Despite only letting tour groups enter between 9-10:30, the museum is mobbed, even on a weekday. We snaked our way in and past airport level screening.

Peter the Great would, of course, have a great throne and this occupied a room large enough for hundreds sycophants or one visiting US president.

There were more chandeliers than flosses (waterfalls) in Iceland. Magnificant, but given the current Russian economy, I was afraid to stand directly under any of them.

It was worth looking down as well as marveling at the walls and ceiling. The marquetry was quite impressive.

A small collection of Russian decorative arts from the Tsar's private residence.

And finally, the man himself.  This is considered the best likeness of Peter the Great.

(Soooooo many pictures, a set of Google albums will be uploaded upon our return)

Navigating on the Neve

Back to the Explorer for a quick lunch and then back to town for a boat tour of the Neve River past many of the same sights from a different perspective. While the morning was cloudy, the skies cleared for the afternoon.

We had an unusual escort for part of our boat tour, but don't think it was KGB. We passed under many bridges spanning smaller canals and once saw this young man standing on the bridge and waving at us.

We.waved back as we passed under the bridge. A few minutes later, as we passed under another, there he was again?!?

He obviously knew our route and was racing between bridges to wave to us again! This happened 3-4 times and Geri started pulling out some cash, assuming he would eventually meet us at the dock for tips. Most of us aboard agreed and planned to do the same.

When we reached the end, he was nowhere to be found. Apparently, he was doing it for fun and we thought he was just an enterprising tourist-baiter.

I guess we're just biased, rent-seeking capitalists after all ...