Tallinn: Day 1 (9/21/19)

I had a lot of trouble sleeping last night due to a french couple coming in around midnight, turning on all the lights, and starting up a loud conversation with my extremely talkative bunkmate. So I wasn’t too surprised when I rolled out of bed at 11:00 but it still kinda sucks to lose the whole morning. Oh well, such is life. I wandered southward with the rough destination of the Estonian Occupation Museum which was quite a lovely walk. This city just feels old with its castle walls, cobblestone streets, pastel-colored buildings, and an abundance of small parks scattered all around.

The museum was smaller than expected but well worth the visit. It told stories from the Soviet and German occupations of Estonia and talked about what freedom meant for all the Estonians displaced to Siberia and what it means for them today. It was heavy, but very powerful. After spending a couple hours there, I made my way over to the Estonian National Library which is in a massive stone building eight stories tall and easily a full city block on each side. They had a neat little exhibit on old Estonina sheet music and the history of baltic song which I enjoyed before settling down for a couple hours to recharge in a study room and starting on my plans for visiting a park or something interesting as a day trip while I’m here.

Had dinner at a seafood place called Kalambuur which operates out of a tiny house next to a totally ddeserted park. It seemed a little sketchy on approach but was very clean and professional inside. I was shown to a little balcony seat, since everything else was reserved for the night, which I considered a good sign. Ordered a traditional Russian dumpling platter and pike with sweet mashed potatoes. Superb! Savory dumplings complemented by an intense rye bread and the fish was super clean with crispy skin that had been grilled to perfection. A bit pricy, but I’m glad I decided to treat myself after spending several days under budget.