Escape to Estonia

Now that my dissertation schedule has been extended, I have time to enjoy life a little more. So, Charlie and I decided to go South to Tallinn, Estonia which, by the way, was our first trip alone as a couple since our Christmas trip to London-Riga/Tallinn. No honeymoon YET (but it will come). We spent our first night in Helsinki at the new and posh Scandic Passi hotel where we got free house slippers, a bathtub (rare in Finland) and a killer balcony. Before jumping the ferry to Tallinn, we enjoyed FREE bicycles from the hotel and toured around the Helsinki harbor area---a different perspective by bike. From there we took the Linda Line ferry to Tallinn, which I renamed the Puke Line. Seriously, the waters were so rough and the hydrofoil of a "ferry" absorbed every single wave...barf bags were in full effect. But, we made it and after two days in Tallinn we had to turn around and experience the same nauseating boat ride.

Our weekend in Tallinn was super relaxing and fun--just what we both needed! We have come to love the old town area and visited some of our favorite spots and also added a few more to our list:

-Kolmas Draakon for 1€ pies and 2€ beer and wine.
-Chocolaterie Pierre cafe for "to die for" chocolate cake and coffee and tea.
-Climb to the top of Old Town for spectacular aerial views. 
-Walk the narrow cobblestone streets, especially at night--perfect for photos.
-Balti Jaama Turg, a Russian market with vendors selling about anything and everything under the sun. Good people watching here!


 

Next stop: Tallinn, Estonia

Bus ride to Tallinn.

A 4-hour bumpy bus ride on the LuxExpress toured us through the Baltic countryside  to Tallinn, Estonia. We had one day to explore the old town area and visit a few churches. We experienced the humble St. Olav's Church, built in the 13th century, and the mammoth St. Alexander Nevsky Russian Orthodox church, built in 1900 as a symbol of the Russian's empire regional power. Even though I am not much of a religious being, I do enjoy visiting European churches as they are filled with local history and the architecture is very unique compared to the modern U.S. churches. These two churches could not have been more different from one another, as the Orthodox church was gaudy as ever with gold trim, mosaics everywhere, and no where to sit. My mom asked, do they stand for service? Yes. St. Olav's was a little more rugged (and humble): white walled with wooden pews, yet a mature grandeur beckoned from floor to high ceilings.

The Russian Orthodox Church in the distance.

UNO on the ferry.

After enjoying our day walking around the old town area, we grabbed our bags from hotel Braavo and began walking to the ferry terminal just in time for the rain to come (ick!) Despite getting wet, we managed to find the right terminal and settled into our seats in a loud bar area. We later moved to a quieter area, as our fierce UNO game needed a little more focus with less drunks in the area. Remember, this ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki is considered to be the drunk ferry (oh, heck...any ferry between the Scandinavian countries is considered to be a "drunk" ferry). But, especially this one, as the Finns love to cross the Sea for more affordable alcoholic beverages. Sitting across from us was what appeared to be a mother (about 60 years old) and her son (maybe 35) and they were both drunk enough to stumble as they walked. Oh yeah, good entertainment there!

Tallinn, Estonia & the Drunk Ferry to Helsinki

Tallinn Christmas Markets.

Wool sweaters & socks for sale.

Whenever I travel outside of Finland I like to check out the happycow, a website that lists and reviews all local restaurants serving up vegan and vegetarian offerings. There was actually a good list of recommended eateries in Riga and Tallinn. In Riga, we checked out the Raw Garden and grabbed some takeaway items for our bus ride. With tubs of wheat-grass growing in the windows, we entered the little restaurant and asked if we could order takeaway. The lady behind the counter spoke very good English and told us, in detail, all about the menu. We ordered two veggie sandwiches on dried pumpkin bread and grabbed a few munchies that were beautifully displayed on the counter, a cashew-coconut ball and two pieces of dried bread (one zucchini and the other carrot).  At 12:40, the Lux Express 4-hour bus to Tallinn rolled up and off we went into the countryside. While the ride through the countryside was beautiful, the wireless kept us busy, and the food from Raw Garden was amazingly delicious. (Good review posted on happy.cow!)

Charlie waiting to board "drunk" ferry.

You see a lot of this on the ferry.

Our cozy spot on the ferry...until the drunks sat below us.

Vomit bags on the ferry, just in case.

It was a short adventure in Tallinn, as we had tickets for the 9 p.m. drunk ferry to Helsinki. But, that did not stop us from exploring the Christmas markets and eating at the BEST rated restaurant in Tallinn--no joke. We found Aed, the restaurant, on happycow too and then after further investigation found that it was rated as the BEST restaurant in Tallinn by Tripadvisor. (Yes, I am an investigator of sorts, as I like to read people's reviews of restaurants, hotels, etc.--blame it on dreamy rational choice theory.) After eating the delicious pumpkin soup, linguine pasta, and chocolate cake, we walked to the drunk ferry and by first glance of the queue we knew we were in for an entertaining 2 hour ferry across the Gulf of Finland. People, not only the young people, people of all ages had *stacks of* cases of beers ready to bring back home to expensive Finland. The alcohol is obviously less expensive in Tallinn and so Finns make the mad dash across the pond to buy their goods. Luckily, we were upwind from the loud, obnoxious (and yes, drunk) teenagers who decided to party in our cozy location on the ferry.

Ah, it's nice to be back in Finland!

An Academic Conference in Tallinn, Estonia

Being a PhD student, you are expected to produce, produce, produce. Publish, present, or perish, is the saying! Once I found out I was going to Oxford for a semester, I perused all of the international academic conferences and found one that fit my research agenda and was still accepting proposals. I submitted two papers to the International Bilingual Conference on Academic Mobility and what would you know...both of them were accepted. I have done many presentations in my life, but these two were perhaps the most nerve-racking to prepare for. You see academics like to challenge and critique each other's work. Therefore, you have to be prepared for all sorts of questions, comments, and critiques. Hence, my time in Estonia (a quick three-day trip) was absorbed by preparing, presenting, and listening to other presentations. But, in the end all went well and now I can say I have finally presented at an academic conference.

Now for Tallinn, Estonia...what little I got to see. As I stepped off the bus I immediately felt like I was back in Finland; the smell in the air, and the sights and sounds were all familiar. Yet, I was a bit surprised by how expensive and BLING, BLING Tallinn has become since independence in 1991. Capitalism has a way of nesting quickly. Tallinn is the capital of Estonia and the Old Town area, an UNESCO World Heritage Site, is certainly quaint. Plus, the entire city is "connected" meaning wifi is everywhere.

A side story: I went to an Indian restaurant for lunch...I was craving delicious, as the food in this region rarely satisfies my palette (I know this from my time in Finland). But, the chicken tikka masala was maybe the worse I have EVER eaten. It had boiled eggs in it and nasty pieces of chicken (like the liver, sternum, rectum, and lots of grizzly fat) ICK! A word of warning do not eat Indian in Tallinn, eat bear instead.