Small and quirky, the Estonian capital is ideal for a serendipitous adventure – and as it's tiny you'll never really get lost, writes LORRAINE COURTNEY
THE SMALL, QUIRKY seaside city of Tallinn is just the ticket for a weekend of serendipitous adventure – and as it’s tiny you’ll never really get lost. The best time to visit the Estonian capital is probably between May and September, when the city has up to 20 hours of sunlight a day. (You might want to avoid the summer equinox and Tallinn’s “white nights”, though, as they tend to attract hordes of drunken revellers.) November to March is much quieter. And while the city looks its best under a dusting of snow, there is a lot of night.
Tallinn’s Old Town is the legacy of a glamorous and prosperous past within the Hanseatic League. Inside its walls you’ll stumble across a magical kingdom of twisting cobbled streets, medieval guildhalls, secret courtyards, russet roofs, lofty Lutheran spires and bulbous Orthodox onion domes.
It’s hard describe the Old Town without using the word “fairytale”, yet there is real life here, too, with increasingly sophisticated drinking and dining and a thriving arts scene. This is a city growing out of its grim Soviet past and long history of suppression. And it is the real thing, alluringly intact despite centuries of trampling by Danish conquerors and Teutonic knights, Swedes, Russians, Nazis and Soviets.
Much of the original town walls remain, as well as 18 crumbling towers. These have wonderfully colourful names: Stout Margaret, Golden Leg Tower, Long Leg and Short Leg gates, Peep into the Kitchen and Tall Hermann. The unkindly named Fat Margaret is a curiously squat tower at the bottom of Toompea hill. A legend tells of a love affair between her and Tall Hermann, the tallest tower of all, which presides over the blushing pink parliament building. Local lore claims that on stormy nights you can hear Hermann loudly proclaiming his love downhill to Margaret.
There are two distinct parts to the Old Town. The lower part is where the merchants used to live; it is crammed with chapels, Germanic houses and the cosiest coffee and cake shops.
Anneli Viik is a good spot to take a break from trekking through Old Town. The handmade truffles served here are named for operas, so you might opt for a Faust, which is a pistachio praline, or a Baileys-laced Madame Butterfly. Wash them down with a mug of dense, dark hot chocolate or a glass of something sparkling.
Then it’s time for some Baltic retail therapy. Down the beguiling shopping street of Katariina Passage and in the nearby Master’s Couryard you can find the most intriguing of handicrafts and gifts to tote home. In Katariina Passage’s medieval-style workshops, run by the artists of Katariina Guild, onlookers watch as exquisite glasswork, ceramics, leather goods and quilts are created before their eyes. Otherwise, shop for amber, fine wooden toys and thick hand-knitted woollen jumpers.
The upper part of the Old Town, Toompea, was the aristocratic quarter; it is dominated by the mustard-hued domes of the Russian Orthodox cathedral. The cathedral is dedicated to a Novgorod prince whose line of business was squashing Scandinavians. It is a somewhat incongruous monument to Russian power, towering above the pastel-coloured houses and dwarfing the delicate 18th-century parliament building.
There are gaps in the fortified walls with Kodak-ready views over the Old Town’s turrets, towers, terracotta rooftops and the exquisite space of Town Hall Square. The town hall dates from 1371, and its spindly tower is topped with the figure of Old Thomas, the warrior-and-flag weathervane that has protected Tallinn since 1530. Also situated in Town Hall Square, Holy Spirit Church is a striking 14th-century Gothic house of worship that is still used by Lutherans. Look up at the elaborate outdoor clock, the oldest in Tallinn, with carvings dating from 1684. Inside, intricate wood carvings decorate Baroque pews and a Renaissance-era pulpit.
Beyond all this you can make out the arc of the song stage. This is the venue of the Estonian Song Festival, held every five years, with choirs of thousands. The stage looms out of Kadriorg Park, which gives Tallinn a delightful oasis, wooded with horse chestnut, lilac and oak trees. The Italian architect Niccolo Michetti designed the gardens, including the Baroque Kadriorg Palace, for Peter the Great, soon after the Great Northern War. The chilly Baltic glitters on the horizon.
When medieval Tallinn starts to feel too quaint, one unusual museum provides a perfect antidote. Kalev is the Baltic’s largest chocolate maker, and its quirky museum displays chocolate-box covers and sweet wrappers from the past, neatly encapsulating Estonia’s 20th-century history. The wrappers range from cheery images of 1920s flappers and film stars to the cheap cardboard and muted colours of the Soviet period; 1991 brought an explosion of cartoon figures; later, images of Eurovision prevail.
A darker side still emerges in the spanking new Museum of Occupations. It documents Estonia’s troubled history, both its annexation to the Soviet Union after the second World War and its Nazi rule during 1940-41, when its Jewish population was all but wiped out. It is a miserable tale, a scar on the Estonian psyche, particularly the mass deportations during Stalin’s reign, when more than 60,000 of its citizens were dispatched to the Gulag. Few returned.
Tallinn has plenty of cutting-edge dining options, but you might like to sample some local treats. Estonia's cuisine is derived from Germany and Russia, both one-time rulers of the land. Meat and game are staples, and potatoes are served with everything. You'll also come across leib, the ubiquitous black bread usually eaten with jellied meats. Then there are the hefty blood sausages that tend to daunt most visitors.
Finally, head for one of the throbbing dance clubs and surrender to a smooth glass of Stön – the preferred local vodka – as you contemplate all this beauty and pain on Europe’s frontier.
5 places to stay
Hotel Schlössle. 13-15 Pühavaimu, 00-372-6997700, schloesslehotel.com. A short stroll from Town Hall Square, this is intimate three-story hotel replicates the medieval allure of the Old Town. Doubles from €169.
Radisson Blu Hotel. 3 Rävala Puiestee, 00-372-6823000, radissonblu.com/hotel-tallinn. Housed in a glass monolith, this is also one of Tallinn’s tallest buildings. It has 280 rooms. Request an even-numbered room for stunning views. Doubles start at €109.
The Three Sisters. 71 Pikk, 00-372-6306300, threesistershotel.com. You’ll be in good company at this hotel, where previous guests include the queen of England and the emperor of Japan. The hotel occupies three 14th-century buildings (the eponymous sisters) and the decor incorporates many original features. Doubles from €190.
The Reval Park Hotel. Kreutzwaldi 23, 00-372-6305305, revalhotels.com. This is a decent three-star hotel where you might have a flutter in the Olympic Casino, one of the biggest and most swish in the Baltic states. Rooms from €45.
The Palace Hotel. 3 Vabaduse Valjak, 00-372- 640-7300, scandichotels.com. Across the street from Freedom Square, this hotel provides comfortable lodgings and modern amenities behind the 1930s facade. Two restaurants serve Italian and Estonian food. Rooms from €50.
5 places to eat
Anneli Viik. 30 Pikk, 00-372-5014740, anneliviik.ee. This cafe and chocolatier is a good place to take a break from pavement pounding. The handmade truffles are named for operas, so you could have a Baileys-laced Madame Butterfly plus a cup of hot chocolate.
Bobaparte. 45 Pikk, 00-372-6464444, bonaparte.ee. Everything on sale here is
made on the premises. The menu includes a mushroom cappuccino soup with Brie millefeuille and escargot in a Pernod-flavoured bechamel sauce.
Eesti Maja. 1 Lauteri, 00-372-6455252, eestimaja.ee. This restaurant offers the most authentic native fare in town. Its rooms are decorated with dolls and knick-knacks, and the home-style provisions range from tongue served with horseradish to national dishes such as sült (gelled pork).
Gloria. 2 Müürivahe, 00-372-6406800, gloria.ee. This hostelry is carved out of the Old Town wall, built more than 100 years before Columbus landed in the New World. Knowledgeable staff match bottles from the stellar wine list with menu favourites.
Must Lammas. 2 Sauna, 00-372-6442031, mustlammas.ee. Hearty Caucasian fare is dished up here. Diners feast on spicy lamb soup, stuffed grape leaves, stewed mutton and grilled pork.
5 places to go
Holy Spirit Church. 2 Pühavaimu, 00-372-6441487. Situated in Town Hall Square, this is a striking 14th-century Gothic church that is still used today. The first Estonian sermons were preached here after the Reformation.
The Raeapteek. Raekoja plats 11, 00-372-6314860. The Town Council Pharmacy is an ancient Tallinn institution – there has been a pharmacy or apothecary here since 1422, though the present facade is from the 17th century.
The Riigikogu. 1a Lossi Plats, 00-372-6316331, riigikogu.ee. Estonia’s parliament is housed in a pink art-nouveau edifice built on the solid limestone foundation where Toompea Castle once stood.
The Art Museum of Estonia. 34 Weizenbergi, 00-372- 602-6001, ekm.ee. Permanent exhibits cover Estonian art from the beginning of the 18th century to re-independence in 1991.
Pärnu. Take a day trip to this Baltic spa resport, which used to be a summer retreat for Communist Party apparatchiks. Delight at sugary white Tahkuranna beach, which goes on and on.
Hot spot
Don’t be fooled by Tallinn’s quaint looks: its clubs throb till early morning. Located just inside the Old Town’s walls, fashionable Stereo Lounge
(6 Harju, 00-372-6310549) has futuristic white furnishings and a glowing bar that make it one of Tallinn’s most unexpected spaces.
Shop spot
The market on Müürivahe Street where craftswomen sell their knitted products in the shadow of the town wall is a must-visit. Even more intriguing is Katariina Passage. Here in medieval-style workshops you can see glasswork, ceramics and leather goods created before your eyes.
Go there
Estonian Air (estonian-air.ee) flies from Dublin to Tallinn. Air Baltic (airbaltic.com) flies from Dublin to Tallinn via Riga.