Teletorn

TV tower, Tallinn

The TV tower of Tallinn, Estonia is 314 meters high and was opened in 1980 – for the olympic summer games in Moscow, Russia. It is the second highest free-standing building in northern Europe after the TV tower of Rīga, Latvia. On the 21st floor there is a restaurant and an open terrace from which you can also see the Baltic sea. It is located at a height of 170 meters and only 100 persons are allowed to enter the tower at the same time.

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Turg

Balti jaam trug, Tallinn

In the Baltic states food markets (‘turge‘) still play an important role. In Germany most people buy fruits, vegetables, meat, cheese and fish at supermarkets and going to a farmer’s market is rather a fun activity for weekends. Here it seems to be still part of everyday live. Throughout Tallinn, Estonia you can find different markets – one of the newest and most modern is the one directly next to the Balti Jaam railway station.

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Ships & more

Estonian Maritime Museum, Tallinn

Estonia is a sea-faring nation and of course there is a museum dedicated to that topic at Tallinn, Estonia. The Eesti Meremuuseum has it’s main location in the ‘fat margret‘ tower at Pikk 70 which is currently closed for renovation – therefore I could only visit the secondary location at the old waterplane harbour in Lennusadam. It can be reached on foot or by using a small train on wheels.

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Baltic sea

Baltic Sea, Tallinn

After visiting the Baltic states I’ve got the feeling that Tallinn, Estonia (formerly also called ‘Reval‘) is the one best known to Germans. That is probably because it has a harbour close to the city center where cruise ships can stop and unload masses of tourists. But that didn’t disturb me much during my visit and of course one should use the situation to give the Baltic sea a visit.

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City walls

City fortifications, Tallinn

Tallinn, Estonia is beautifully located on and around the Toompea (cathedral hill). A unique feature of the city are the remaining historical city walls and fortification towers. In medieval times 40 of these towers with red roofs existed and still today they shape the skyline of the city. A tour to the city walls typically starts at the castle with the town’s landmark – the Pikk Hermann (‘tall Hermann’) tower.

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Aleksander Nevski katedraal

leksander Nevski katedraal, Tallinn

When you’re on the Toompea (cathedral hill) of Tallinn, Estonia it’s not the castle standing there or the Pikk Hermann tower that is catching your views – it is the beautiful Aleksander Nevski katedraal with its six black onion domes. It is a Russian-orthodox church that was built between 1894 and 1900 CE. The location was well-chosen and during the first independence of Estonia it was planned to remove the church as it was and is a strong symbol of Russian influence.

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Toompea loss

Toompea loss, Tallinn

The Toompea is a natural hill at the city centre of Tallinn, Estonia and as it is an easy to defend place it was used for hundreds of years as a stronghold. It is even named in ancient Estonia mythology and is said to be created by the giant Linda. In the year 1219 Danish forces conquered this place and according to a Danish legend the Danish flag – the Dannebrog – fell from the sky during an important phase of the battle and motivated the Danish crusaders.

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Townhall or castle?

Neues Rathaus, Hannover

It is one of the most beautiful townhall buildings in Germany: the Neues Rathaus at Hannover. That is a bit confusing as the ‘new’ townhall is already pretty old – it was built between 1903 and 1911 CE. It became necessary as the old townhall building from the year 1230 became too small because of the massive expansion of the city. It really looks like a castle and is still in use today – as the seat of the administration and the mayor.

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