Cruise, Day 10: Tallinn, Estonia

Very possibly we saved the best till the last. And that may say something about what we like: the older the better!

There are few places in Europe where the aura of the 14^th and 15^th centuries survive intact the way they do in Tallinn’s Old Town, founded in 1154. On a 4-hour walking tour this morning (on a gray, sometimes foggy, chilly day and our last excursion of the cruise), we wound our way through the cobblestone streets from the Upper Town, top of the Toompea hill, down through the medieval quarter of the Lower Town.

Once again, here are some photographic impressions:

The Russian Orthodox Church of St. Alexander Nevski (left) and the St. Nicholas Church (right).

The Town Hall (left) as seen through a side street and one of many side street gates (right).

More of the same, everywhere!

From the rooftops of London Tallinn! And just one of many weathervanes (I think I'd like to create a photo book of them from all over Europe!).

Estonia, formerly of Russia and of which Tallinn is the capital, has been part of the European Union only since 2004. Tallinn is NOT Russia, in spite of its influence. What a big difference in the “feel” between St. Petersburg and Estonia! Clearly Estonia is trying to be more European. And BTW, it’s directly south of Helsinki across the Gulf of Finland, only 53 miles away. We loved every minute of our too-short time there.

Tonight we get another hour back, so tomorrow we will be back on Hannover time, 6 hours ahead of Atlanta again. AND for the next 2 days we will be at sea and can REST. I was so tired today that immediately after lunch I napped for over an hour--my first time. So, yes, it's catching up to us. The next 2 days on board will be a godsend!

I so much look forward to having "normal" Internet time again, when I can catch up on all of you and acknowledge all your comments. It means more than I can say that so many of you have been following along on this cruise. I know that's what friends are for, so thank you!