MD Sabbatical 2010: May 2010

Ferry terminal:

On May 18^th, I traveled by boat from Tallinn to Helsinki. Upon arriving, I felt as though I had entered a different time era. The city, compared to those in the Baltic States, is very large, booming, and very cosmopolitan. far less poverty too. There are also many more tourists probably because like Tallinn, it is a large port city - a major stop for cruise ships. It is also very expensive - much more so than the cities in the Baltics. I was suddenly paying double for a smaller cup of tea.

Most everyone spoke English and very well – even compared to Sweden and Norway. Overall, the city is very beautiful with tree lined streets, especially along the Esplanades. Cafes are everywhere - with the best hot chocolate ever.

Along The Esplanades

The day I arrived was museum appreciation day so all admission prices were waved. This was my cue to take in as many as I could in the three hours remaining before closing. I managed only two – Ateneum (Finnish National Gallery), and the National Museum of Finland. Not bad considering a 20 minute walk from one to the other. And, yes, I did go through both and did not just visit the gift shops (I have pictures). I just walked through fast. Both were great, especially the Ateneum, where they have a special exhibition called Onerva – Women of the City. The exhibition illustrates the life of women in 1910s Helsinki through the eyes of writer and critic L. Onerva.

Ateneum

National Museum

Now that I have visited the three major Scandinavian countries, I have noticed they all claim to be the “Official Home of Santa Claus”. Not sure who will win this competition but my bet is on Norway – all the souvenirs say “made in Norway”. So those that say “Finland – Official Home of Santa Claus” have “from Norway” on the underside. Those from Sweden are the same.

Stockmann Store (their version of the Bay, Harrods, Macy's, etc... and very popular and where you can buy a "Finnish Santa from Norway"!)

The Cafe where I had lunch

My Finnish lunch -open-face shrimp sandwiches (very popular in Scandinavia) and the best hot chocolate!

The cafe also had "wine on tap". I didn't try any but wondered just how good it was!

I traveled by bus to Riga, Latvia, - 3 hours north of Vilnius. The bus was amazing - very clean, with televisions, and beverage service. For the most part, the countryside in both countries reminded me of driving from Moncton to Shediac - with very similar vegetation and topography.

My first impression of Riga, was positive - tourists friendly & welcoming - however, Riga was not always so welcoming to tourists. In the 1970’s, during communist rule, foreigners could only stay in one hotel -The Reval Hotel– where the KGB monitored all behaviour. In fact foreigners could only eat at the hotel restaurant and when they left the hotel they were followed. It's very different now.

Riga has an amazing old town because it suffered very little damage during WWII. The still intact old buildings are surrounded by parks and dozens of embassies with Art Nouveau architecture – especially Jugendstil (see the picture below). In fact, the historic center is on the UNESCO World Heritage List because it has some of the finest Art Nouveau buildings in Europe.

Riga also has one of the largest outdoor markets in all of Europe. There are 5 pavilions covering 16,000 sq. m. This is where most locals buy their food. It is open most days and you can buy most anything. As with Vilnius, amber and linen are plentiful.

A wall painting in the Old Town.

Architecture (could not get a good picture of entire building because I was on the tour bus)

Another interesting building - now a museum.

Cafes in the Old Town.

A Latvian man standing staring at the tourists.

Me - on the rooftop of my hotel, with the Old Town in the background. A women from England took this picture for me.

I left Riga and moved further north towards Tallinn, the capital of Estonia – the friendliest and most English speaking of all the Baltic States. Tallinn was also more advanced and had a more western feel – perhaps because of the proximity to Helsinki and because it is a major stop for many cruise ships. Although it is the smallest Baltic capital (after Riga and Vilnius), it felt bigger. It is also the most expensive of the three states.

I did a city tour and was surprised that it included a short journey to the outskirts of the city where they pointed out there national stone – limestone. They are so proud of the outcrops lining the highways. I chuckled, thinking perhaps I should appreciate the drive from Belleville to Brockville more.

The Old Town of Tallinn was the most interesting and most enjoyable - with Riga's second and Vilnius's third. The architecture was amazing and it had a great medieval atmosphere. There was also a competition to get people into the restaurants. In the main square, each restaurant had a “salesperson” selling the menu and motioning you to come in – “please come in and eat at our restaurant”. What a difference from Vilnius. I had so much choice it was mind boggling; however by this point in my trip, I wanted familiar food so I settled for pizza at an Italian cafe.

My Estonian/Italian Pizza.