Home --- TRIP: Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania 2009

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Our adventure begins in Tallinn, Estonia and travels through Latvia, Lithuania then back through Latvia and Estonia in a figure eight fashion with a stay at Saaremaa Island.
2 This is the first of a two part trip. Part two is on the home page titled Ukraine & Moldova (+Chernobyl) 2009. Where in the world are these places? Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have in common that they were all previous states of the USSR who gained their independence between 1990 and 1993 following the collapse of the USSR. The Baltic states (Estonian: Balti riigid, Latvian: Baltijas valstis, Lithuanian: Baltijos valstybes), Baltic Nations or Baltic countries are three countries in Northern Europe, all members of the European Union: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. After centuries of foreign domination the Baltic countries reemerged as independent nations in the aftermath of World War I in 1918-1920.
3 Leg one is off from LAX to Tallinn via Frankfurt, about a 20 hour trip.
4 We arrive in Tallinn late in the day, its raining (the only rainy day of the trip), and we check into our small, clean and centrally located accommodation. The first thing we notice is that the sun is not setting until after 10 PM.
5 Next morning we are out looking around and spot a steeple in the distance, which we believe is part of the Old Town section.
6 Sure enough, we find the gates to the Old Town.
7 The sky is blue, the temperature is perfect. The Old Town is well kept and in keeping with most European architecture.
8 On this trip there will be many statues, monuments, and churches to visit. Sorry, we do not know the name of this statue, if you do let us know.
9 Viru Gate, entrance to the Old Town. One of two remaining towers that were once part of a larger gate system built in the 14th century.
10 Seems to be a very artsy community and there is no shortage of artists displaying their work.
11 On Long Boot Street, so named for the boot shaped drain pipe in the foreground, we can see the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral built in 1894-1900 off in the distance.
12 The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is an orthodox church in the Tallinn Old Town, Estonia. It was built to a design by Mikhail Preobrazhensky in a typical Russian Revival style between 1894 and 1900, during the period when the country was part of the Russian Empire. The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is Tallinns largest and grandest orthodox cupola cathedral. It is dedicated to Saint Alexander Nevsky who in 1242 won the Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipus, in the territorial waters of present-day Estonia. The late Russian patriarch, Alexis II, started his priestly ministry in the church.
13 Seems like a good idea to leave some of my Aunt Thelmas remains at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
14 After our short walk through Old Town we decide to take the Hop On Hop Off bus around the city of Tallinn. Near the port is a lovely harbour for personal boats.
15 A walk down the beach and harbor with cruise ships docked in the distance.
16 Rusalka is a memorial to the sunken ship of the same name. It was an ironclad monitor ship of the Imperial Russian Navy. The ship sank on its way from Tallinn to Helsinki in 1893.
17 How cool is this? New office buildings built on top of old structures. This building may represent Tallinn in the melding of the old and the new.
18 Check out the building to the left. It was built leaning to the right. Some of the architecture here is very unusual.
19 Got off the Hop On Hop Off bus and took another walk through Old Town. This time we wanted to visit the upper section. On the way up you can see St. Nicholas Church in the background.
20 Finally reach the top of Old Town and found a beautiful place to view the entire Old Town below.