Stop 3 on our Baltic Sea cruise was Estonia! In this video, we did a bus/walking tour of some sights, ending in the medieval Old Town.
In late summer 2019, we took a Baltic Sea cruise on the Norwegian Getaway. We booked a bus/walking tour of Tallinn, Estonia through Norwegian.
Our first stop was Kadriorg Park, which included Kadriorg Palace, the home of Catherine the Great. Catherine was wife of Russian Tzar Peter the Great (which is who founded St. Petersburg, Russia). Shortly after, we walked over to the Office of the President, though she was touring the countryside at the time we were there. Then we walked through some pretty gardens and hopped back on the bus.
Next stop was the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds, which hosts the huge Estonian Song Festival. We learned that the festival occurs every five years, and the joint choir includes a huge 30,000 singers who perform for a 80,000 person audience. The grounds also has hosted concerts by well-known global music artists, including Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, Lady Gaga, Elton John, and Queen.
It wouldn’t be a Baltic tour without seeing a church! After the festival grounds, we bused to Saint Nicholas’ Orthodox Church which had a heavily Russian influenced design. After a quick walkthrough, we continued to walk through Upper Town and take in the views of Tallinn and buy some souvenirs. Then we walked down the cobblestone streets to descend down to Lower Town.
We then stopped at our second church of the day, Niguliste Church, where we watched a musical performance. The cathedral is home to the Danse Macabre art piece by Bernt Notke, which is the oldest surviving medieval Danse Macabre on canvas in the world.
Then it was time for lunch! We ate at a restaurant called Maikrahv, and the Estonian chicken was literally the best chicken I ate on the whole vacation. After lunch, we had some free time to explore and shop in the Lower Town part of Old Town Tallinn. You can really see the medieval influence in the architecture here.
Then our day in Estonia was done! The next day, we would arrive in St. Petersburg, Russia for two days of touring.
Fam & Friends in this Vlog: @thetristandunn | @lerieannem
