Via Valga to Tantalising Tallinn

The journey from Riga to Tallinn was eye-opening to say the very least.  Tree after tree after wood after forest and onward for hundreds of miles.

Our 4 hour stop-off in Valga gave us an experience of conditions in an Eastern European border town. 

Facilities were limited with a choice of several supermarkets all concentrated in close proximity to the town centre, a hand full of cafes and the odd restaurant, mostly closed and a good few run-down buildings, some being refurbished, makes up Valga.  Incidentally the cake in the local cafe was lovely!

One thing we realised in our short time there was that the community seemed to be an ageing population although the local school looked more modern.  The air was harsher even after Riga, so much so that Helen made me buy gloves from a builder’s clothing merchant.

Onward to Tallinn

Tallinn is an interesting place with history and city walls dating back 1000 years. 

Probably the most complete example we’ve ever seen.  Views across the city and the Baltic Sea were stunning.

The ill-feeling towards their former occupiers is perhaps more evident in Tallinn than anywhere else in Eastern Europe although there appears to be strong feeling throughout Lithuania and Latvia. Support for the Ukraine is intense.

As always on the continent, countries seem to have an enhanced pride in their identity with national flags flying from many, many buildings.

Tallinn has a very different feel to other cities recently visited, it feels comfortable and is more expressive, perhaps it is due to the closeness of the Scandinavian countries a mere 50 miles across the water?

However, disappointingly, we struggled to find any authentic Estonian cuisine.