I'm Tallinn for Estonia!

 

A portion of Tallinn's old town skyline

Hello again, Blogonauts!

Let me invite you to join me in the small country of Estonia, and its capital, Tallinn.

So where are we? As you may know, three former USSR states (Lithuania, Latvia, & Estonia) edge the Baltic Sea. Estonia is the northernmost of that trio.

I joined a 2-hour group walking tour today to see much of the old town. In a way, I'm channeling the tour guide (a Londoner now married to an Estonian) to give some of the stories that help to explain the pictures. 

So back to those stories: While Estonian culture is centuries old, the Danes, the Swedes, the Germans, & the Russians have each fought to rule over this land. Estonia's existence as an independent country is therefore relatively modern...really only around 100 years, with an enormous Nazi-&-Soviet-filled gap in the middle.

The skyline photo above, though, points to medieval history. Stone parapets, medieval towers, earthen ramparts, and even the remnants of a moat give silent testimony about the foreign kings & merchants extensive efforts to protect their claims. And they really needed to worry. Estonia is a gem that has caught the eye of various powers around the Baltic for almost 1000 years. 

Remaining portions of Tallinn's city walls

But walls do not a city make. (Oh, alright, they help. Something has to hold up the ceilings.) For even more historic architecture, we're in a bit of luck. Tallinn's old town escaped much (but not all) of the World War II bombing that nearly wiped out other cities under Nazi control. And so some of the oldest stone structures in northern Europe (those that were lucky enough to exist in Tallinn) survived.

Tallinn's old town hall sits next to a large old market square.

 

Tallinn's old town hall (now mostly a museum) was completed in 1402. (Fires from the bombing literally melted the top of the spire, so that portion was rebuilt.)

And across the square sits the Town Hall Apothecary. It opened in the early 15th century, and there are continuous records of an apothecary (and later a pharmacy) existing in that building ever since. It is thus perhaps the world's oldest continuously functioning pharmacy in the same location.

 

The Town Hall Apothecary

The Apothecary maintains a history exhibit free to the public.

We'll revisit some of this medieval history in the coming days, but let me turn now to the consistently fraught relations between Estonians and Russians.

The USSR and then Russia, of course, enormously influenced Estonia's perception of itself in the modern world. The Russian bear breathes heavily, and as such it keeps the Estonians awake nights.

The largest and by a long shot, most ornate church in Tallinn is the Russian Orthodox St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. And ironically, it sits across a small square from the Estonian Parliament building, which during the czarist era was a Russian palace.

In 1920, Estonia won a war for independence from the Russian Empire (all on the heels of the Russian Communist revolution). After their declaration of independence, Estonians voted in a referendum to destroy the Russian Cathedral. With less than 2% of the country Russian, there were few to defend the church.

 

St. Alexander Nevsky Russian Orthodox Cathdral

 

Estonia's Parliament Building (a repurposed Russian palace)

But the young country had no money to carry out the demolition. And when Estonia was again taken in by Russia's successor, the Soviet Union, the Kremlin promoted efforts to "Russify" Estonia. Plus, a large number of retired Soviet era military officers voluntarily retired in Estonia because it was so beautiful & prosperous.

So in today's Estonia, about 25% of the people speak Russian. Destroying St. Alexander Nevsky's would be taken as an affront to the Russian Orthodox Estonians. But slowly, the government has issued regulations requiring that, even in Russian-language schools, a portion of the classes must be taught in Estonian. And given the country's economic prowess that is tied to the Estonian language, there may be dying resistance to helping the Russifyers to becoming Estonianized.

But tensions rose further when Russia's invasion of Ukraine began (ironically) on Estonia's February independence day. The country felt both kinship with the Ukrainian people and justifiable concern that Putin's Russia would again attempt to reclaim Estonia. Evidence of the solidarity with Ukraine and the anxiety toward Russia are hard to miss.

 

A large melding of Ukraine's & Estonia's flags, posted above Independence Square

Protest banners lining the sidewalk outside the Russian embassy

The chalked sentiment (outside a restaurant) says enough.

The Estonians, though, have a vibrant economy, a love of education, and a seeming passion for their own unique culture. It seems that it will be difficult to force them under an external ruler's thumb again. 

So, I'm getting to know both the old & the new Estonia. My visit here continues until Monday, so there's more to come.

But I've kept you waiting long enough. My audience needs a bit of ocular-oral stimulation, in other words, FOOD PICS!

Pumpkin Soup appetizer at a Belgian Restaurant

Duck Sausages with roast potatoes & tomatoes (The brown sauce is a sweet mustard.)

A lunch of beef soup with homemade noodles

Salmon with a salad and roast veggies on the side

That's plenty of verbosity & photography for now. (Believe it or not, I cut about 2/3 of the narrative. It was a busy day. In this instance, editing a form of mercy.)

Again, if you leave a comment, kindly send me a signal of who you are. It's hard to recognize someone's handwriting on the internet.

Blog To You Later!

Larry