After a 7-hour bus ride from Riga, we arrived in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Our accommodation was quite close to the sea, in an apartment rented by a nice old lady, which immediately gave off a homely atmosphere. After we got off the bus, we immediately went for a walk, and one of the first places we discovered was the Lennusadam Seaplane Harbour (Airplane Hangar) maritime museum. This impressive building exhibited dozens of vehicles and objects related to shipping, but the biggest sensation was a complete submarine, the Lembit, which you could even go inside. We enjoyed this exhibition immensely, as it is rare to have the opportunity to explore the inside of such a monster up close.
After we finished here, we continued walking and found a great place, Lore Bistroo. This modern restaurant opened in 2019 in the popular Noblessner district and has also been recognized by the Michelin Guide. The kitchen is run by renowned Estonian chef Janno Lepik, who focuses on communal dining, so the menu features many dishes that can be shared with others. The next day, we walked through the historic city center, visiting iconic sites, and finally had a pleasant lunch at the Olde Hansa restaurant. This place has been welcoming guests since 1997 and is famous for its atmosphere of a wealthy 15th-century merchant’s house, where even the recipes and lighting are reminiscent of the Middle Ages. The next morning, we took a ferry to Helsinki.
The ancestors of the Estonian people have lived on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea for thousands of years, and their language belongs to the Finno-Ugric language family. The country’s fate was sealed in the 13th century, when Danish and German knights conquered the area during the Northern Crusades. This marked the beginning of centuries of social and economic dominance by the German nobility, while the Estonian peasantry was reduced to serfdom on their own land.
Following the Livonian War of the 16th century, the country was divided into several parts, and in the 17th century the Swedish Empire took control. This period is often referred to by Estonians as the “good old Swedish times”, as it saw the development of education and the spread of literacy. However, after the Great Northern War, Estonia became part of the Russian Empire and remained under Tsarist rule until the early 20th century.
In the chaos of World War I and the Russian Revolution, Estonia declared its independence in 1918, which it defended in a successful war of independence. The brief period of freedom between the two world wars was ended by Soviet occupation in 1940. During World War II, the country fell into German and then Soviet hands, and for decades existed behind the Iron Curtain as the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic.
The road to independence was completed with the Singing Revolution in the late 1980s, when Estonians expressed their resistance through songs. In 1991, the country peacefully regained its sovereignty and has since become one of the most advanced digital societies in the world. Today, Estonia is a committed member of the European Union and NATO, renowned for its e-government and innovative startup sector.
Tallinn, formerly known as Reval, became an important port and fortress thanks to its strategic location. The city’s lower town and upper town on Toompea Hill are still separated by impressive castle walls, which faithfully reflect the medieval social division. After the Danish and German conquerors, the city became one of the most important hubs of Baltic trade, where rich merchant houses and Gothic churches still define the Old Town skyline.
As a prominent member of the Hanseatic League, Tallinn played a key role in the exchange of goods between Western Europe and Russia. This powerful trade alliance guaranteed the city’s protection and economic prosperity between the 13th and 17th centuries. Through the alliance, Tallinn received not only goods, but also artistic movements and legal systems, which laid the foundation for the city’s civic consciousness and spectacular architectural heritage.
In modern times, Tallinn has developed a lot, but fortunately its Old Town has weathered the historical storms almost intact, so it is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. During Soviet times, the city became an industrial center and an important military base, but since the change of regime, Tallinn has been completely renewed. Today it is a cosmopolitan, clean and extremely modern capital, where cutting-edge technology companies operate in the shadow of medieval walls.
