Talinn, Estonia

I landed in Talinn around 1 am, Sagar picked me up and we went to his house in Kadriorg.

Kadriorg (Katharinenthal) is a park area where Peter the Great built a palace for his wife Catherine I. Nearby the palace is an old cottage in which Peter lived while the works on the palace were concluded. Some museums are also in this area and a lot of wooden houses date back to Peter's time.

The next day, I bought the Talinn Card and started to explore the city in the Town Hall Cellar and on the Town Hall Tower. In the cellar, the history of Talinn was on display with the different developments of the city wall. Afterwards, I climbed the tower on a very narrow staircase and from the top I shot a lot of pictures of the old city and the main square.

I took the bus to meet Sagar for lunch after a detour in the wrong direction. We ate something Estonian for lunch and then I made my way to the zoo and later to the Estonian Open Air museum, where there are farms and houses from all over the country.

In the evening, Sagar and me went to an American bar to eat and to watch the soccer match Poland vs. Austria.

Very early the next morning, I went to ... and the spa there. I swam some 500 m and returned to the city where I joined a guided city tour. The first hour, we went by minibus to Kadriorg, the Song Festival Site, the ruins of a convent and then the bus dropped us off near the Newsky Church. We walked the old city and heard a lot about the history of Talinn and its Soviet time. The old town of Talinn is surrounded by a city of which 1,9 km are still standing including a lot of towers, some of which I climbed up so that my muscles were aching afterwards.

In the afternoon, I did a tour with the hop-on/hop-off City Tour buses (from MAN) which took me around the city. Later, I went by tram and bus to our subsidiary in the outskirts of Talinn and had a cup of tea with my Estonian contact.

In Talinn, the middle ages are still alive in the walls, towers and the tourist restaurants where they serve old and new dishes and the waiters and waitresses dress in old-fashioned clothes. As a good tourist I went to one of this restaurants - the Peppersack. After caviar on toast and a main dished, it was time to pack my things and head to the bus terminal for my bus to St. Petersburg that was to leave just before midnight.

Stockholm - the capital of Scandinavia

Another train trip took me to the Capital of Scandinavia: Stockholm.

Before I could start with my sightseeing and working off the money I spent on the Stockholm Card, I left my luggage at the hostel on Skeppsholmen (an island) - part of the hostel is on a ship right in the water.

Just across the bridge from the island, started one of the boat trps around Djurgarden, so I got myself a ticket for the next departure. The island of Djurgarden is like a big leisure hang out for the people of Stockholm and has always been it. There is a lot of greenery and people come here to jog or just walk around. There are also a lot museum situated here:Skansen (Swedish Open Air Museum), Vasa-Museum (Ship that sank before it maiden journey in the port), Junibacken (for kids, journey through the stories of Astrid Lindgren), Museum vessels (ice-breaker and lighting ship) and some more.

Before returning to my island I visited the Nobel Museum and climbed up to towers for a view (actually both towers had only elevators), so I decided to jog around Skeppsholmen to make up for that. In 30 min I surrounded the island twice, as well as once Kastellholmen.

The second day I started early in Djurgarden and then continued with the Museum of Dance which is at the Opera Place. On display were dance dresses from all around the world: India, China, Japan, Africa, Europe - they even had some short ballet films from the very beginnings of filming till today. But ballet was not the sport to be seen during my stay in Stockholm, more interesting was the public viewing area just behind the opera. There a yellow-bluish crowd cheered when Sweden won against Greece 2:0.

Next came the City Hall that was built only 85 years ago, but was made to look way older. In the hall you see on the picture the Nobel Prize dinner is held and King, Queen and the winners will walk down the grand staircase and be welcomed by the waiting guests. Later on they will dance in the upper Golden Hall.

In the afternoon, I made the Historical Canal Boat trip, which is going around the island with the City Hall. Unfortunately, the weather was not so good and we had to sit inside. So my sightseeing in Stockholm came to an end and I left for the airport, where I caught a very small Estonian Air plane (3 seats per row: left side single seats, right double) to Talinn.

Copenhagen - the Mermaid s city

After more than 16 hours in the train from Munich, I arrived around noon in Copenhagen. First thing I looked for my hostel and got rid off my luggage. Then I bought the Copenhagen Card and started my sightseeing tour.

In the Ny Glyptotek, there were exhibited a lot of statues from all kinds of styles and eras.

Next I walked through the city centre and passed by the theatre and a castle on my way to the little mermaid at the seashore. Modelled after a fairy-tale by Hans Christian Andersen, the mermaid is the symbol of the city. The final sight of the day was the Rundetaarn - a tower that has a street/ ramp inside and only at the very end stairs. From top you have a beautiful sight over the city. There is also an oberservatory, but as I was late it was closed already.

The next day started with a train ride to Roskilde - a town 32 km west from Copenhagen. In the Dome of Roskilde all the Danish kings and queens a buried. Beneath the Dome at the seashore is a Viking museum where you can test some Viking ships for real.

My next excursion led me to Hilleroed and the Fredericksborg Castle that is still decorated in the way of the people who once lived there.

The evening I spent in Tivoli - the amusement park dating back to the 19th century, also the roller coasters, merry-go-rounds and other attraction are of younger age.

The Nordic Tour - 4 countries, 5 cities & 15 days

On Saturday, my summer holiday started that will be a tour around Northern Europe visiting some of the major cities.

Part 1: Train ride to Denmark´s capital Copenhagen.

Part 2: Train ride to Stockholm - the capital of Sweden & Scandinavia as they declare it themselves.

Part 3: Flight to Talinn - capital from the very small country of Estonia.

Part 4: Bus ride to St. Petersburg - the city of the White Nights.

Part 5: Flight to Moscow - the capital of Russia.

Unfortunately, I could not find an internet place where I can upload the pictures I shot, so you will have to wait on the detailed reports.