Well it was still raining when we got to Tallin, and actually it was getting worse by the moment. After some searching (aka following everyone else into town), I finally found my hostel. Most hostels I have had the pleasure of staying in are these big, dorm filled places that if you are lucky will also be filled with friendly fellow travelers. I really like hostels, even the crappy ones, for this very reason. I never have felt so comfortable having impromptu discussions with perfect strangers about politics and religion and traveling. If you have never stayed in a hostel, I suggest you try it. Anyways. This hostel I stayed in Tallin was in the Old City and felt more like a guesthouse than a hostel. It was ridiculously small…seriously there was one room with two bunk beds, and that’s it. I felt a little weird but then I figured that I wasn’t going to be spending much time there.

The man who was running the hostel when I came in was very friendly. He even offered me to use one of the hostel umbrellas when I went back out in the rain to explore the rest of the town. I accepted, figuring that this wasn‘t NYC and I wasn‘t libel to get my eyes gouged out and so my whole principle thing about umbrellas was unnecessary. It was pouring when I came back outside. But despite the rain, there were quite a few people out and about doing just what I was doing.

Tallin is the capital of Estonia and because it is so easy to get to from Finland, many Finns travel here for the weekend. Though their motivation is a tad different from the average tourist. Everything in Estonia, including alcohol and tobacco, is cheaper. Essentially, folks come for the weekend to stock up as it were. Those interested in doing the touristy things stick to the Old City. Which is what I was planning on doing.

The Old City is very old indeed. It dates way back to Medieval times (again no history lesson this time) and is separated from the other parts of Tallin by two huge, protective walls. Inside the walls, you feel as though you have stepped back in time. The streets are all cobbled and narrow. There is a big town center which also contains the town hall where concerts and town meetings are held. When I walked by the town hall, I could hear a choir warming up for practice. Standing outside in the rain and listening to those voices was a really beautiful moment. I walked on through the square and climbed the hills to the top of the city. The view of the old city from the top was just amazing. The Old City also has several fantastic churches, each following a different style of architecture.

Even though it was still raining, I felt encouraged and fortunate to be able to see this city. Unfortunately it was at this time that I discovered my camera battery was running low. I was going to have to come back in the morning to take pictures of the city. And hopefully, it would be nicer out in the morning.

For dinner I decided to go to one of the two Medieval-style restaurants in town. I met two other Americans while eating (the food was good by the way) and we got to talking about our travels. They were very nice people and after dinner we decided to go in search of a good bar. After some searching we finally found a place. I spent the next couple hours talking to them and it was really nice. This kind of thing is exactly what I like about traveling.

I went back to the hostel and with the rest of the group (of four) staying there, watched the final night of the Eurovision Song Contest. It was really hilarious. The commentator was British and he kept making all these pithy, very English comments about the show and the scoring. To make it even funnier, there was an American woman and a Greek man running the show-they had no chemistry whatsoever and managed very well to come off as being horribly awkward. In the end, Finland was victorious!! I have noticed in the last few days the contest that news of Finland’s win made the news in the States. So maybe you all have read about this already?

I woke up early the next morning, camera batteries charged and ready to go. It did turn out to be a really lovely day and all told, I took about 200 pictures. Here’s a note to my day (hi, dad!): I took these pictures in both black and white and color. I think they all turned out very well. Also, I am going to have a hell of a time deciding which pictures to post…there might be more than usual folks.

I miss you all and can’t wait to see you! *mwah*