Falling in love with the old Town of Tallin, Estonia #offbeattravels

Tripoto
26th May 2020
Photo of Falling in love with the old Town of Tallin, Estonia #offbeattravels by Pooja Khandelwal
Day 1

In continuation with our driving trip to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, I am talking about my love affair with the old town of Tallin now!

As I said earlier, sudden travel plans are the best ones as it gives you an additional happiness of seeing and exploring something unknown, something you haven't researched a lot about or seen the pictures on the internet before your visit!

This is exactly what I experienced, when I set my foot in the old town of Tallin, I fell in love with it right there 😊.

Characterized by its centuries old churches, some of them with a hint of Russian orthodox architecture, cobbled streets which make you feel of being in an old era, quaint street cafes and a slow life, that is Tallinn for me!

We endlessly walked inside the old down exploring following attractions:

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

This is the largest church in Tallinn built by russian architects back when Tallinn was part of Russian empire.Quite an impressive and typical architecture and facade, this is an orthodox church and you have to be fully covered along with your head to visit inside the church

St Nicholas Church

This is right in the middle of the old town, and we took a room with a magnificent view of this church! St Nicholas Church was built in the 12th century and is a medieval parish church with a large and impressive tower and a museum running inside the church.

I really loved the old charm of this church both during the day and in the dark when it was subtly lit.

Viru Varavad/gate

These are large gates, which were erected in the 14th century and said to serve as defensive mechanism for the Tallinn old town. There are many such defence structure all around the old town which you can see here

There are many other churches in the town which you will come along while walking which you can visit while in Tallinn

Hellemann Tower and Town Wall Walkway

This is the longest part of the original mediaeval city wall which is still possible to climb and walk along and gives you an idea of how the fortification of the city was done for security purposes. You get a very good views of the streets and the city while walking through the walkways along the wall. There are small complexes and displays as well inside the tower with an option to walk up in side the tower which is pretty interesting too

We spent some time walking inside the tower and the walks around the wall to click some pictures of the tower as well as the city around

Kohtuotsa viewing platform

This is must! You get a 360 degree panoramic views of the city from here. It involves a bit of uphill walking but once you are there you would be surprised to see the awe inspiring views of the Tallinn city with its red roofs and old stone walls all around. Though it was pretty cold and windy, we spent some time here enjoying the views around and of course the crisp weather too 😀. If you have time and want to see the city in all its glory, well lit after the dark, do come here again and you won't be disappointed

Random walk around the old town

We simply walked the whole old town during our a day and a half time here. You can enjoy sipping some wine sitting in one of those old cafe or shop in the old medieval shops inside one of the holes of those old city walls or even just spend time clicking the pictures of this old charm and Cobbled streets, you won't get bored a bit for sure 🙂

So, that's all we did in Tallinn. I don't say this often, but given a chance I won't hesitate to visit this place again in future and probably live here for a longer period in one of those houses in the old town, overlooking the city

Enjoying a glass of or some local food in one of the local cafes is must when you are in old town of Tallin ☺️

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

That's me on Hellemann tower wall walkway. Look at the narrow streets down there with the bell tower in the backdrop

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Another view while on the walkway

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Climbing up inside the Hellemann bell tower

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Inside the tower

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Walking the old town... Fell in love with these Cobbeld streets and the hole in the wall local shops ☺️

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

That's Viru Gate

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Gateway to the old town of Tallin

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Again, wandering around the old city

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

A fearless seagull chilling at Kohtuotsa viewpoint

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Panoramic view of the old Tallin from Kohtuotsa view point

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Olaf Church

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

In front of St Nevasky Church

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Another view of St Nevasky Church

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

That's St Nicholas Church, just in front of our place of stay in Tallinn

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

That's night view of St Nicholas Church

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

It calls for a beer when the weather is chill plus sunny 😎

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

A flower market just when you enter the old town. Love these markets in European cities

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

That's a try to capture St Nicholas Church from our hotel rooms window

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

Another capture in front of an old hole restaurant in the old town

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

And that's us, finally enjoying a meal in the local restaurant

Photo of Old Town of Tallinn by Pooja Khandelwal

I will be writing about a few offbeat places we visited while we were in Tallinn next, so stay tuned guys ☺️

Till then, keep exploring!!!