Day trip to Tallinn 15.2.2019
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| (Source:https://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/europe/estonia/tallinn/) |
In the meantime, I write short news about my day trip to Estonia, most familiar to Tallinn. Many of us have been more than enough in this city. After all, there are many cruise routes from Helsinki to Tallinn every day and there are also cheap flights. I had a very nice day and Tallinn will never disappoint with the attractions and atmosphere. Especially the most famous tourist area, the Old Town, is my favorite because of history. I could spend all my time there walking around and have a cup of coffee. I had a company so it wasn't boring even I have used to travel alone.
First, we went to Sadamarket, which
is the so-called Market Hall next to the harbor. I bought a handbag from there
because my old one was too small. I was lucky because I found new one with low price.
We walked from the harbor area to the Old Town. We decided to go to the Olde
Hansa restaurant (see https://www.oldehansa.ee/),
located in the center of the Old Town. This restaurant is especially well known
for its medieval surroundings, menus and atmosphere. That it really was when we
stepped into the restaurant. The interiors and suits of waitresses were just like in the Middle Ages. The atmosphere was quite romantic because of candles
on the tables and the restaurant had a smoky scent. I don't think the prices
were very high. Let's say that about the same level as the mid-level restaurant
in Helsinki. All in all, the lunch experience at Olde Hansa was more than
expected, I liked it very much. I recommend you to visit here if you are
interested of the Medieval time or even want to have a moment to dream what it was like
at that time.
After lunch there was a tour in the
museum. I wanted to go to check the Kiek in de Kök- museum (see https://linnamuuseum.ee/kiek-de-kok/),
because I haven't been there before. The museum had a quiet Friday afternoon,
so it was easy to get around without a hustle and bustle. We only visited the
museum's tower section, which is a six-storey complex. There is something to
see on each floor. The most interesting thing was found on the 1st floor with a
miniature model of groundwater treatment plant in Tallinn. Pretty funny detail!
Otherwise, the museum's tower section was mostly used to see war-time equipment.
History of the tower
With the advent of firearms
and cannons used in the siege warfare, the defences had to evolve accordingly.
Initial version of the artillery tower was built in 1475-1483. Back then people
called it just ‘the new tower behind the Boleman’s Sauna’.
The first written record of
the current name of the battery tower or version thereof originates from 1577
as Kyck in de Kaeken and from there on, multiple forms and spellings of that
name were used, e.g. Kik (Kyk) in de Kok, Kiek in die Küche, Pulffer-Thurm
Giecken Köck. Finally, in 1696 the current spelling appears, Kiek in de Kök,
meaning ‘peek into the kitchen’ in Low German. Well, one could say that it was
indeed possible to watch what the enemy was ‘cooking’ in their ‘kitchen’ from
the towering height of about 38m.
As early as in late 15th
century the tower was somewhat reconstructed. Extra layers were added to the
outer walls rendering these thicker, so the overall diameter of the tower was
17.3 m. The walls reached the current thickness of 4 metres; however, the tower
itself was lower back then. The waterproofed upper floor paved with
cobblestones was open from the top and had 22 embrasures in its parapet. The
parapets must have been covered by some kind of roof, yet the middle part of
the floor remained open allowing for better access in placing mortars and
catapults.
Compared to other defence
towers of Reval, the Kiek in de Kök tower had major fire power due to its 27
embrasures for cannons and 30 for handguns.
After a museum tour, we headed for a few glasses of local restaurants in
Old Town before leaving. We noticed a restaurant-bar called Clayhills
Gastropub. This restaurant-pub looked pretty attractive and it was even more
atmospheric inside, thanks to the old
and new interiors. The website of Clayhills Gastropub tells it to be the first
of its kind in Tallinn. Influences are understandably taken from the pubs in UK.
We went to Clayhills Gastropub for a few beers. Half-liter Clayhills from the tap costs 5,50 euros, not bad at all.
After sitting and relaxing an hour,
we headed back to the harbor and cruise headed to Helsinki in the early evening.
It was a super nice day in Tallinn. It was funny to noticed how such a small trip
cheered me up.
Enjoy the sunshine, have a relaxing Sunday!
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