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Tallinn off the beaten track

Don't get me wrong, Tallinn has an amazing old town worth a trip by itself. But if you have already been to Tallinn and/or don’t like walking among hordes of people (the old town is teeming with tourists), there are some places off the beaten track you can wander through and enjoy this city. In this post, I want to share my day in Tallinn off the beaten track.

The day started from looking for 41 Vabriku Street, where the writer Sergey Dovlatov lived for 3 years. I needed a picture related to Dovlatov for my other blog, so I thought, “Since I’m here, why don’t I go and take a picture of the commemorative plaque on the house.”

Dovlatov's house turned out to be located in a cute neighborhood, called Kalamaja, with pretty houses and deserted streets. We enjoyed a nice walk there on our way to the next destination.


The next destination was Patarei prison, which I stumbled upon when I was scrutinizing the city map in search of places to visit (I have a penchant for maps). This place caught my eye because I had gone on a fascinating tour of Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin, which is a former prison with chilling history. I got excited looking forward to a similar experience, but it wasn’t going to happen because Patarei prison is now closed. You can still walk around the area, sit on these wooden chairs on the shore right in front of the prison, look into the distance through barbed wire and think about the meaning of life.



We then walked to Linnahall, an abandoned concert hall. The place is a perfect example of Soviet architecture: an ugly grey gigantic structure made of concrete. Even though the description isn’t exactly inviting, the place still worth visiting. It has its charm. It’s right on the seashore; it’s massive, vast and empty; I bet the sunset is picturesque.



I nicknamed Linnahall the "Pyramid of the Sun" after the huge pyramid in Teotihuacan, Mexico. Look at those staircases. Climbing those must be like climbing a Mesoamerican pyramid.



Having climbed the “Pyramid of the Sun” on the side facing the sea, we were rewarded with a magnificent view of a church, a chimney, and two rows of turquoise lampposts.




We ended the day in a nice, old-and-new neighborhood called Rottermani. The sun was going down and got reflected off the numerous glass surfaces in the area. It was a perfect end to a perfect day.

Stay tuned for my next post about another perfect day in Estonia.

*I say “we” a lot. This time (and multiple others), I was travelling with my old school friend and the best travel companion ever, Petr Filippov, who is always up for an adventure.

This trip was made in July 2017.
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