It’s faster to change capital cities, Helsinki to Tallinn, than it is to drive from our farm to the airport in Atlanta. The new fast service called the Linda Line left Helsinki harbor as scheduled at noon – to the minute – and slid up to the dock in Tallinn at 1:35.
Having stayed in the old Viru Hotel in the 90’s (fairly grim at the time), we opted to stay in Tallinn's old town this visit. The Telegraaf hotel was nicely renovated, a nice enough place, and the old town is such a museum piece it would be stifling if it weren’t so authentic. And ancient.
Tourist shops selling tourist wares and tourists and tourists and tourists. Cute cute cute and very busy. Here’s a photo of a post card seller trying to nail you before you get inside the old walls. Click for a bigger view.
- A couple of final Finland notes after the jump.
(And photos slowly being added here.)
- A thunderstorm roared over our cabin on Sunday night, middle of the night. Turns out that earlier that day, past Helsinki and en route to us, it ripped up a bandstand and all its metal rigging at an outdoor festival. Had there been a band performing they feel there would have been mass casualties. Tough summer weather continues.
- Authorities were conducting detailed tests on areas around Chernobyl burned in forest fires, to see if somehow more radiation was released. But we left before they had the results and haven’t heard.
- A little more on the sauna competition that killed a finalist: I saw coverage on our home town paper’s web site back in the U.S. It’s made Finland world famous for a few minutes and the Finns are bemused.
The competition happens in Heinola, not a long drive south from where we visit. They’ve cancelled it from now on, of course. The previous record was five minutes at 110 celsius and the Russian died and his competitor was hospitalized as a result of trying to last for a sixth minute.
Having been in saunas near 100 degrees I can envision actually BEING in the thing (but not for five or six minutes). What’s unbearable is that they add a have a liter of water to the heat every thirty seconds. This is known as the löyly, and it increases the humidity and heat fiercely. Try it at home. You’ll see what I mean. No, don’t, actually. It will kill you.
Comments