Chillin in Tallinn, Estonia, Tallinn, Estonia

We were very excited to be heading to our first new country on this trip. Both of us were really looking forward to the Baltic States. No-one we’d talked to had a bad word to say about them, and Tallinn, Estonia was high on the list of everyone’s favourites. We loved Finland but it was definitely time to move on.

Certainly our first glimpse of the city was enticing. Turrets and walls towered in the distance above the harbour as the ferry docked. In no short order, we were off the boat and headed towards our latest find on Airbnb. The route we needed to take skirted the old town, providing us with an enticing glimpse of what was on offer. Sunny blue skies and lots of smiling people enjoying the balmy weather were contagious, and I had an overwhelming surge of happiness. Life was good.

We were very pleased to discover that Tallinn has lots of bike paths and lanes that make cycling around the city pretty safe. Drivers didn’t, however, seem to exhibit the same amount of care and diligence that we’d experienced in Scandinavia. Mental note: We should probably start looking at the traffic before we cross intersections rather than trust that cars would stop for us. (Seriously though; we never stopped doing that after spending 12 months in Saigon, self-preservation becomes ingrained.) ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).