7-14-2015: Tallinn, Guard Towers and Gates

Tallin is a walled City and most of the wall is still intact with guard towers and gates. The history is of knights, boiling people in the town square (Russian merchants who cheated the local business people - apparently that did not happen again), Robbers who lost their ears (you can hide a hand cut off but kind of difficult to hide a missing ear), gates into the city with overhead openings to pour hot oil or water on invaders, beheading following hangings (apparently only the nobles were killed by beheading but lowly thieves were first hung and then beheaded and buried apart to make sure the afterlife was not in their future), it is just a cool city.

Interesting but perhaps more important is the Estonia money is nothing to our dollar and the prices are so good there is major shopping going on here.

But first we find that Estonia is not so fond of Russia following the actions in the Ukraine - "Could we be next?" Members of NATO and close to Europe this little county shows no fear and plays the national anthem every day. Estonia was under Soviet rule and there is a bitter taste from those days.

Our guide told us when he was young he blew it by saying he got a gift from Christmas. Opps - Religion was out in the Soviet Union and Christmas was a no-no. Home he goes and his parents are brought in the questions this action. But his father was cool and said he meant no harm and did not understand the rule but of course they would no longer celebrate Christmas. But they did - they just no longer spoke of it and our guide learned that sometime you play the game in the old Soviet rule.