Quaint coffee shops, medieval restaurants and stone walls, people bundled to the eyeballs in furs, and unique shops around each corner. The people here are genuine and much more of nordic decent than I knew.
Currently the very cold is making it hard for me to get the energy to really explore much more than a few blocks from the hotel. My eyes freeze open in the cold wind and the snow falls each day anew. Forecasts show the high temps always with a minus symbol (-). I hardly can think of the low temps.
In general there are still people roaming the streets, ducking in and out of the shops and cafe's. I can just imagine the cobblestone streets in the summer when the cafes have outside dining and the streets are full of tourists.
Surprisingly there is still a large amount of outdoor vendors lining the old city walls and in the handmade crafts area. Predominantly women with handmade sweaters, hats and gloves for sale - dusted with snow. They are beautiful but a 100% wool item would be wasted on my return home. Not shocking is the number of t-shirts available is near zero.
Food has been a joy.
Typically Estonian food is hard for me to put my finger on. I have eaten at several places claiming to be "typical" but all are slightly different. The staple items tend to be the basic meat and potatoes. Pork cutlets and boiled potatoes, sauce ( gravy), carrot or beet salad, and the ubiquitous pickle. I have also has a very nice stuffed baked chicken breast with sun dried tomatoes and mozzarella cheese that a waiter claimed was " very Estonian" - I am not so sure, although it was excellent. Basically, I've had really nothing that wasn't good except one attempt at a pumpkin soup that reminded me strangely of dish detergent. ( one bite was enough)
One week left. The temperatures may be always in the minus category, but for me this place really has been a plus.
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