High on a song

Estonians, more often than not, have a song on their lips. This love for music even served as a rallying point when Estonia tried to shake off  the shackles of former Soviet Russia in late 80s. That’s what our vivacious guide Margit Raud told us as she pointed out Lauluväljak — the famous song festival ground in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital. This August, Madonna, no less, is to perform (all the 70,300 tickets were sold out in 24 hours) at the song festival which takes place every five years.

The tradition of Estonian Song Festival goes back to 1869 when composer Johann Voldemar Jannsen started it at a time when the country was still a province of the Russian Empire. His composition ‘My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy’ became Estonia’s national anthem and later, a symbol of awakening when the country was under Soviet rule after the Second World War following a period of independence.

Song revolution

At this meet when citizens were expected to sing ‘approved’ songs, mostly in Russian language, it “always ended with our national song and the authorities couldn’t do anything about it,” said Margit. It was a song of defiance and hope for the people of Estonia as they sought freedom.

In 1991, the country achieved it through what is referred to as the ‘Song Revolution’. Tellingly, the national flag sports three colours — blue for the sky, black for its sad history under foreign rule and white for hope. Today, Estonia is a member of the European Union and a NATO ally.

We arrived in Tallinn from Helsinki taking one of the luxurious shuttle ships — locals call it a boat, which takes approximately two hours. Tallinn is an extraordinarily interesting place to explore, particularly its Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997.
Located on the shores of Baltic Sea just across Finland, Estonia was often at the centre of a tug-of-war for dominance between western and eastern Europe as Tallinn was an important gateway for trade which ensured its prosperity.

Its history as an important trading post goes back to the 13th century in the Hanseatic period when an alliance of trading cities and guilds was established in north Europe. The well-preserved medieval buildings are witness to that prosperous age when goods from as far as Africa, and also from the east, passed through the port of Tallinn.

People in the medieval age also called it a ‘city built on salt’ as it amassed wealth by transporting salt from Spain to Russia.

Today, the cobble-stoned paths of the Old Town are witness to its hoary past. What is astonishing is how well the wall built to protect the town has remained intact from 14th century onwards. Some houses built by the traders, mostly Germans, have also remained authentic. It is supposed to be the best well-preserved medieval town in northern Europe. Our hotel Schlossle was small but every beam, every slab, the fireplace with a crackling fire, the prize-winning restaurant in the cellar, all spoke of old times. 

Like all European towns with history, Tallinn too has a huge square which is dominated by the Town Hall preserved from the Middle Age. It was still very cold but with a whiff of the spring in the air, tables and chairs were already out in front of the cheerful restaurants. In one corner, what do we find but an Indian restaurant called ‘Maharaja’ with quite a few clients enjoying  tandoori roti and chicken curry.

We, however, opted to eat in a local restaurant called Old Hansa located in a cavernous old building. Inside, it was lit up by candles to clear up the gloom, perhaps deliberately kept so to create an ambience of antiquity. At the entrance we were greeted by a young man offering hot water to wash our hands and a towel to wipe them. “One shouldn’t eat with dirty hands,” he nodded wisely while we marvelled at the commonality of old customs, for, aren’t we taught in India to wash our hands before eating, never mind the forks and knives which arrived with the British. Even the waiters were dressed in medieval clothes keeping with the atmosphere at the eating house.

As we sat around on wooden benches and tables, our food guide Ene Palmiste enlightened us that this was how people at home or taverns ate in old days. “This way, people could eat and talk making it a long meal,” she said. Apparently lots of research have been going on authentic Estonian food and are being incorporated in restaurants like Old Hansa. Being a cold country, the emphasis is obviously on meat dishes. Bowls of food arrived to be passed on around the table — reindeer meat, sauerkraut (a pickled cabbage dish with or without meat or fish), wild mushroom, salmon, vegetables accompanied by a thick soup with green peas and smoked pork, and various kinds of bread. Needless to say the meal was excellent.

Well-satisfied, though a little slothful with all the food, we explored the square where Old Thomas (Vana Toomas) in local language, in all his medieval finery was waiting with a crossbow. Yes, crossbow, as he personified a medieval character Thomas, a poor peasant boy, and now a town symbol. In those days shooting a wooden parrot with a crossbow was a game the noblemen indulged during the annual spring fair. One year, when none of them could hit the target; this village boy volunteered to try. He faced much ridicule but he succeeded anyway. He became a town hero, was inducted into the king’s service, and became a famous soldier. Today, a weather vane put up in 1530 on the spire of the Town Hall depicting him pays him homage.

Famous marzipan

It was delightful walking through the labyrinthine narrow streets of the Old Town lined by boutiques selling local handicrafts, cafeterias, pubs with local favourites like Vana Tallinn liquor, and exploring the ware at the oldest continuing pharmacy in Europe, Kalev, which sells its famous marzipan (it even has a marzipan museum). Estonians claim that the marzipan is their contribution to the sweet tooth of the world. While walking up to the high point of the place to get a ‘million dollar view’ of the town below, we also came across a magnificent Russian Orthodox Church  and facing it, the pink coloured Parliament building. Pink seems to be favoured colour over here as we saw many buildings with the same colour.

Beyond the fortified town, we came across the Russian connection at Kadriorg, a beautiful park and an exclusive residential area crowned by a palace that Russian tsar Peter I built for his wife Catherine. Kadriorg actually means ‘Catherine’s Valley’. Today the palace is a museum with priceless artefacts.

The drive down to the sea-side was skirted by a pine forest. Oddly, the trees were tilted sideways. Locals call it a ‘drunken forest’ because of this peculiarity but actually it has happened due to the constant onslaught of the sea wind.

Tallinn is today also a modern town with tourists pouring in both to get the feel of a medieval city and enjoy modern-day festivals of song and dance and a beer festival. Most people on the street speak English though it is a sore point with many Estonians that many Russians who have stayed back are reluctant to speak the local language.
Saying goodbye to Estonia I remembered a friend asking before my journey: “Estonia? Where is it?” Well, it’s well worth trying to find out and discover this jewel on the Baltic Sea.