D10 – Monday 26 August

Our breakfast was down in the cellar through and in a series of underground passages and rooms. Breakfast was ok, but not fabulous and we had our usual seafood and non seafood selections. We sorted our clothes and took the opportunity of good pricing and locality to do a proper laundry. With knapsacks on our backs like Valderi we made our way short distance out of old town, through the town gates across the road to the modern world and a new shopping centre.

On the 1st level underground is a bus transit and some shops with the drop of laundry service. It was going to take 3 days before we could pick it up but we looked pathetic so the lady was very accommodating (either that or we smelt bad and she thought we needed fresh clothes) and will have it ready for us by tomorrow. On the lower level up from where the laundry is, we spied a supermarket so I suggested we try and buy a bottle of writing juice before curfew or something.

Wow, new highlight moment. We both got bewildered at the selection which was a veritable Aladdin’s cave of food. This supermarket is a real palace of gluttony – and we just went round the isles drooling. Definitely worth coming back to purchase a picnic lunch when we come back to get our laundry. There were beautiful cakes in the patisserie section, chocolates from around the world, good drinks section, meats and seafood to satisfy, and a deli section with hot meals, salads, and pre-made party packs with lovely mini open sandwiches and other delights. Sure we put on weight just looking.

For our lunch today we had planned to find a cheap dumpling restaurant that RS mentioned but after going round the block twice and revisiting the instructions we couldn’t find it so must have been closed. Headed back to our room for a quick stop, and choose another one called ‘Grandmothers house” so Vern could try some Elk (which is popular here). We saw on another menu with Bear meat and sausages. Not sure how I feel about that. This restaurant was also in the cellar which seems to be popular here, albeit they tend to be a bit stuffy. For lunch we had a traditional pork dish with sauerkraut and a blood sausage, and Roast Elk and Deer beer casserole with mashed potato and pickles . Both were nice, tasty home cooking style – the hot little blood sausage was surprisingly tasty – not the same as Blutwurst, but a nice tasty smooth sausage. The sauerkraut was quite sweet, and had bits of carrot in it – possibly too sweet for my preference. Elk is pretty much like lean beef – not as gamey as venison.

For new readers, we use Rick Steves travel guides a lot when planning, and his books also offer self guided walks with lots of good and interesting information. We had used these frequently on our trips and set off with book in hand for the Tallin walk. It was quite fun going from post to post like on a treasure hunt of discovery. Whilst Tallinn is pretty and a well preserved medieval town – one of the best in Europe with 14th century onwards buildings, it hasn’t blown either of us away. Street by street there are not as many interesting buildings and whilst tidy it is not as atmospheric as many lovely French, German, Dutch towns or the stunning Bruges in Belgium or even Dubrovnik in Croatia. Italy has lovely old hill towns, but they do the shabby chic thing so you cant really compare them. Again, it is not that we are not enjoying Tallinn, or think it is not worth coming – just a comparison in our view.

We had dinner again at the vegan and got to dessert this time by sharing a main. It was tasty but I think last nights dishes were better. I tried two new drinks, a sugar free matcha green tea lemonade which looked like a drink for Shrek, but was very nice. And Tallinn liqueur which I found out afterwards is a spiced rum. That was a bit like firewater but then very yummy almost like a southern comfort flavour. Dinner choices were the salmon caviar again as it is an unbelievably good dish, Caesar salad, and an orange tempeh with brown basmati and coconut and peanut sauce with fennel salad. Dessert we shared a cashew and sea buckthorn ball with black currant filling and orange foam. They used Aqua faba (from chick pea) for the foam. Yum all round.

At this place they make their own bread and one Estonian bread in particular is black, soft and seeded. Served ever so slightly warm as it comes towards you, you get a waft of sweet treacle flavour almost like ginger bread. On eating the seeds are soft and nutty and this is complimented by the chive butter sweet onion flavour they serve with it. I am not a big bread eater, but have become very partial to this, maybe because its half cake …. Must google it, and make it at home. It is very similar to the Finnish bread and mighty fine. Second thoughts maybe not a good idea to make it at home?