Greencaviar Travel

I spent the last few days traveling across the Baltic, to the towns of Tallinn, Estonia; Riga, Latvia, and Vilnius, Lithuania. These Baltic states have one thing in common; an Old Town, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site. I saw the greenest forest as we traveled from Latvia to Lithuania. Towering trees, conifers and pine trees covered the roadsides. But approaching Vilnius the road widened and the city was dotted with grey concrete-block apartment buildings or townhomes. We passed high-rise and commercial buildings before reaching the town center where our hotel was located.  My arrival in Vilnius coincided with the biggest street festival. Since the festival was not on my itinerary, I asked the locals and vendors what was going on. I was told that it was some kind of international festival where people from different countries bring their crafts and food to sell. And there began my adventure in Vilnius walking the small cobbled street alive with food tents, tables, and ch...

My Baltic Adventure Alexander Nevsky Russian Orthodox Church We were on an offshore excursion in Estonia, heading to the Song Festival Grounds (Lauluvaljak) – the largest open-air entertainment and music festival grounds in the Baltic. As we passed the coastal district of Pirita, our guide pointed to the bay and said, "It's the Gulf of Finland. You can take a boat to Helsinki from here." Helsinki is only 80 kilometers away and shares the Gulf of Finland with Estonia. Tallinn, the largest city and capital of Estonia is on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland.  Our guide told us a little bit of history of Estonia and Finland under Soviet rules for decades and the contrasts between the two countries post-Soviet Union. Although close in proximity, Helsinki, the capital of Finland has remained subdued and Scandinavian, while Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, has transformed itself into a tourist mecca and has adapted a Western European attitude.  Tallinn was named...