Tartu

we met up friday morning at the bus station and caught the next express bus to tartu. the ride is about two and a half hours and costs only 70eek ($5) each way. when we arrived in tartu we headed straight for our hotel which was a ten minute walk outside the city center. in such a short distance we were already in the suburbs, wooden houses all around. for 700eek ($54) a night we had a room with three single beds, our own bathroom, and use of a community kitchen. a great deal and worth the short trek to and from the center. after dropping our things off, we headed right back to town to begin exploring. first stop was the information center in raekoja plats (the town hall square). there we picked up a copy of "in your pocket - tartu," a helpful city guide that outlines points of interest, restaurants, night life, etc..

right on the square is the leaning house which was built in 1790. part of the foundation was set on the old city wall while the other was constructed upon wooden piles. not a very good idea. the building was in danger of falling down until polish engineers stabilized the foundation during the soviet period.

after a day of sightseeing and a visit to the estonian national museum, that includes a room filled with national costumes and jewelry over the centuries organized by region, we had an early dinner at a popular russian restaurant then headed to illegaard jazz club for a drink. unfortunately there wouldn't be a live performance that evening so we mapped out a few plans for saturday then headed back to the hotel. though tired from the day we were unwilling to return to our room before 9pm. so we went right next door to a popular pub named olle tare which from the outside looks like a giant beer stein. there would be live music so we paid a small cover, grabbed the last stools in the house, and waited for the show. we soon realized that olle tare is popular but with a much older crowd, the same went for the music, so we were in bed by 11.

saturday began with a visit to the local indoor market. we weren't there to shop but to simply experience the sounds and smells. next we were off to st. anthony's court, home to tartu's craft guild. visitors walk from studio to studio, there are 22 workshops in all, and are able to purchase hand-made items directly from the artists. such a nice change from the souvenir shops in tallinn! a few christmas presents were purchased then we had lunch at a crepe restaurant yum! and ran into a friend from tallinn! one great thing about living in such a small country.

a large portion of our sightseeing consisted of churches. st. john's is the oldest dating back to the 14th century. my favorite was the russian orthodox church of st. george the conqueror built in 1870. we opened the door and saw eight elderly women sweeping the floors with hand brooms, polishing, and dusting. the interior was covered with icons and sacramental objects but there were no pews. anna explained that people come and worship individually, visiting the icons, praying, and lighting candles. the women let us stare in wonder for a few moments then quietly shut the door.

our last stop before dark was the university of tartu museum which is housed inside a five story reconstructed cathedral apse while the rest of the original structure remains a shell. a 10eek ticket granted us entrance into the museum, filled with paintings and university memorabilia, and the towers which offered a nice view of the city but after seeing the sign below we were a bit apprehensive to stick around for too long.

after taking a nap back at the hotel, we were ready to experience a night on the town. we started with dinner then checked out a few pubs around the old town. while tartu is a university town, you don't really see very many students in the pubs but out in the streets just hanging around. i wonder if they'll still be doing that in a few months. our last stop of the night was ironically called club tallinn, it is said to be the hottest night club in estonia. cosmopolitan magazine just came out in estonian so the club was hosting cosmo night. magazines littered the tables, cosmos were complimentary at the bar, images from the magazine were projected on the walls, and there was a live band for a portion of the evening.

sunday morning check out at noon then right to the bus station for the trip home. we had a great time but the experience helped us appreciate all that tallinn has to offer by way of restaurants, clubs, and social interaction.