This was the one day I did not have anything planned or scheduled. It was a free day to wander the city with no scheduled events. This is usually not a good thing for me, so I made up a few quests and things to do.
One of them was to try to find a decent souvenir: something for my niece and nephew and if possible, myself. There are shops everywhere, all of them seem to be selling the same stuff. There was very little differentiation in products or prices, I noticed. About the only difference was in the shopkeepers: the Estonians just looked at you suspiciously and fidgeted till you left; the Russians were friendly, open, and assured you they had more sizes, colors, varieties, and items '"in the back".
The Russian stores were more fun, but sometimes they were too pushy. Eventually, I figured out how to have a pleasant experience in an Estonian store: Enter as quietly as possible, but make sure you close the door solidly. Say hello politely, making eye contact for just a moment, then look away. Walk around the entire store slowly, so they know you are considering everything they have to offer. Do not touch anything. If you leave without purchasing anything, be sure to politely complement them on their store and thank them for letting you come in to shop. By following these steps, I was able to coax out some smiles.
I ended up not buying anything. About the only thing that looked somewhat interesting were the items made out of amber, but personally, I hate the look of amber, so no sale. I did find one nice art store, that created things out of textiles. They had some very interesting items for sale, one I was considering buying, until I realized the price was in Euros, not Estonian Krones (a difference of about 15x).
I spent the afternoon checking out the design museum and the history of Tallinn museum - both very good. The strangest "find" I made was that there is a Depeshe Mode tribute bar here. It was ranked by Lonely Planet as the 5th strangest bar in the world, a fact they proudly displayed at the entry. The entire bar was decorated with Depeshe Mode posters, pictures, and other memorabilia, while concert footage played in a constant loop over the TVs. Drinks were named after popular songs (I had a "Personal Jesus" - it contained vodka and some other ingredients, written in Estonian that I couldn't place. It was good - Jim Bob says check it out). I was only me and the bartender, who was wearing headphones when not making drinks. I had to ask, why? Why a Depeshe Mode tribute bar (in Estonia of all places - but I kept that part to myself). The answer I got was "the owner of the bar is a huge fan. The bar has been around for 11 years now and all it has ever played is Depeshe Mode. No other music is allowed." I asked what about Johnny Cash's version of "Personal Jesus" - would that be allowed? "No - only music by Depeshe Mode", at which point he put back on his headphones, presumably to listen to something else.
Dinner was good; it was at a local pancake place that our guide had recommended. They served very hearty pancakes - with fish, or meat. I had one with pepperoni, that was quite good. It had warmed up some today and it was a clear night, so I spent the evening walking the town and checking out bars, without my camera. Tomorrow morning I will have to fly out.
I'll miss you, Tallinn. 'Twas fun.
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