Just About Halfway Under A Waning Moon
Aug. 8th, 2017 10:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ismoWaaay too tired to post yesterday. It was a big adventure that involved going to Tallinn on the ferry, a two /two and a half hour ride each way across the Baltic, to see the medieval city that has been preserved there. And then walking for hours on the cobblestone streets, looking at guild houses and churches. Oh and the former KGB headquarters that took over the second house down from St. Olaf's, when the Russians were in charge. We also observed the very modern structure of the famed Tallinn radio tower from a distance, but did not attempt to go up.
Wikipedia says, "A widely known account tells of a handful of radio operators who in 1991 risked their lives to protect the free media of the reborn Republic of Estonia. They placed a matchbox between the elevator door and frame in such a manner that the elevator wouldn't work, forcing Soviet troops to climb every one of approximately 1,000 tower steps. The operators also had an oxygen-removing fire-fighting system at their disposal. However, it is not known if the system was operational or if it was a bluff; putting the system into use would have asphyxiated everyone in the tower, including those trying to defend it. The story is well known in Estonia; it is also part of the movie August, 1991 and is mentioned at length in the documentary The Singing Revolution."
I think that's at least as exciting as the Hanseatic league. Many people from Finland go to Tallinn for the duty-free shopping, so most of our fellow passengers were towing large roll-on suitcases and bags of wine and spirits, etc. We didn't shop, unless you count stopping for amazing coffee and cakes in the oldest cafe in Tallinn. We also saw an amazing little museum about Viking trade and artifacts, mostly the smelting of iron trade ingots and the trading of them for gold coins and silver dirhams from Constantinople and the East.
Today, we finally found our way to the Finnish National Museum, and I was overcome with joy to behold all the wonderful prehistoric artifacts from Finnish history, and then the evolving from stone and bronze tools to iron axes and swords. Large amounts of bog iron were found in Finnish lakes and bogs, which is where all the trade in iron and swords came from.
We successfully navigated the train station and took the train to Messekeskus, the convention venue, where we registered and obtained our free transportation pass for the duration of the con. Finally, we returned, very footsore, had a drink at an outdoor cafe and looked at our con programs. Tomorrow, the second half of the trip begins.
Wikipedia says, "A widely known account tells of a handful of radio operators who in 1991 risked their lives to protect the free media of the reborn Republic of Estonia. They placed a matchbox between the elevator door and frame in such a manner that the elevator wouldn't work, forcing Soviet troops to climb every one of approximately 1,000 tower steps. The operators also had an oxygen-removing fire-fighting system at their disposal. However, it is not known if the system was operational or if it was a bluff; putting the system into use would have asphyxiated everyone in the tower, including those trying to defend it. The story is well known in Estonia; it is also part of the movie August, 1991 and is mentioned at length in the documentary The Singing Revolution."
I think that's at least as exciting as the Hanseatic league. Many people from Finland go to Tallinn for the duty-free shopping, so most of our fellow passengers were towing large roll-on suitcases and bags of wine and spirits, etc. We didn't shop, unless you count stopping for amazing coffee and cakes in the oldest cafe in Tallinn. We also saw an amazing little museum about Viking trade and artifacts, mostly the smelting of iron trade ingots and the trading of them for gold coins and silver dirhams from Constantinople and the East.
Today, we finally found our way to the Finnish National Museum, and I was overcome with joy to behold all the wonderful prehistoric artifacts from Finnish history, and then the evolving from stone and bronze tools to iron axes and swords. Large amounts of bog iron were found in Finnish lakes and bogs, which is where all the trade in iron and swords came from.
We successfully navigated the train station and took the train to Messekeskus, the convention venue, where we registered and obtained our free transportation pass for the duration of the con. Finally, we returned, very footsore, had a drink at an outdoor cafe and looked at our con programs. Tomorrow, the second half of the trip begins.
no subject
Date: 2017-08-08 08:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-08-09 06:42 pm (UTC)thank you
Date: 2017-08-09 06:13 am (UTC)Re: thank you
Date: 2017-08-09 06:42 pm (UTC)