Just Like a fairytale
MEDIEVAL MAGIC: An authentically dressed waitress serves traditional elk soup into a pottery bowl in the Tallinn old town hall |
`Go for the glugg". So says the friendly and warmly dressed Estonian who sees us looking lost, forlorn and in need of sustenance as we wander the wonderful snow-covered streets of Tallinn.
His advice is sound. Within minutes our freezing hands are wrapped around a hot glass of the heart-warming liquid in a cosy Tallinn bar. It might not have the most flattering name in the world but by golly, glugg hits the spot.
Glugg is a delicious Estonian version of mulled wine. With Scandinavian origins (coastal Tallinn sits just 80 kilometres across the Baltic Sea from Helsinki) it features raisins, almonds, ginger, cardamom pods, a cinnamon stick and wedge of orange in a luscious syrup that no-one is keen to tell us too much about, apart from admitting there's red wine and a dash of the local Vana Tallinn liquor involved.
It's been served since medieval times and quickly works its magic on two cold Kiwis.
So, just what are we doing in this frozen land where snow blankets the countryside for months on end; lakes, rivers and even the Baltic Sea ices over and temperatures plummet to well below zero?
We wanted to go somewhere completely different and being off the well-worn tourist route made Estonia an appealing midwinter destination. With budget airlines offering ridiculously low airfares from London it seemed a great opportunity to visit a winter wonderland.
Tallinn is the capital of Estonia, which is one of three Baltic countries (the others Latvia and Lithuania) liberated from the former Soviet Union in 1991. It's a fairytale town, complete with church spires, turrets, towers atop old city walls, Russian cathedrals and castles, and thoroughly deserves its Unesco world heritage status.
Far less touristy than Prague, prettier than many other European old cities and certainly one of the best preserved in spite of extensive bombing by Russia during World War II, it's a fantastic place for a short break.
Our first introduction to this mysterious country came on the plane when we sat next to a young Estonian woman. She filled us in on the country's background, economy, current status, her own hopes and dreams and then, kindly, insisted on delivering us to our hotel, offering valuable tips on where to go and what to see. Such warmth and friendliness was a feature of our stay.
Tallinn at night is breathtaking, especially with snow falling, and we wander for hours just soaking up the atmosphere, watching fur-clad locals going about their business and stumbling upon that magical glugg.
Next morning, with fresh snow sprinkling the cobbled streets, the old city is even more beautiful. Our first stop is Toompea, the hilltop seat of Estonian government with sweeping views over the old and new towns and the Baltic Sea.
Stopping to watch ice skating allows us to catch our breath – walking on snow takes some doing and we adopt the "Tallinn shuffle", a kind of walk/slide that stops us slipping.
It's exhausting stuff and we soon work up an appetite so it's back to the town square for our first experience of Estonian cuisine – elk soup. This local delight is served by authentically dressed waitresses in the medieval town hall which is set up just as it would have been back in the middle ages.
The soup is delicious – a hearty and flavoursome meaty broth with plenty of vegetables. Husband David returns for more and at $2 a big bowl it hardly breaks the bank.
That night, after more exploring, we go to an Estonian restaurant where David has wild boar casserole which he says is delicious while my Estonian bone chop turns out to be pork – thick and scrumptious. The meal, with vegetables, wine and desserts, comes to $30.
The next day we continue exploring, taking an ancient and draughty local tram to the furthest points of the town, both north and south, which gives us a good overview but chills us to the bone. Nothing for it but to seek out the glugg!
Dinner that night is at a medieval restaurant where we share a platter of traditional local foods including smoked and salted fish, meats, olives, cheeses and preserved vegetables washed down with cinnamon-flavoured beer and herbal-infused red wine. Bear is on the menu – but we cannot bring ourselves to ask if it is real. We discover later that a certain number of bears are shot and eaten in Estonia each year.
On our final day we wander the market stalls where local craftspeople sell hand-knitted garments including hats, scarves, mittens and jerseys. While guaranteed to be warm they are too reminiscent of Colin Firth in that reindeer jersey in the movie Bridget Jones' Diary. Instead we opt for a bottle of the local liquor and savour it back in London along with very fond memories of a place we are delighted we visited.