Day 60, (July 2) Tallinn, Estonia

Our first full day in Tallinn started like the other previous day's this week.  Following breakfast we boarded our coach for a 4 hour sightseeing tour of the city.  The first stop was at the singing festival performance ampitheatre where we first observed their memorial wall to the prior festivals.  These singing festivals which attract 10's of thousands of participants every 5 years are a national treasure of the Baltic states.  The choir climbed up there and sang a few songs to the appreciative other groups who were also visiting the festival grounds.  With the terrific acoustics, the choir could easily be heard in the back rows some several thousand feet away.  We concluded the tour with a guided walk through the Old City.  Highlights of that walk included a visit to a Russian Ortodox Cathedral whose interior and religious articles were covered in gold.  Unfortunately no pictures were permitted.  There was a nice viewpoint, and all of the streets are cobblestone.  The group posed for a group photo on one of the stairways and soon we were left to wander on our own.  

We grabbed a quick lunch as we planned to meet an Indian friend who happened to be in town on vacation.  We found Chanderjeet at the Indian restaurant and enjoyed a few minutes with him before Angela had to leave for choir practice and I headed off to visit the Occupation Museum.

I spent much of the rest of my afternoon at the museum getting steeped in the occupation history of Estonia while Angela had an unscheduled practice.  The group enjoyed a nice buffet dinner at a local brew house after which we walked back to the hotel and over to the Radisson Blu to enjoy a rooftop view of the sunset which was well after 10pm.  While we were enjoying the views, a sudden rainstorm came up and chased us all inside.  To get back to our hotel it appeared that we would get drenched.  But I spotted a pedicab, and off we went; and arrived dry back at our hotel ready to retire for the evening.

Day 59, (July 1) Riga, Latvia to Tallinn, Estonia

Fortunately this morning we did not have to get up early as we couldn't leave before 9:15am because the bus driver was required to have a 9 hour rest break.  With the bus loaded we headed off north towards Tallinn.  The countryside was filled with lots of farms and agriculture.  At the border we took a rest break in a former border checkpoint station.  Continuing on for a short distance we took another break at the ocean.  There was a large swan there, and several members took the opportunity to wade in the water.

Continuing on, there was suddenly a swerve and a thump, thump.  Looking out the back window, we had hit a very large bird and its lifeless remains were now splattered on the highway.  But we motored on and subsequent inspection revealed no damage to the bus.

After arriving in Tallinn, we had the opportunity to check in to our hotel, the Nordic Hotel Forum, which is located within easy walking distance from the old city before quickly heading off to the first church (Kaarli Kirka)  for the choir practice.  After the practice we went as a group to a restaurant in the Freedom Square.  Initially there was not enough food there. And many of us had to wait a long time for the buffet table to be replenished.  After dinner we walked back to our hotel for a welcomed night's rest.

Day 58, (June 30) Riga, Latvia

We started this morning with breakfast with a couple of choir members who are planning to visit Heidelberg for a few days.  We were able share our 'local knowledge' with them to aid them in their planning.  After that we spent time with Raul, our guide, talking politics and gaining a further understanding of the Baltic mindset.

We used the bus to get us back down to the Old City where we went up in the bell tower of St. Peter's Church to enjoy some scenic views of the area.  We met some Asian tourists that were speaking Spanish and learned that they were Spanish residents.  After that we walked to the Central market where we spent the remainder of the day before walking back to the hotel in time to shower and change into performance clothing.  

The bus left the hotel shortly after 4 for the Old Town and the practice session at the church.  The performance went well, and we walked to a nearby  restaurant for a very nice but time consuming meal.  Once again it was a late night arrival at 12:15am back at the hotel.  This had the consequence of a later start in the morning as the driver has to take a nine hour break per EU rules.

Day 57, (June 29) Riga, Latvia

We started this day in the usual way with the continental breakfast at the hotel.  Our local guide met us at the bus and we were transported out to the Mezapark where we walked a few kilometers to the ampitheatre.  Many of the choir assembled on the top steps of the ampitheatre and sang a few songs.  We walked back to the bus and were transported to the Old City where we did a walking tour.  Once on our own, we wandered the city on our own including a visit to the Occupation Museum (not as brutal to the emotions of an exhibit as the Vilnius one was) which is housed in the former American embassy and a walk back to our hotel.  

Our bus then took us to the Technical University  where the choir practiced with the local men's chorus, Gaudeamus.  It sounded very nice to have the strong male voices behind the predominantly female voices.

After the practice session which ended at 10pm, many of us went over to a local jazz club, Trumpet, for a late dinner of ribs (18€ for a bucket (2 plus pounds) and a couple of beers (I gave one away).  The jazz guitarist and saxaphonist were quite good although for my taste it was a bit loud.  We left the club around 11:30 and a group of us walked back 45 minutes to the hotel for a late night bedtime.

Day 56, (June 28) Vilnius to Riga, Latvia

Today, Tuesday, we transitioned by bus from Vilnius, Lithuania to Riga, Latvia.  After departing the hotel at 8:30am we drove to the Gates of Dawn in the Old Town of Vilnius.  The picture of the Madonna is there and a number of the group hadn't seen it yet.  

We then motored on through the countryside with a planned lunch stop before visiting the hill of crosses.  Unfortunately, the restaurant was full, so we visited the Hill of Crosses first and then found a truck stop with some pretty decent sandwiches.  It was just hard for them to handle the mass influx of 40 plus bus passengers.

The Hill of Crosses started back in the 1800's when a few crosses were anonymously erected during a Soviet occupation.  They were removed and the next day twice as many were erected.  This cycle continued for many years until eventually the crosses were permitted to stay.  Today the site is protected and there are literally 10's of thousands of crosses there and it is a major pilgrimage site in this predominantly Catholic country.

As we motored through the countryside, I was struck by how rundown many of the farmhouses were.  In general, the condition of the homes was comparable to those found in Central America.    Soon we crossed the border into Latvia, and about 1 1/2 hours later we arrived at our hotel Albert (themed after Albert Einstein).  In fact our WIFI password is his famous equation E=MC2!  Cute!

We were bussed to dinner in the old town and afterwards we walked back to the hotel and enjoyed seeing the various architectural highlights.  Tomorrow the plan is to take a bus tour in the morning and do a self guided walking tour.

Day 55, (June 27) Vilnius

It was sort of a hot night and the dawn came early (actually at close to the same time as the day before).  We went down via the elevator to the main floor restaurant where there was a buffet as large as a cruise ship and it featured local delicacies such as herring and mackerel.  After breakfast we loaded onto our bus for a 3 hour tour of the city.  The first stop was at a pavilion constructed just for singing.  The choir massed and sang a few numbers and it sounded heavenly from out in the field.  We then headed on through the city to St. Peter and St. Paul's church.  We left the church and drove to cathedral square where the choir formed a line facing north and south and  symbolic of the line formed by the Baltic people following independence.  In that case the line stretched from Vilnius to Tallin. Inside the choir sang a quick impromptu song that was heavily. We then walked  to what Angela and I thought was the prettiest exterior of all the churches: St. Anne's and Bernadette's churches.  They are constructed of a gorgeous red brick exteriormmched them some more until the practice concluded.  It's really interesting to experience the acoustics of performing in the large cathedral type church.

Just after we left the church a police car stopped the bus and accused the driver of hitting a vehicle during a turn.  So while he sorted that out, we unloaded from the bus and continued our tour walking.  I looked at the damage and it appeared to all be old damage.  I also was seated above the right rear corner and did not feel any contact.  I learned later that it was in fact a way of extorting money as the officer probably spotted the damaged area and used it to his advantage.

We walked to the church the choir would be performing in and then we had about an hour and a half for a lunch break.  While the practice occurred I found a hair dresser for a haircut.  After the practice we bussed back to the hotel for a buffet dinner.  We were then bussed back to St. Casimir's and we arrived there a scant 10 minutes before the scheduled 7pm performance time.  

When we walked in the church, it was packed!  What a thrill!  The concert was well received to a standing ovation.  After the concert part of he group stayed downtown while most of us went back to the hotel where we went up to the Skyview bar for a bit.

After an attempt to purchase some snacks for the upcoming trip, we returned to the room to do some last minute packing and soon it was dreamland.

 

Day 54, (June 26) Vilnius

It was nice to not have to get up early and pack on this Sunday morning.  So we didn't.  We did have to make the 11am cutoff for the continental breakfast which we did.  We checked out just before noon and caught the 12:30 shuttle to the airport to wait for the other incoming choir tour members who were due at 1:30pm.  We found our guide (Rauel) and around 2:00pm we started seeing people come through  the frosted glass doors of the 1950's Soviet style airport.  Since there were several flights arriving around the same time from various airports, it took awhile to for the group to assemble.  Finally, however, it did and we loaded onto our bus for the 25 minute ride to the Radison Blue Lativja.  We quickly got checked in and I headed on foot to the Genocide Museum which was only open until 5pm and not on Monday or Tuesday.  

It was only a 12 minute walk from the hotel and I found it easily.  I just had an hour to see the museum so I started in the prison area in the basement of what was the KGB building.  It was very sobering to see and read about what went on down here for so many years.  People were imprisoned, tortured, and executed here. Their graves for the most part have never been discovered and the tally of those killed is in the 10's of thousands for this prison alone.  The upper two floors contain exhibits about the struggle for freedom and the Soviet and Nazi attempts to quench that.  Alas, the hour finished all too quickly and I was back out in the heat and humidity of the day for my walk back to the hotel.

Angela was off doing a choir event and I didn't know where.  So I read and waited until 6:30 before I headed to the mall across the street to find some dinner.  I found some sushii and it was good.  She returned around 8:00pm and we took a short walk before returning to the room to watch more of the European Cup soccer playoffs before retiring for the evening.