I’d like to invite you on a post-Soviet Tallinn adventure. Come on an alternative virtual tour through a decade of extreme changes, witness the scale of gentrification and re-live a lost world. more “2011-2021: a virtual tour and time travel adventure of post-Soviet Tallinn”
If I was to tell you that right next to Tallinn, within view of Old Town, there was a heavily restricted Soviet military complex more “Naissaar: abandoned bunkers and Soviet secrets”
Linnahall (a.k.a V. I. Lenin Palace of Culture and Sports) is one of the biggest eyesores in all of Tallinn; drab, grey and ugly… perhaps this is why I love it so much. more “Linnahall: portrait of an abandoned Soviet-era concert hall”
Something is stirring on the western shore of Kopli peninsula. A dormant industrial complex, left behind by the twenty first century, is beginning to wake up from its thirty-year slumber. more “Põhjala Tehas: abandoned rubber factory in Kopli”
Twelve years of knowledge and experience, in one place. Here is my Ultimate Tallinn Travel Guide.
more “The Ultimate Tallinn Travel Guide: Discover the real Hidden Tallinn”
Derelict; dangerous; destroyed; destitute. Kopli Lines has been one of the most problematic areas of Tallinn for decades. Vacant shells of former homes sporadically occupied by squatters and always in the news for the wrong reasons; more “~{Forgotten Tallinn Series, Ep.3}~ Kopli Lines, Abandoned Ghost Town”
Once upon a time in a mystical land called Kopli one intrepid traveller decided to take a walk with his camera.
Deeper and deeper into this dangerous district he delved, documenting the darker side of Tallinn. more “~{Forgotten Tallinn Series, Ep.2}~ A Photographic Tour of Kopli”
Tallinn is in a state of monumental metamorphosis. Apartment blocks rise up from the fertile ashes of a post-industrial wasteland, cafés procreate, shopping malls swell and futuristic trams glide silently across their new domain. more “~{Forgotten Tallinn Series, Ep.1}~ What’s the story of Kopli?”
Dynamic, yet peaceful.
Modern, yet traditional.
Nordic future, Soviet past.
Fiercely patriotic; yet outward-facing. more “A Beginners’ Guide to Tallinn”
[Originally posted in 2017. How things have changed.]
Estonia is full of secrets.
Museums and history books will tell you the official stories but the real secrets are hidden below this superficial surface. more “8 Abandoned Places to explore in and around Tallinn”
Another rumour circles. Abandoned factory in Kalamaja, easy access and full of trees. It’s time to explore. more “Exploring the Abandoned Volta Factory”
The Soviet obsession with statues is clear. From Berlin to Bishkek, the former Iron Curtain cities are littered with these grand images of strength and unity – propaganda and personality cult – like the scattered wreckage strewn across the landscape in the wake of a mighty storm. more “Soviet Statues – Abandoned and Unloved”
“I remember being terrified by the egg”.
While reminiscing with Estonians about the melancholy days of childhood – the long summer days spent cycling through pristine forests, the heady scent of pine filling the nostrils and the hazy summer sunshine flooding the landscapes with a rich, warming glow more “Estonian Animation is Utterly Terrifying”
“This place is not fit for humans and never has been”
Still utterly fascinating and darkly captivating, Patarei Prison sits ominously on the Baltic coast; more “Re-visiting Patarei: Abandoned Soviet Prison”
50km west of Tallinn, perched on the precarious coastal limestone cliffs that characterise the coastline, lies the former Soviet military town of Paldiski. more “Paldiski: Abandoned Lighthouse and Crumbling Industry”
News hot off the press: after lengthy refurbishments Tallinn’s iconic TV Tower has finally re-opened its doors to the public. This is very exciting news for a number of reasons more “Tallinn TV Tower Re-Opens”
The steps of Linnahall were originally built to signify Tallinn’s status as hosts of the sailing events for the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. As part of a larger regeneration project – which included the building of a brand new highway, the sailing club in Pirita, the famous TV Tower and even the airport – the I.V. Lenin Palace of Culture and Sport, as it was originally known, is perhaps the only structure which has failed to live up to its billing. more “Linnahall: Abandoned Soviet-Era Concert Hall”
There are many remnants of the Soviet era still present in and around Tallinn. All of them provide a tantalising but incomplete glimpse into Estonia’s very recent and repressive past but few instil the same level of fear and intimidation as the former KGB Headquarters. more “Former KGB Headquarters”
Originally built to provide better communications for the 1980 Moscow Olympics, the TV Tower is a fascinating example of Soviet delusions of grandeur. Famously, this huge structure is the site where, in 1991, a handful of radio operators risked their lives to protect the free media of Estonia.
As Estonian independence loomed large on the horizon the order was given for Soviet assault troops to seize the TV Tower, a key pillar of communication to the outside world. Upon hearing this, ordinary Estonians turned out to protect the tower as a small group of brave armed locals barricaded themselves inside, standing their ground against the odds until the tanks were forced to turn back. more “Tallinn TV Tower”
The imposing abandoned structure of Patarei Prison, just a stones throw from the main harbour, serves as a stark reminder of the brutality of the Soviet regime and offers a tantalising glimpse into the grim nature of prison life in Estonia during the late twentieth century.
Originally built as a sea fortress in 1840, this formidable compound housed inmates right up until 2004 and has remained almost completely untouched since its closure in 2006. With dead plants still on the tables, beds still made and bars of soap decaying in the showers, this eerie, uncomfortable and dirty place remains one of the most ubiquitous remnants of Tallinn’s dark past. Poignant, thought-provoking and utterly immersive. more “Patarei Vangla: Abandoned Soviet Prison not fit for Humans”