My lucky stretch of clear blue skies and picture perfect weather during this trip had come to an end. All night I heard the tapping of rain which was scheduled to last all day. Lucky I had arrived and did the walking tour yesterday and had perfect weather to be outdoors all day.Fortunately I had a four hour bus ride south to Riga Latvia today so could shelter and outrun the rain. It was about a 35 min walk from the hostel in the old town to the bus terminal a bit...

Having finished the extra long walking tour I had to rush lunch and get to the museums. First was the museum of occupation for 5 Euros ($6.50)Next back to the Peep in the Kitchen Tower. Entrance was 4.50 Eu + 1Eu for a camera ticket. It is a narrow circular tower with exhibits on each floor. Entrance to the tunnels is thru guided tours only and a separate ticket which I didnt have time for.Next to the Nevsky Cathedral although no photos were allowed.The Dom Churc...

At noon the free walking tour was to begin at the tourist info office. I`d done one of these before in Plovdiv Bulgaria which was good with local knowledge but a bit slow for my pace. There was about 50 of us so they had to divide us into two groups.Our guide was Helli who was enthusiastic and theatrical in her stories. The first stop was the ``eye of the needle```. As a prisoner was being led away for execution if they could wrestle away and make it up this narr...

The free walking tour of the city was going to start at the tourist info office at noon so I had about an hour and a half to explore on my own before that. I decided to head to the northern part of the old town and stay away from the more popular sights the walking tour would be covering.The town had a very medieval feel and many local stores had people dressed in historical costumes.The fortified walls circle the old town. Some souvenir vendors have set up in th...

This morning I was leaving Finland and taking the ferry across to Tallinn Estonia. This was a route I had always wanted to do along with the train from St Petersburg to Helsinki and the two routes I had planned this trip around.I had booked the first ferry at 7.40 so that I could reach Tallinn in time for the free morning walking tours. The streets were deserted and I was trying to find an atm to withdraw Euros before I went to Estonia.I didnt see any atms on the...