Norderney

Last week I spent three sunny and summery days in the beautiful island of Norderney. It was so worth the long journey, the little trip was the perfect beach vacation, I even got to swim in the not-so-cold northern water and also went all german and got sunburnt. Good times indeed. 

I loved that I could experience something very german, but at the same time different from the rest of the whole country. I can't do more than recommend this little spot on earth. 

Vilnius Moments

Vilnius was my last stop, and it was a good one. Vilnius is a totally different world and one notices that after a minute walking around its city centre, barroque and catholic. Indeed a whole different reality. The fact that the old town is one of the biggest in Europe makes walking around it a nicer experience, there are less tourists or at least not so packed. But again, Vilnius has to be discovered outside the old town. The new part, with its long avenues and grand architecture, the old wooden houses further west, the neo-capitalist skyscrapers up north and the artists eastern part can not be missed. 

There is a certain classic european charm to it, while still having those classic exsovietic touches, and at the same time it is curious how one feels the southerness in comparison with the other Baltic countries. 

Vilnius is better enjoyed with a beer at a terrace, or with some traditional pancakes (or both combined together as I did). 

Again, a city not to be skipped. The future for Vilnius does not seem to be that exciting, mainly because it feels like it has everything pretty much sorted out. Vilnius knows where it is headed and which kind of role it wants to play. Lack of ambition? Not so much as a certain belief of what the city is and what it can offer. 

Well played Vilnius. 

Riga Moments - Day two

Riga, I liked you a lot. 

3 (grey) hours in Jurmala

It was a hot afternoon in Riga, so I thought that nothing could be better than enjoying the orange rays of afternoon sun by the sea, in the famous town of Jurmala. The seaside resort village is just half an hour away from the Latvian capital, and a favorite of the russian elite. This sure does feel like Russia in all ways. But don't let the flashy, glittery deco and the loud (diverse and all but relaxing) music fool you, Jurmala boasts some of the best wooden houses around, in tranquil side streets steps away from the wide, long, baltic beach. 

As soon as the train was leaving the bustling Riga, grey massive clouds started to grace the Latvian soil with some generous rain. My summery locus amoenus was transformed into a sticky, humid, wet afternoon. But now that I think about it, it was for the better. The greyness gave a thin veil of purity and humility to colorful Jurmala, and walking under the rain (before it went all crazy) while walking by the sea sure was nice. 

Riga moments - day one

Riga was the best. I guess. Each city is so different that comparing them is unfair, but at the same time a lot of fun. Riga is the biggest of the three capitals, and therefore the one that has more to offer. It is also the one that shocked me the most, because of its heavy russian influence. It just feels different from all the other cities I have ever been to. The old city center can be skipped if one is familiar with swedish and german architecture, the fun begins in the New Town part of the city, with its grand architecture (lots of Jugendstil to my surprise) and the action. Up north, a couple of streets create the young part of town, still a tiny pocket of modernity in the midst of the city. 

The part I enjoyed the most was on the other side of the river. Not a lot of visitors venture to cross the bridge, but those who do will discover traditional houses facing sovietic blocks of flats, the results of gentrification and neocapitalism, and the best market in town. 

Riga is a perfect new city to discover, safe, authentic, with a metropolis feel to it but small enough to capture its essence in a short amount of time and with a wide variety of areas, restaurants, shops and architecture. 

It is for sure, worth noting and keeping an eye to a city that will offer even more in the future. 

Tallinn moments

Tallinn was the city that left the smallest impact on me, but that does not mean that the capital of Estonia is not worth the visit. Its compact size makes it easy to capture the essence of the city in less than one day, and all on foot. The city is, for some people, one of the most charming in the whole world, which I would agree with if all the tourists disappeared from its city center. The beautiful cobblestoned narrow streets are filled with tourists from all over the globe, and the worst part is that locals are nowhere to be seen, making it into a fake, amusement park-like, uncomfortable area. 

But Tallinn has other areas to offer, filled with that baltic charm, and where to experience the clash between old-fashioned sovietic melancholy and the up and coming, finnish-inspired, hipster scene.

Tallinn most certainly does not lead the race on the best Baltic city, but it will be interesting to see how it tries to become more than a crowded touristic old-town, as it gets closer to it's cooler international friend, Helsinki, while keeping that beloved estonian essence that it now lacks.