Helsinki and Tallinn (Sep 2018)
Everywhere I walked I found brightly-coloured doors.
Spires and colorful roofs, viewed from a section of the old city wall. It's all so shiny and clean because it had just poured.
I loved walking around the backstreets in Tallinn, finding colourful, slightly decrepit, locations like this.
I only had two days in Tallinn and on the second day it poured pretty much all day long. But I’d read about an abandoned Soviet-era concert hall that was near where I was staying (by the harbour) so that was the ideal subject for a bleak day.
This is the approach to Linnahall, the concert hall. It was constructed as part of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. In its heyday international bands like Duran Duran played here. But now it's mostly abandoned and the concrete is crumbling away.
It kind of reminded me of an Aztec pyramid. When it was constructed I think there was the idea that it could also function as a military bunker in the event of an invasion.
It’s a bit like London’s South Bank, post-apocalypse.
You can see how badly crumbling the concrete is here, on the steps.
Admin needs to do something about their Admin sign.
Looking towards the Administration office.
I tried the door into Administration and much to my surprise, it opened. I took a few steps inside then heard some voices, so thought it best to retreat. There actually were some lights on inside the building; I guess there may be some security guards keeping an eye on it.
Another colourful door and wall back in the centre of Tallinn
By the end of my second and final day it had brightened up a little. I think I'll be returning to Tallinn and exploring the backstreets again sometime soon.
All in all, a great trip to two wonderful cities!