Parks, Statues & Memorials, Tallinn

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Under construction

Dostojevski is a great name is connected with Tallinn. Between 1830 and 1840, Mikhail Dostoyevsky lived in Uus Street in the old part of Tallinn, being employed at the Reval Engineer Commando. His brother, the Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky, frequently visited Tallinn at that time.

In Raekjoka Plats there is a stone slab.

This is supposed to be the 'Centre of Tallinn', and the text surrounding it says that. Apparently you can see the five main spires of the city from here, but I didn't try.

If you stand in front of the Town Hall cafe and then look across the square in front of you you should be able to spot the stone in amongst the other cobbles. It's a bit faded now, but still visible.

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Lindamagi (Linda's Hill) is a little woody bump just outside the Old Town Walls (near Kiek-in-die-Kok).

In Estonian legend, Linda was the wife of Kalev, who founded Tallinn. When Kalev died, she buildt the hill now known as Toompea as his memorial.

There is a rather nice statue of Linda, surrounded by a circle of ancient trees.

The statue was used during the Soviet era as a place of remembrance for those sent to the work camps (in Siberia). A plaque has now been added to the statue: 'To remember the ones who were taken away'.

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This monument is at the side of the Estonia Theatre & Concert Hall, on the outskirts of the Old Town.

It is a monument to the struggle for Estonian independence which occurred immediately after the First World War. General Laidoner, the Estonian Commander-in-Chief, had to call upon schoolboys to save the city when it was threatened by the Bolsheviks (1918-1919). The sculpture is dedicated to those boys who fought (and fell).

To the right of Fat Margaret's Tower, by the Great Coastal Gate, is a small 'park': well, it is really just a grassy area.

In it you will find the 'Broken Bridge', a monument to the ferry disaster on 1994. The car ferry 'Estonia', en route from Tallinn to Stockholm, went down with the loss of 852 lives.

I found this monument more moving than I expected: modern monuments rarely have much effect on me, so perhaps it was the gloom and chill of such a wet day which added atmosphere.

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I didn’t know anything about Michael Park until I saw this sculpture dedicated to him. A shiny metal cube with the name of a man who died at the age of 39. It was later that I found out who Michael Park was. Mr. Park was a british rallye driver, co-pilot of estonian pilot Markko Märtin. Michael Park died on September 18th 2005 after crashing into a tree during the Wales rallye. Märtin left the car without injuries and retired afterwards from the World Rallye series. Michael Park was a popular driver in Estonia and it is said that he adopted the country as a second home.

To the left from the railway station, in Tehnika street, there is railway school. Not interesting building but very interesting locomotive in front of the school, it used, i think, in 30-50s in USSR. Just enjoy the view :-)