TV Tower, Tallinn

In the lobby at the base of the TV Tower take the time to admire the fine stained glass windows which run the length of the outside wall. Each pane features a snippet of life and work in the socialist state.
The lifts from the lobby take you to the observation deck/restaurant at 170m in a very short time (sorry didn't have my stopwatch with me).

Built for the 1980 Moscow Olympics (the sailing events were held in the Baltic off Tallinn). The TV tower is a short distance away from the Olypic sailing headquarters in Pirita and affords an excellet view from its 170m high viewing platform and restaurant. On a clear day you can see across the Baltic to Helsinki but even when it is not so clear you get a great view of Tallinn and its environs.
The tower itself is like a structure frozen in time, from the socialist realist (but fine) stained glass windows in the foyer to the restaurant that is kitted out for silver service but caters for anyone (even us). You can get here on a 34 or 38 bus.

The Teletorn (TV Tower) is one of the few Soviet-era landmarks in Tallinn. It was built for the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, as Tallinn hosted the sailing and yachting events.

What makes it so special is that it feels like you are travelling in time back to the Soviet era. From the observation deck/restaurant on the 21st floor, you have a much better view of the seemingly endless series of communist appartments of the Lasnamäe district than of central Tallinn. On a clear day, you can see the coast of Finland, which must have seemed so close, yet so far away under the Soviet regime.

The time-travel impression is accentuated by the stained-glass portraits of industrial workers just outside the elevator, not to mention the instructions in Russian inside the elevator. I doubt many Estonians ever come up here.

The Tallinn City Tour Bus makes a stop at the Teletorn. According to our travel guide, buses 34 and 38 also take you near there.