August 9 - 16, 2018 Disney Northern European Cruise (Completed)

Hubie

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 3, 2016
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I indicated in my first trip report titled, "Twenty thousand or more steps a day (6/11/2017 Northern Europe Cruise)", that my DW and I decided to repeat the cruise in 2018. We booked the Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Veranda 6066, while still on the Magic last June. At the time of course we couldn't have anticipated the unprecedented heat Northern Europe would be suffering this summer. And having been across the pond several times we both forgot August is when much of Western Europe takes their "Holiday" (vacation). Overall, this cruise was once again wonderful but, now that DCL has it scheduled in August instead of June, be prepared to deal with hordes of other tourists in the ports.

If we come back to Northern Europe we would probably spend some time in Copenhagen again. We've now been to the vibrant and safe city three times but still haven't seen all there is to see there. Then ever since we went on the 2016 DCL Norway Fjords Cruise we've thought about flying from CPH over to Oslo, Norway to spend some time there. We also would like to take the famous train ride from Oslo to Flam, Norway and back. Then we would like to fly from Oslo to Tallinn, Estonia to spend a few days there. Like Geomom stated in her recent trip report titled, "August 9-16, 2018: The Northern European Cruise is Magic!" -- visiting Tallinn's "Old Town" is really like living in a Fairy Tale.


Sunday & Monday (August 5 & 6, 2018) -- Our Flight From ORD to CPH.

This year our DD and DS-in-law picked us up early on Sunday morning, August 5th. The weather forecast for the day called for a high of 98 degrees, and it was already quite warm when they dropped us off at the Dutch Mill "Park and Ride" in Madison, WI at 8:30 AM. My DW and I were happy to see our Van Glader bus arriving ten minutes later. But the bus driver was in a foul mood and discourteous -- especially to a young woman, who was by herself and holding a small baby. Besides the baby she had eight large bags, a car seat and a stroller with her. The bus driver yelled at her, "You know your going to have to pay for these bags at the airport don't you?" She had told my DW, while we were waiting for the bus together, that she was going to Singapore for four months. Then as we left for Chicago's ORD airport the driver only had outside air flowing through the bus ventilation system. And when we arrived at the next stop (the Janesville, WI bus terminal), he parked the bus and turned it off before leaving to load the luggage of the people waiting there. The heat immediately began to build inside the bus. When the driver returned to collect money for tickets or check passes that the people there had purchased on-line, a gentleman politely asked him to start the bus and turn on the AC. The driver snapped back at him, "I'm required to turn the bus off when it's parked!" Nobody wanted to argue the point we all just wanted to be comfortable. When he started up the bus again we heard him say to himself, "I guess it is really hot in here." He then turned on the AC. What a relief! DW and I reminded ourselves to comment on the on-line survey Van Glader would send to us via email. After two more stops -- one at Beloit, WI and one at Rockford, Illinois -- we arrived at the ORD International Terminal 5 at 11:30. Upon leaving the bus the driver opened up the baggage bins and then stood aside to let us get our own bags out. I helped the young woman with the baby wrestle her bags out of the bus. Needless to say I didn't see anybody tip the driver.

Inside the terminal DW and I were able to walk right up to the Swiss Air counter and check our two medium-sized suitcases. Then eventually we made it through the (horrendous as usual) TSA lines. We were surprised that they now require you to remove any food snacks from your carry-on luggage. Fortunately, we still had time to have a somewhat relaxing lunch before having to find our departure gate.

I had scored our Swiss Airline tickets late last August from Vayama.com for a total of $1463. But, the tickets weren't for a direct flight to the CPH airport. The first leg of the flight was to leave for the ZRH airport at 2:45 and, par for ORD, it left 45 minutes late. Our pilot did his best to make up the lost time, and we arrived at ZRH on Monday morning, August 6, only 10 minutes late. That left us with 40 minutes to get to our departure gate for the next leg of our flight from ZRH to the CPH. But then the pilot had to wait on the tarmac another 20 minutes before being given permission to pull up to his assigned arrival gate. Fortunately ZRH is a small airport, and we had seats near the front of the economy seat section. We were relieved when we reached our departure gate for the short flight to CPH with 10 minutes to spare. This was the first time we've flown with Swiss Air. Both my DW and I were impressed. Their planes are new, the entertainment system in the back of the seats are great, the amount and quality of the food served is very good, and our flight attendants frequently offered us something to drink (including free beer). And lastly, near the end of each flight leg, they handed out little Swiss chocolates.

We arrived at Terminal 5 at CPH on Monday, August 6, at 9:10 AM. DW was very worried that one or both of our checked bags might not have arrived, because we didn't have a direct flight. I kept trying to tell her to not worry about something like that until it happens. Well, both of them came shortly after we reached the proper baggage claim carousal. I collected them and then we quickly walked to the transportation kiosks located near where you can board either the Metro or go down one-story in the terminal and catch a train to our hotel. From there the trains continue on to the Central Train Station, located in the center of the city. I purchased two 72-hour, city passes (400 DKK or approx. $62), which allow you to use all public transport within the City's pass area (Zones 1-4). Instead of taking the packed train or Metro we decided to walk to where the hotel shuttle bus pickup is located. It's a fair distance from where we exited the terminal and we were thankful that it wasn't raining.

The last two years when we were in Copenhagen in June the temperatures were generally in the mid-high 60s, and it never reached beyond the very low 70s. It was already 78 degrees when we arrived at CPH this time and also quite humid out. Copenhagen generally experiences frequent short-lived showers in the spring and summer, but this summer all of Western Europe was experiencing a terrible drought.

The shuttle to the Crowne Plaza Towers arrived and now costs 4 DKK/person. The driver gives you a voucher card to give to the hotel desk staff. We arrived at the hotel about 10:30 AM. Normal check-in time is 2 PM, and the hotel was very busy.

Crowne Plaza Towers in Copenhagen
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There was three staff manning the check-in/check-out desk - two women and a man. While one of the women staffing the desk attached numbered, identification labels to our bags, I asked her, "How are you dealing with the heat that your country is experiencing this summer?" It had been in the 80s for a couple of weeks and, since Denmark is a peninsula with a Maritime Climate, it wasn't cooling off much at night. She replied, "My house is like an oven and I can't wait to come to work." She then wiped her brow and said, "I've never seen brown grass before in my entire lifetime until now."

After checking our bags we changed into shorts and a t-shirt in the downstairs restroom. Then we caught a train at the Orestad stop, just across and below the street from the hotel, to the Central Train Station. As I indicated above, Orestad is the first stop for trains coming into the city from the airport and our train was packed. We hadn't experienced such crowding last year or the year before. The cars had standing room only in their doorway areas. Thankfully it's only a short distance from Orestad with no other stops to the Central Station. Still it was an uncomfortable and hot ride standing shoulder to shoulder in the narrow doorway area with people who also had their luggage with them.

At the Central Station I changed $250 at the Forex Bank for Danish Kroners and received 1505 DKK (6.022 DKK/dollar). The credit card rate was better (6.422 DKK/Dollar) when we used one for most large purchases. But both of the cards we had with us (Disney's' Visa and another Visa card as a backup) charge a transaction fee to convert foreign currency charges to dollars.
 
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From the train station we walked by the statue of Hans Christian Anderson located along the wide avenue between Tivoli and the City Hall. Then we cut across the Town Square in front of the City Hall to the start of the Stroget. We followed the famous, pedestrian-walkway -- against the masses of other people headed in the opposite direction -- to the Kongens Nytorv (Kings New Square) Station and from there took the Metro, which was also packed, back to the hotel.

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By then it was 1:00 PM and our room on the 17th floor was ready. We checked in, retrieved our bags, went up to our room and took a much needed nap -- two young kids sitting next to us had kept us from catching any sleep on our flight from ORD to ZRH. They talked, played games, argued and just generally goofed around the entire flight. They also left their reading lights on all through the night. And of course their parents were watching movies and were oblivious.

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That evening we were still very tired and just decided to walk over to Field's -- the largest mall in Scandinavia for a cheap dinner. As you can see in the picture below, which I took out of our room's window, it's located right up the street from the hotel. The mall has four floors and like most of the modern buildings in Copenhagen it has partial glass-ceilings and some of its walls featured rows of huge windows. It was very warm inside. Obviously its AC-system wasn't sized or set to handle the abnormal heat Copenhagen was experiencing this summer.

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We had a Hawaiian pizza at Milano's, one of many restaurants located on the mall's 4th floor. We each asked for water and a refill. The four glasses of water with ice cost us almost as much as the pizza. After returning to our room we found it was a little warm. DW slept like the dead that first night, but I listened to the cooling fan in our room run until almost daylight.

Tuesday (August 7, 2018) -- Copenhagen's National Museum and Tivoli.

On Tuesday morning we stuffed ourselves at the hotel's wonderful breakfast buffet (390 DKK or about $30/person). Then we took a train back to the Central Station. From there we walked to the National Museum. On our way we passed the Ny Carlsburg Glyptotek. Just one of the attractions we still haven't visited. But I took this picture as it's an interesting building.

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They charge you for water?? Yikes! I would have had no idea!
Yep! We ended up buying a pitcher of tap water for our table at Bryggen 89 in Copenhagen at the Fisketorvet Mall as it would be cheaper than buying 4 glasses. (At that restaurant it was around $5.50-$6 for a pitcher, or close to $2 for a glass.)
 
Yep! We ended up buying a pitcher of tap water for our table at Bryggen 89 in Copenhagen at the Fisketorvet Mall as it would be cheaper than buying 4 glasses. (At that restaurant it was around $5.50-$6 for a pitcher, or close to $2 for a glass.)


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When entering the National Museum a guard indicated that I needed to put my day pack in one of the free lockers. I then paid the entrance fee of 190 DKK/$29.50 for the two of us. Note: The museum was free until 2016. The desk staff cautioned us to take bottled water with us because the interior of the city block-sized building; especially its upper three floors, was quite warm. We each had a welcome bottle from our hotel in the day pack I had just placed in a locker. I retrieved them, because yes, one could easily have become dehydrated without some water.

The exhibits in the museum are amazing! We especially enjoyed the stories from all over the world. You can see everything from the famous golden horns and well preserved bog bodies to African masks and Egyptian mummies. All of the cultures of the world are represented, each in their own separate little rooms, starting on the second floor. The lowest floor above the ground floor is dedicated to Denmark's history from ancient times through the Renaissance to the present.
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We lasted about three hours before having to purchase another bottle of water available on the ground floor. We then decided to quickly browse through the museum's store before returning to the Central Station to catch a train (Track #5) back to Field's to get a cold treat.

We checked out a couple of places inside the mall that sell ice cream and Gelato. Both the Starbuck's and Espresso House located on the 1st floor were too hot inside to sit there and be comfortable. But it was little cooler on the second floor in the other Espresso House located up there. We each purchased a Frappino and sat in there awhile before heading back to our room.

Around 5 PM we again took a train to the Central Station. From there we walked across the wide avenue outside the northeast exit from the station over to the entrance to Tivoli. I paid for two senior tickets to enter the amusement park and we just walked around taking in the sites until we settled on eating pizza at Mazzoli's. After finishing our meal we went next door and got dishes with two scoops of ice cream. Then we made our way to the bridge over the pond in the center of the park to watch the laser-light show. By that time it was about 10 PM. The show starts at 10:45, and the room to stand on the bridge filled up quickly. It was an okay show, but nothing like at Epcot. It was also short since the park closes on weeknights at 11:00.
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When it ended we took our time leaving the park to avoid the rush of the crowd. Then we leisurely walked back over to the Central Station, only to find that the train to Orestad wasn't running. This surprised us and several others gathered on Track #5 -- including some locals. We learned later that we could have taken Bus #33 from the station back to Field's. But never having taken a bus from the mall we didn't think to see if that was a possibility. We, therefore, trudged all the way to the Norreport (North Port) Station to take the Metro. We got to bed bone-tired with sore feet around 1:30 AM.

Wednesday (August 8, 2018) -- We Spent Almost the Entire Day Relaxing at the Hotel.

We slept until 9 AM, and just made it to the hotel's buffet breakfast before it ends at 10:00. The lack of sleep over the past three days really began to affect both of us. We were afraid we were going to get sick right before the cruise, and decided to just relax in our room for most of the day -- watch a little TV, read and nap.

We saw on BBC that not only were people dying in Central Europe from the unprecedented heat, but people were also dying from extreme heat conditions in both North Korea and Japan. And of course they showed the disastrous fires and the resulting complete destruction of people's homes and other buildings in the parts of the Western U.S. -- in particular, California.

Later that afternoon we walked around Field's just to get some exercise. Then we took the train to the Central Station around 4:30. We had decided to eat at Hard Rock, which is located nearby at the start of the Stroget, just kiddy-corner from the City Hall Town Square. Our map of Copenhagen had a coupon from Hard Rock for a free hot fudge sundae with the purchase of a regular entree. I had the Chicken/Mac & Cheese entree and DW had the Cobb Salad. Also if you ask for tap water at Hard Rock, it's free. When we finished our entrees the waiter brought out this huge sundae with two spoons.

Right after leaving the restaurant we went back to Orestad by train. DW went back to our room, while I stopped into Field's to purchase four 1/2 liter cans of IPA beer (only 68 DKK/$11.30) to take aboard the Magic.

Thursday (August 9, 2018) -- We Couldn't Wait to Get Abroad the Air-Conditioned Magic.

Thursday morning while packing our luggage we missed the free early-bird breakfast at the hotel. But knowing that we'd soon be eating lunch at Cabanas we only wanted a cup of coffee anyway.

We left the hotel around 10:00 and descended to the train tracks with our bags in the nifty little elevator provided at the Orestad stop. A train was leaving just as we exited the elevator. Happened to us a lot this year. We'd arrive at the tracks right when a train was leaving. But you only have to wait about 15 minutes for the next train.

At the Central Station we lugged our bags up the escalator for Tracks 5 & 6. Why does everybody leaving a train think that they have to be first in line to go up the escalator? Then on the main floor of the station we had to go down the escalator leading to Tracks 9 & 10 and wait there for a train that stops at the Osterport Station.

When you arrive at the Osterport Station you have to go up a flight of cement steps with your bags to reach the street level. From there you walk a ways before crossing the street to the bus stop to wait for Bus #25. The bus takes you almost all the way to the Ocean Quay Port. You do have to walk a ways to get to the actual Port building to where you drop off your larger bags. Again we were thankful it wasn't raining.

This was our 6th DCL cruise. When we checked-in we were given our first Gold Lanyards. Then we only had to wait a short time for our number (4) to be called to board the Magic.

After being announced as we entered on Deck 2, MID, we turned left and took the stairs up to Cabanas on Deck 9, AFT. Most people always go to the right and they also want to use the elevators. We were surprised to see so few people eating the large Buffet provided in Cabanas. The welcoming members of the crew were successful in directing people to the smaller buffet offered at Luminere's on Deck 3, MID.
 
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After finishing a hearty lunch (Sorry! Forgot to take a picture.) we walked back downstairs to the Deck 6, MID Lobby. We waited there for about 10 minutes in order to access our stateroom. One of the crew arrived right on time at 1:30 to un-hook the rope placed across the entrance to our stateroom's hallway.

Once in our stateroom we looked it over and the first thing my DW noticed was the new safe. It was open and they now pull out allowing you to easily see everything in it.
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On our last cruise (November 2018, 4-day Dream) she had left my cell phone in our stateroom's safe. Apparently it was stuck back in a dark corner of the safe. I didn't realize I didn't have it until we were back at our resort in WDW. We were staying there for three days after the cruise before flying home. DW called DCL Lost and Found and gave them our the stateroom number on the Dream, described my phone and told them where to look for it in the safe. They said the ship was already at-sea and they would have to wait until it returned to Port Canaveral to contact its guest services desk. I never thought that I'd see it again. But it arrived in our mail a few weeks later (Kudos to Disney!).

I noticed a slight fuel smell when I slid open the door to our veranda. Then I saw a refueling ship pulled up near the AFT of the Magic. Back inside I took a couple of other pictures and one more from the veranda of the windmill farm as we departed Copenhagen.
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We skipped the sail away party and basically waited until we had to report to Deck 4, MID for the safety drill -- boring, but quite necessary.

Then it was time to get dressed for dinner. Our 6:00 PM Main Dining Rotation was the same as Geomom's (RLARLAR). Our table assignment along with two other couples was Number 40. Dining at Rapunzel's Royal Table, Deck 3, AFT was a new experience for us. When the doors to the restaurant banged open Ruffians charged out into crowd waiting in line to enter the restaurant. We were quite surprised and really enjoyed them. The bald character with the hooked hand came over to me and said, "I see that you have the same Barber as me!"
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Our tablemates were a little late and one of the couples never did show up for the entire cruise. But we really hit it off with the other couple. They soon arrived and after introductions we discussed mutual travel experiences and the state of the world to the point where our food almost got cold.

Our Server, Tana, from Indonesia and our Assistant Server, Ignacio, from Cartagena, Columbia were absolutely fantastic! And our Head Server, Valentin, from Romania not only just came by every night to ask us if we were satisfied with our service and meal, but he also talked to us about family. These people work so hard and have to spend so much time away from their families. They really deserve every penny they get in tips and the extra amounts we always give at the end of a cruise.





 
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After dinner we went up to Deck 4, FWD to check out the merchandise in "Mickey's Mainsail" and "White Caps". We purchased a few items that have the Northern European Cruise Logo. We then just took a walk around the ship before returning to our stateroom. We also met our wonderful Stateroom Host, Saurdiana, from Indonesia.

Later on I went by myself up to Deck 9, AFT to the beverage dispensers to fill our Contigo bottles with water and a little ice to have fresh cold water in the morning. While I was up there I snuck over to "Eye Scream" and had an ice cream cone. Then after returning back to the stateroom DW and I went to bed early and slept better than we had the past three nights in Copenhagen.

 
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Friday (August 10, 2018) -- Day at Sea

We started off the morning having breakfast at Cabanas. Here's a couple of pictures of what I had. DW had lots of fruit, and she also had some oatmeal w/walnuts. We both had a cup of coffee, but decided to not get a re-fill.
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After breakfast we returned to our stateroom to collect some reading material. I brought along the book titled, "If You Lived Here I'd Know Your Name," by Heather Lende, which is based on her life living in Haines, Alaska. DW and I visited there back in 2001. DW always brings along small, paperback books filled with crossword puzzles.

We then went up to the Cove to get some good coffee. I had a large Americano and DW had the "Special of the Day"-- a mocha, w/hazelnut, cinnamon & whipped cream.
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After a couple of hours at the Cove we returned to our room to relax until it was time to have some lunch. We both decided to go to the new "Build a Bowl". We each had a bowl of soup and a small salad with just water to drink. We don't do soda.
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When finished with our lunch we went back to Mickey's Mainsail, and I eventually decided to purchase the grey t-shirt with the Northern European Ports on the front of it. After that we walked around the ship some more to get our steps in. I also took a couple of pictures before we headed back to our stateroom.

This picture was taken through one of the windows at Lumiere's. The art work below is located on the wall outside of Rapunzel's.
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These two are pictures of lighted displays on the wall behind the desk where you can either reserve or cancel Port Adventures.
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While at our stateroom I partook in my favorite activity other than climbing mountains. I retired from the sport of climbing back in 2015.
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Eventually we got dressed for formal night and then went down to the Magic's Atrium to score a couple of free drinks before having dinner in Lumiere's. I forgot to take any meal pictures again, but I did take one of this free drink that I took back to our stateroom afterwards. I used the glass for the rest of the cruise for drinking my three remaining beers.
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I love reading your trip report. I have a question for you. You mentioned that Valentin was your head server and that he was from Italy. We knew a head server named Valentin and he was from Romania. Do you have a picture of him?
 
I love reading your trip report. I have a question for you. You mentioned that Valentin was your head server and that he was from Italy. We knew a head server named Valentin and he was from Romania. Do you have a picture of him?

I'm sorry, but I thought I remembered him being from Italy. I don't have a picture of him, but thank you for letting me know that he is from Romania. Now I remember and I have corrected the post. Also thanks for reading and liking my report. I try to work on it every day and still have lots to do with many more pictures.
 
Before going to bed I took a couple of pictures of the sunset from our stateroom and veranda.
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Saturday (August 11, 2018) -- Tallinn, Estonia's "Old Town".

We started the day at 7:00 with room service. Our usual order consists of coffee, two English muffins w/butter for me and a fruit bowl for DW
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Then we got ready for our day in Tallinn before heading up to Cabanas for a more substantial breakfast. I had oatmeal with some Cream-of-Wheat mixed in it and some walnuts on top. I also had some pineapple and roasted potatoes on the side.
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After eating at Cabanas and a quick coffee at Coves we headed back to our veranda to watch the ship's approach to the Tallinn Port.
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It was going to be another sunny and hot day. Before leaving the ship I ran up to Deck 9, AFT to re-fill our Contigo bottles with ice and water, and then DW and I both applied sunscreen.

We decided to walk from the Magic to "Old Town" instead of taking a shuttle bus provided by DCL. We were told that it would take about the same amount of time to get there on foot or by bus. I wanted to enter the walled-town through the entrance by the Fat Margaret Tower this year. The shuttle busses stop further away and east of the harbor by a street market and near the impressive, double-towered Viru Gate. We entered "Old Town" through there last year.

This is a picture of the Viru Gate from our DCL cruise here last June.
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Fat Margaret Tower on the left in the picture was finished in the 1530s, which ended the construction of Tallinn's wall. The tower was a part of the gate between Medieval Tallinn and the Harbor for a long time. Today it accommodates a Maritime Museum.
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When we arrived at the entrance we were "gob-smacked" by the crowds. Last year the Magic and a Norwegian ship were the only two ships in Tallinn's Harbor. This year there were seven ships! I think a couple of them were ferries from Helsinki and Stockholm, but the rest were cruise ships, and "Old Town" this year reminded me of Skagway, Alaska. Skagway was also overrun with tourists when the cruise ships arrived, even back in July, 2001, while we were staying there in the B & B -- named "Mile Zero". The B& B has that name, because it's located at the very start of the only road out of Skagway.

My main goal this time in Tallinn was to get pictures that I didn't have a chance to shoot last year due to the time constraint. The Magic's stop there last year was in the afternoon and we had a much shorter time to visit "Old Town". But first we decided to head to our favorite coffee and pastry shop that we had discovered last year (see my report from last year). I took a few pictures on the way.
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When we arrived at the coffee shop there was a rather long line at the door that had actually spilled out into the street. I had to find a Men's room so we detoured over to Rode's, which is located almost directly across the street from the coffee shop. Rode's is the main shop recommended by DCL for shopping and they have really nice restrooms for their customers. While there I bought a small Estonia hat pin. From Rode's we then walked from memory to the brewery. We entered the brewery and sat on the only two empty stools at the bar.

On the way I took some more pictures. The first one gives you an idea of how crowded it was in the town.
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I asked one of the three bartenders at the brewery which of the seven beers on tap were brewed locally. She pointed out three: a pilsner, an ale, and a stout. I ordered the ale, and it was only a little darker than the pilsner. A gentleman next to us was drinking the pilsner. The ale was pretty good, but as I've discovered over the past few years, the craft breweries in the US are brewing better beers than most of those now available in Europe, except maybe those brewed in Belgium. My opinion of course, being a beer snob.

I usually only drink our hoppy IPAs. When I finished the Estonian beer we made our way up to the St. Nicholas Orthodox Church, which is the oldest building with a dome in Tallinn. The dome was added in 1827. It has preserved its original iconostasis (icon screen) dating back to 1865-1886. On the way I took some more pictures.

The first one is of the cobblestones in the narrow street we walked up to get to the church. Two others show art work set up for sale by local artists on the interior of the wall lining one side of the narrow street. The last one is just a narrow passage from the street leading back down to Viru. I had DW pretend she was coming up from Viru to the street we were ascending.
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Yippie! I’m so excited to read your report. I too was on your cruise and I loved reading Geomom’s TR to see the cruise from someone else’s eyes. Now I get to see you adventures too!
 
Yippie! I’m so excited to read your report. I too was on your cruise and I loved reading Geomom’s TR to see the cruise from someone else’s eyes. Now I get to see you adventures too!

Thanks for following along! Hope you enjoyed the cruise as much as we did even with the crowds in the ports.
 

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