To write about my travels this year through a couple of days really made me realize how amazing of a travel year 2023 had been. And it hasn’t ended yet! To wrap up the year, I’m going to visit Istanbul, Turkey! I’m so excited! And of course, I’m going to write about my travels when I’m back, probably in January though. I know I say this about so many cities, but I feel like Istanbul would be right up my alley. I love history, and I love rich old cultures. Also museums, amazing bookshops, and food with bold spices and flavors. I think Istanbul really checks all the boxes. I’m looking forward to Turkish coffee. Can’t wait! ❤
This rounds up the travel themed block of the Blogmas 2023, starting tomorrow for five days, the theme is going to be all about movies! Stay tuned and merry Blogmas!
I have to be honest, it is now 1:21 am and I’m way over tipsy coming home from a kinky bar meeting and I met lots of old friends and I had a blast. As of right now, I’m eating instant noodles cos gods, they are the best when you are drunk and hungry. It just suddenly dawned on me that I didn’t actually write a blog post. Blogmas can be challenging. So forgive me for this being short. All I’m going to say is, Rhodes Greece surprised me although I don’t like weather that’s too hot. Both the food and wine were amazing though. Read more about my travels here:
To start my summer vacation with a bang, I had a long weekend in our neighboring country Estonia. I know I didn’t write about it in the blog cos going to Tallinn, Estonia is so normal that sometimes it doesn’t feel like I’m traveling at all. We got multiple fast cruise ships that sail back and forth between the little pond between Tallinn and Helsinki and it takes only two hours to get there. Steve, my fwb, happens to have a studio to stay at in Tallinn so I didn’t even have to pay for a hotel. 😀
Finns like to call Estonia the younger sibling, but if we are talking about Tallinn vs Helsinki, then Tallinn would be the more modern, more advanced and more accomplished little sister that simply get shit done better and faster. XD Don’t get me wrong, Helsinki is always going to be my home and I love her, faults and all, but Tallinn just goes forward on a run, especially tech-wise.
The only downside is that I don’t love the cruise ship trip, even if it’s only two hours. There is a plan to build a below the sea tunnel allowing cars and trains for the travel and I just know I would definitely visit more. That tunnel would also, finally connect Helsinki to the rest of the Europe via train. Personally I love train travel way more. It’s not that the cruise ship is shitty, it’s actually quite large and pretty fancy but they are always quite packed, with drunk people (because the alcohol is way cheaper in Estonia so Tallinn is the destination for partying) and also families with kids (because Tallinn is also pretty great for the whole family for an inexpensive vacation). But this time around, I went all out and paid extra to get access to the business lounge, and that just made all the difference in the world. It was quiet there, with amazing views cos the lounge was in the front of the ship with giant windows. There was a snack buffet with unlimited drinks and coffee. It has its own bathrooms that are much cleaner and way less crowded. It’s also right next to the exit, ensuring a quick exit. Okay, enough of the ship. XD
I’ve visited Tallinn maybe a half a dozen times, but this time, I treated it as any travel destination. Aka, I research museums, bookshops and Steve booked tables from two different restaurants that he had been to and highly recommended. And I tried to avoid most of the touristy spots and I think I got to see the city in a different light.
I visited three bookshops, two of them were awesome and I highly recommend for any bookworms to pay them a visit if you ever find yourself in Tallinn: first one is Rüütel & Matilda English Bookshop, it has both pre-loved books and new ones. It’s not big but so cozy and lively that I just want to live in it. I would definitely visit again everytime I visit Tallinn from now on.
And the second one is not necessarily a bookshop, but they do also sell books – and it’s the Banned Books Museum. It’s free to browse around and get to know books around the world that are banned for one reason or other and it’s very interesting. They have a small collection of books that they sell, like books featured in their banned books club. 😀
Now, onto the foodie part. First one is Salt. It’s a little bit out of the center and the Old Town but still at a walkable distance. Tucked in a corner of a up-and-coming neighborhood, it’s definitely a charming spot. Their menu changes and it has a good selection with lots of seafood. We tasted the oysters and were delighted by the giant portion of pimientos de padron. The calamari tacos were delicious too. The mussels in a Thai-inspired sauce was amazing. That sauce, I could bath in it. I was so full but when they had snickers cheesecake on the menu, I couldn’t resist. And I’m glad that I didn’t resist, cos that’s the best cheesecake I’ve ever had.
Second one was La Prima Pizza, an Italian restaurant in the Old Town. And yes, the word ‘pizza’ is in the name, but I didn’t get any pizza. 😀 Vitello tonnato is one of my favorite Italian dishes and the vitello tonnato in La Prima is the best I’ve ever had and I believe that I probably won’t get a better one unless I travel to Italy. Baked snails were great, that carbonara with green pistachio sauce was out of this world and beef entrecote on a hot stone grill was both fun and super delicious. The thing that shines the most in La Prima was of course the amazing wine selection. And since it was summer when I visited, I had some lovely rosé that went very well with the vitello tonnato.
All in all, Tallinn has a lot more to offer than meets the eye and I would definitely visit many more times in the future. Merry Blogmas!
For a short vacation during Easter, I visited Krakow, Poland. It’s not a country I thought I would visit but after visiting Krakow, I had no idea why not. They got a rich history with tons of museums and they got dumplings! ❤ It’s basically right up my alley. 😀 The old town is very modern but still filled with historical buildings. It’s best of both worlds. You can find fine-dining restaurants and also very cheap but delicious dumpling shops. The bar scene was very colorful too. I don’t party but the club scene doesn’t seem boring either. 😀 Read more about my travels here and here. I would love to revisit Poland, especially in Warsaw and Gdansk. ❤
I’ve been traveling quite a bit in 2023, while there had been a long ass break before that. And what better place to start my adventures than the enchanting Portugal! I was there for a whole week in three different cities: Lisbon, Obidos and Porto. Read more about my travels here:
My absolute favorite was Porto. From the guesthouse I stayed at to the neighborhood restaurants to the beautiful river Douro. I can see myself revisiting it many more times. Portugal is truly a paradise for foodies, especially if you also love wine. Portuguese wine is generous and almost beginner-friendly, and it has only recently got more widely available in Finland. The port wine there is to die for. The food scene is filled to the brim with new and ambitious casual fine dining with top-notched ingredients still at reasonable prices. Oh and the seafood, is fantastic. I can’t wait to get back! Stay tuned for more travel posts for the following four days. Merry Blogmas!
Slap Ass For Motivation 