Tallinn is the city of romance

Not only are tourism board competing with their neighbors they"re competing with other cities in other parts of Europe, and the world. In the current economic climate tourism is one of the first things to suffer. It is a luxury after all. Still tourism boards are fighting back with a raft of clever measures to woe customs to the region. Tallinn has its romantic side. Riga, some would say unfortunately, is promoted as a party town. Next year Vilnius is the European Capital of Culture and in 2011 it is Tallinn"s turn.

Each Baltic capital has its own charm. Riga has its baroque architecture and Tallinn its medieval feel. But let"s not forget the smaller cities. This week"s Industry Insider is about city promotion. TALLINN - "What people don"t realize it that Paris is quite dirty," said Amanda Caldwell when asked why she picked Tallinn for her honeymoon.

Caldwell was here in March, and luckily for her, it snowed. When it"s snowing I think it"s the most romantic city I have ever been in," she said. Prague is full of more drunken idiots than Riga, and Paris and Venice are swamped by an army of tourists. Tallinn is quietly moving into a role that suits it best.

The chocolate-box city is becoming the European destination of choice for those in the know, honeymooners, couples and anyone looking for a little romance in their holidays. The Tallinn city tourism board doesn"t keep figures for the exact number of people who come for romantic getaways, but they have noticed a trend in that direction, as well as a trend toward cultural tourism.

It"s getting more popular with couples. It"s a pretty place to come for anybody. It"s a good place for a honeymoon," said Piret Tuzova of the Tallinn city tourism office. The transition has been subtle. Ten years ago, Tallinn didn"t figure as a holiday destination at all, promoting itself as "medieval and wired" without being quite sure what type of visitor that would attract.

Later, The New York Times celebrated it as a party town despite its small number of big clubs. Unlike Riga or Prague, Tallinn has not caught on as a stag destination after the hotels, bars, and clubs made it quite clear that stag parties are unwelcome.

Tallinn has arguably the best-preserved Old Town in Northern Europe, but it also has other features that people discover when they come here. Paris and Vienna, they build fake beaches, but we have a natural beach," said Tuzova. Tallinn"s small size also works in its favor. In London you have to take the tube to get somewhere. In London there are a lot of romantic places as well, but it"s not as compact as Tallinn," Caldwell said.

There is no single place is Tallinn which is humongous. Tallinn has a lot of boutique bars and little alleyways where you can get lost," Caldwell said. Caldwell describes her time in the hotel as magical. We had roses on the bed, toilet paper with bride and groom and breakfast till four in the evening. We were waited on hand and foot," she said. The people who sell the city to tourists have pulled out all the stops for those who want a cultural or romantic tour. They are simply prepared to go that extra mile.

A couple on romantic holidays should expect champagne in bed and maybe roses, but at a top boutique hotel in Tallinn you can expect your own piano player (or violin, if you prefer), medieval style rooms with a fireplace and bathtub, embroidered toilet paper, and even a hand-written congratulations note from the hotel"s owner.

Despite all this attention to detail, the front manager at Three Sisters Hotel insists that it is the city itself that makes it good for honeymooners. Tallinn is quiet calm and private and the sea makes it romantic. It is not very crowded," Mari Maasik said. The city still has its quirks, Tuzova said, and almost everyone who comes to Tallinn wants to sight-see, but not necessarily where you might expect.

Despite the city"s reputation as a medieval town, the most popular attraction was Television Tower, until it closed down. People like towers. A lot of people like to look at the city from up high, " Tuzova said. It"s a part of our history and a good example of Soviet architecture." By targeting couples, Tallinn is hoping to buck the trend that tourism is facing in the economic downturn. Caldwell puts it best: "Tallinn brings out the romance in anybody.

My husband is not romantic at all, but he was singing to me in the snow," she said.

Source http://baltictimes.com/news/articles/21159/

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Estonian song festival

The event is the high point of the 90th anniversary celebrations of the Republic of Estonia. The theme of the festival is "exile, resistance and restoration of independence". It commemorates the spontaneous events that took place on a massive scale 20 years ago, popularly known as "Ärkamisaeg" ("Awakening"), which grew into the Singing Revolution and the subsequent restoration of Estonia's independence in August 1991.

More than 140 choirs, totalling over 3000 singers, as well as numerous Estonian musicians and pop stars, will be joined by tens of thousands of spectators for the 6-hour-long festivities. The programme will range from popular national songs, ballads written during the fight for independence, and modern compositions by young Estonian composers.

At midnight, the President of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, will deliver a speech in which he will draw parallels between Estonia in 1988 and Georgia today. To sing the festival to a close, at around 01:30 a.m., Georgian group "Chveneburebi" (the name roughly translates as "Ours") will appear on stage. Chveneburebi" is currently in Estonia at the invitation of the Georgian Embassy in Estonia. The Nocturnal Song Festival will start at 8 p.m.

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Gerd Kanter of Estonia won the gold medal in the Men

Poland's Piotr Malachowski was in the lead after the first three rounds with his silver medal winning fling of 67.82m, however Kanter answered with an unbeatable 68.82m throw in the fourth round. Alekna added an Olympic bronze to his medal collection, with his best throw of 67.79m in the fourth round.

He won gold at Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004. German Robert Harting placed fourth with 67.09m, and Spanish thrower Yennifer Frank Casanas finished in fifth place with his best of 66.49m. Kanter is Estonia's first Olympic champion in the Men's Discus Throw. The win also marked Estonia's first Athletics medal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. 2008.cn

Source http://7thspace.com/headlines/290618/gerd_kanter_of_estonia_~.html

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