Tallinn Extraneous

Some Estonian plutonium that wouldn't fit in my Tallin Report.

The View

Kohtuotsa View Platform

While the Beer O'clock view at Fat Margaret wasn't nearly as picturesque, it did come with 50 cl. of Saku Hele lager.

The Room Key

The Tallink City Hotel, like most European hotels uses a key card for guests to access their room. This key must then be stuck in a slot by the door to turn on the room's electricity and A/C. Well I like to keep my laptop powered at all times so that when inspired I can immediately tap out my travel commentary. So I decided to tell the front desk I lost my key and ask for a replacement. I placed the old key card permanently in the slot and used the new one for access. Though I might have been over-thinking it as I also tried using an ATM card in the slot, which worked just fine.

The Postcard

A postcard to the States costs $4.68 vs $1.70 going the other way, so besides not calling the bathroom the toilet, there is another thing that I miss about the U.S.

• Though due to recent tariff enforcement, that has see an 80% decrease in inbound mail, I felt lucky I could still send a postcard to two lucky American Subscribers.

The Currency

The euro replaced the Estonian koon on January 1, 2011. The New York Times characterized Estonia as "a sort of Silicon Valley on the Baltic Sea," which is clearly evident in its financial infrastructure, as I used my Capital One Venture X credit card for every purchase I made (transportation, restaurants, museums, apelsin, etc.).

The Electrical Adapter

Electrical adapters can be a tricky subject and you are going to need one. So instead of explaining all the details, just know that I used a Type C (which is the simplest and most flexible) via the Miami Carry On International Travel Adapter with Two USB Ports¹ and everything worked out just fine.

None of the hotels I stayed at on my tour of Northern Europe (Dublin, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallin, or Paris) had a USB port for charging my iPhone. I was thankful that my travel adapter came with one.

The Conversation

While at the Beer and Barrel, I met a Czech named Kuba, who clued me into a genre of music I had never heard of before, drum and bass (D&B), which initially I thought was some kind of colonial marching band music though is actually electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-bass lines, samples, and synthesizers. I then listened to some then and there, and still didn't get it.

The Jet Bridge

A jet bridge is an enclosed connector which extends from an airport terminal gate to the airplane, allowing passengers to board and deboard without going outside and being exposed to inclement weather.

It also allows passengers to walk onto the airplane directly from the terminal. Prior to it's invention in 1958,¹ all passengers were required to board airplanes via a folding set of steps built into an aircraft ("airstairs") and then later via mobile staircases or "ramp stairs."

I thought the use of the jet bridge had become ubiquitous, as the last time I boarded a plane with out one was in Kona three years ago, which is the exception that proves the rule. And when my 87 year old mother flew into Dulles Airport 10 years ago and complained about having to deboard via ramp stairs, I dryly remarked that, "maybe you flew into a time warp and landed in 1965."

Well every flight we boarded and deboarded in Europe over the last two months was done via ramp stairs. These included airplanes at Dublin, Copenhagen, Tallin and Paris. We paid a little extra for our Jet Blue flight from Boston to Dublin, and exiting a plane via ramp stairs into a waiting bus/cattle car for a 10 minute drive to the other side of the airport is not the best way to end a flight in first class.

Also the ramp stairs are just a little steep, and I'm sure they do not meet current building code. Every time I walk down carrying our luggage I always tell myself to lean back just a little as if something goes wrong I'd rather ride down on my ass, then pitch forward face first and pull "a Peter Pan."

Prior to deboarding the plane in Paris (ORY) I asked the flight attendant about this. She said it's quite common in Europe. When I mentioned that all flights in the U.S. begin and end with a jet bridge, she couldn't believe it, and then gave me a slack jawed stunned look like I was talking about some kind of fantasy world.

Epilog: We flew Paris to New York (CDG - JFK) on Norse Atlantic Airways which required a bus/cattle car and ramp stairs to board, so when we landed at JFK and I walked off the plane onto the jet bridge, I turned to Mrs. ARR and said, "It's good to be home."

Endnotes: I wanted to provide some very specific details that, while vaguely interesting, did not contribute to the overall narrative. Perhaps just wait until the end to enjoy.

¹ Initially called an "Aero-Gangplank." I'm surprised that didn't catch on, though I guess passengers would sooner not walk it.