Tallinn
Area of Tallinn - 159,2 km²
The population of Tallinn is 403 547 (01.09.2008)
Nationalities: Estonian 52.3%, Russian 38.5%, Ukrainian 3.9%, other 5.3%
Tallinn - the capital of Estonia is the largest city in Estonia where almost 1/3 of the inhabitants of Estonia live. Tallinn with its beautiful Old Town is located by the Gulf of Finland and is the window to the world for Estonia - from the port of Tallinn ships depart to helsinki, Stockholm, Rostock, etc. Tallinn airport connects Estonia with the most important airports in Europe.
The Old Town of Tallinn with its uniqueness and well-preserved historical buildings has been entered in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage. The Old Town with its mediaval houses, churches and narrow cobblestone streets offers the pleasure of discovering and beautiful views over the walkers.
The largest lake in Tallinn is Lake Ülemiste (covers 9,6 km²). It is the main source of the city's drinking water. Lake Harku is the second lake within the borders of Tallinn and its area is 1,6 km². Unlike many of the large towns, the only significant river in Tallinn is located in Pirita (city district counted as a suburb). The river valley is a protected area because of its natural beauty.
A limestone cliff runs through the city. It is exposed, for instance, at Toompea and Lasnamäe. The highest point of Tallinn, at 64 meters above the sea level, is situated in the district of Nõmme, in the south-west of the city. The length of the coastline is 46 kilometres. It comprises 3 bigger peninsulas: Kopli peninsula, Paljassaare peninsula and Kakumäe peninsula.
Useful information
Most larger hotels, stores and restaurants accept Visa, MasterCard, Eurocard, Diner’s Club and American Express. However, it is advisable to carry some Estonian kroons with you. Traveller’s checks can be exchanged in most banks but are less likely to be accepted in shops. Eurocheque is the most widely accepted traveller’s check, but American Express and Thomas Cook are also accepted. Banks are plentiful and easy to find in Tallinn. Most are open from 9:00 to 18:00 on weekdays, while some offices are also open on Saturday mornings. All banks offer currency exchange services. Exchange offices can also be found in larger hotels, the airport, harbour, railroad station and major shopping centres.
Climate
The climate in Tallinn is characterized by a fairly cold winter, a cool spring with little precipitation, a moderately warm summer and a long and rainy autumn. However, some summers have weeks at a stretch of temperatures around +30°C, and a warm, sunny summer can keep autumn at bay until mid-October.
Average temperature in July +16,7°C
Average temperature in February -4°C
In addition to longtime functions as seaport and capital city, Tallinn has seen development of an information technology sector in recent years; in its 13 December 2005 edition, The New York Times characterized Estonia as "a sort of Silicon Valley on the Baltic Sea".
Skype is the best-known of several Tallinn IT start-ups, and a first venture capital firm was founded in 2005. Many are housed in the Soviet-era Institute of Cybernetics, which is said to been one of the seeds for Estonian adoption of computing technology. Despite this, the most important economic sectors of Tallinn are the light, textile, and food industry, as well as the service and government sector.
Cheap tickets to Tallinn can be found at Estonian Air homepage at www.estonian-air.com.
