Sea Battle! (Stockholm and Tallinn)

Last night I returned home from an excellent trip. The trip, called Sea Battle, was arranged by the Erasmus Student Network (ESN). In short, over 2 000 exchange students from Finland, Estonia and Sweden go on a three day cruise between the three countries. Stops are made in the capital cities allowing time for sightseeing.

Stockholm: As a child, I somehow developed a love for Sweden (I'm guessing partially because of hockey). Visiting Stockholm on Tuesday was really like a childhood dream coming true. We didn't get very much time there, but the city certainly exceeded all of my expectations. For me it was just one of the cities where you get that feeling. The feeling is hard to explain, but it's almost like knowing that somehow you are just supposed to be there.

Our first stop of the day was the Changing of the Guards at the Royal Palace (as shown in the picture below). The rest of the day was spent wandering around the city trying to take in as much as we could in the short time we were there. We found a lovely little cafe called Muren where we had lunch. The city was very beautiful even with a grey sky and rain. Some day, I will return to Stockholm for a longer visit.

Me and Stockholm!

Changing of the Guards at the Royal Palace

Tallinn: Tallinn was also a beautiful city. We spent the majority of our time there in the old city. We were also able to take a tour which gave us a little bit of extra info. Unfortunately the tour guide wasn't the greatest. Nevertheless, it is always fascinating to visit a city that you know very little about.

St. Olaf's Church, once the tallest building in the world

Within the old city of Tallinn

On the Boats: I cannot write about this trip without at least mentioning my time spent at sea. The time we spent on the boat was a lot of fun. ESN had arranged a ton of activities for us to do. I was able to make new friends from all around the world. Sea Battle was definitely an experience I will always remember.