The MS Romantika

I knew I'd get around to posting about this eventually. So, for those of you who didn't know, I went on a cruise to Tallinn on the weekend. The trip was suggested by Ash's best friend Acy (I'm stealing her nick because the A's are confusing) because it was a cheap summer special. I think the actual trip cost about $20 AU. And we got B Cabins! It was pretty much the same as the one on the other ship, but a slightly smaller bathroom, and you could properly push the single beds together. I liked that a whole lot more than sleeping on the floor.

Here's me on the boat.


And A and Gino:



So. Ash, Acy, Gino (her boyfriend) and I wandered the boat for a while on Saturday night before heading to the buffet. Never, ever, ever go to all you can eat buffet with Ash and Acy. They eat so much it makes you sick just watching them. And Acy is tiny! I have no idea how she does it. I came to the conclusion that she's actually a buffet robot, and has a tiny machine in her belly that burns away the food.

Now, I'm not exactly a small eater. In fact, I'm more than happy to indulge in good food, and the buffet selection was really very tasty. I had three or four helpings, reasonably small? You know, some smoked meats to begin with, and some salad, then some roast lamb and potato, then I tried a stew and some yummy veggies. After that, I had a dessert or two. Nothing fancy, just some fruit and ice-cream. I think Acy lost count of how many plates she had. Gino was stubborn and ate until he was sick, but we both still sat there groaning for a good 45 minutes while Ash and Acy kept eating.

Anyway, we had a drink or two and went to the lounge at the end of the boat. I decided to play some roulette (which I had never played before) and bet 100:-, about $20. I managed to get lucky and triple it. So, that made me happy. I was tempted to keep going, but though I might as well walk away with my winnings. So I did.

The next day we arrived in Tallinn. Upon getting off the boat, we saw crooked concrete paths, milling tourists and about twenty duty-free alcohol shops. Seriously, they were everywhere! We walked into the older part of town desperate for something to eat. We found a cafe and ordered sandwiches (and in Gino's case, a pint.) Then we basically walked around some more, ate again (there was this whole thing about a 1 litre beer, but that takes ages to tell...) and took lots of photos of pretty Tallinn.



And some more pretty buildings:



And here's a lovely church:


Right, so after that we sat down and ate steaks at an 'Alabaman Steak House.' It was actually pretty tasty, although the waitress didn't ask how we wanted the steak cooked, and it was therefore overdone, but still pretty nice. Oh! I didn't mention the currency! The Estonian Krooner is called the EEK. As opposed to the AUD. Heh. So we walked around asking 'How many EEKs for this gin? Oh, Two hundred EEKs? Eeek! Heh heh heh...' Yeah, I know how lame that is...

And why not some more photos?

'That is a big bell.'


'What!? It's the latest style!' (Sorry Keppet...) Mm, fashionable and smutty. (Isn't that Rian?)



Er, what? (Sorry about the blur.)




So, after walking Tallinn, we went back to the ship, but not before Gino got his hands on a huge bottle of absinth. Mm, absinth. Actually, he purchased so much duty-free alcohol and chocolate that he could barely carry it off the ship. I was restrained, and simply selected Frangelico and some chocolate. Then again, there is something to be said for a bottle of vodka so big you can barely lift it.

Saturday night was given over to more wandering the ship, and dinner at the '25 Hour' fast food place. What, is it convenient into the 4th dimension? I heard some Aussies, but was too gutless to go over and say hello. We sat around for ages listening to Estonia karaoke (terrible stuff) waiting for my turn, but got so annoyed at waiting that we buggered off. Alas, I couldn't sing 'Call Me' at the top of my lungs. Woe.

And so, we slept, and woke up to an announcement that the cleaning people would be coming around. We ignored them. I went home to collapse, while Ash, the poor thing, went to work.

I'll leave you with a photo of a beer sign. Le what?