I took a bus from St. Petersburg to Tallinn, Estonia.

Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, most Russians were prohibited from visiting the West, and since information was so tightly controlled, they could only imagine what it was like. Forced to do the best they could under the circumstances, they would vacation in Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania, the three Soviet Republics that seemed just slightly more western than the rest of the country. These three Soviet “republics” were nothing like the West, but as in Plato’s Cave, if you have lived in the dark, just a shadow reflected on the wall is a revelation.

It’s different now, and the three are no longer part of the Soviet Empire. They are part of the European Union and in debt up to their eyeballs to the Germans. Let’s just say their prosperity and independence is a work in progress. But, besides impressing even myself by working the parable of the Cave into this blog, I digress. Back on the bus.

The St. Petersburg bus station is outside the tourist part of the city and is used by average every day working class people trying to make a living. I don’t think the Russian commuters often see a middle-aged (I am being kind to myself) American tourist with matching Briggs-Riley luggage waiting for a bus. Especially one who has his camera out and is obviously trying to take pictures of people who don’t know he is taking pictures of them. Lines of commuters stared at me. I took their pictures, smiled, and gave them a thumbs-up. Presumably that is not an ancient Russian curse since they just continued to stare. In Russia, smiling at strangers is a little weird too.

It’s a rough road from St. Petersburg to the Estonian border. I came up with three possible reasons: a) they want to make it difficult for Russians to leave, b) they want to make it difficult for armies to invade, or c) The Russian Mafia/Government stole the money so there was nothing left to pave the road. All I do know is that after you cross the border into Estonia the road suddenly becomes a paved highway and motorists are greeted with a sign that says this road was built with the generous help of the people of the EU. Estonians don’t particularly like Russians so I bet they get a kick out of that.

The old walled city of Tallinn is extremely cute and quite small so it takes only about half a day to see it all. Narrow cobblestone streets are lined with restaurants, sidewalk cafes, and lots of galleries. Like so many eastern European cities with a medieval center, it is a tourist theme park surrounded by a rather characterless modern city. That’s OK, though. If you brought a group here for a two-day meeting (not an incentive) of not more than 25 people, you would not have to leave the old city except to go to and from the airport or the train station (or in rare case, the bus station). 

The five-star 86-room Hotel Telegraaf, a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World, is an excellent choice offering great service and location. Built in the 19^th century as the Estonian Telephone Exchange, it was not originally designed for meetings, but they have some space that is work-able if not ideal. What else to say about Tallinn? Did I mention they have a lot of galleries? Time to get back on the bus and it’s off to Riga, Latvia.

Riga also has that old city center thing, but in Riga’s case it is much larger, more commercialized and modern. I don’t know if the city father’s planned it this way, but Riga has become kind of a party town and weekends are filled with roving bands of drunken bachelor and bachelorette parties, and often the twain do meet. I did not patronize any gentlemen’s clubs, but they are as ubiquitous as are the written warnings to tourists about the high crime rate associated with them.

Despite the weekend craziness, Riga has a lot to offer groups. The 56-room Grand Palace (a Leading Hotel), originally built in 1877 as the Central Bank of Latvia, is surrounded by UNESCO World Heritage monuments and is the best hotel in Old Town. The Dome Square, Riga Castle and Daugava River are only about 100 yards from the hotel and most everything else is less than a ten-minute walk. The hotel has function space that can accommodate up to 100 people, so with 56 rooms it works.

If you have a larger, more “serious” meeting, the premiere place to stay is the 5-Star, 571-room Radisson Blu Hotel. Located just across the river from Old Town (let’s say a 5 to 10 minute walk), it has all of the super modern amenities required by today’s business travelers and meeting planners. It features 15 meeting rooms, the largest being 8,700 square feet. The Radisson is the best (and maybe only) game in town.

Riga is an attractive get-away for many Europeans, offering both history and nightlife. Hosting your meeting there will most assuredly increase your attendance. One suggestion: Do not start your meetings too early in the morning.

I have just one vignette worth sharing. I was walking down one of the quaint side streets and heard music. I followed the sound to an open square and there, before my eyes, was the “Go Blonde” Festival. “What is that?” you ask. I still am not sure. All I know is there was a sea of people with one thing in common: natural blondes, blonde wigs, tall blondes, short blondes, blondes dancing, blondes handing out beer, a fashion show (all blondes), and one blonde musician after another. Topping the bill? You guessed it, a blonde twin sister Latvian rap act. Believe me, I could not make this up. As an aside, a twin sister Latvian rap act is really weird all by itself.

Next and last stop was Vilnius, Lithuania, but instead of by bus, I hired a car and driver. In case you were wondering, she had very long and beautifully natural red hair. I wanted a private car because we made two brief stops along the way, Bauska, Latvia, birthplace of my maternal grandfather, and Telsche, Lithuania, birthplace of my great-grandfather. Back in the mid-19^th century all of this area was the Duchy of Kourland as well as part of the Russian Empire. Since I was in the neighborhood I thought I would drop in.

Now, I was not expecting to find “Abraham loves Clara” carved into an oak tree, because things have changed a bit in 150 years. Nor was I expecting to find long lost relatives because, frankly, the ancestors of the people still there used to gleefully slaughter my ancestors. Kind of why they left. But I thought it worthwhile to somehow pay my respects to the people who made the difficult journey so I could have a better life.

We found an area of Bauska along the river that looked a bit like it must have looked back then. Many of the old buildings had been constructed in the early 1880’s and so were new when my grandfather was a boy, the streets were still mostly dirt, the river still flowed, and the place was poor, really poor. That certainly had not changed. Telsche, Lithuania was, well… don’t go to Telsche, Lithuania.

My roots tour behind us, we drove into Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital. One can tell one is getting closer to the west because not only is there a large, prosperous Old Town, there are more modern shopping streets that, with a few changes, could be in any European city.

I had not planned to be in Vilnius for any particular reason, but I was fortunate that my stay coincided with a Lithuanian Folk Festival. I know nothing about their folk traditions, and although it sounds harsh, as a general rule I am not really interested in folk traditions. But as an amateur photographer, having a thousand or more people of all ages in costume, singing, dancing and getting progressively drunker... now that’s a good time.

The Old Town Square was jammed with Lithuanian families in traditional costumes. Everyone knew everyone else, knew the words to every song, and regardless of their generation, could get up and join the dancing. Groups of old folks sat at long tables hoisting beer steins, singing, gossiping, and smiling (with various stages of tooth loss) at the young people who were flirting, dancing, and carrying on. I imagine that with all of the centuries of invasions and occupations, it was not always this easy to carry on the traditions that help them identify themselves as uniquely Lithuanian. They sure are enjoying it now. 

Do you want to have a meeting here? Riga might be more of a draw for attendees, but Vilnius has its attractions. The best meeting hotel I could find is once again the 119-room Radisson Blu Astorija. I don’t own stock in their company, but in this part of the world they seem to have cornered the corporate meetings market. It’s right in the middle of Old Town across the square from the Cathedral. Throw a stone from the hotel towards the main square, and if there were a Folk Festival in progress, you would probably hit someone in a costume.

Another possibility in Old Town is the Stikliai, a member of the Relaix-Chateau group. It only has 42 rooms and suites and two meeting rooms, but is perfect for a small, higher-end meeting.

In summary… The Baltic States are interesting, from which one could infer damns them with faint praise. Not true, every place has its charms, and these cities, all UNESCO World Heritage sites, are no exception. Riga is probably the most well known, can handle the larger groups and is a draw for attendees. The other cities are, well… interesting, but unless you have a very specific reason to want to bring your meeting there, and your group is smaller… you get the point.

Not sure where I am going next. I’ll let you know.

To see photos of my trip, visit my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/thecramercollection.