The distance from Tallinn to Helsinki by sea - only 80 kilometers. Overland comes exactly ten times more, in addition, across the border with Russia, not part of the Schengen area, so it was logical that 97% of passengers between the two capitals rests on the ferries. The ferries between Tallinn and Helsinki scurry like trains - every two or three hours. 7 flights daily walks in both directions, the earliest leaves at 7.30 in the morning, latest at 22.30. On the line are three ferry companies:
This Finnish carrier Ekkerøy:
Estonian Tallink:
Another Finnish carrier - Viking:
There is still a small carrier Linda, they use a small high-speed catamarans, but the machine does not stop in them, especially passenger ships. This Tallinn port:
It is divided into several terminals from the terminal A swim Viking Ekkerøy:
From Terminal D - Tallink:
I chose Tallink, more precisely, how to choose, come to the cashier and asked a ticket for the next ferry. It turned out to Tallink Superstar - huge desyatipalubny ship 175 meters long, capable of accommodating 2080 passengers and 665 cars:
In the bow of Superstar is a huge three-story show bar with a panoramic glass wall, as it looks from the inside talk about later:
Passengers who are traveling without a car pass on the ship for long corridors straight from the port terminal:
Motorists find a sign with the destination port, and are in turn:
During the procedure in the loading zone to monitor police reflective vests:
Check the ferry through the bow. Tallink Superstar - a huge machine of, much larger hook on which I sailed to the island of Zakynthos in Greece . The total length of the parking lanes - 1930 meters:
The car left at the fourth deck, and went upstairs to shoot departure:
Warning courts that in their port without an appointment (paid of course) do not wait:
Italian cruise ship Costa Luminosa, 294 meters long - almost one and a half times longer than the Estonian ferry:
Screws foamed water, they probably jammed fish or create eddies of which she can not swim fast, not sure what was going on, but the gulls feasting heartily:
Those that bolder fed directly from the source:
The upper deck of the ferry is almost completely open. Scandinavia - not the warmest region, even in summer, and in the sea at the speed of 40 kilometers per hour is quite cool, also rains a lot, two hours I sailed to Helsinki, drizzle about half the time, so the shop all the way empty :
Navigation and telecommunication equipment, whereby all the way to the ferry operates cellular and free Wi-Fi:
Captain's bridge:
Lifeboats and video surveillance cameras that monitor so that no one fell overboard. In the case of the fall of the ferry stop immediately and try to catch the body, to stay alive after a ninth deck fall into the cold waters of the Baltic Sea is almost impossible:
Alcohol Advertising:
In Finland, all strictly with alcohol. It is very expensive and not available for sale anywhere. To buy a drink you have to go to a specialty store in Helsinki of about thirty of the entire city, besides they are open until 8 pm on weekdays and until 6 pm on Saturday, Sunday and on holidays in general can not buy alcohol. While the ferry is in neutral waters between Finland and Estonia, it turns into a huge theme duty free. The main theme of the floating FEZ - alcohol. It then do not buy bottles and even boxes, and whole pallets. Finns are gaining as much booze as they can carry, take away or to drag on itself:
The ferry is gathering pace, Tallinn is left behind:
The upper deck is getting cold, let's see how the ferry arranged inside. On the ship, 10 decks, the first, second and tenth - technical. From the third to fifth - parking for cars, from the sixth to ninth - space for passengers:
I went down to the seventh deck. There are cabins. On the route Tallinn - Helsinki, they are not used, because they swim only 2 hours, but before a morning flight at 7.30 am and the last at 22.30, after the carrier allows passengers to spend the night at an extra charge on the ferry and then the cabins are in demand. In this two bunks, a bathroom on the left, on the ceiling - air conditioning, straight ahead - a large round window covered with a curtain:
The corridors between cabins:
Background:
If you would not know that the photo was taken on a ship would take over the men's room in any supermarket or office center:
Since the ferry in international waters is converted into a free economic zone, where casinos operate in addition alkomagazinov. On my flight enthusiasts of slot machines have been reported:
And here is the same panoramic show bar, which I wrote at the beginning of Lent. It takes as much as three decks - from the sixth to the eighth:
Below is a scene in the middle. For half an hour on it were some artists, but then went most of the way empty playground:
On the lower deck there are tables around the stage with a seating area, you can safely get behind anyone order anything not required:
Some blunt and all the way to the phone:
From the lower deck amphitheater diverge another two tiers:
Two hours by ferry pass very quickly. While all walked the deck while listening to a concert on the horizon seemed to Helsinki:
In one of the bays on the way to the Finnish capital has an unusual island called Pihlajasaari:
He is unusual in that despite its northern location, an island-beach. Of course, swimming is rare, but it does not prevent the residents of Helsinki, picnics, boating and wakeboarding, sunbathing, even in good weather. For the rest of this there is the entire infrastructure - cabanas, a sandy beach and boat station on the rocky shore:
That sailed - Port of Helsinki:
Seagulls accompanied all the way to the ferry:
