Tallin – made the bet, won a friend.

I met Helen from Tallin at the boat expo in Stockholm in March. She was representing the East Baltic marinas and is a very experienced sailor with lots of merits in international offshore racing. When I told her about my plans she looked at me with skepticism and told me I would never make it all the way to Tallinn.

"I talk to many people who spend 4 months going from Stockholm to Tallin, What makes you think you can cover four times the distance in half the time without a proper engine? You gonna be cold, wet, and disappointed."

I suggested to her that IF I make it to Tallinn, I will treat her to dinner. She laughed and said, "No way, if you make it to Tallinn this year, I am inviting YOU to dinner".

Here we are. SY Johanna docked in Tallinn Old City Marina on August 13th, 2018.

The bet was fun to win, but the value of knowing someone like Helen when arriving to a new marina in a foreign country surpasses by far the significance of winning a bet.

Helen invited us with her family for dinner at Lieb ja Aed Restaurant in Tallinn's Old Town. Lieb means black bread in Estonian and the restaurant offered great food and drinks.

A quick recap in the boat, an interview about the development of Estonian marinas, and a sweet little confirmation of the bet.