Lithuania is the last of the three Baltic tigers that I visited. Vilnius was a larger city than Tallinn but smaller than Riga. Because of the proximity to the border, many license plates from Belarus were seen in the city.

While traveling, I have observed that sometimes countries are stereotyped to what they used to be 20-40 years ago. Along these lines, Latvia’s stereotype vs. Latvia in 2022 makes it a highly underrated country. Upon getting on the public bus with my coins, the driver informed me “no cash, card only”. This is not the former Soviet nation I had imagined! From the shiny glass library to the amazing art nouveau architecture, Riga is a very pleasant city that I can recommend anyone to visit.

Helsinki is the 2nd northernmost capital city in the world (behind only Rekjavik). I spent a short time in Helsinki but my experience was that it was a boring and cold city. The Finns have a choice of going outdoors into the cold or staying indoors, which explains a lot about why saunas are popular (heating!) and why Nordic interior design has a lot of thought put into it. But interior design and saunas aside, I don’t see myself returning to Finland unless I decide to opt in to their healthcare system later in life (which is apparently not an uncommon path taken by other Schengen passport holders).

Tallin, Estonia is the furthest north I have been (until I visit Helsinki), with a latitude comparable to Juneau, Alaska. The summer is the best time to enjoy the outdoors here before everyone jumps back into their jackets. The country is compact, with a population of just 1.2 million.