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TRAVELLER
country’s top DJs, played three raves there last year. He
is drawn to Patarei, he says, because of the contrasts
it presents. “It has a unique aura that’s magical and
mystical, and it’s a ruthless place. The building is full
of grim rooms, but it’s on a beautiful beach.” He is
referring to a concrete patch that Andrus Villem, who
leases the prison from the government, has filled with
sand, so it now doubles as an unexpected beach bar.
Despite its new appeal (films are also screened
there), Patarei is an odd venue. Even by day, it’s creepy.
It’s barely been cleaned since the facility closed, and
old prison beds and faded girlie posters litter the
cells. Villem rents it out for events and reckons parties
average around 1,000 revellers. Most of the clientele
learn of them from the website
rada7.ee
, Facebook
pages of individual DJs or from posters plastered
throughout Kalamaja.
Not far from the prison gates is another Soviet relic:
Telliskivi Creative City (
60A Telliskivi, telliskivi.eu
). It
was once the workplace for many of the country’s finest
engineers and allegedly produced several parts for the
Sputnik satellite, so it’s fitting that it’s now the centre
of Tallinn’s unofficial cultural orbit. Of its 11 buildings,
054-059_ej_Tallin Feature lg.indd 58
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