There are times in ones life where it gets too complicated and too busy to allow for any kind of reflection. That's been the last three months for me. But, simply because three months have gone by, it's not to say that the memories have faded. So here we find ourselves again in the memory of my adventures. Welcome back!
Estonia is a small country, but as I came to discover, the locals consider it to have three capitals. Tallinn is the main point of interest and was where I lived for the duration of my stay. It's the official capital and the centre of business for the country. The second capital is Parnu which is referred to as the summer capital as it mainly occupied in the summer when its long beaches become more appealing. The third capital is Tartu, which is the university capital where students populate the city for the duration of the year.
As per usual, my travelling companion was Kevin, the American, and for this particular excursion we chose to take the train to Tartu! I had never been on a train before and it was one of my missions to accomplish before I left. This would be the last time Kevin and I travelled together and so it was a kind of bittersweet adventure.
We took the bus into downtown Tartu (in which time I broke my only pair of sunglasses and was forced to buy a pair of new ones) and decided to eat at the shopping centre and kill two birds with one stone. Sorry, birds.
Tartu is on a winding river and borders both of its banks and so, when rainy, it also becomes bug-y. Tallinn has a breeze. I missed it. The rain started in the afternoon, about a few hours after we had disembarked. Humid, muggy, sticky, and rainy, this soon became my least favourite of our excursions. Add to that, that my camera broke (it had sand in it- my fault entirely) and I quickly had a little hate-on for this quiet university town. I know I'm whining. Be patient, it gets better.
After thoroughly scouring the downtown and river front areas for interesting things to see, my mood was delivered from its fugue by the beautiful, abundant greenery, stone pathways and little hills that dotted the town. I was even more appeased after entering into its old town and botanical gardens. Old Town looked the miniature of Old Town, Tallinn except for the university smack in the centre. People were out in the streets, sitting outside of cafes and restaurants despite the weather and the overall feel was pleasant.
The hill behind the university was home to a few of its buildings, a number of statues (and an ancient sacrificial killing ground!!) and somewhere back there in the green and dirt we stumbled upon something we hadn't expected (especially since we hadn't researched anything to be found in Tartu, really, including the human sacrificing place). Ill-planned and we still found the historic sites! What I now know we were looking at is called Tartu Jaani Kirik Church- or Tartu St. John's Church and was once one of the most unique pieces of Western Gothic architecture in Europe due to its massive collection of terracotta statues. Now, mostly a ruin, you can pay for tickets and climb through its stairways and get a great view of Tartu from 360 degrees. Standing inside the ruined bit with no roof (located toward what I think was the back of the property) you get a very inspired feeling. There are still brick arches that are now transparent and empty that funnel light down onto the sand floor, which is really just the ground. I can't describe it but standing there I felt something a bit profound and was moved by the atmosphere under the arches.
Another spot not to be missed were the botanical gardens on the outskirts of the Old Town. It was a fun little trip that included saying hello to a lot of fish and making your way through tangled vines and pedways looking down onto tropical trees and flowers. A surreal departure from the snowy Estonia one gets accustomed to. We finished our trip with ice cream, a good chat with the locals and we were back on the train to Tallinn.
I spoke with Kevin a few nights ago (maybe 9 months or so after this trip) and I have to say that there are many ways people can make friends but few are comparable to being the only English speaking people in a country far away. It's like a little pressure cooker for a friendship, especially considering how much travelling we did together. He's still just as easy to talk to and as odd as he ever was. So, if you're reading this, Kevin... I miss you!!!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Oslo! (Part 2)
You might think to yourself, "They definitely didn't get up the next morning to see the rest of Oslo. They probably slept clear through the afternoon and just went partying in the night." Well, do I have news for you! By some miracle, we were up and gone by 10am. Don't ask me how. I don't have the answer.
The day was beautiful and sunny with less chill than the day before. When we left the hostel we were cheerful and excited and the day went a lot easier than the previous one which seemed to take an extraordinary amount of effort to get through. It even felt like it took a lot of effort to write about it. It's funny how you can still feel how you felt on a particular day when you sit down and reflect on it. Anyway, we found a small record store that had these interesting old Norwegian photos to look at before we found a great little cafe to have breakfast in. I'm not sure if it was because we were really hungry, happy or if it was real, but I swear it was the best thing I'd ever eaten. Fresh squeezed orange juice, a cafe americano, and the most amazing croissant ever. Ever. After eating, we all split up and the girls went shopping while Kevin went to a museum and the other guys went to a music store. On our part, Nicole, Lilla and I hit up H&M, Gina Tricot, and some souvenir shops. The shopping was much better in Oslo, than in Tallinn but the prices were higher. A bag each in hand, we met up with the others of our group and prepared to continue on. We were on our way to the ferry terminal to go see some islands when we met with a parade in the street. As it turns out there was a military tattoo that day and everyone was out to see it. It lasted for a long time and was really interesting. There were representations from every branch of the military, foreign and local, located in Norway. So there were Brits, Russians, the UN, the EU and a slew of others such as the Swedes and Scots. It was a really large event that lasted throughout the morning into the afternoon but it was really interesting. It ended while we were waiting for our ferry so we conveniently had something to watch.
We decided, before we embarked, that we'd have lunch on the mainland and so we got in line at another, you guessed it, McDonald's. This time I got a flurry, and no I don't feel guilty about it thank you very much. We ate on board the ferry and I think I ate more hair than food. Having completed both the food and boat missions we disembarked on the island and started to look around. A few feet in, I stopped and looked quizzically at something that seemed very, very familiar. My eyes widened, I took in a sharp breath and ran excitedly toward a very Canadian sight. An INUKSHUK! On this foolish Norwegian island there was a large, ridiculously out of place inukshuk. I blinked a few times to make sure I had it right and then tried to explain to the 5 other people I was with what on earth an inukshuk was. I even rein-acted the heritage moment commercial. You know the one, "Now the people will know we were here! Hay yaw hay yaw...." I can hear your stupefied silence. Yup, that's pretty well what they did too. But I thought it was really cool.
After the inukshuk incident, we wandered around this amazingly beautiful island that was remote yet quite populated. Norwegians appear to have a lot of money and so have very beautiful houses and boats. So many boats! And not little ones either, I mean the large yacht sized ones. I had so much fun here looking around. The scenery and views of the mainland were spectacular. On the way back to get the ferry, we encountered the viking museum that had two real, ancient viking ships hanging on the inside. Kevin went in and paid to get a full good look but the rest of us were satisfied with a quick glimpse and then a lay-down in the parking lot. Taking the ferry back was a good wind-down to that part of the journey. We had done a lot of walking and were starting to get tired. Once we were back on the mainland we decided to buy shrimp off of the back of a boat in the harbour and eat it sitting on the docks. I think that might have been my favourite part, sitting with friends, peeling shrimp and throwing the shells to the birds. The sun was starting to get lower and it was lighting everything up really nicely so we though that once we were back done we would take in the oldest part of Oslo, a fortress situated on a cliff facing the fjord.
Its fortress wall was up high enough to enable us to take a few amazing shots of the city but other than the grounds being fairly pretty, that part was a flop as it had closed before we got there. That night we ate at a very nice restaurant, ending our budget food run and went back to the hostel. Our plane was leaving at around 4am so there was no point in sleeping. We grabbed some drinks, went outside and tried to drown the cold in alcohol. Later on we met up with four more Canadians, this time from Toronto, who were in town for a medical conference. They were looking for a good time in Oslo so we went to the bar with them and closed the place out before heaving our bags over our shoulders and walking back to the shuttle that would take us to the plane.
This next part entails a lot of waiting for airplanes and features my iPod heavily since I was too tired to even talk. Our group separated in Riga with the other girls staying for some sightseeing while the rest of us went by bus back to Tallinn. I was sick for a week after I arrived back home so I guess that means that I wasn't so resilient after all. But I had so much fun and wouldn't have missed it for the world! It was one of the best trips of my Estonia experience. I just wish it could have lasted a little longer.
The day was beautiful and sunny with less chill than the day before. When we left the hostel we were cheerful and excited and the day went a lot easier than the previous one which seemed to take an extraordinary amount of effort to get through. It even felt like it took a lot of effort to write about it. It's funny how you can still feel how you felt on a particular day when you sit down and reflect on it. Anyway, we found a small record store that had these interesting old Norwegian photos to look at before we found a great little cafe to have breakfast in. I'm not sure if it was because we were really hungry, happy or if it was real, but I swear it was the best thing I'd ever eaten. Fresh squeezed orange juice, a cafe americano, and the most amazing croissant ever. Ever. After eating, we all split up and the girls went shopping while Kevin went to a museum and the other guys went to a music store. On our part, Nicole, Lilla and I hit up H&M, Gina Tricot, and some souvenir shops. The shopping was much better in Oslo, than in Tallinn but the prices were higher. A bag each in hand, we met up with the others of our group and prepared to continue on. We were on our way to the ferry terminal to go see some islands when we met with a parade in the street. As it turns out there was a military tattoo that day and everyone was out to see it. It lasted for a long time and was really interesting. There were representations from every branch of the military, foreign and local, located in Norway. So there were Brits, Russians, the UN, the EU and a slew of others such as the Swedes and Scots. It was a really large event that lasted throughout the morning into the afternoon but it was really interesting. It ended while we were waiting for our ferry so we conveniently had something to watch.
We decided, before we embarked, that we'd have lunch on the mainland and so we got in line at another, you guessed it, McDonald's. This time I got a flurry, and no I don't feel guilty about it thank you very much. We ate on board the ferry and I think I ate more hair than food. Having completed both the food and boat missions we disembarked on the island and started to look around. A few feet in, I stopped and looked quizzically at something that seemed very, very familiar. My eyes widened, I took in a sharp breath and ran excitedly toward a very Canadian sight. An INUKSHUK! On this foolish Norwegian island there was a large, ridiculously out of place inukshuk. I blinked a few times to make sure I had it right and then tried to explain to the 5 other people I was with what on earth an inukshuk was. I even rein-acted the heritage moment commercial. You know the one, "Now the people will know we were here! Hay yaw hay yaw...." I can hear your stupefied silence. Yup, that's pretty well what they did too. But I thought it was really cool.
After the inukshuk incident, we wandered around this amazingly beautiful island that was remote yet quite populated. Norwegians appear to have a lot of money and so have very beautiful houses and boats. So many boats! And not little ones either, I mean the large yacht sized ones. I had so much fun here looking around. The scenery and views of the mainland were spectacular. On the way back to get the ferry, we encountered the viking museum that had two real, ancient viking ships hanging on the inside. Kevin went in and paid to get a full good look but the rest of us were satisfied with a quick glimpse and then a lay-down in the parking lot. Taking the ferry back was a good wind-down to that part of the journey. We had done a lot of walking and were starting to get tired. Once we were back on the mainland we decided to buy shrimp off of the back of a boat in the harbour and eat it sitting on the docks. I think that might have been my favourite part, sitting with friends, peeling shrimp and throwing the shells to the birds. The sun was starting to get lower and it was lighting everything up really nicely so we though that once we were back done we would take in the oldest part of Oslo, a fortress situated on a cliff facing the fjord.
Its fortress wall was up high enough to enable us to take a few amazing shots of the city but other than the grounds being fairly pretty, that part was a flop as it had closed before we got there. That night we ate at a very nice restaurant, ending our budget food run and went back to the hostel. Our plane was leaving at around 4am so there was no point in sleeping. We grabbed some drinks, went outside and tried to drown the cold in alcohol. Later on we met up with four more Canadians, this time from Toronto, who were in town for a medical conference. They were looking for a good time in Oslo so we went to the bar with them and closed the place out before heaving our bags over our shoulders and walking back to the shuttle that would take us to the plane.
This next part entails a lot of waiting for airplanes and features my iPod heavily since I was too tired to even talk. Our group separated in Riga with the other girls staying for some sightseeing while the rest of us went by bus back to Tallinn. I was sick for a week after I arrived back home so I guess that means that I wasn't so resilient after all. But I had so much fun and wouldn't have missed it for the world! It was one of the best trips of my Estonia experience. I just wish it could have lasted a little longer.
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