Some more stories about my Estonian adventure!

Another picture in a pub... (as you can see, I partied a lot in Estonia!) The funny guy is Valerio :)

Dear Visitor,

Welcome to Estonia
So on one very foggy and snowy day I was picked up by one Estonian girl with whom I immediately felt a mental connection as we both love to travel. In total I stayed 5 nights in Estonia, and all of them I spent in either going crazy with Erasmus students in Tartu or drinking with Estonians!

Tartu - ‘city of good thoughts’
The last day I spent sightseeing in Tartu (the second largest city in Estonia).Tartu is known for its university which was established in 1632. You can feel and see bits of the former Soviet regime in this lovely town, but students tend to sweep it away with their jolly traditions and respectful customs. One of the most famous tradition in Tartu are the spring student days, where you can float in a boat while the water is only 7 degrees or run around the city retarded. I feel sorry that I wont be there at that time, but the stories about it are impressive. Another nice thing about Tartu was the Town Hall on Raekoja Plats (main square), which is the third building on that spot already, it was completed in 1784. Since ancient times Town Hall Square has been the centre of Tartu, the main trading area of the settlement between the castle on the Toome Hill and the riverside port on the Emajõgi (the river flowing through town). Unfortunately the day that I was sightseeing it was raining really heavily so I couldn’t cross the river over the arch of the bridge (which is a student tradition).

Tallinn - ‘your home place’
The last day I spent in the capital; Tallinn.I went into the national opera house called ‘Estonia’ and it was really impressive. Estonians are known for their singing fests. There is a national song festival that takes place every 4 years and it makes up the biggest choir in the whole world (20 000 singers). I was impressed, cause that makes around 1.6 % of the whole nation just singing. I was also happy to take a walk in the old town, since it is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site. It was mostly built from the 11th till 15th century. There are many medieval churches and most of all I loved the Latin quarter of the old town. I loved going out in Tallinn cause it was really cosy and the people seemed to like me immediately and also I noticed how many gorgeous girls Estonia has. My host, Marge, started to wonder if I am straight or bi... I still have to figure that out, I think it depends on countries;)

Right before take off to my birth town, Berlin, I went shopping with Marge to buy good stuff for my saviour. We bought three bottles of good Estonian vodka and a few beers. Vodka is Estonia’s national drink, they even drink it when they feel that flu is creeping into them. And did you know that Estonia holds the record in drinking hardest alcohol, one dude drunk 98% alcohol and didn’t die. This nation amazes me. I would love to spent more time there, maybe for student days, cause I heard that is the best party of the year!

Chao,

Sofie