Monday, August 24, 2015


they were gathering around a campsite while we were on our way to a walking trail. they offered their place to leave our home for a few days while we crossed to Russia. A meeting after our trip, the nicest coffee shop, surrounded by flowers. We were so hungry to learn more about their culture. The transition. The difficult times. The ancestors. The future. A fantastic afternoon, perfect sunny day in the middle of Tallinn. Oh! How much we treasure these moments!

a delightful encounter.....a simple smile and a short chat just before a walk in Estonia and a promised to get together for a drink in Finland. It becomes a wonderful evening in Helsinki, salmon and wine, a fabulous house on the countryside. He is so warm and she is so tender; both really welcoming and nurturing. The perfect hosts! We chatted for hours about life, history, events, personal dreams. I asked: what would you like me to say about you? Instant shyness, read faces, timid response: " we are Finnish, we go under the radar, we don't brag about us... at all". Such a sweet way to start our visit in Finland.... it was a perfect entry to this country and its people.!

Saturday, August 22, 2015



August 9 to 13
Finland
Main Church Helsinki

Off to the ferry to cross to Finland. Another 14 hours, another one of "those ferries". We were really happy with this opportunity. Last year we missed Finland because of the weather. The contrast between Russia and Finland was as big as the channel that goes across them. Even though Helsinki is not spectacular by any means (in truth I was expecting a much more vibrant and modern city) the easiness, the cleanness, the friendly people and the great weather make such a great experience for us. They do have a very pretty harbour with a promenade and a huge park were the embassies are. We took a small ferry to Suomenlinna and we did what helsinkiners do, laying on the rocks! The modern art museum and the design museum taught us about being minimalist with twist lines of their style, something that can be seen in shops, houses, clothes.


We rented a car and venture afar Helsinki and discover a quiet, relax and pretty country side. One of the most interesting things was to see "public saunas" in the middle of national parks!! They are everywhere and it is a "must" in every home. We were upset that we didn't bring SalSolcito with us so we couldn't just go and getting into the millions of lakes that they have. And an unexpected encounter made our trip even much more interesting (more in "people we meet")

Turku

Porvoo

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

August 6 to 8
Russia:

We planned Hecti's birthday as a "gypsy affair", full 5 days of celebrations!!! We drove and left SalSolcito in a carpark in Tallin and took a ferry to St Petersburg. It was 14 hours crossing and there wasn't anything fancy in our room! Just 2 beds, one on top of the other and a tiny bathroom, of course no windows! The bar with Russian karaoke, a full buffet with so much herring (yum!) and a sad "cabaret" show. But we were going to experience Russia!


It was a full whirlwind event, boat and bus ride, walks and bikes. Cathedrals, galleries and museums, St Petersburg is a very romantic "western" city, laying on the river and with magnificent and very big old buildings. We really walked this city! Arrived in the hotel at 1:30 am! Exhausted but really happy. Our second day was as furious as the first one. Not wanting to waste anytime. I have to say that we were very disappointed with the people; we didn't feel "the love", but all the contrary. A real pity as relationships with locals is what make our trips so much better or so much worse.






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Sunday, August 16, 2015

July 30 to August 6
Estonia:

We started our adventure in Estonia via the coastal drive (oh how predictable of us!), it was difficult at first to notice any difference from Latvia as the country side was identical. It was funny to see families on the beach, having a swim in what we would consider a "winter day"!

Going around the crater...
A ferry across to Saaremaa and we spent the next 3 days exploring this very raw island. The weather is not so great which is making difficult for us to fully enjoyed the place. We did the "round" in the crater to relish in the myth that "couples who walk the round together, they stay together"! It was supposed to be romantic but Hecti just asked "together....does it have to be all the time, as in full time?" hahaha

What we realise crossing the Baltic countries is that it is true that the countries are small but there is not much to see in between villages..

It was very interesting to experience a big difference with the people of Estonia as opposed to Lithuania or Latvia. The majority of them do speak English; they are much more open and they seem to like seeing and chatting with tourists. We learned a lot about their culture, from the guy we had a drink after a sauna night (where we were hit by a branch with leaves as a way to "open the pores" to a group we just meet in our walk (and invited us for vodka!). Their openness is connected in part with the fact that they were also close to Finland and this was their passage to the western cultures. It is very sad to hear the stories of terror that they have suffered at the hands of so many occupations (by Sweden, Russia, Denmark, Poland, Germany....just every neghbour!). It has left a mark in their character as described by them as "pessimistic or not very optimistic or lets just have very low expectations"