Went to Tallinn on the weekend
It is difficult to remember to update this blog. Time seems to go so fast now, all of a sudden it has been weeks and I cannot see what happened. Before I know it I will be in a plane heading back across the Atlantic. And I must say that I am not happy about that prospect.
But, on a more cheerful note, I have managed to get some more stamps in my passport. On the weekend some friends and I took the ferry to Tallinn, Estonia. It is just across the Gulf of Finland from Helsinki so it was a short trip, about 3 hours. We left on Friday morning from Tampere and arrived back on Sunday evening. All in all the trip was not that eventful, it was mainly a chance for us to relax and detox away from all the craziness that is the exchanges student community in Tampere on the weekends.
We pretty much just wandered around the old town. It was quite pretty, though I could tell that in the springtime it would be beautiful as there were trees growing everywhere. You could also see that in the last couple years there has been a lot of reconstruction going on, and still is going on. Right beside the old town was a crop of new skyscrapers and signs of prosperity. Of course, one could still see one or two old buildings with the Red Star on them, this did use to be a part of the USSR of course.
Living in Finland, one of the most expensive Euro countries has taught me the importance of being economical. And so we decided to copy the Fins and we made our little vacation into a trans-Baltic duty free loop. As Estonia is in the EU there are no duties or limits on the amount of goods one brings back for personal consumption. Therefore, we went to the liquor store and stocked up on cheap alcohol for us and all our friends back in Tampere. I know this is not something Mom wants to hear. But lets put it this way: money saved on alcohol = money free to buy vitamins, fruit and healthy food! So everyone wins!
In other news I am going to go cross country skiing this Friday with some Fins I know from this student group I joined. I will be going six km and am more than a bit worried as they assumed I knew how to do it. I had to inform them that no, just because I am Canadian does not mean I can cross-country ski. We are lazy and prefer to go downhill with a nice ski lift carrying us back up the mountain. I also mentioned snowmobiling and how nice it is to sit down. But to no avail, I will be doing things the Nordic way apparently.
In other news, I will probably be coming home a couple weeks earlier than I had planned. A friend from home is getting married ( I know!! I feel so old now!) in Perdue, SK on the 4th of August, so I will prob try to fly home the 3rd and then head there from the airport. I feel that is a solid plan. And who knows, maybe we'll swing down through Regina on the way back to Southern AB as I have not been there for ages.
Oh, and I want to visit Vancouver via Greyhound. I think after living away from home for so long more than 15 days straight in Milk River will get to my head.
Here are some pics from my trip, I will add more as my friends send me some pictures:
But, on a more cheerful note, I have managed to get some more stamps in my passport. On the weekend some friends and I took the ferry to Tallinn, Estonia. It is just across the Gulf of Finland from Helsinki so it was a short trip, about 3 hours. We left on Friday morning from Tampere and arrived back on Sunday evening. All in all the trip was not that eventful, it was mainly a chance for us to relax and detox away from all the craziness that is the exchanges student community in Tampere on the weekends.
We pretty much just wandered around the old town. It was quite pretty, though I could tell that in the springtime it would be beautiful as there were trees growing everywhere. You could also see that in the last couple years there has been a lot of reconstruction going on, and still is going on. Right beside the old town was a crop of new skyscrapers and signs of prosperity. Of course, one could still see one or two old buildings with the Red Star on them, this did use to be a part of the USSR of course.
Living in Finland, one of the most expensive Euro countries has taught me the importance of being economical. And so we decided to copy the Fins and we made our little vacation into a trans-Baltic duty free loop. As Estonia is in the EU there are no duties or limits on the amount of goods one brings back for personal consumption. Therefore, we went to the liquor store and stocked up on cheap alcohol for us and all our friends back in Tampere. I know this is not something Mom wants to hear. But lets put it this way: money saved on alcohol = money free to buy vitamins, fruit and healthy food! So everyone wins!
In other news I am going to go cross country skiing this Friday with some Fins I know from this student group I joined. I will be going six km and am more than a bit worried as they assumed I knew how to do it. I had to inform them that no, just because I am Canadian does not mean I can cross-country ski. We are lazy and prefer to go downhill with a nice ski lift carrying us back up the mountain. I also mentioned snowmobiling and how nice it is to sit down. But to no avail, I will be doing things the Nordic way apparently.
In other news, I will probably be coming home a couple weeks earlier than I had planned. A friend from home is getting married ( I know!! I feel so old now!) in Perdue, SK on the 4th of August, so I will prob try to fly home the 3rd and then head there from the airport. I feel that is a solid plan. And who knows, maybe we'll swing down through Regina on the way back to Southern AB as I have not been there for ages.
Oh, and I want to visit Vancouver via Greyhound. I think after living away from home for so long more than 15 days straight in Milk River will get to my head.
Here are some pics from my trip, I will add more as my friends send me some pictures:
posted by Jesse A at 5:07 AM
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