Thanksgiving in Estonia

As you know, Thanksgiving is an American holiday and is not celebrated in Estonia. It is also one of my favorite holidays because, to me, it is about being with family and sharing good food and good conversation. It is a little bit difficult being away from my family on days like Thanksgiving and I especially miss my dad. Thanksgiving was definitely his favorite holiday. He liked that, unlike how Christmas has become, it is not about spending money and time buying and wrapping gifts. (in his case, last minute late on Christmas Eve). Rather, Thanksgiving is about reflecting on the things you are grateful for. For my dad, family was definitely one of the things he was most thankful for. I know because he always showed us. I am thankful for my family as well, even when they are half-way across the world, I know that they love and support me.

This Thanksgiving, I am also thankful for all of my new friends in Estonia. Everyone has been extremely welcoming. They answer all of my many questions when I am confused (a frequent occurrence) and they translate for me when I am completely lost. All of the friends I have made here are such amazing people and I am lucky to have them in my life. So although I missed being with my family on Thanksgiving, I was happy to share the holiday with my Estonian friends this year.

I threw a little party and I was so happy that so many people came. Because I had class all day on Thursday, I couldn’t make an entire Thanksgiving dinner (not that I was ready to take that on by myself anyway). Instead I made three of my favorite Thanksgiving pies: pumpkin, pecan, and apple. I bought some new kitchen supplies and made my shopping list, then hunted for the ingredients I needed and converted my recipes into metric units. When I couldn’t find something I asked my friends if it indeed existed in Estonia and then turned to my mom to figure out an appropriate substitute. I had never made these pies before and my mom reminded me, I did not have the best history with culinary “creations” in the past.

However, I enlisted the help of my friend Jaanika and we manage to pull it off without burning down my apartment. Granted my pecan pie was rock hard, and I had to quickly pull my pumpkin pie out of the oven when I realized I had forgotten more than one important ingredient, but everyone ate and complemented me on the pies. One person even asked me for the pumpkin pie recipe the next day.

Of course, contrary to popular belief, Thanksgiving is not all about the food. It made me smile that my guests wanted to go around and say what they were thankful for. We always did this when I was growing up, but lately I think we’ve forgotten to take the time to do it. It is always nice to hear people express gratitude for the things in their lives, especially for each other.

Several of my Estonian friends told me that they were very excited to have been invited to their first Thanksgiving. While I feel a little bad their first Thanksgiving didn’t even involve turkey, I think we all had a good time.

Now it is Saturday, and after not so gracefully sneaking out early from my orchestra rehearsal, I am on my way to Tallinn for a real Thanksgiving feast. Tallinn is where my American friend Bart lives. He is here on a Fulbright scholarship, like I am. He also has a professional chef for a roommate, so of course I am very happy to be celebrating Thanksgiving again with them and some of their friends.

It is easy to get lost in our busy schedules, or to get pulled down by the tragic events and loss around us, but if we keep our hearts and eyes open, it is simple to see how much we have to be thankful for. Thanksgiving may have been on Thursday, but it certainly does not have to be a one-day event. I am grateful for each and every one of you who is reading this right now. I will try every day, especially the hard ones, to remember how lucky I am to have been and continue to be surrounded be such beautifully compassionate people.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Two Month Mark

It has now been two months since I arrived in Estonia. Well okay, two months and two days, but who’s counting. I can’t believe it. Time seems to move so quickly here. My roommate and I have this recurring conversation every few days it goes something like this:

Hende: “Is today the 25th?”
Me: “No, it’s the 27th. Woah.”
Hende: “I can’t believe it’s the weekend again.”
Me: “I know, wasn’t it JUST the weekend?!”
Hende: “Oh here we go having this conversation again…”
Me: “Hende! It’s almost November.”
Hende: “And then it’ll be Decemeber, and then Christmas, and then I’ll be back in Finland.”
Me: “How is this possible, what is happening to our time in Estonia?!”

Anyway, you get the idea. I probably shouldn’t think about it so much. I think we feel this way because we are both so busy, but we are busy with really interesting and new things. I certainly haven’t felt bored in quite some time. Let me tell about some of the exciting things I have been up to.

I love living in Viljandi. It is small, cute, and charming, and there is always some cool cultural event going on. For instance, every month (I think) there is a Tantsumaja (Dance House) at the Ait. People come together to dance to live folk music. It seems like knowing the different folk dances is a requirement here. It is really cool to see all types of people, young and old moving their feet to this kind of music. If I went to a similar event in the States (and I have done so occasionally) I would probably be the only “young person” there. I also love that almost any event with music is a good enough reason to dance. They start off by teaching a dance and talking through some things, then later in the night they just play music and everyone dances freely. If you know me at all, then you know that I am one of the least coordinated people on the face of the planet. Graceful is definitely not my middle name. I frequently trip over my own toes, walk into walls, and fall over when simply standing in one place. Needless to say, I am not the best dancer, but I do enjoy it. I am very grateful for the patience of the people who dance with me at these events (especially my friend Liisa who says there is hope yet for me). They continue to drag me around the floor, help me learn these dances, and don’t seem to be offended when I bump into people.

Photo by: Pärimusmuusika Ait

Let’s see, what else have I been up to…? One weekend I took a trip to Riga, Latvia and spent some time with my “Fulbright family”. I love that I can just go to another country for the weekend; it’s a concept that still blows my mind a little. Anyway, in Latvia this year there are four Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) and Research grant recipients. Bart, the other Estonian Fulbrighter and I, got to know them back in the States during our orientation in DC. We decided then that we would try to get together during our Fulbright year and do fun things or travel. The six of us had a fun weekend walking around Riga, exploring the central market, grabbing a few drinks at the Folk Pub, and visiting the Open-Air Museum. It rained all weekend so I didn’t get to walk around the city quite as much as I would have liked, but that just means I have to go back! It was really great to spend time with the Latvian Fulbrighters and get to know them better. I can’t wait for them to come visit Estonia!

The handmade mug I got at the Open-Air Museum

Photo by: my friend Dan

The following weekend three American girls, who I met during orientation in Tartu, came to visit me in Viljandi. It was fun to show them around. After I picked them up at the bus station and we got a bite to eat, we walked around the castle ruins (of course). Then we went up into the Old Water Tower and looked out over Viljandi. I am glad we did because I think it is now closed because tourist season is over. There may not be a whole lot to see in Viljandi (although I have still yet to go to the Viljandi Museum or the Kondase Keskus art museum…gasp), but it was nice to just walk around and talk. I think my friends appreciated the change of scenery.

The next weekend Bart and I went on a trip with the US Embassy to a the Lindi Nature Reserve in Pärnu County. I took a bus to Pärnu and met the rest of the group who had driven from Tallinn together. From the bus station we headed to the bog. We strapped on our bog shoes and then took off to explore one of Estonia’s beautiful natural landscapes. It was fun to feel the spongey ground bounce beneath us. I only fell once…because I decided it would be a good idea to skip in bog shoes. We walked through a little forest island where our guide showed us how to easily start a fire and mentioned some survival skills. At the end of our walk through the bog we all sat together in this little wooden hut and enjoyed a hot meal that our guide prepared for us. It was really tasty and much appreciated after our long walk.

Photo by: my friend Bart

From the embassy newsletter, “The Medieval Times”

When our time at the bog was over instead of heading back to Viljandi like I had planned, I decided to head back to spend the night in Tallinn. That night Bart and I met up with my Estonian teacher for dinner and then did a little bar-hopping. It was a lot of fun and we met two of my teacher’s friends who were really funny. I laughed harder than I have in a long time. They work at a radio station in Tallinn and asked me to perform at a charity show they put on. Unfortunately I had a conflict for this particular event, but I hope that in the future I can get my band to go to Tallinn and play with me. The next morning Bart had plans to go to Tartu, so again I tagged along. We spent the day with the Tuula, the girl I had stayed with when I was in Tartu for orientation. By the end of the weekend I had pretty much made a circle around the country.

During my two months in Estonia I have learned to say “yes” more and to be comfortable with the unexpected. I don’t always know what my plans are or where I am supposed to be, but when I just go with the flow, I end up having these awesome experiences. I can’t wait to see where the next two months bring me!

On the Road to Riga

[This post was published several days after it was written.]

I am sitting on a bus to Pärnu right now. It is a very foggy morning. Although I can still see the almost full moon, the sun is trying to cut through the fog. I am only just passing through Pärnu today, but I will be sure to spend some more time there in the future. Actually, I am heading to Riga, Latvia for the weekend to meet up with some of my fellow Fulbrighters. More on that after it’s happened. Since I will be spending more than five hours on a bus today, I figured now was a good time to update my blog. A lot has happened since I last posted.

First of all, I am getting settled in Viljandi. After staying in the guest house for about a week and a half I found a place to stay. I looked online, talked to people, and inquired about multiple apartments. I visited a place where international volunteers were living, but decided that it was too far away from school. The walk was fine now, but I could only imagine the dread in winter. This particular apartment wasn’t the nicest place, not to mention there would eventually be five people living in a space meant for two and a half. The entire time I was looking at affordable places that seemed to be where a student should expect to live, but I couldn’t get this one apartment out of my head.

When I was still in the States and happily under the delusion that I would be living in student housing this year, I decided to look at apartments available in Viljandi, just for fun. Most places were fairly inexpensive and their appearance matched their price tag. However one place clearly stood out from the rest. It was perfect. Close to everything; school, the folk music center, the castle ruins, and all the cafés and restaurants. It was fully furnished, and well. It was super cute and had everything I could possibly want. But as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. This apartment was more expensive than the others and at the time seemed like it would be out of reach.

After seeing the first reasonable apartment with the practical price-tag I decided maybe finding a place I actually WANTED to live in, was worth a little extra cash. So I went for it. I decided to take a look at my dream apartment. I ran some numbers and realized that although I wouldn’t be saving as much money as I had anticipated, I could actually afford this place (thank you Fulbright). I went to meet the landlord and before he even finished showing me around I told him I was 100% committed to the apartment. It looked even better than in the pictures. Not only was it fully furnished, but the kitchen was even stocked with plates, bowls, cups, mugs, silverware, pots, and pans. There were candles, pictures, and other accessories decorating the space. And to top it off the super friendly landlord offered to buy me a new TV, washing machine, and mattress topper!

I met with him again later that day to sign the contract and the apartment was mine. The friend I had made at the guest house, Jaanika, picked me up with her car and helped me bring my stuff to my new place. After marveling at the fact that I had practically everything I needed she left to eat dinner at home. Later that night she came back to hang out. When I buzzed her in she walked through the door with a huge bag of apples, pears, and tomatoes from her grandmother’s garden. It was so sweet!

Remember how I mentioned this apartment was a little on the pricey side? Well I kept thinking that it would be nice to have a roommate to help with that. I wanted a roommate anyway. Originally I was hoping to live with some Estonians so I could work on the language and get to know Estonian life even better. During the apartment search there were a few options for roommates including an Estonian student, a girl from Moldova, and one from Germany. I was also talking to the only other international student at the culture academy (that I knew of at the time). Her name is Hennariikka and she is from Finland. She was also looking for an apartment and willing to spend some extra money to get a nice place. When I told her about the place I found, she agreed that it was perfect. Well…perfect for one person. Nevertheless she showed up the first night and was unsure of where she would be spending the night. I offered her the couch until we had time to “figure things out”.

It became clear rather quickly that although the apartment was not ideal for two people (it is a one-bedroom), she wanted to stay. After several days of discussing possible ways to arrange the furniture our landlord bought us another mattress (this guy is great) and Hende (her nickname) has now turned part of the living area into her little corner. I am really happy to have a roommate. Even though I thought I wanted to live with an Estonian, I must admit it is nice to have someone to talk to about the challenges of adjusting to the Estonian culture and learning the language.

I am extremely happy with my new place. I can’t believe my first apartment is in the Old Town of Viljandi, Estonia. The only downside is it is so nice I may never want to leave (don’t worry Mom, I’m only joking).

My room

The kitchen

My flatmate’s “room”

Did I mention I have a sauna?! I had never even been in a sauna before coming to Estonia.

Arriving in Tartu

Yesterday was another great day in Estonia. I did a little more exploring around Old Town and had lunch with my teacher again. I also took care of my luggage situation and got my new (well new to me) Estonian phone set up. Then after checking out of the hotel I took a tram to the bus station where I ordered a bus ticket to Tartu. Being able to buy a ticket speaking only in Estonian was surprisingly rewarding.

It took two and a half hours to get to Tartu and I very much enjoyed looking at the countryside. It is clear the rest of the country is very different from Tallinn.

The girl sitting next to me asked me if she could use my phone. It took me a while to figure out what she was saying and explain that my Estonian was not very good. I was glad that I was able to offer her my newly working phone and she thanked me in English.

When I arrived at the bus station in Tartu the person that is letting me stay at her apartment was there to meet. She is really nice and we have talked a lot about the differences between Estonia, Finland, and the United States. We have also discussed the different education systems (she teaches at a Finish school here in Tartu and is also a former Fulbrighter to the States).

Today was the first day of the international student orientation at the University of Tartu. We got a lot of information about living in Tartu and Estonia in general, but I won’t bore you with all the details. The best part, of course, was meeting some more amazing people. Each international student is assigned a “tutor” who will help show us around and answer our questions. Most tutors were assigned about seven to ten students. My tutor has just me and two other girls, one of whom is the only other person studying at Viljandi and was unable to attend the orientation. So I am the only one here in Tartu this week, that is going to Viljandi. It is nice to know that there will be at least one other international student though.

After the informational sessions were over for the day we went to lunch with our tutors. She took us to this great pizza place and we shared a pizza with chicken, peaches, and blue cheese. It was SO good! Then we walked around Tartu and she talked about different places like clubs, bars, bookstores, and second-hand shops.

When I got back to the apartment the girl am staying with very generously made dinner for us. She is vegan so we had pasta with tofu, tomatoes, and broccoli. It was also really good, probably the best tofu I’ve ever had (not that I eat it much).

So far my days in Estonia have been packed with a lot of different things and despite feeling a bit jet-lagged still, I am loving it!!

From Town Hall Square in Old Town Tallinn

I am sitting in Town Hall Square in Old Town Tallinn having just finished my coffee. I figure I should write about my journey to Estonia now before my thoughts on the experience are replaced by new experiences in Tallinn.

The plane ride was definitely the longest I have ever been on. I flew LOT Polish Airlines, which means I have heard more Polish in the last two days than in my entire life. On the plane I sat next to two nice women, one of whom was from the Ukraine and spoke a little English. The other did not, but we exchanged lots of smiles and hand gestures during our eight hours together. In fact when we were leaving she thanked me for helping her get her bags from the overhead compartment and grabbed my hand to pull me down for a kiss.

In front of each seat was a touch screen that allowed you to track the flight, watch movies, listen to music, play games, etc. As much as I tried to help the woman sitting next to me, the system seemed very perplexing to her.

On the plane we were given two nice meals and as far as airplane food goes, I am not complaining. I tried to sleep on the plane, knowing that it would be day time when I arrived, but despite my exhaustion, sleep was just not in the cards.

When I got to the airport in Warsaw I had to go through the passport check and security. I had to wait a little bit and my backpack had to be double checked after taking out more of my electronics, but all-in-all it was pretty simple.

After using the bathroom and buying a Polish candy bar and bottle of water I headed to the small terminal at the very back of the airport. You have no idea how happy I was to hear people speaking Estonian!

This second flight was rather short and I arrived at the airport with no problems. It is the smallest, quietest airport I have ever been in. I waited at what appeared to be the only baggage claim conveyor belt and retrieved my luggage. Just as I was wondering why I didn’t have to go through customs yet, an Estonian man pulled me aside. I was the only person going through customs and it was very quick. He checked my passport, put my luggage through the machine, asked me why I was here, and then sent me on my way. Definitely much simpler than going through customs in Jamaica!

Taking a taxi was super simple too. I checked into my hotel and then found a place to eat thanks to the suggestion of the hotel receptionist. Now after a goodnight’s sleep, an excellent breakfast, and a quick walk through Old Town, I am sitting people-watching and, I admit, eavesdropping a bit on the English-speaking tourists sitting at the next table. I can’t wait to meet up with my teacher from this summer and get shown around by a real Estonian. The later today I will be off to meet people at the US Embassy.

A Weekend with Mom

While I was studying in Pittsburgh this summer it was difficult to be away from home. My dad had recently passed away and sometimes I just wanted to be with family. Luckily my mom decided to come visit for a weekend. It was a nice change of pace. She got a hotel in Oakland and we stayed together. My mattress at school was like lying on a brick wall, so the hotel bed was much appreciated.

After torturing her by having her walk up the hill to my dorm so we could get some of my stuff, we set off to explore the city.

The night she arrived we had the very convenient hotel shuttle service take us over to Shadyside where we had dinner and margaritas at a nice Mexican place. After dinner and after quickly exhausting our shopping options we headed back to the hotel to catch up on some much needed sleep.

The next day we started off by visiting the Phipps Conservatory and walking through all the gardens there. They were having a “Glass in the Gardens” display this summer that we thought was pretty neat.

A glass sunflower at the entrance of the Phipps

One of the spinning pieces of glass art

The Cathedral of Learning!

Cool looking glass people “walking” through the garden

Smile!

The hanging glass artwork that reminded me of the Bushnell in Hartford, CT

Someone offered to take our picture

Then we decided to go downtown and see if we could find anything else to do. Instead we ended up going for a nice walk as was generally my experience in Pittsburgh. I would often go out in search of something to do and, with the exception of a few times I stumbled upon something unexpected, I would end up finding restaurants and shops closed up earlier and just walk my feet off.

Sitting downtown at what I call the “glass castle building”

Our one unexpected find at Point Park

People working on an amazing sand sculpture

On this particular weekend after having enough of the aimless walking, my mom and I decided to take a bus over to Station Square. There were a few little shops to look at and then we ended up meeting my friend from class for dinner. Although it was not quite what we expected (again) we were glad we went.

The fountains at Station Square

On Sunday, after a quick lunch at my favorite place to get salads, Hello Bistro, it was time for my mom to head to the airport. My mom is not the best traveler and she tends to get anxious about flying and dealing with airports. I was hoping this trip would go smoothly so I could encourage her to travel to Europe later this year to visit me, but of course she has the worst luck with traveling. Every time I fly, I walk right through security with no problems, barely any lines, and rarely encounter delays. For my mom that is not the case. She had a problem with the shuttle to the airport, multiple delays, and to top it off after finally getting home late at night, she got rather sick for the next few days.

Hopefully when she comes to Europe at Christmas, my brother will be her good-luck charm and anxiety-reducing travel-buddy.

Showing Mom the nationality rooms at the Cathedral of Learning

The Israel Heritage Classroom

The African Heritage Classroom

The Welsh Classroom

The Austrian Room

Catching Trade Winds

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. -Mark Twain

I am EXHAUSTED! Today was my travel day to Pittsburgh. I didn’t sleep at all last night and then got to Bradley International Airport for my 6 AM flight. I had a short layover at Dulles and then arrived in Pittsburgh. (Both planes were those little tiny ones that you have to walk outside to get on. I think this was also my first time on a propeller plane). Everything went smoothly for the most part. As I was walking up to baggage claim my bag was coming out right in front of me. Then I headed to the shuttle that would take me to the University. I found it without a problem and only had to wait a couple of minutes for the next shuttle. The driver dropped me off at Panther Central where I checked in and got my student ID.

Now here’s the part of my trip that was a bit of a challenge. I had to walk from where I checked in to Pennsylvania Hall where I am living. It’s not a long walk, but it seemed like it took an eternity. Let me back up a little. I am at last minute packer. Since I was flying I had a lot off stuff to fit into one suitcase. So yesterday my mom and I went out and bought the biggest suitcase I could find. At 2 AM when I had finally finished packing, I was lying in bed worry that my bag would not meet the 50 pound weight limit. So I went through it again pulling things out and hoping it wouldn’t be too heavy. Alas, when we got to the airport my bag was about 7 pounds over. I did not want to be that person franticly going through their luggage while holding up the line. I was that person. Because, you see, I also did not want to pay $100 for 7 pounds. I stuffed my hairdryer and my laptop charger into my already loaded backpack and sent my mom back with my shampoo and some clothes. In the end my bag was 50.5 pounds. I wish I were a light packer. I like the concept, it just never seems to work out that way.

Anyway, after figuring out where my dorm was I started to drag my 50 pound suitcase, backpack, and violin through Oakland and up the mammoth hill to my dorm. I don’t know what was worse the hills, the multiple flights of stairs, or the heat. I think I’m going to be sore tomorrow, but I made it! My calf muscle are going to be huge after six weeks of walking up this hill.

Alrighty, enough complaining. I am so excited to be living in Pittsburgh! I have never spent a considerable amount of time in a city and I think now is the perfect time. I can’t wait to start my Estonian class tomorrow too! I found out this week that I am going to take classes in Viljandi after all (I will give more details soon). Which means I really have to work hard since I will be studying at the graduate level in Estonian. Tomorrow morning starts off with orientation for the Summer Language Institute. I had my two weeks sitting at home after graduation now it’s time to start doing and start living. No regrets!