So I’m in Estonia, which is a former Soviet state. This is my last night of the Baltic trip, and I have to say, I’m not too disappointed that my class only stayed here for two days. It has not been bad, but it has not been good either. I have not seen the sun in two days and the temperature has maintained a steady below negative five degrees Celsius.
We arrived yesterday with time to get dinner and drinks. A group of my fellow students went to an Irish pub and ate and drank. Then we went around the town and found nothing but liquor stores. So we bought a handle of vodka. We figured, “when in a former Soviet state….”
So we went back to the hostel and drank the vodka. It was nasty, but it was something to do. It was only one bottle split between six of us, so no one got too drunk.
After the vodka (just to give you an idea of how little I drank) I finished the novel I was reading as I returned 11:30. The novel I was reading was “The Thirty-Nine Steps” by John Buchan. My suitemate, Marion, gave it to me to read. She had to read it for an English class she took. It was a thriller novel written in 1915, as a piece of British propaganda during the First World War.
It was a good novel. I enjoyed reading it and I look forward to talking to Marion about the novel upon my return to Freiburg. It is interesting to me that her University, which is a German University, made her read a piece of British propaganda that was written largely to instill fear of Germans into the British conscience.
I woke up the next morning and had the free hostel breakfast. Then I went to class, and you probably don’t want to hear about that. Let’s just say, I know a whole lot more about Estonian politics than I ever cared to know. The man that gave the lecture was a good teacher, and he made it interesting. So overall, I’d say that I now care about Estonian politics which is what the trip was all about – alright! He was a professor at the University of Tallin and was also a representative for Estonia in the EU parliament. He was a rather young man, only in his early 40’s or mid-30’s and he seemed to know what he was talking about.
After the lecture we were supposed to get into groups and tour the city of Tallin. My group was supposed to do a sociology project. We were supposed to check out a poor part of town, a rich part of town, a few shopping centers and a couple different pubs. And we did, but we got a little lost along the way, which made it even better in my opinion.
Overall it was a good experience and we found that, when we asked, people felt pretty comfortable in their EU nation of Estonia. It sure as Hell beats Soviet domination.
And about the Soviet domination: I think I figured out why the Soviets fell in the late 80’s. They tried to hold Estonia! I mean, the nation of Estonia barely has a million people and very few natural resources. It has made gains in its post Soviet era through its marine time commerce and tourism. If I was playing RISK, Estonia would be one of the last places I’d try to conquer. It’s pointless, nothing but coldness exist in Estonia. Your armies would become too extended with too little reward.
We returned to the University and gave a brief presentation about the project we were to fulfill. Ours went well, but I don’t really have much to say other then, “the people of Estonia are very content and feel better off now than they were 20 years ago.”
We returned to the hostel at 4:30. I took a nap and woke in time to go to dinner. I went with the same group of kids that I went out with the night before, but this time we went to a medieval themed restaurant. The food was not that good. The atmosphere was okay, but it was a bit pricy and I think I would have appreciated a good burger and French fries.
Well we didn’t get out of Medieval times until nearly 11 o’clock. So we purchased some more of that Estonia vodka and called it a night.
Tomorrow it is off to Berlin. I’m happy I can say that I’ve been in a former Soviet state, and no doubt, it may be pretty here in the spring and summer time, but on this trip in the middle of a Soviet winter, I never saw the sun in Estonia. Not once. It has not come out and I don’t think I care to stay in such a place much longer. From all the Bond movies that I’ve seen, it is exactly how I pictured Eastern Europe to be.
We arrived yesterday with time to get dinner and drinks. A group of my fellow students went to an Irish pub and ate and drank. Then we went around the town and found nothing but liquor stores. So we bought a handle of vodka. We figured, “when in a former Soviet state….”
So we went back to the hostel and drank the vodka. It was nasty, but it was something to do. It was only one bottle split between six of us, so no one got too drunk.
After the vodka (just to give you an idea of how little I drank) I finished the novel I was reading as I returned 11:30. The novel I was reading was “The Thirty-Nine Steps” by John Buchan. My suitemate, Marion, gave it to me to read. She had to read it for an English class she took. It was a thriller novel written in 1915, as a piece of British propaganda during the First World War.
It was a good novel. I enjoyed reading it and I look forward to talking to Marion about the novel upon my return to Freiburg. It is interesting to me that her University, which is a German University, made her read a piece of British propaganda that was written largely to instill fear of Germans into the British conscience.
I woke up the next morning and had the free hostel breakfast. Then I went to class, and you probably don’t want to hear about that. Let’s just say, I know a whole lot more about Estonian politics than I ever cared to know. The man that gave the lecture was a good teacher, and he made it interesting. So overall, I’d say that I now care about Estonian politics which is what the trip was all about – alright! He was a professor at the University of Tallin and was also a representative for Estonia in the EU parliament. He was a rather young man, only in his early 40’s or mid-30’s and he seemed to know what he was talking about.
After the lecture we were supposed to get into groups and tour the city of Tallin. My group was supposed to do a sociology project. We were supposed to check out a poor part of town, a rich part of town, a few shopping centers and a couple different pubs. And we did, but we got a little lost along the way, which made it even better in my opinion.
Overall it was a good experience and we found that, when we asked, people felt pretty comfortable in their EU nation of Estonia. It sure as Hell beats Soviet domination.
And about the Soviet domination: I think I figured out why the Soviets fell in the late 80’s. They tried to hold Estonia! I mean, the nation of Estonia barely has a million people and very few natural resources. It has made gains in its post Soviet era through its marine time commerce and tourism. If I was playing RISK, Estonia would be one of the last places I’d try to conquer. It’s pointless, nothing but coldness exist in Estonia. Your armies would become too extended with too little reward.
We returned to the University and gave a brief presentation about the project we were to fulfill. Ours went well, but I don’t really have much to say other then, “the people of Estonia are very content and feel better off now than they were 20 years ago.”
We returned to the hostel at 4:30. I took a nap and woke in time to go to dinner. I went with the same group of kids that I went out with the night before, but this time we went to a medieval themed restaurant. The food was not that good. The atmosphere was okay, but it was a bit pricy and I think I would have appreciated a good burger and French fries.
Well we didn’t get out of Medieval times until nearly 11 o’clock. So we purchased some more of that Estonia vodka and called it a night.
Tomorrow it is off to Berlin. I’m happy I can say that I’ve been in a former Soviet state, and no doubt, it may be pretty here in the spring and summer time, but on this trip in the middle of a Soviet winter, I never saw the sun in Estonia. Not once. It has not come out and I don’t think I care to stay in such a place much longer. From all the Bond movies that I’ve seen, it is exactly how I pictured Eastern Europe to be.
To Berlin!
Oh I'm sorry it's so cold and gray. Sounds like a normal day in Michigan! I hope you find better times in Berlin. I love you.
ReplyDeleteLeah
I like this blog, it's giving me more insight into your strategy at RISK. I would most certainly not try to conquer Estonia either, that seems more like a Kyle-move, somewhat illogical.
ReplyDelete