After three months of hard work, our last weeks in Tallinn were about getting to know the country and the region better and enjoying our achievements.
Since I haven’t seen snow in the last couple of years and I always lived in big capital cities, I have to admit that I had the most significant Christmas mood in Tallinn. This small city got so pleased and beautiful once December started – everything lit up, the Christmas market was pretty and full of love, and the weather conditions gave us the right Christmas mood. I had my first own Christmas tree in our flat, which made me proud. We attended several Christmas parties and organized our gingerbread party with our international friends in our flat.
The saddest part of this period was saying goodbye to all our friends. It all started with the last PÖFF party – organized by the film festival we worked at – and the ESN farewell party. It is always hard to say goodbye, but now we have friends in almost every European country and will travel a lot in the coming years.
Using the opportunity that we had more free time, we traveled a bit around the Baltics. My first trip was to Helsinki. I enjoyed the ferry on that we could experience the power of the Baltic Sea in winter – not for sensitive people. In Helsinki, we went sightseeing, and we saw many exciting churches. I recommend the market if someone wants to eat cheap but great food. In the evening, we went back to Tallinn.
Our second trip was a Vilnius-Riga trip. Besides the 9-hour night bus to Vilnius, we enjoyed our time there. Again, Vilnius is a pretty city with many lovely churches and a market. I highly recommend trying out some Lithuanian beers with a high quality and exciting taste.
In Lithuania, we also visited Trakai – a small city near Vilnius. There we went to the castle and saw many old wooden houses. I enjoyed the snowy landscapes and the winter there- I also walked through the ice atop a lake.
After visiting Vilnius, we headed to Riga, the capital city of Latvia. We spent three days there. We attended a free old town tour where we learned several interesting facts about the city. I especially enjoyed the secession buildings and the nightlife of Riga. The first evening, we went to the hipster district, where we found some underground bars, and the second night we spent in the old town in a rock café.
From Riga, we had a road trip with a car one day. We visited the seaside of Jurmala and the Hill of Crosses in Lithuania. The Hill of Crosses had a significant impact on me. It is a place where the past and present meet, with many emotions, prayers, and crosses, each having its own story. I highly recommend everyone visit that place once.
I visited Tallinn’s opera house and saw a Hungarian opera in Estonian. I enjoyed the event.
The most interesting Estonian activity was the winter swim and sauna, which Estonians visit weekly. We spent time in the sauna and swam in the Baltic Sea, which is now around 1 degree. My longest time there was three and a half minutes. I already miss these special Estonian moments.
On our last week, we had our premiere with the two Macromedia productions – the two short films
The Most Beautiful Smile in the World and the Ghaib. It was an excellent closing event of our stay and the enjoyment of our hard work. Most of our actors and co-filmmakers attended, and we celebrated our achievements. It was an unforgettable evening.
What more can I say, Tallinn? Thank you for this unforgettable five months. I cannot wait to see you again; I will return soon.
