My Memories and Comments: Our Struggle for Baltic Freedom / 90 years of Estonia´s Foreign Policy

By Anneli Reigas

A conference to mark the 90th anniversary of Estonia´s foreign policy was organized in Tallinn, October 24-25, 2008. It was a nice idea to commemorate it this way with many good speeches.

However, after attending the conference, I completely agree with the remarks made by Matti Klinge, professor of history from Finland who expressed a surprise why the conference touched only pre-WWII and post-1991 August period, but barely touched several other foreign policy efforts made by Estonians during other periods.

As I myself happened to have been involved with some key efforts in foreign policy during the singing revolution in Estonia below are my remarks about this foreign policy conference.

Our late president Lennart Meri with whom we shared the passion for Estonia since we attended the CSCE summit in Copenhagen in June 1990 asked me already in the mid 90s to start writing down my memories. But I thought there would always be time for that later and that recalling these events is not even all that important - it was what we did that was important. However, I have started to change my mind on that in recent years seeing over and over how limited are the views of some current foreign policy officials and experts in Estonia on what we did and on what really needs to be highlighted as an essential part of Estonia´s foreign policy history.

I also note that after June 1990 Lennart Meri and I became a good friends for a decade and he called me hundreds of times even after he was elected President in 1992. He usually asked his secretariat to connect the call to me, mainly at home, sometimes at work, usually calling after the day was done and there was something he wanted to discuss concerning everyday politics which had started to worry him and on which he wished to get my journalist´s view.

I know there were also some other people with whom he tried to keep up this style of friendship for many years. So here it comes.

Three topics should have been included in the program to make conference marking the 90th anniversary of Estonia´s foreign policy more complete:

1) The first major post-WWII victory in foreign policy, gained mainly by a small group of Estonians in 1989, was the forcing of the Soviet parliament to admit that Nazis and Soviets had agreed in 1939 to divide Europe, giving Moscow a free hand to incorporate the Baltic States into the USSR.

2) Efforts made by Estonians in Estonia in 1990-1991 at various international meetings, including several CSCE foreign ministers meetings, aimed at getting the international support for the Baltic nations aspirations to restore independence.

3) The extensive foreign policy lobbying activity during the entire Soviet era by Estonians living abroad, including the vast efforts made in the US (and described well in memoir by Ernst Jaakson, head of the Estonia´s occupation era Consulate in New York for several decades and by many others who did much of the good lobbying work in Washington).

1989: our Baltic battle in Moscow

First, almost nothing was said at the "90 years of Estonia´s Foreign Policy" conference about Estonia´s biggest foreign policy victory achieved by the work of a handful of Estonians in Moscow in 1989 when a commission was set up at the Soviet parliament through the efforts of the Estonian scientist Endel Lippmaa, one of the Estonians elected to the Soviet parliament in 1989.

Officially the aim of to the commission was to "study" whether there really was a secret protocol to the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact of 1939 to divide Europe. But for us - a very small group of Estonians (six mainly of whom even less were most involved) who got involved for half a year with the work at that commission in Moscow - for us the main task was to force the Soviets finally to admit that the incorporation of the Baltic States into Soviet empire was illegal.

I actually spoke about all this in August 2008 at the opening session of the history conference "Restoration of the Independence of Estonia" at Estonian parliament conference center (the text of my speech can be found at the website of the National Library of Estonia http://www.nlib.ee/92016, at the moment in Estonian only).

I was amazed at Tallinn foreign policy conference when a German speaker who has rather high position noted that "there also was some Estonian" at this MRP commission. It was not "some" - the commission was set up by an Estonian - Endel Lippmaa and the commission had 26 members of whom four were from Estonia plus I had the privilege of being "member number 27".

I attended most of the MRP commission sessions in Moscow in summer and autmn 1989 and wrote a lot of articles on that for which the Estonian Union of Journalists awarded me with annual journalism prize in May 1990 - so I know what I am talking about. (And I was happy of course to read that one of the "26" members wrote in book by the lawyer H. Lindpere (who worked that as assistant to one of commission members and attended some sessions) in 1991 that my work was "not less important than the work of commission members".

As far as I am concerned, the biggest credit for that greatest post-WWII achievement in Estonia´s foreign policy goes to Endel Lippmaa.

We achieved for what we had gone to Moscow that year on one of the most emotional days in my life - on December 24, 1989 when the Soviet parliament voted in the Kremlin on its session and the majority admitted there really was a secret protocol made in Moscow in 1939 between the Nazis and Soviets to divide Europe and to allow USSR to take over the Baltic states.

I simply broke into tears at the big session hall in the Kremlin during that crucial MRP-discussion session that lasted two days (it started on December 23, 1989). On that day (23.12.1989) the head of MRP Commission Aleksandr Yakovlev gave a speech at the Soviet parliament session and up until his speech we were still not fully sure of having gotten him to our side. But we had! I listened his speech very carefully standing in front of the big balcony at the session hall and could not help myself in the Soviet parliament hall that moment - the moment I realized we had Yakovlev at our side first the tears, then full cry came into my eyes.

A huge amount of the documentation - some collected from the archives of the US Congress in summer 1989 but also from other archives - had been presented to the commission by Endel Lippmaa during the months of the work of the commission in Moscow that Yakovlev himself had attended only few times.

Anyway, that was a case with so many aspects to that it will take much more than an one article to recall all of the details of our battle in Moscow which ended in victory. I will only add that in some of his interviews later Yakovlev said that it was the turning point for the Baltic nations in eyes of the leadership of the USSR who realized after the work of the MRP Commission and its outcome that it was now a matter of "when" not "whether" the Baltic States will regain their freedom.

1990-1991 - active lobbying on an international level

The second big part of our foreign policy that was not touched upon at the foreign policy conference in Tallinn includes the work done since the CSCE Copenhagen conference at the Bella Center in June 1990, and later at the CSCE meetings in New York, Vienna, Berlin, Helsinki etc to gain international support for our efforts to restore independence.

I attended all the conferences listed above also plus many others as journalist encouraged by the late Ilmari Sundblad, head of foreign news desk at Finnish News Agency STT who had recruited me in spring 1989 to write articles from Estonia for foreign media via STT, in addition to my work at two Estonian major dailies during the "singing revolution" - Noorte Hääl/Päevaleht and Rahva Hääl.

Some of those international meetings I attended - Copenhagen in June 1990 - delivering lengthy "propaganda materials" in English to the heads of delegations at the CSCE summit. In case of Copenhagen 1990 I was asked to deliver them by Mr. Lippmaa who had compiled them in Tallinn (the documents, which were similar for all delegations, were about legal aspects of the Baltic cause and struggle).

Most of those international meetings we started to attend since June 1990 in Copenhagen were attended by the Baltic Foreign Ministers who had taken office in spring 1990 - Lennart Meri (Estonia), Janis Jurkans (Latvia) and Algirdas Saudargas (Lithuania).

While they were not allowed to take the seat around the table with other foreign ministers during the sessions, I had a chance to act like any other journalist attending these meetings, with liberty to ask Soviet and other delegations whatever questions I wished. (After my first obviously painful questions to the Soviet delegation at their press conference in Copenhagen (they declined to answer and cut the press conference) the head of the Soviet delegation Juri Reshetov later asked his aids to find me and invited me to the coffee at the conference venue in Bella Centre. He was surprisingly polite but seemed really concerned with our walk-in to the summit and among other things he asked whether I think there is "still a chance to find a way to keep the Baltic nations in USSR so that Balts will also accept it").

Our battle of that time at those international meetings - that we sometimes felt like being knocking on your head with a stone over and over again - is also an essential part of Estonia´s foreign policy history.

Since that CSCE Copenhagen meeting in June 1990 I and Lennart Meri (and many others) fell in love with Jon Baldvin Hannibalsson, the foreign minister from tiny Iceland who gave fantastic speech in support of aspirations of Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians to restore the independence of the Baltic States.

I personally also experienced some really nice emotions from that Copenhagen meeting as I had a chance to interview the legendary Jiri Hajek, the man who was foreign minister of Czechoslovakia from April to September 1968, thus during the time when Soviets invaded his country. (I know more than what is probably usual about those events in 1968 since during my final year at Tallinn Art High school in spring 1981 as I had submitted an essay about Soviet intervention into Czechoslovakia in 1968 to my history teacher. Amazingly my teacher returned the essay with highest remark which she had also underlined with a red pen and she did not say a word in front of my classmates in spite of making comments to all the others about their essays. The way in which my history teacher dealt with my essay is one of the many examples that shows there was always a choice to try to remain honest to your heart even during the darkest years - the teacher risked quite a lot as I realized only later, not to mention that had she turned me in it could have blocked perhaps my admission to university later that year.

Credit to Boris Yeltsin

There is another "missing point" in Estonia´s current foreign policy history - lack of ability to appreciate sufficiently the role of Boris Yeltsin in restoring independence to the Baltic States.

I give full credit for turning history on the right course during the coup attempt in Moscow in August 1991 to Boris Yeltsin and thousands of the brave Russians who went to defend the Russian White House after the coup started on August 19, 1991.

I heard the news while sitting at the dentist chair in Tallinn near Kaarli Church at 9.00 on August 19, 1991 - and went directly from there to buy my air-ticket, entering the Russian White House in Moscow the next morning, August 20, 1991, and leaving it for the first time again early morning August 21 and being there occasionally by the end of that week. But again, thats another long story.

Those of us who stayed there late August 20, 1991 after we were told via White House internal radio at 17 that an attack on Russian White House will start at 19 became something that one can call brothers-in-arms a lifetime. There was also another Baltic (also female) journalist who decided to stay there after attack warning, Lithuanian journalist Ramune Sakalauskaite. With some of those I met there - like Russian deputy foreign minister Georgi Kunadze who is now a human rights expert I stayed in contact for some time and also spoke to them by phone few times.

I am sad that as a state Estonia later failed to express gratitude to the Boris Yeltsin for what he did to stop the start of a very different history in August 1991.

Yeltsin also deserves full credit for recognizing in the name of Russia the restoration of the independence of Estonia and Latvia on August 24, 1991 (Lithuania had got his decree on that already before).

In addition, on that Saturday day on Aug. 24 1991 in Moscow Yeltsin also agreed to have something else very important to added to the decree he signed - namely a call on other states to recognize the independence of the Baltic States. The document signed by Yeltsin was then delivered to western embassies in Moscow. Despite Iceland having offered its recognition already on August 22, 1991, has been seen in Estonia as some kind of turning point, the support of the brave and tiny Nordic was followed only with silence.

The first major West-European state to recognize the restoration of Baltic states independence was France on Sunday, August 25, 1991. Several other states, including Australia, Belgium, Italy, Norway and Sweden offered their re-recognition on August 27, 1991.

Falling for Estonia

One of the few to express his surprise at the foreign policy conference in Tallinn on October 2008 over why only two short periods were touched upon the conference dedicated to the 90th anniversary of Estonia´s foreign policy was professor of history from Finland. My brief comments above hopefully fill a brief part of that missing gap at that otherwise interesting conference.

The professor spoke at the panel attended also by the first ambassador appointed to Estonia after WWII - L. Grundberg. In his speech L. Grundberg who came to Estonia on August 29, 1991 and left late September 1995 and who himself became well appreciated by Estonians highlighted the role of Finnish first post-WWII ambassador to Estonia - Jaakko Kaurinkoski (who, by the way has also worked at the Finnish News Agency and was STT correspondent to China for some years).

I would like to add that in addition to all first Nordic ambassadors to Estonia (Jaakko Kaurinkoski from Finland, L. Grundberg from Sweden, Sven-Erik Nordberg from Denmark and Brit Lovseth from Norway) there were two more first heads of diplomatic missions who did a really lot for Estonia, falling completely for that tiny state with just one million ethnic Estonians and 1.3 million total population, committing themselves to the chilly and at that time still very poor country where the fate had taken them.

One of the two to be added to the list was US ambassador Robert Frasure (who like Kaurinkoski died soon after leaving Estonia) and the other ambassador that must be mentioned was Jan Wahlberg, head of the United Nations office in Estonia since the office of UN Resident Representative in Estonia was established in 1993 (Wahlberg who has now retired and lives in South-West France left Estonia in 1997, the UN mission was closed four years later).

I happened to know all of them and kind of felt they became partly Estonians during these years of the unseen changes and reforms.

While the first ambassador appointed after WWII to Estonia had just turned 47 when he arrived in Tallinn in August 1991 and US Ambassador Robert Frasure was two years older and the others were around same age, some of the ministers in Estonia - in their late 20s, early 30s with whom they had to start dealing soon were in age more like kids to the ambassadors and many other diplomats. The rapid changes, reforms and enthusiasm of the newly free nation that these western ambassadors met touched their hearts deeply and they did their best to help Estonia back to where it had been before it was cut off from the free world when arms not wisdom prevailed on the eve of WWII.


29.10.2008

P.S. I am really thankful to Estonian Foreign Ministry etc. (special thanks to Kärt Juhasoo-Lawrence, Director of 1st Division at Policy planning department) for deciding to arrange an international conference in Tallinn in September 2009 to commemorate our victorious MRP struggle in Moscow in 1989. Details about the conference and book-to-be-released soon. February, 2009.

Musical Estonia sings in 90 years since independence

By Anneli Reigas, AFP

Feb 22, 2008

TALLINN -The Baltic state of Estonia is tuning up to mark 90 years of independence on Sunday, and its celebrations will spotlight the pivotal role of song and music in its history.

"I think it's in our blood to feel so attached to beautiful music," Evald, a Tallinn resident who at 97 is older than his own country, told AFP.

"As a boy I was singing in a choir myself. The emotions we got from the song festivals helped us to keep our spirit during the darkest years of Soviet occupation," he added.

Estonia's song festivals, which draw hundreds of thousands of people and have been organised regularly since 1869, have given its people comfort as they have been shaken by the winds of history and politics.

Estonia declared independence on February 24, 1918, after the communist Russian Revolution brought down the Tsarist empire.

The country enjoyed only 22 years of freedom, before being reoccupied by the Soviet Union in 1940, seized by Nazi Germany in 1941 and again taken over by Moscow in 1944.

Tens of thousands of Estonians were deported to Siberia or fled into Western exile during the five-decade Soviet era.

Music became a symbol of passive resistance to Soviet rule, a way for Estonians to express their national pride, just as was under the Russian empire.

In the Soviet era, Estonians performed in their native tongue, albeit under huge, politically-correct posters of Lenin and Marx.

These festivals ended with a song that was never listed on the official programme: "My Dear Fatherland", written by an Estonian poet in 19th Century, which brought tears to the eyes of hundreds of thousands of audience members who sang along with the choir.

Estonia won back its independence in 1991 from the crumbling Soviet bloc, and the country of 1.3 million people has since worked hard to remind the world that it is no teenage newcomer on the international stage.

Hence the ambitious plans for its 90th anniversary, in which music, of course, will play a major part.

This year, world-renowned Estonian musicians, composers and conductors such as Paavo Jarvi are to perform in 37 countries across the globe to celebrate.

"The strong and long music culture in Estonia is definitely one of the best trademarks of our nation," Grammy-award winning Jarvi told AFP.

Jarvi is the chief conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in the United States, Germany's Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra and Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie. He is scheduled to become lead conductor of the Orchestre de Paris in 2010.

He comes from a family that symbolises the Estonians' troubled history of exile and provides sonorous proof of the musical talent of this Baltic nation.

His father, conductor Neeme Jarvi, fled with his wife and three children to the United States in 1980. Paavo's brother Kristjan Jarvi conducts Vienna Tonkunstler Symphony Orchestra, while his sister Maarika Jarvi is a flautist.

Music also played its part in Estonia's independence drive in the dying days of Soviet rule.
The so-called Singing Revolution began in June 1988 when Estonians started to sing anti-Soviet anthems and fly Estonia's banned blue, black and white national flag.

Later Tallinn's song festival venue was used for pro-independence rallies. Emotional memories of the musical opposition will be uppermost next year.

From July 2-5, 2009, Tallinn's vast open-air Baltic shore venue will host the five-yearly national song festival.

Tens of thousands of Estonians practice year-round in their local choir to get a shot at attending the festival, where a single conductor leads a choir of 19,000 -- a size unseen elsewhere.

"When I tell my colleagues abroad about this, I often get the feeling they at first think I'm slightly crazy or I've made it up," Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet told AFP.

On right click "quitar"/For E.

Click the headline to get to general Taize site, then on right click "quitar".

Nature Lovers Omnibus drives Estonians out from city dust

No matter whether it is a chilly winter day with lakes and some bays covered with ice or one of those rare hot summer days so much longed in North, every weekend morning Nature Lovers Omnibus waits Estonians in front of the national library to drive them out from dusty city.

Seven years ago, in 2001, Jaan Riis (48) had ended his career as a journalist. The monthly nature magazine where he worked as an editor-in-chief, changed ownership and Riis decided to resign from his post.

"Becoming suddenly jobless forced me to think is there anything else in addition to journalism that I could do with passion. My head was rather empty for several weeks. Then one day when I was drinking a bear in cafe in Tallinn old town and wondering again what to do next I suddenly got an idea to organize a bus trip for those nature lovers in city who lack a car but still wish to get off to nature on weekend with other nature lovers," Jaan Riis says.

"So I orderd the bus and let the news out, being ready to face the fact that it will be me only standing next to the bus the day of departure. But it turned out opposite - so many people turned out that I had to call for another bus and so it started," Riis adds.

One of the principles of Jaan Riis Nature Lovers Omnibus is that despite people are asked to inform whether they wish to attend some of his trips on weekend, there are no lists of participants and nobody is never left behind.

When more people than expected turn out and one bus cant suite them, another bus or two will be called. Over the years, Riis has made so many good contacts with bus owners and nobody gets surprised when he alerts them just weekend morning. Most of his trips start from Tallinn and some from Tartu, second largest town in Estonia.

While most of the people attending his trips, are locals, some foreigners have also joined his trips over the years.

"Different nations get exited for different things. While Fins like most the bird watching in Estonia, Italians, Germans and French are more exited of trips to one of those boggy, givey, maremmatic areas that Estonia is full. For South-Europeans there is of course nothing more exciting than to join us in those few really cold winters when we sometimes make bus trips to islands, driving the bus on ice over froozen Baltic Sea - some tourists who have done it first have got absolutely crazy like children," Riis said.

In July, one of the bus trips took the nature lovers from Tallinn to South Estonia and North Latvia. Bus trip that included nearly 700 km driving, guided walking tours in forest and picnic nearby river cost just 13 euros. Those who wished even more excitement - a 3 hours canoe trip on river, evening sauna in steamy tent put up on river sand and overnight camping with meals at the same place, organised all by local nature lovers - Estonias most famous alpinist Alar Sikk and his brother Üllar Sikk - had to pay some extra. To encourage younger families to attend, all trips are free for children up to 7 years old and pupils get discounted price.

Another weekend trip in July took over hundred of people to see the beautiful island Muhumaa and enjoy the concert at local church costed just 30 euros, including food.

"I have tried to keep the price as low as possible because I think the moment I turn greed all the idea of Nature Lovers Omnibus will loose meaning and I will also loose the assistance of local nature lovers who often help us to organise these tours," Riis said.

In summers many Nature Lovers trips are combined with concerts in nature with musicians eager to offer discounted price for their performance. On first weekend of August nature lovers bus took city folks to Leigo lake in South Estonia where they walked in local forests and listened later the concert given on lake performed by Latvian Symphony Orchestra.

Info about coming weekend trips are put up at Nature Lovers website (http://www.looduseomnibuss) on late Wednesday or Thursday and in addition, over 9000 people have signed to get the info via email.

"I think that feeling you are part of nature makes you better person. People who like nature appreciate a life and another persons more. Had it be up to me to decide, I could request that every child in every city in all world should be obliged to attend regular nature trips every year as part of their schooling program," Riis added.

Anneli Reigas

Estonia's Jarvi family hold reunion concert in Tallinn

TALLINN: Nearly 30 years after Neeme Jarvi took his family and left the Soviet Union for the United States, the conductor from tiny Estonia who has become a global music giant will hold a homecoming concert in Tallinn that spans the generations.

Sharing the conductor's baton with Jarvi for the concert in the Estonia Concert Hall in Tallinn on Saturday will be his sons, Paavo Jarvi and Kristjan Jarvi.

Daughter Maarika Jarvi, a flautist, will be a featured solo artist in the concert, while a handful of Neeme's grandchildren will be in the audience.

The entire family will be travelling to Estonia especially for the concert, with Grammy-award winner Paavo arriving at the last minute because of professional commitments in Germany.

The concert is not only a birthday celebration for Jarvi, who will be 70 on June 7, but also a homecoming for the entire family, which has kept alive its love of Estonia despite long years spent outside the Baltic state.

"Although my family and I have been living far away from our homeland for 27 years, we have always remained attached to our Estonian roots," Neeme Jarvi told AFP.

"It's a great honour to be a member of a tiny nation of around only one million people that has survived wars and occupations by Russians, Germans and even Danes and Swedes," said Jarvi, who is currently chief conductor of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra in the United States.

After working for 17 years as a conductor in his native Estonia, which was a Soviet republic from 1945 until 1991, Jarvi took his wife Liilia and three children and fled the Soviet Union in 1980.

With just 200 US dollars to his name, he emigrated to the United States, where he was immediately snapped up by Columbia Artists.

His debut concerts in exile were with major US orchestras : the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

"When I left the Soviet Union it was like a prison - whenever I was invited to conduct in the West, it was up to Moscow to decide whether I could go. And they never let me take the kids," he said.

"When we finally left the empire behind, with almost no money, the new job proposals came very quickly. I learnt from that, that if you want to open the door to new opportunities, you have to be free to take those opportunities."

Jarvi will share the baton with his sons Paavo and Kristjan at Saturday's sold-out concert.

They will conduct the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, with Maarika featuring as a solo artist on the flute.

Tenor Juhan Tralla will be the featured soloist of the Estonian National Male Choir, which is also taking part in the concert of Sibelius' Finlandia, movements of the Aladdin Suite by Nielsen; and works by Liszt and Estonian composers Tormis, Kapp and Eller.

For 44-year-old Paavo Jarvi, conducting an orchestra is a childhood dream come true.

"As a kid I used to sit for hours at the concert hall, watching my father's rehearsals and dreaming that perhaps one day it will be me standing in front of the orchestra," said Paavo, who won a Grammy award in 2003 for his recordings of Sibelius cantatas.

Paavo Järvi is currently lead conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in the United States, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie, and regularly guest conducts around the world.

Kristjan Järvi conducts the Vienna Tonkunstler Symphony Orchestra, and is artistic director of the New York Absolute Ensemble, which has a repertory running from Renaissance to rock music. He established the ensemble in 1993.

From their outposts around the world, the Jarvi family watched with dismay the riots that rocked Tallinn in April, triggered when a monument to Soviet soldiers who fought fascism in World War II was removed from the centre of the city.

Paavo thinks he has a solution to the violence that erupted in the riots and the ensuing anti-Estonian rhetoric from Moscow.

"We should start changing the way we teach history at school," he told AFP.

"It would be much better to teach kids history through music history, because if we keep teaching history the way we do now, from one war to the next, we will continue to raise our kids with the wrong mentality," said the father of two, who admits that, as a child, he didn't know "that some families do something else for a job, other than music."

For Estonians, the Jarvi family concert is a reminder of the role music has played in the country's history.

Estonians sang their way through the Soviet occupation that began at the end of World War II, and with their "Singing Revolution" -- peaceful, musical demonstrations in the late 1980s -- opened the gates to renewed independence in 1991.

In 1979, when she was 11 years old, Jana Vaabel attended the last concert Jarvi conducted in Tallinn before taking his family out of the Soviet Union.

"All of us here in Estonia feel great pride at having produced such world-class musicians," the now 38-year-old hairdresser told AFP.

Vaabel was unable to get tickets to the concert but intends to go along to the concert hall on Saturday to see if anyone is selling a seat.

Anneli Reigas, AFP

May 27, 2007

Dancing Indian nun puts Estonians through their paces

By Anneli Reigas, AFP

TALLINN: As another long, dark winter
enshrouds the northernmost of the Baltic states, a
band of girls gathers in a convent in Tallinn, not to
share the warmth of communal prayer but to study the
art of bodily expression with a dancing nun from
India.

Sister Creszenzia, 37, originally from Calicut in the
south Indian state of Kerala, has been giving Indian
dance lessons at the convent since her arrival in
Estonia four years ago.

"When I see Estonians performing these dances with
such grace, my heart fills with pride," she said after
a recent class.

"People here are said to be reserved and unwilling to
show emotions, but I have the opposite impression,"
she added.

Most of Sister Creszenzia's pupils are young, between
seven and 17.

"The dancing is very hard -- like a fitness program --
and afterwards I am very tired," said Ingrid Aavola,
17, who has attended classes since they began four
years ago.

"But I like it a lot, partly because Sister Crescenzia
is a very joyful nun," she added.

In September, the Sister's youthful dance troupe gave
a performance to mark the ordination of French-born
Philippe Jourdan as the first Catholic bishop since
World War II in this overwhelmingly Lutheran country.

"Indian dances tell a story with the body," Sister
Crescenzia explained. The saga performed for Jourdan's
ordination was "about unhappy love -- the battle of a
young couple whose feelings were denounced by their
families, resulting in the death of the boy," she
said.

And how did the good bishop feel about this rather
spicy dance drama?

"I think it is very positive that the convent offers
these girls the possibility to learn Indian dance," he
said. "I liked their dancing, it was rather exotic."

"True feelings are nothing to be ashamed about," said
Sister Crescenzia, whose given name was Mary. "I was
in love myself when I was a young girl in India but
now my soul is dedicated to God."

A convent has stood on the site where the dance
classes are held since 1419. But only in 2001 -- after
a break of several centuries -- did nuns once again
take up residence in the renovated complex, which
includes a church and hostel, built by the Sisters of
the Order of St. Birgitta.

The nuns wake up every morning at 5:45, say their
first prayer at 6:10 and then attend mass at 7:30.
Once a month every nun has a free day -- she can sleep
in but still has to pray.

"A nun's life has changed a lot in recent decades, for
the better. The dance course is proof of that," Sister
Creszenzia said.

Other nuns in the convent have different hobbies.
Mexican-born Mother Riccarda, who heads the convent,
practices ikebana, the Japanese art of flower
arranging.

"These days people value money too much. They should
cherish their families more and look for happiness in
less materialistic things. In poor countries like
Mexico and India, people seem somehow happier than in
the rich West," the mother superior said.

Estonia's 1.33 million people are mainly Lutheran,
with a minuscule Catholic community numbering around
6,000.


21 October 2005

Estonia cleans up Soviet era radioactive waste

Thats a really great news, reminding me about my first big serial of articles - about the very same pollution caused by Soviet military factory at Sillamäe - in Estonian newspaper Noorte Hääl in winter and spring 1989 - by now finally, autumn 2008 Estonia has completed the decade-long clean-up of one of Europe's most hazardous radioactive waste dumps on the Baltic coast. The project cost 21.4 million euros (28.5 million dollars) and was funded by Estonia, Nordic countries and the EU. Perched on Estonia's northeast Baltic coast close to the Russian border, the town of Sillamae was used by the Soviet Union as a closed industrial site for production of nuclear materials. Now sealed, Sillamae's radioactive waste lay just 30 metres (100 feet) from the Baltic Sea coast.

Weekend Feelings in Music

at YouTube video search or better buy at music store -

Summer 2009: Jem - And So i Pray. John Rowles "If I Only Had Time". John Rowles - "Kaingatuturu". Carl Nielsen - Aladdin suite Part 1. Agnetha (ABBA) If I thought you'd ever change your mind.

April/May 2009 - One Moment In Time by Whitney Houston.

April 11/12 Invisible Love by Enigma.

April 4/5 No music,only telescopes this weekend www.100hoursofastronomy.org

March 28/29 - Le chêne liège by Cabrel.

March 21/22 - Dom har glömt by ABBA. How they forget... To my three cousins in Tidaholm, Sweden, who never met our common grandparents.

March 14/15 Prism of Life by Enigma

March 7/8 - Cry no more by Ryan Farish, Lettre A Ma Mere by Richard Clayderman.

February 21/22, Laul Põhjamaast by Ülo Vinter (Song About Our Nordic homeland) - one of my favorites at EST song festivals.

February 14/15 2009 - Le comparsa by Goya.

February 7/8, 2009 - Listen Estonian song at Eurovision 2009 Moscow, copy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDfIbsKfljA (perfomed by Sandra Nurmsalu & Urban Symphony, author Sven Lõhmus.

January 31/Feb.1, 2009 - Nobody knows it but me by Babyface, Nu står jul vid snöig port by Agnetha Fältskog

January 3/4 2009 - Winter break in feelings, but for video go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGxRWCmwSDE

December 27/28 - For the beauty of the Earth by St. Philips Boy Choir

December 20/21 - Celtic Woman / Chloe Agnew - Holy Night. Holy Night by Dion.

December 13/14 - Santa Lucia by Robertino Loretti, The Day Before You Came by ABBA

December 6/7 - Finlandia by Sibelius, Valse Triste by Sibelius

November 29/30 - How could an Angel break my Heart by Toni Braxton

November 22/23, 2008 - Night Wind by Ryan Farish. Lady Di by Clayderman (For Richard and Annabelle avec Co in New Zealand)

November 15/16, 2008 Full sail by Ryan Farish. Enigma - WHY.

November 8/9, 2008 - Scrisoare catre tine. Every Time I Close My Eyes by Babyface.

November 1/2, 2008 - Amintiri by Francis Goya & Richard Clayderman. The sound of silence by Richard Clayderman.

October 25/26, 2008 - Vivo Per Lei by Andrea Bocelli and Helene Segara, and Concerto pour une voix by Francis Goya.

Song and Dance festival, Estonia July 2009

Next song and dance festival in Estonia - July 3-5, 2009. Every 5th year tens of thousands Estonians sing in one choir, and at separate performance, thousands dance. More in English at: http://www.laulupidu.ee/eng/celebration_in_2009/

Thoughts from my friends for Oliver...

Blogi, video ja fotod siit...



Dear Anneli,

We were really shocked. As parents of three kids of more or less the same age we realize these must be a rough time for you to see your Oliver to suffer like this. We know of course that human life is vulnerable, but it is hardly bearable when it comes so close we prayed for him and for you both at home as well as tonight during the Evensong in the St.Laurens church. And we will continue to do so.

God bless both of you,

Marianne & Herman,
in Rotterdam, Holland
4. X 2009

-------------
Kallis Anneli,

Voit kuvitella, miten minä tunnen ja otan osaa tuskaasi, olenhan itse äiti. Olin toivonut erilaisia uutisia, kun seuraavaksi otat yhteyttä. Olet yhdessä Oliverin kanssa käynyt läpi todella elämää järkyttäviä aikoja, välillä ihanaa toivoa, välillä hurjaa tuskaa lapsen vuoksi. Äidit kestävät ja uskaltavat aina toivoa.

Minä tulen meditoidessani ajattelemaan teitä ja lähettämään kaikista positiivisimpia ja lämpimimpiä ajatuksia sinulle ja Oliverille. Nyt tarvitset jaksamista, jotta olet olemassa Oliverille . Hän on hieno ja urhea poika.

Ajattelemme sinua ja Oliveria lämmöllä, kunpa se auttaisi!

Halaus
Sikku ja Jan,
France

5. okt. 2009

-----------
My dear Anneli,

I would have preferred to speak to you personally, but I know that you spend most of the time in hospital with Oliver. /.../ I hardly can believe how happy we have been during the wonderful summer days in Tallinn! Please keep us informed about his situation.

And our thoughts will be with him and you very often. I hope that there is a good Lord to protect him.

With our very warm feelings and greetings to both of you
from Eleonore and Friedhelm,

Belgium/Germany

Oct.7, 2009

---------
Anneli

That is a really tragic story - our thoughts are with you

Richard,
New Zealand, Auckland

7. X 2009

------------------
Tere Anneli,

Mõtlen Sinu peale

Kas ma saan midagi aidata?..

Mul oleks väga hea meel kui Midagi saan teha,

Armastusega,

Õde Riccarda,

Pirita klooster, 5. okt. 2009

------------
Dear Anneli,

I can't really find the right words to put all my thoughts into an email. But I want you - both you and Oliver - to know that I am with you. Keep strong.

With love and best wishes,
Jonathan,
Warsaw
5. X 2009

-----------------
Dear Anneli,

I was deeply moved by your mail. I wish you all the best and a lot of strength and courage in this struggle.

Jean-Luc,
Paris,
4. X 2009

--------------
Anneli,

It is no comfort for you, but we have gone through struggles. More than 3 years ago our 6 year old daughter was hit by a road pirate. Since then, she has been in the state of minimal consciousness. We try to convey to everybody how important it is to use head casks when on a bicycle (she was not having one).

Thank you for your warning. We will pray for Oliver's health and that your stay together and well and strong.

Tomasz
4. X 2009

-----------------
Kallis Anneli,

pole sõnu, et sind lohutada ja viha keeb üles ka --- isegi kõige halvemal vene ajal ei toimunud arstiabi kättesaadavus niimoodi! Neil võis mitte olla ravimeid, aga MIDAGI vähemalt üritati teha! Mul ju ema-isa mõlemad olid tohtrid ja mäletan hästi seda ööpäev ringi valmisolekut, Hypokratese vanne luges!

Eestis on tugevad "nõiad" - kas tahad mõnega neist ühendust, ma ise tunnen ... - väga eetiline inimene. muud ei oskagi teha enam...

Ole vapper ja kinnita Oliverile, et kõik paluvad ta pääsemise eest! Peaasi et ta ise jaksaks võidelda, see on nii raske ju.

Kalli,
merle
4.X 2009

----------------
Dear Anneli,

My heart goes with you, and I pray for the speedy recovery of Oliver. I hope your ordeal will reach a happy ending, as long as you keep hope alive.

Best.

Omar
New York, NY

------------
Oh Anneli I should say it is good to hear from you, which it is, but my heart is very very sore for you when I read the struggle you and Oliver are going through. I will pray for both of you, here in Cairo. In fact, I will be going this weekend to an ancient Coptic Christian church, and that is where I will think of your family.

Love
Dolores,
in Cairo

-------------
Dear Anneli,

I am hoping with you, Oliver will recover and his health will become better
everyday. I wish you a lot of courage for these very hard days.

All my best to him and to you.
Marielle,
Vilnius

5.okt. 2009

------------
Dear Anneli,

I will say prayers for you and Oliver. I hope they are heard.

With best wishes,
Jim,
Washington
5. X 2009

----------------------

Tere Anneli !

Ma palvetan homme hommikul, Missa ajal, eriti sinu poja eest.
Hoian teid mõlemad palves ja mõttes.

Kõige paremat soovides
Isa Philippe

6.okt.2009


----------

Parahin Anneli

Oli järkyttävää ja surullista lukea kertomaasi. Olen itsekin nuorukaisen isä ja saatan kuvitella, millaisen ahdistuksen vallassa elät ja olet elänyt. Toivottavasti Sinulla kaiken jälkeen riittää kuitenkin voimia uskoa poikasi selviytymiseen.

Myötäelävin terveisin

Juhani,
Turku
5. X 2009


--------------------
My dear Anneli,

I have just read with consternation your message about the condition of Oliver, your son, and I pray to God that he recovers from that condition /.../.

Please accept my best wishes for you and your son. Tell him that in far away, in the beautiful tropical island of Cuba, someone cares for him and is praying for his full recovery.

In Havana,
alberto d,
Cuba

------------
Love and thoughts with you both. your both brave.
x

Anson,
London

--------------------
Hea Anneli,Oleme Sinu ja Su pojaga ja palvetame teile mo'lemale,

I.
N.Y, USA

5.okt. 2009

----------------

Kallis Anneli!

Ma jagan Sinu lootusi, et kõik läheb hästi!
Ma soovin Oliverile palju jõudu ja head paranemist!

Südamlikus sõpruses,
Koit,
USA
4. okt. 2009


____________________________________________
............................................

And then, after early morning October 15, 2009....


Dear Anneli,

We don’t know what to say. It is inconceivable what happened, a bad dream without awakening. Oliver was the most precious you got, such a special boy taking care of you - and now he has gone. Children ought to bury their parents, not the other way around. We are afraid we don’t have a word of comfort for you. The Bible has the story of a Father loosing his only Son as the central metaphor of ultimate suffering and that’s what you are going through now. It is hell and we both cried reading your story. We keep you in our thoughts and prayers every day.

Yours,

Marianne and Herman,
Rotterdam

15 X 2009

----------------
My dearest Anneli,

I had to read your message twice to believe what you told us. It is too sad to understand and accept the loss of your son. When I received your mail I felt really sick and my first intention was to call you, but then I thought you need more time for yourself and I will talk to you in a few days.

Friedhelm and I wanted to express our sincerest sympathy with you and we wish you from the depth of our hearts that you will be strong enough not to break down. I wish, I could take you in my arms and to comfort you.

We feel us very close to you and our hearts are also very, very sad.

Eleonore and Friedhelm,
Belgium/Germany


----------------------

Hei Anneli,

kuulin Marittalta tänään järkyttävän uutisen ja otan osaa suureen suruusi.
Toivotan sinulle paljon voimia näinä raskaina hetkinä.
Tällaisina aikoina sanat eivät taida merkitä mitään, mutta olet ajatuksissamme.

Myös Merja lähettää kauttani surunvalittelut sinulle.

Susa,
Helsinki

----------------
Dearest Anneli,

Syvät surunvalittelut suuren menetyksesi johdosta. Unnukka soitti minulle iltapäivällä ja kertoi suruviestin.

On käsittämätöntä, että sairaalan henkilökunta on ollut noin tyly ja töykeä sinua kohtaan! Juuri kun sinuä olisit tarvinnut kaiken tuen ja avun mitä saada voi. Yksityishenkilö on todella voimaton, jos sairaalan "koneisto" haluaa olla hankala.

Voimia ja jaksamista sinulle!

Maritta,
Helsinki

-------------------
Anneli!

Tulin juuri Turkista ja kuulin vasta nyt Oliverista. En voi sanoin kuvailla, miten surullinen olen. Tämä om hirvein asia mitä voi ihmiselle tapahtua, enkä ymmärrä miten tästä voi selviytyä?

Toivottavasti olet läheistesi kanssa, jotta he voivat antaa jonkinlaista lohtua suruusi.
Jos voin tehdä jotain - kerro! Olen koko sydämmelläni kanssasi, Anneli - kuten kaikki muutkin ystäväsi täällä Suomessa!

Pidämme niin kovasti sinusta ja ajattelemme sinua!

Terveisin,
ystäväsi Lindvi,
Helsinki

------------------
Armas Anneli,

here are flowers in loving memory of darling, sweet and brave Oliver. Please accept our deep sympathy in your sorrow. You have written that sometime somewehere you wish to see him again. May this hope give you the strenght you need now and in the future...

Always remember that you have good friends in Finland....

Unnukka, Tiina, and Tiina´s father Seppo,
Helsinki

-----------------
Dear Anneli,

Words alone cannot express our deep sympathy for you after the passing of your beloved son, Oliver. We hope the condolences you have received since his parting are a consolation for you during this most difficult time. You and Oliver will remain in our thoughts.

Once again, our deepest sympathies and warmest regards.

Sincerely,

Your AFP colleagues,

Urszula, Jonathan, Mary, Michal, Stanislaw, Piotr, Maja, Bernard, Monika, Amelie, Zofia, Jan, Sebastien Wojtek, Marielle, Aleks



Droga Anneli,

łączymy się dziś z Tobą w najgłębszym Twoim smutku

Twoi koledzy i koleżanki

z Agence France-Presse


Chère Anneli,

Nous sommes tous ici à Varsovie, à Riga et à Vilnius avec toi par la pensée et t’exprimons toute notre compassion en ce moment si douloureux. Ne reste pas seule dans la peine, n’hésite pas à nous contacter.

Tes collègues de l’Agence France-Presse

---------------
Dear Anneli,

We are so very,very sorry about the passing away of Oliver. There are no words that can ease your sorrow but our thougths and prayers are with you in this very difficult time.

Jan and Sikku,
France


-----------------
Anneli,

I am not sure there are words to describe your grief. I try to imagine what you feel but I suppose it is not possible for anyone who never lived this terrible blow.

Your letter was very touching. Your Oliver was surely very lucky to have such a loving mother.

I wish you a lot of strength, Anneli.

Jean-Luc,
Paris

----------------------
Kallis Anneli,

minu kaastunne, nutt tuleb endalegi. Mõtlen, mida saaks teha arstide vöi õe sellise käitumise suhtes, et see ei korduks ja korduks uute inimeste puhul. Ma ei ole saanud Su kirja 2 nädalat tagasi, ega tedanud üldse, et Su poeg oli haige vöi mis juhtus. Aga see mida Sa siin kirjas kirjutad, ei tohiks juhtuda kellegiga. Sellisele haigla personali käitumisele peaks lõppu tegema, aga ei tea kuidas. Niimoodi ei saa. Segaseid süste ja muid segaseid asju ei tohi haiglas olla nii, et need inimese elu ohustavad. See puudutab meid kõiki, ei tea kes on järgmine.

Tunnen suurt kurbust koos Sinuga, loodan et Sa jaksad. Sind toetatakse. Olen olemas Sinu jaoks, kui saan mingil moel olla toeks.

Kaastundega
Kaja

------------------------

Dear Anneli

I just heard the sad news of the death of your son.

I'm sorry to hear of this tragic loss.

My best wishes to you,

Justin

----------------
Kallis Anneli,

kuulin Kajalta murheellisen uutisen pojastasi tänään. Olen todella surullinen puolestasi, voin vain toivoa Sinulle jaksamista raskaan ajan yli. Anna anteeksi että tietämättöminä lähetimme kutsun saunailtaan. Tule jos tunnet että jaksat, mutta ymmärrän hyvin jos se ei tunnu nyt kovin tärkeältä.

Arja

----------------
Anneli,

kuulin vasta nyt mitä on tapahtunut. Tuntuu tosi pahalta puolestasi, tuon suurempaa surua ei varmaan voi ihmiselle tulla.

Voimia ja syvä osanotto,
Raisa,
Helsinki

-------------
On siiski kurb
Marie Under, 1917

On siiski kurb, et pärib surm
selle südame,
selle südame, täis joobumispuhke,
täis soovide sinisädelust - kuid ometi loobumisuhke.

On siiski kurb, et pärib surm selle südame
ja kõik tema laulmatud laulud -
Ah, nii kurb, nii kurb, et pärib surm

selle südame laulmatud laulud!

Koit,
USA

---------------------------

Dear Anneli,

My thoughts are going today to you and Oliver.
He will always be alive in you.
All my dearest regards to you.

marielle,
Vilnius

------------------

Kallis,kallis Anneli!

Siiras ja südamlik kaastunne Sulle kogu minu pere poolt..........
Kui meil on võimalik Sind kuidagi aidata, siis palun anna teada. Mul on piisavalt aega, võiksin teha mida iganes Sa vajaksid.

Kallistades: Ülle

--------------------
Armas Anneli,

Sa ju tead, et on hulk inimesi, kes mõtlevad Sulle. Aeg-ajalt niikuinii, aga praegu rohkem kui tavaliselt. Ma ei kirjuta ainult enda nimel. Me kõik tahaksime olla mitte ainult mõttes Sinuga, vaid ka tegelikult kuidagi toeks. Palun anna teada, kui Sa vajad meid.

Ester

--------------------

Dear Anneli,
no words.
Try to live on.

And if you have strength again, then it is necessary to continue the fight that Rober Lepikson started - you remember maybe that his wife died of cancer and he, their son and of course the dying mother were treated exactly as you describe. THIS CANNOT CONTINUE FOREVER! Estonian doctors have to come to ethical standards and become humane! A HOspital canot be a disgusting factory!

merle

------------------------------------
Kallis Anneli,

süda jättis löögi vahele, kui kuulsime, mis Sinuga, muidugi kõigepealt Su armsa pojaga juhtunud on. Nagu ikka inimene on elu ja surma võitluse võimsuse ees võimetu, ei oska meiegi leida neid õigeid sõnu, et kaastunnet avaldada, aidata leina kanda, lohutada. Aga tea, et oleme mõlemad Sinu jaoks olemas ja valmis igal hetkel tuge pakkuma. Ütle vaid, kuidas saaksime Sinu heaks midagigi teha...

Kallistame väga tugevasti!

Kai ja Anneli

----------------------------------------
Dear dear Anneli,

I am speechless. Another time this day. This message showed me what you and Oliver have been through these weeks. I am so sorry so sorry to hear it. The life is cruel but it is meant that we do not remember it all the time. I hope you find your way during these days. Write and phone your friends when ever you have something to share.
Yours, with all my heart,

Elina,
Turku

--------------------------------------
Dear Anneli,

Your beautiful mail, written after this terrible night, is a lesson of strength and love for us all. We are very grateful for that. Things can never happen exactly the way we feel they should have, and we all have regrets when a loved one goes. You did all you could do and with all your soul. I will keep in my heart the advice you give us all in the end of your letter.

Yours sincerely,
Ursula,
Warsaw

---------------

I wish I could be there with you to help you through this. Luca was praying for him. He will be devastated by this news.
If there's anything I can do to help you, please let me know.
T. told me the bad news. I am on the brink of tears.

Karin,
Washington

--------------
Hi Anneli

Jonathan just told me for your son, I am so sorry!!
Do you remember? I filmed him for my report about high technologies in Estonia... I remember a very sweet young guy.

I am very sorry for your loss Anneli
Be strong

All my best
Elise,
France

----------------
My dearest Anneli,

I am so so sorry, there is no words for such a pain,
Be sure of my support. You can rely on my friendship,

Yours, Hélène

------------------
Dear Anneli, I am sorry ... I think of You and Oliver.
Tomasz

-------------

Tere Kalli Oliver ema! Tunnen Teile sudamest kaasa Oliveri kaotamise puhul.Oliver oli ja jaab alatiseks minu parimaks sobraks. Oliver suutis alati teha mu tuju heaks ,piisas vaid paarist sonast voi sellest et ta vaataks mulle silma. Alati kui ma millegi parast tundsin et minu maailm on kokkuvarisemas piisas sellest kui Ta utles ''Kammoon B....'' ja uhe hetkega moistsin ma, et ok asjad pole uldsegi nii halvad kui ma arvasin. Hakkan Oliverist vaga puudust tundma /.../

Viisin Oliverile lilled sadamasse, meil oli seal oma koht kus me kunagi ammu jalutasime ja istusime, sellest on juba vist 10 aastat moodas:)/.../ Onneks ma tean sudames ,et Oliver teadis kui kallis ja eriline ta minu jaoks on! Mulle meeldis seda talle meelde tuletada:) /.../

olge tugev ja hoidke suda soe. Seda tahaks ka Oliver. Olen kindel, et ta on iga paev meie korval ja vaatab meie tegevusi pealt!

Kallistades,
Oliveri sobranna B.

--------------

Tere Oliveri Ema,

Pole olemas sõnu mis saaksid kirjeldada kui kahju mul on ja kui väga ma tunnen teile kaasa!! See siiani ei mahu mulle pähe ja ma ei kujuta isegi ette kui kaua läheb aega selleks, et seda reaalselt mõista!

/.../

Ma olen väga õnnelik, et mul oli võimalus Oliveri tunda ja temaga aega veeta.

Ma lihtsalt väga tahtsin ja soovisin öelda teile, et mul on NII väga kahju, väga kahju!

Olen oma kõikide mõtetega teiega!

/.../

Mul on kurb, mul on kahju..aga ma päev päevalt proovin ma olla rõõmus, sest Oliver ei oleks tahtnud meid sellisena näha ja tema alati oli niii muheda ja vaba suhtumisega.

Te ei kujuta ette kui ülistavalt Oliver teist rääkis. Seda juhtus ainult loetud kordadel, sest ega talt tuli kaa mingeid asju välja pigistada...aga te olite tema jaoks parim ema maailmas! ja kui ta teist rääkis sis ta ennast tagasi ei hoidnud!

Palun olge ikka tugev /.../

Kallistan teid hästi kõvasti!

Oliveri koolikaaslane ja sõbranna E.

---------------

Esimese asjana Oliverile mõeldes meenub mulle endiselt tema olek. Üldiselt kui me kunagi temaga tuttavaks saime, siis oli ta kõige vabam ja muretum inimene, keda ma teadsin. Ja sellisena ma jäängi teda mäletama.

Sealjuures jah..kuigi ta võis teatud asjade koha pealt olla äärmiselt põhimõttekindel /.../, siis oma sõpradest hoolis ta väga. Ja hoidis väga. Ta on tõesti keegi, kes mind nii kohutavalt palju hoidis. See on asi, mida enamasti igal sammul ei näidata välja, kuid teatud hetkedel ei kahelnud ta seda kas oma tegude või sõnadega kinnitada.

Ja Tõnuga olen ma täiesti nõus ka selle koha pealt, et vahet ei olnud, kui palju aega vahepeal ei helistanud või ei kohtunud, ikkagi oli alati teadmine, et Oliver on telefonikõne kaugusel ja suhtlemine jätkus täpselt samamoodi kui varem. Kasvõi see vahepealne Šotimaal oldud aeg. See ei muutnud mitte midagi.

Ja tõesti see suvi oli ta nii õnnelik, et seda oli silmaga näha. Seda on ilmselt ka oluline teada.

Mul on väga hea meel, et mul õnnestus Oliveri tunda, ta andis mulle nii palju juurde. Ta oli tõesti eriline ja läheb veel väga palju aega, et toimunust aru saada ja sellega leppida.

/.../

Ja kui on midagi vähegi veel vaja, siis ma olen olemas.

K.

-------------

Tere Oliveri Ema,

Olen siiani täielikus ŠOKIS! Täielikus! Ma ei saa aru miks sellised asjad juhtuvad... Saadan Sulle suured ja tugevad kallistused. Ma ei teagi mida öelda, sest.. miski ei tee seda kergemaks ega paremaks. Aga Sina ja Oliver olete mu mõtetes.

/.../

Viimane kord, kui temaga kohtusin, oli siis, kui te olite kahekesi Pariisis. Meil oli väga lõbus, jõime Seine ääres Eiffeli torni säras veini ja rääkisime endistest aegadest, käisime baarist baari ja rääkisime maast ja ilmast. Isegi, kui olime side kaotanud aastateks, siis kokku saades tundus, nagu kõik vana oli taas tagasi. Nii vahetu oli ta.

Aitäh, et Sa kasvatasid nii toreda poja, kes oli, on ja jääb alatiseks minu esimeseks armastuseks, ja inimeseks, kes minu kasvamise teele alustala pani.

Ma olen õnnelik, et vähemalt oli tal armastav ema koguaeg kõrval ja parimad sõbrad toeks... Ja ta alati rääkis mulle KUI lahe ja hea ema tal on, ja kõik tema sõbrad kadestavad teda Sinu pärast. Ja et Sa olid talle samal ajal ema ja ka sõbranna... mis minu arust oli nii armas kuulda..


Kallistan kõvasti,
kooliõde ja sõbranna Kairi


----------------------------
Minu sügav kaastunne kalli Oliveri kaotuse puhul! See tundub nii uskumatu, et vahel taban end mõttelt - äkki on see unenägu? Vaatan ja ootan, et ta (nimega Oll - chill) msni sisse logiks..

Ta jääb alatiseks mulle meelde ja südamesse kui üks südamlikemaid ja toredamaid inimesi, kellega kokku olen puutunud. /.../

Ta oli väga oma sõpru ja lähedasi hoidev. Loodan siiralt, et minu pojast Oliverist kasvab sama tubli ja tore tegelane.

Parimate soovidega
Oliveri koolikaaslane ja sõber K.

-----------------------------------

Oll on minu parim sõber. Sõber, keda võis alati usaldada ning kelle peale loota. Tõelisi sõpru on väga vähe, kellega on klapp, võid rääkida kõigest ilma ebamugavustundeta. Ta oli ka rasketel hetkedel toeks. Ta oli hea kuulaja ja oli ka nõuga abiks.

Oll oli positiivse ellusuhtumisega. Ta võttis asju vabalt, omamoodi. Ta teadis, et saab hakkama, ega pabistanud üleliia. Vähemalt ta ei näidanud seda välja.
Loomulikult oli tal varuks mõnus huumorisoon.

Oll nautis sõpradega koos olemist ja lõbutsemist. Talle meeldis olla seltskonnas. Lõõgastuda.

Tal oli piisavalt uhkust, et ennast kaitsta, kui ta tundis, et tehakse ülekohut. See kehtis ka tema lähedaste suhtes. Kui ta tundis, et tehakse ülekohut, siis andis ta sellest ka selgelt teada.

Arvan, et pole mõtet varjata, et Ollile meeldisid tüdrukud. Ja Oll meeldis ka tüdrukutele. Tal oli mitmeid häid sõbrannasid, kellega ta sai hästi läbi. Ta oskas naisi ka väga hästi kohelda.

/.../


-----------------------------

Armas Anneli,

Olen oma mõtetes sinuga. Tunnen ja mõistan, kui raske sul on. Oliver on praegu heas ja ilusas kohas ning temal pole üldse raske. Ta tahaks hoopis sind lohutada. Katsu seda kuulatada.

Kui sa jälle lugeda saad, siis loe kindlasti Michael Newton’i raamatut „Hinge rännak”. See on uurimus, mis räägib eludevahelisest elust.

Kallistades
Kärt

-------------------------------------------------------
I thank you all and the many more for all the kind words and thoughts... It was a living hell that such a kind and sweet boy like Oliver had to face in the devil Tallinn hospital that cut his life short.
My special thanks also to Oliver´s best friends Ivar and Tõnu and to all of you who shared with me so many nice words about my son. It is nice to know he was not beloved only by me but also by you all.

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Tagasi: blogi, video ja fotod siit... Foto: Kodus, mai 2008

At home, 1993

Astrid Lindgren learning how to say Pikksukk

Clip from the interview with Astrid Lindgren at her home in Stockholm, May 1989 (click the headline up here to listen)

Astrid Lindgren, a pray for free Estonia...

Click the headline up here to listen. Interview clip from May 1989, Stockholm, at the home of Pipi´s mother...

The Planets: Mother Earth and other planets

Click the headline and at site click "Universe", great site in case you are interested to see how colorful and fascinating it looks out there - thousands of NASA images made available by NASA in 2008 - http://www.nasaimages.org/

Fake or true - UFO photos

If you click the headline you will get to the site with files containing a wide range of UFO-related documents covering the years 1986–1996. If you want to find out more about close encounters over Gatwick Airport, alien abductions, stray satellites - and what the UK government thought of it all - then check that site. The photos and documents were made first public by UK government in 2008 and amended in August 2009. There is a selection of some photos also available at the British newspaper site (links below, but you have to copy them). At least some look fake, but...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/howaboutthat/3447508/UFO-sightings-140-years-of--UFO-pictures.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3452381/UFO-sightings-140-years-of--UFO-pictures.html

Easter mass for the angels

By Anneli Reigas (AFP),

WHEN millions of Christians around the world go to
church to mark Good Friday and Easter, 78-year-old
Estonian parish priest Harri Rein will be holding mass
in an empty church on the tiny island of Ruhnu.

"It doesn't matter at all that the church is empty –
the angels are there," the dedicated pastor told AFP.
Even on days that are not high holy days, Father Rein
holds a service every morning "for the angels."
"I sincerely believe in angels and holding a service
in an empty church is a normal thing to do," he
explained.

"I have felt for years that I have to hold a service
every morning even if the islanders come to church on
Sundays and religious holidays only," he said.
Ruhnu, which measures 5.5km long by 3.5km wide and
lies closer to Latvia than to the Estonian mainland,
has 62 inhabitants, only 22 of whom are church-goers.
But the island's pastor is not disheartened by his
tiny flock. Indeed, he has a plan to publish a book,
based on his morning masses, entitled "1000 prayers
from the island of Ruhnu".
"The most important thing is to feel peace in your
heart, the feeling I found decades ago, even before I
became a pastor in 1964," he said.
"In my eyes, being happy means being blessed and
that's how I feel every morning when I wake up on this
island: I am blessed for having a chance to be here,"
he said.
Father Rein holds most of his services in a big white
church built at the beginning of last century, when
Estonia was still under the rule of the Russian tsar.
Just next to the large church is a small wooden
church, built in 1644 when Estonia belonged to Sweden.

The first time services were held in either church on
the island after World War II was in 1988, as Estonia
was preparing to throw off the yoke of 50 years of
Soviet rule when the church was used as a granary.
Before World War II, most of Ruhnu's population were
Swedes who had lived on the island for centuries.
In August 1944, just few weeks before the Soviet Red
Army re-entered Estonia, all the islanders escaped to
Sweden leaving behind a deserted island inhabited by
hundreds of cows, sheep, horses and chickens. And a
few angels.

March 23, 2005

Estonia and Finland - the twins that grew apart, but met again

By Anneli Reigas

When Estonia launched the year long festivities abroad to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the declaration of independence in February 1918, it was highly symbolic that Finland and its South-Western town Turku were picked up as the opening venue of the Estonia´s independence celebrations that will be held in 37 states around the globe in 2008.

The day long festivities in Turku on February 2, 2008 included history seminar and lot of beautiful Estonian music, performed by Estonians at the Turku Cathedral. Turku had been the capital of Finland until 1812 when Russia that had taken over the rule over Finland from Swedes, moved the capital from largely Swedish speaking Turku to Helsinki. In 2011 Turku will carry a title of capital again - together with Estonian capital Tallinn with whom Turku will share the title of Cultural Capital of Europe 2011.

Divided by sea,

Estonians and Finns share a close language and over the centuries have had also strong cultural and economic ties. The two nations have even fought for each others independence. Thousands of Finns came voluntarily to Estonia to fight for Estonia during Estonia´s independence war in 1918-1920. And thousands of Estonians joined voluntarily the Finnish army during World War II to fight the Red Army that at the end failed to occupy Finland, but remained in Estonia for nearly next 50 years.

Some, like 83-year old Estonian Raul Kuutma who joined Finnish army in 1943 being just 19 years old, believe that Finland managed to remain independent by the end of World War II partly because of Estonians. "The months long heavy battles of Estonian soldiers against the Red Army at the Estonian-Russian battle front near Estonian town Narva in spring and summer 1944 were very exhausting for Red Army and Soviets realized they have to reach peace at least with Finns. When Finnish Commander-in-Chief Carl Gustaf Mannerheim became a president and agreed for peace treaty with Soviets in summer 1944, the fate of Estonia was decided - Red Army troops from Finnish-Russian battle front were relocated to battle Estonians," adds Kuurma, Honorary Chairman of the Union of Estonians who fought in Finnish army.

During the Soviet era Estonians had a privileged status in all Soviet empire that was cut off from most of the global worldwide news broadcasting - thanks for close language Estonians living in North Estonia, including the capital Tallinn, managed to follow Western news and films via Finnish TV and radio channels that the regime failed to block.

At some extent, the Soviet brainwash ideology even reached the Finland. As decades passed, memories of horrors of war and loss of the part of Finnish territory in Karelia to Russia became less painful. Trade with Soviet Union boosted the Finnish economy in 70s and 80s and for many Finns, specially at the top of the state Soviet empire started to seem much less evil than for Estonians, who could not forgive the Soviets post-war atrocity, including the deportation of tens of thousands of Estonians to Siberia.

Ordinary Finns remained close

to Estonians with many of them visiting their Estonian friends, presenting them with coffee, clothes and sometimes even washing powder - all what used to be hard to get for many years. Strong personal contacts between the two nations also beared some controversial times when Finnish president Mauno Koivisto failed to support the singing revolution - drive for re-independence - of Estonians.

When Estonia regained its independence in August 1991, two Finnish Prime Ministers - Esko Aho and Paavo Lipponen did a lot to help Estonia at hard times. Aho decided to provide Estonia emergency help in winter 1992 when Moscow had cut off the traditional gas and oil supply and Lipponen became a strong voice for Estonia at various international meetings, being one of the first statesmen strongly supporting Estonia´s aspirations to join EU.

With history and ties like that it came like natural that the 90th anniversary of Finnish independence on December 6, 2007 was celebrated in Estonia more than probably in any other foreign state - with tens of special events in Tallinn and many Estonian counties organized.

Being the only nation in the world that puts every fifth year 19 000 singers to sing at the song festival in Tallinn in same choir under batton of just one conductor, it is also no wonder that Estonia celebrates its own independence anniversary this year with concerts in 37 states.

"The strong and long music culture

in Estonia is definitely one of the best trademarks of our nation," says Paavo Järvi (45), Estonian conductor who is the chief conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in the United States, Germany's Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie and is scheduled to become lead conductor of the Orchestre de Paris in 2010. Paavo Järvi who can without hesitation be called Estonian Global Cultural Ambassador is one of the Estonian conductors, who will lead concerts marking Estonian independence anniversary.

Järvi who emigrated to US from Soviet Estonia in 1980 with his parents is also one of many Estonian musicians who have strong connection to Finland - Järvi often takes Nordic composers into program and says the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius is one of his most favorate composers.

Some Estonian composers like Veljo Tormis in turn have written beautiful music for Finnish lyrics. When festival "Estonian music days" ended in spring 2007, organisers had picked the songs in Finnish to end the festival of Estonian music - with Estonian Philharmonic Choir singing poetry from Finnish epic Kalevala for what Tormis composed a great music already during Breznev era.

Main Estonian musical event in Helsinki this year - concert for Estonian friends in Finland -will be arranged on April 14, 2008 at Finlandia House. Tallinn Chamber Orchestra will be conducted by Estonian conductor Eri Klas, who himself has worked in Finland during many decades.

With culture uniting both nations deeply at grass-root level, the economic ties started to boom soon after Estonia regained freedom.

"Finland is the main investor

into Estonian industry and trade, 25% of all foreign direct investments made into Estonia are from Finland. There are over 3800 companies in Estonia with Finnish capital - no other country is so much involved in Estonia´s economy," says Valdar Liive, head of Helsinki mission of the Enterprise Estonia.

"15 years ago most Finnish investments went to industry - Finns bought up some of Soviet era industry but also started to build new factories. Biggest Finnish investments have been made into electronic companies like Elqoteq, Efore, Incap, into mechanical engineering industry (Cargotec, Metalliset), telecommunication (Elisa), timber industry (Stora Enso). Finns have also invested a lot into food industry in Estonia. Nowadays Estonia is not seen any more attractive just for its cheaper labor force and foreign investors invest more to increase productivity. Instead of simple products more sophiscated products are produced. More Finnish investments are made into IT sector but also into real estate projects and highly valued products design sector in Estonia," Liive adds.

"The Finnish investors often turn to our office in Helsinki to seek advice and first assistance. We try to find them partners and goods they seek, explain the business-making options in Estonia etc. Despite we are very alike by cultural background, some differences should be accounted. Finns spend much more time and resources to consider and prepare their plans. Estonians in turn - probably because of out historic background - want to act more quickly and are more ready to face all kind of changes. Finnish investors are also keen to find out what kind of resources they can seek from EU structural funds that Estonia can use like other EU states," Liive says.

Enterprise Estonia mission in Helsinki collaborates also with Invest in Finland and Finpro, organises seminars and business promotion trips. In addition to helping Finnish investors the mission also assists Estonians looking for trade partners in Finland or seeking to establish their own business in Finland.

"Together with Estonian embassy, Estonian Institute, Tuglas Society and Union of Finnish-Estonian friendship societies we have opened a website www.viro90.fi with detailed info about Estonian independence festivities in Finland that we organise together," Liive says.

"For many Finnish companies Estonia is often the first step to enter international markets and also to coordinate the local branches of Finnish companies in other Baltic States, also in Belorussia and Ukraine. For many Finnish companies Estonia is the place where from to order and produce goods for Europea market," Liive adds.

Finns make also up the biggest share of tourists

visiting Estonia. "Nearly 49% of foreign tourists who stay overnight in Estonia, come from Finland. With one-day visitors accounted over 6 million passengers cross the Gulf of Finland between Helsinki and Tallinn annually. Finns have started to stay longer during their visit and are more eager to visit also other Estonian towns and countryside," says Toomas Tärk who promotes Estonian tourism in Finland and works like Liive at Enterprise Estonia.

"Estonia has changed so rapidly during last 10-15 years, that someone who visited it years ago might have very different opinion about Estonia than someone who has been in Estonia recently. That is why we consider the ongoing marketing of Estonia and Estonian image in Finland very important. As Finns are often very sensitive to customer service level and compare it with Finland it is also our challenge to guide them to restaurants and other places that always offer a good service," Tärk says.

In order to attract even more Finns to visit Estonia, Enterprise Estonia is organising various events. ""Estonia comes to visit" days are organised in seven Finnish towns and will include cultural program as well as enterprise and tourism promotion. Bigger Finnish audience will have a chance to see 9 TV-programs "Visiting Estonia", compiled by the order of Enterprise Estonia. Estonia as tourism destination will be also promoted in Helsinki on May 9-10 at Estonian days, organised in front of Kampi trade centre," Tärk adds.

In addition to many ongoing projects Liive and Tärk are promoting together with some Estonian-Finnish institutions a plan to establish Estonian House in downtown Helsinki in order to provide even better ground for all those seeking to strengthen the economic and cultural ties between Estonia and Finland that for many often seems like a twin-nation already.

Magazine "Life in Estonia", 2008

The weird inbox

Thats from my American colleague who keeps sending us staff like that occasionally, no doubt whom she supports...


GWB Library to Open in 2009

The George W. Bush Presidential Library is now in the planning stages.

The Library will include:

The Alberto Gonzales Room, where you won't be able to remember anything.

The Texas Air National Guard Room, where you don't even have to show up.

The Walter Reed Hospital Room, where they don't let you in.

The Guantanamo Bay Room, where they don't let you out.

The Weapons of Mass Destruction Room, which no one has been able to find.

The National Debt room which is huge and has no ceiling.

The 'Tax Cut' Room with entry only to the wealthy.

The 'Economy Room' which is in the toilet.

The Iraq War Room. After you complete your first tour, they make you to go back for a second, third, fourth, and sometimes fifth tour.

The Dick Cheney Room, in the famous undisclosed location, complete with shotgun gallery.

The Environmental Conservation Room, still empty.

The Supreme Court's Gift Shop, where you can buy an election.

The Airport Men's Room, where you can meet some of your favorite Republican Senators.

The 'Decider Room' complete with dart board, magic 8-ball, Ouija board, dice, coins, and straws.

If you come to Tallinn, few suggestions

By Anneli Reigas

All Tallinn old town, both the upper and lower part - is a great museum.

Take the view first

First of all, if you come to Tallinn for shorter time and first time, three main suggestions: go to the cafe at the top of SAS Radissson hotel (27th floor) that has a brilliant view to look at sea and all the old town. If u come in spring or summer, their cafe outside on roof that has almost 360 degree view is also open and the view is absolutely super!

Secondly, in old town find where is Laboratooriumi street and go there - thats the small narrow street with lot of medieval towers that you do not see anywhere else in Tallinn and that tourists almost never find when they drop to Tallinn for short time. All old town is of course a must, including old town square and upper part of the town called Toompea that also has spots to have a look to the rest of the city.

Third suggestion - either go to Pirita some 7 km from old town or go to some concert at the Niguliste church-museum in case you are here on weekend (organ concerts on Sat and Sun) or go to concert at 18 at Holy Spirit Church in case you stay in Tallinn also on Monday - or do all that.

Tallinn also has a Open Air Museum at Rocca al Mare where you can visit the village with old wooden houses and have lunch or dinner at Kolu restaurant. The museum arranges different colorful events worth joining so check their website for calendar and directions. Tallinn Open Air Museum.

There are some other "must" things while visiting Tallinn like KUMU art museum that is said to be biggest around the Baltic Sea, but I like more the old Kadriorg Palace museum near it even that after long renovation in 90s it lost part of its old spirit. Since autumn 2009 you can also take a tour u n d e r Tallinn old town, entering from Kiek in de Kök museum.

Do remember - in case u are fit enough - you can also climb to tower inside the highest Oleviste church to have a good view again. There is often also chance to climb to tower of Old Town Hall, but its very narrow inside and u can easily get claustrophobic there until you finally reach the view platform.

There is also life outside old town

Next destination - specially good in summer as it is next to the beach - Pirita yachting center, my other suggestion what to do in Tallinn in summer. You can borrow a small boat or yacht at Pirita and remember to visit the seaside balcony of the restaurant at the top of the main building of the yachting center - one of few in Tallinn that has view to sea. A really nice and quiet cafe just few metres from the sea at beach is café St. Patrick or Velvet next to it, located at Pirita sandy beach, you can find it when coming from town you cross the river and then turn to sea and keep going on beach until you see the only big house there soon.

If you come with children, take them to Tallinn zoo (http://www.tallinnzoo.ee) that you can reach by trolley bus from center, Tallinn zoo is one of the best in Europe in many terms and one of the very few around the Baltic Sea where you can also meet huge South African elephants.

Dont miss Chocolaterie cafe and masters courtyard

Where to eat, my choices. At least once go to medieval style restaurants - Olde Hansa (www.oldehansa.ee) - they have also some food that they claim is cooked by medieval receipts or Peppersack just opposite of it - http://peppersack.ee/. Jazz-club - called Clazz - is also just next to those two - www.clazz.ee and above it is a really nice restaurant Scheeli in style of 1920s and 1930s.

My utmost best suggestions for coffee place in Tallinn are the café next to Holy Spirit church at little Saiakäik street and Chocolaterie cafe at Vene street 6 Meistrite Hoov. They have handmade delicious chocolate there, super great atmosphere and some wooden and ceramics shops at same yard. They also have free Wifi (like in many other cafes in Tallinn) and never get angry with you if u use their hospitality for long but dont order much. They also borrow rooms at the top of the cafe as hotel but i have never seen it so cant say much on that. I know the price is relatively small and location is really good. There is some art in that yard shops and also beloved museum of Icons. You can also stay at the Holy Spirit church guesthouse that is just next to heart of old town, Old Town Square.

The other café I suggest is at the shortest street of Tallinn - at Saiakäik - that starts from the Old Town square near Apotheca (the oldest working drug store in Europe). The cafe with big windows is just next to the Holy Spirit church. That has been since childhood my favorite church in Tallinn - my grandparents got married there before WWII, they have music concerts on Monday nights in that church (starting at 18, free entrance but nice to leave something).

If you wish to stay at the medieval building in Tallinn old town, there are lot of options for different budget - you can stay at the great and expensive medieval style hotel "Three sisters" - even UK and Japanese royals have slept here - or have all kind of cheaper hotels nearby. As I already mentioned even Holy Spirit Church has its own little guesthouse few steps from old town square.
 

For accommodation one more tip - very nice new hotel just next to old town is Nordic Hotel Forum. It has an impressive sign "Consulate of Monaco " on the wall of the building near entrance at the street so you can feel like entering to Monaco but the consulate that was inaugurated by Prince Albert II in winter 2008 just has had an office there. When you check their prices do not go to regular price site but find the special offers that are usually very good for that 4 star place. Btw, that hotel is probably first in world that since Jan 2009 had offered at business rooms unlimited free calls around the globe using Skype phones for that. The other and much cheaper option is even closer to the old town square - Olevi Residence http://www.olevi.ee/index.php P:S. Be warned they only have stairs and you might need to climb a bit too much depending where you get the room.

New place opened in 2012 is near the D-terminal at port, Lootsi street 10, great Estonian style restaurant and at separate building very nice cafe with the most delicious cheese cake I have got in Tallinn, their website is www.kochiaidad.ee. They also have live music on weekends and its just 10 min to walk from old town to port D terminal direction but if you stay too long and drink bit too much I cordially advice you to take taxi back to wherever you pillow is waiting you.

Good cafe and beloved by locals is Kloostri Ait (www.kloostriait.ee) that has open fire-place, offers live music often and is next to Dominican museum-abbey. Nearby that is the most medieval street in Tallinn - called Katariina käik - that suits a great Italian restaurant but most of all is a great because it has my favorite handmade glass-shop with absolutely brilliant glass goods (done mainly by a great Russian master who has worked there since it was opened) that I have often bought for gifts or for myself. Plus - more nice handmade-good shops at the same street.

Concerts, concerts....

Most of the greatest music experiences in Estonia I have enjoyed at the Estonia Concert Hall, you can read about their concerts and program in English at their website at http://www.concert.ee . I have been at the concerts there since I was a child and it feels almost kind of living room to me. That big nice yellow house near park has a concert hall closer to park and opera hall, but to opera (that is really professional as opera fans and experts say) I myself go almost never - its the concert hall and pure music that seduces me to that building again and again.

Place to offer also nice concerts sometimes is the Niguliste church-museum (http://www.ekm.ee/eng/niguliste.php) - plus they have half and hour organ concerts every Saturday and Sunday for entrance ticket.

Thats what they say about themselves - the exposition at Niguliste comprises ecclesiastical art from 14th-20th centuries, including exquisite altarpieces and sculptures. The high altar (1478–1481) made in the workshop of Hermen Rode, the initial fragment of the famous painting "Danse Macabre" by Bernt Notke (end of the15th c.) and many others. The Silver Chamber displays silver treasures of guilds, craft corporations and Brotherhood of the Black Heads. The oldest objects in the Silver Chamber originate from the 15th century, the youngest from the first decades of the 20th century, i.e. from the last years in the history of guilds in Tallinn. There is no other town in Europe in which such an extensive amount of guild silver has been preserved than in Tallinn.

During lockdown 2020 they made several virtual tours of Niguliste Church-museum and brilliant videos about their great exhibition dedicated to Virgin Mary and opened in autumn 2019. Unfortunately big part of the exhibition collided with lockdown when the museum was closed. Since 2023 you can take an elevator to this church tower and have another great view at old town.

Other nice places for concerts are Old Town Hall at Old Town Square and Kadriorg Art Museum (the old own) at the Kadriorg park.

I am a great fan of Tallinn and its old town, and I feel those of us born here are really blessed to have been born here. My parents were also born in Tallinn and liked that town as much as me as I think most of the tallinners who have strong and long family routs in Tallinn do. From dad who was a musician and a very gentle person I also inherited the passion for music, seldom anything touches my heart more than listening a good music.

Kopli liinid, my sacred village

If you want to see a different Tallinn, take a tram 1 or 2 to Kopli and drive to place called Kopli liinid, a small village with short streets called "liinid" that means lines in English. It is on the coast of the Baltic Sea sea, max 15 min tram (number 1 and 2)  drive from Tallinn old town, considered very central Tallinn but is very different from the rest of the town. The houses were long in ruins there and for long it was not the safest place for foreigners to walk around alone late but it has all changed in few years - there is new, partly renovated modern village now and its considered safe now but the old village feeling left with former generations of inhabitants and it takes time until new village community will form. For me its the small land of paradise nearby Baltic Sea, with endless childhood memories that included looking often how sun fell asleep into sea.

You can read more if you wish about that village and my time there if you pick the headline "Where I come from. Sacred village" from the blog.

How to read AFP stories

Here are few tips how to read AFP stories about the Baltic States as well as the stories from other states where from AFP reports periodically. You have to contact AFP (click the headline to get to the website and search for your regional office) to get the access to the AFP wire/archive in case you are not working at the institution that already has arranged the access.

I only add a very small selection of my features to my blog and cordially advice you to either search net to get links to the stories available at other sites or do as advised above if you wish to read more. We write stories about all kind of topics - politics, culture, economy - everything that seems important enough to be shared with readers. And it is far not only "nice" reporting about soft issues, but among other things also about corruption or that kind of behavior of those few officials who sometimes seem not up to what their job requests the most - dignity in everything.

Agence France Presse has journalists in 165 countries, 5 regional headquarters.and is the world's oldest established news agency, founded in 1835 by Charles-Louis Havas, the father of global journalism. AFP produces each day 400,000 - 600,000 words in text, 2 to 3,000 photos and 80 news graphics, 30 video clips per day.

The AFP articles go to wire in six different languages - English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic. Only few news stories and features are translated into all these languages, from the Baltic and Nordic States for example the stories go out to the world media mainly in English and French, sometimes also in other languages.

P.S. In case you feel confused why I have double name - my family name in Estonian that I got from one of my grandfathers contains that bit weird letter which - as far as I know - only two nations have. The "E" instead of that letter was written already to my first Soviet foreign passport in 1988 and kept appearing later to many other IDs too and at some point in early 90s I find myself having two family names. The real mess with my Estonian version of family name started when net era arrived bcs in emails my Estonian version of name started to change into endless versions of signs and letters. Just one example - R=C3=B5igas - thats how it looked in email from Raul Kuutma, the long time chair of Estonians who fought in Finnish Army during WWII when he asked few years ago about me having slightly different names. My friend Koit Ojamaa, master in Finno-Ugric philology, who worked most of is life at US Congress Library told me already in 1990 "e" is phonetically closest letter to my Estonian confusing letter, so I use it in foreign media.