Island Hopping Part 2

Getting up really early. I like that on vacation. We had to get up at 06:30 in order to catch the ferry to Saaremaa, all the other trips were already fully booked. Fortunately, some other campers had warned us that we had to book the ferries on the islands, otherwise we often wouldn't make it. High season, you know.

Henry was really angry when we woke him up. He's not used to that. Then we zoomed off on the gravel road, gracefully avoiding three deer and off we go.

The hour-long ferry ride flew by.

When we arrived in Saaremaa, we headed straight for the first tourist attraction. The windmills of Angla. These are ancient wooden windmills that you can visit. The rabbits, capercaillies, turtles, the museum, and the old tractors were included.

So we walked around at a relaxed Henry pace and looked at everything.

When the big family behind us climbed out of the little, very old wooden mill, I hurriedly left the place with Henry. Boy, did it creak and the mill really started to tilt.

We keep discovering things here that make me immediately think, "That would never exist in Germany." In this case, a balcony without any boundaries. A few days ago, we watched in Haapsalu as a stage scaffold was being dismantled. Who needs safety measures when he can climb well and carry heavy stuff at the same time?

Seems to work, so why not.

We get unhurt into the car and drive to our first overnight spot: Pidula Forell. As the name suggests, people breed trout there. Henry finishes his nap, Ole and I have a glass of wine spritzer, and then one of those fat beasts comes fresh from the water onto our plates.

The man holds the net in the lake, takes out a trout, and puts it straight on the grill. While we enjoy the really tasty fish (unfortunately, Ole has lots of bones in his pieces, I have none), we also have a spritzer, and afterwards I feel a little drowsy.

The daydrinking is going excellently. But the weather is just hot, you need refreshment and, of course, a lot of fluid.

We play catch with Henry, ride the retired jetski over the waves, and get caught together in a wild storm on the retired wooden ship.

Exhausted, we stagger onto the pier and plop down into one of the rowboats - Ole rows us to Rabbit Island and Henry tries to catch a rabbit and steal the carrot treats. Of course, we prevent that and row back instead.

And because we're in the right mood, we shower Henry and wash his hair. I'll tell you how it is, we've only done that 3 times since we've been on the road because Henry screams as if he were being stabbed as soon as the shower turns on. Meanwhile, we "shower" him with a small watering can and a 7L canister. But it's still not fun. But just washing various dirty body parts under the faucet with a washcloth is not enough.

That's enough adventures for today. Off to bed.

The next day we continue to Muha Talu - a small, nice campground on Saaremaa. On the way there, we stop at an inconspicuous Estonian restaurant called Lümanda Söögimaja. Cheap, down-to-earth Estonian cuisine and the best beetroot salad I've had in a long time.

When we arrive at Muha Talu, we immediately feel very comfortable. André welcomes us warmly and shows us his lovingly designed and well-maintained place. You can really tell that it's important to him that we feel comfortable.

The place is completely fenced in, so Henry can just run around and we don't have to chase after him all the time. Right across from us is a small family with a 17-month-old son. Hugo and Henry walk directly towards each other, play together, and with everything they can get their hands on. They also have their first little squabbles. We just let them do it, because Hugo's parents, Martha and Jako, are really relaxed.

Right next to us is a nice family from Austria. Andreas and his wife write a likeable travel blog about conscious, nature-oriented camping. So if any of you feel like reading a slightly more professionally run blog every now and then, we recommend taking a look here: homeiswhereyoursoulis.com

We laze around all day, chat here and there, do some laundry, pick some currants, hang around in the old trees on the monkey swings, and go on a little trip to the beach.

The water feels shallow for miles - perfect for Henry and Hugo, not so refreshing for the adults. Doesn't matter. We can take a cold shower.

Because everything is so beautiful here, we also consider staying longer, but then decide to continue as planned the next day. We still want to go to the ostrich farm on Muhu Island.

So the next morning we head straight there and have the very last ostrich burger of the season as our first meal. Everything except the bun is homemade or homegrown and really delicious.

We've been to two stores here in Estonia that simply didn't have any food anymore. Everything sold out and then they close the store. We don't have that in our country. At least, I don't.

And in this heat, half a burger is enough for lunch.

Most of the animals lie sprawled out in the shadiest places in the enclosure, sleeping or relaxing. Only the ostriches are in action.

After taking a leisurely look around the little farm, we drive back to Saaremaa (there is a land connection between the two islands via a dam) and head to the small marina in Orissaare. There, you can stay overnight on the lawn of the Kohvik Kalda. Sea view and swimming spots included.

Once we arrive, we cool ourselves off and test out two of the swimming spots. Then we explore the area. It looks interesting because there are art installations everywhere. A wooden dragon here, mossy stacked wooden chairs there, old sofas, and so on.

They look like festival leftovers. And they are. Ole later finds out that the "Island Sound" electro festival took place here 2 weeks ago. Cleaning up seems to take a bit longer than we're used to. :)

As we're about to leave the next morning, a group of young people appears and diligently works to make the last bits and pieces disappear.

In the meantime, we pack up, buy a fresh loaf of bread in Liiva on Muhu, and then take the ferry back to the mainland.

Off to Pärnu. According to rumors, Estonians and tourists gather here to spend the summer by the sea.

Oh well, let's be honest - that's what our travel guide says. ;)

We arrive early, spontaneously park in a large, ugly parking lot where many other campers are parked, and take a leisurely stroll through the city.

We have lunch at Hea Taa, play on two playgrounds, and end the day with falafel wraps and fish 'n chips.

We spend the night in the parking lot. It starts raining at night and doesn't stop for a while. That's why we spontaneously decide to visit the indoor pool. That has worked well so far.

Henry is so exhausted afterwards that he gets into his seat without complaining and simply falls asleep. That's good, because we're heading to Latvia now.

Annika