Estonia - the west and the island of Saaremaa

Estonia Part 2 - the west - and the island of Saaremaa

Before we head to the west coast, we make our way to Europe's fifth largest lake, Lake Peipsi. The lake is shared by Estonians and Russians. On the way there, there is a lot to see in the Estonian hinterland. The people still live very traditionally and simply in the villages. There are beautiful colorful Scandinavian-style wooden houses, interspersed with rather Russian gray concrete buildings. In and between the villages, you can see old Soviet buildings, ugly gray concrete bunkers that have been left to nature and are slowly falling apart. Rotting observation towers and empty residential blocks. (Yes, the Russians liked to keep an eye on everything).

We decide to give our Knut a hand car wash (he's covered in dirt and dust) and drive to the car wash. Exciting, everything here is in Estonian and Russian. We press some buttons on the machine and manage to get shampoo and water. We had the same problem with the washing machines at the campsite in Finland. Everything is in Finnish - no one speaks English. There I stood stupidly in front of the machine. I just washed and hoped that I wouldn't choose the cooking program. But luckily, everything always worked out so far.

Our mileage shows that we have completed the first 10,000 km!!

In Kauksi on Lake Peipsi, we immediately find a so-called Teklimisala - (yeah, you might be asking yourself - what's that?). We did some research (before Estonia) and found out that these places are state-run barbecue, camping, and bathing areas, and they are either free or very, very cheap. Estonia is really ahead in this regard. In this Teklimisala, there are hundreds of scattered pitches in a huge pine forest, and many places have covered benches with tables and even barbecue areas with wood. (paradise) There is also a great endless sandy beach. And all this for only 4 euros admission (yes - not per night - no, a one-time fee of 4 euros - no matter how long you stay!!). The saver's heart is happy and we find a great spot in the pine forest - without neighbors. Quickly set up the hammock and off to the dream beach. (We have 33 degrees Celsius). When we arrive there, we see thousands of fish scattered along the shore for kilometers (great). I dip my toe in the water... the lake is at least 25-27 degrees Celsius. Wow. Too hot for the fish!!?? But the Estonians don't mind and they splash around with their children. Mmmh? We are also overheated and really want to go into the water. Due to the ongoing heat wave, the lake has very little water, so you have to walk about 1 km to get the water up to your hips. But it's not a real bathing pleasure when you have dead animals in front of you all the time. We go back to the pine forest, quickly shower with the outdoor shower, and spend the rest of the day in the hammock. The Estonians around us are grilling like champions. There must be a hundred fires burning. The forest here is bone dry and Kilian and I are already making an escape plan in case a spark jumps from the grill into the forest... then it would go fffupppp.... and the forest would be in flames. But luckily, nothing happens. In the evening, we meet a young couple from Tyrol with their Bernese Mountain Dog. Barbara and Franz. We start chatting and the two immediately give us their home address and invite us to visit them when we are in Austria. That's really nice!!

On the way to the west coast, I have a funny experience. We arrive in the superstitious village of Mustvee. A strictly religious Russian Orthodox village with a magnificent church. We quickly want to go to the supermarket there. Already in the parking lot, we are the ultimate oddity with our flower bus. Doesn't matter... we have to go through with it... into the supermarket and then the big staring at ME begins!! The men openly stare at me. I feel somewhat uncomfortable and think at first that it's because of my colorful Indian pants. Quickly out and back to the bus - Kilian looks at me, starts laughing, and points to my t-shirt. - I'm wearing an off-the-shoulder t-shirt with BUDDAH on the front!!! And that in a super religious Russian Orthodox village. They probably thought Satan himself was guiding me. Pack up quickly and get out of here. We stop a few kilometers further at a bathing lake. It is unbelievably hot and we would love to swim. It happens again, we drive into the parking lot next to the bathing meadow and everyone.... really everyone's eyes are on us. Great!! What's going on today?? Only locals are here and I think they have never seen a flower bus - let alone German tourists - at their lake. Discreetly, we turn the bus around... let's get out of here.... In the evening, we find a great bathing spot (again only locals - of course, there's hardly any tourism in the inland). We park discreetly with a bit of distance, but no one pays attention to us. We sit by the bus and suddenly an Estonian couple with a child comes up to us. The father immediately starts talking to us in (very bad) English. He is really excited about our bus and apparently is also a member of the Bremer Mercedes Fan Club (aha!). We have a friendly chat and he tells us about his dog Oliver and his father-in-law Hans. We only understand half of it, but nod in a friendly manner. We are just glad that we are no longer complete oddities. After that, we feel comfortable again in our skin and in Estonia. (which is actually really great)

Our journey continues through the inland. We drive through Estonia's grain chamber. For hours, we drive past rye and wheat fields. But there is more weeds than grain growing. The lake where we stood last night also had very little water and dead fish were everywhere. Estonia is suffering from the heatwave. We hear that there are already fires in Latvia (great: our next destination). Greece and everywhere else in Europe are also burning. The hot summer is showing its effects. We drive through many small, poor villages. The houses are old and dilapidated. The people have large gardens and each grows their own fruit and vegetables. People sell fish and vegetables by the roadside. Only rarely do we see a new modern house standing in the middle of nowhere. People who have money live on the coast or in the city. We drive past many empty former communist buildings and farmhouses that are falling apart. We see many observation towers in the landscape.

In the evening, in a small village near Haapsalu (in Rummu: where the Moonlight Festival was supposed to take place - unfortunately, it was canceled at short notice due to lack of funding), we find a great lake in a former quarry. The water is crystal clear and refreshing. Many Estonians swim here. It's the first lake that hasn't turned yet. We jump into the cool water (you can jump great from the rocks) and decide to stay here for a night or two before exploring the west coast tomorrow. In the morning, we take a ferry to the largest island in Estonia, Saaremaa. We arrive in Muhu, a small pre-island, after a 40-minute ferry ride. After passing through it, we quickly drive over a dam and arrive on the beautiful island of Saaremaa. During Soviet times, the island was restricted and you could only enter with a special permit. It has also been a hotly contested target in all the wars of recent years. In Oriasaaer Sadam, we stay for the first night and park nicely at a cafe by the sea. There is some kind of village festival going on here and some artists really let loose here. You can discover great artistic objects everywhere. We go swimming in the sea. It is lukewarm and a relief after the hot day. The next day, it is cloudy (hooray) and we only have 27 degrees Celsius. Perfect for exploring the island. We visit the Maasi Fortress. You climb a small hill that is covered. Pretty unspectacular we think. But when we go down into the basement, we are amazed. The lower floor is completely preserved. Great stone walls with beautiful round arches. You can enter different rooms. It's pleasantly cool down here and many swallows nest. You can get a glimpse of the past. We continue to Kuresaare. The only city on the island. For that, we have to drive through the inland. Our Knut is making strange noises. It creaks very loudly in the corners in the front lower area. We have driven countless gravel roads in the past few months. Hopefully, he hasn't suffered any damage. We will keep an eye on it. The brakes are also acting up (we had them replaced before the trip)!! The ABS triggers at walking pace when braking. Maybe too much dust got in? We don't know, and we will also keep an eye on it. (gulp!) We drive through the inland. We feel the island feeling. We pass cultivated fields, sheep, cows, and in between, we see nice little houses with envyably large gardens. It is raining lightly (the first time in weeks - thank you weather god!!). Numerous brown sightseeing signs line the way. There is a lot to see here on the island. In Kuresaare, unfortunately, the city center at the town hall square is being renovated. Barriers are everywhere. What a shame. There are great old buildings to see here. We walk straight through towards the Bishop's Castle. For the past few weeks, there has been a huge spectacle with operas and concerts right at the castle. Half of the castle has been turned into a stage, with catering tents, etc. We still take a walk on the castle wall and take a look at the great castle from above. The bishops lived well. We continue south on the island. In Ohesaare, we stop at the stone beach. People have built stone men here in recent years. There are well over a thousand now. We don't need to be asked twice and build two stone men. One big one and a small one on top. To our marriage!! We are celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary today. Unfortunately, the stone man collapses shortly after I take a picture of it (hopefully, that's not a bad omen for our marriage?!) - We laugh about it and continue driving. We look for a place for the night, and we find one at a sweet cafe by a windmill, which is also a hostel. We ask the owner for permission. All this here is her land, and we don't want to just park somewhere cheekily. But the owner is very kind and wishes us a lot of fun. We stand wonderfully on the cliff directly by the sea and think, great!! But here too: an algae disaster. We would have to wade through a carpet of algae about 100m wide and then probably walk another kilometer to be able to swim. And besides, there is a wasp and fly problem here. After two hours of wasps buzzing around our heads, we've had enough. We head to the place 20km away that we already know from the first day on the island. Here you stand wonderfully by the sea. The sea is surprisingly clean and feels 25 degrees Celsius warm. A music festival took place here last week, which we unfortunately missed (damn it). A great round huge tent stands on the spot. Inside: a sound wonder. It echoes incredibly when you speak. This was the dance floor. I can only imagine what a sound experience that must have been. Art objects are everywhere. We go to the boss's cafe and have a delicious fish for 9 euros. Yes, we missed something here. There was quite a lot going on here last weekend. Too bad... we were a little too late. Nevertheless, we really enjoyed Saaremaa Island. Conclusion: Saaremaa - Great island feeling, incredibly beautiful nature, unfortunately few very good bathing spots, pure deceleration (we weren't the fastest even before :)), super-nice islanders - an island to unwind and enjoy, few people, hardly any tourists. - That's how we like it!!!

Tomorrow we will drive along the last stretch of the Estonian coast, and then we will definitely arrive in Latvia the day after tomorrow. Estonia: It has been a blast. A great (nowadays) modern country (on the coasts and on the island). In the inland, you can still feel a bit of the memories of communism with the older people. They are cautious and reserved - but also not used to tourists. You can still see quite a few old buildings slowly decaying in the country. The capital Tallinn is amazing. A great medieval town with an incredible flair. Estonia is definitely worth a visit. We really enjoyed being here. Thank you Estonia - Hello Latvia