The Baltic klint
Estonia’s national stone is limestone, although as quarry men will tell you, most countries prize their calcium carbonate. Fair enough...
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bernienapp
Apr 282 min read
A flaming land
One day around 3500 years ago a piece of space rock burst into flame on hitting the Earth’s atmosphere, disintegrated, and plummeted into...
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bernienapp
Apr 203 min read
An outstanding landscape
I had not heard of Konrad Mägi until cycling to the shores of the saadjärv. This is one of several long, thin lakes separated by moraine...
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bernienapp
Apr 133 min read
A note on camping
Pitching a tent among Baltic pines, the sea nearby, blueberries in season; what could be better? Drinking water, but I’m not complaining....
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bernienapp
Mar 283 min read
A most peculiar war
Vladimir Lenin declared on sealing Estonia’s independence by treaty in early 1920: “We have yielded much. The more important are the...
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bernienapp
Mar 141 min read
Kana ahjust
One evening in Iisaku we were treated to roast chicken, simple in its preparation and delicious. Wondering what to cook for Estonian...
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bernienapp
Mar 83 min read
Take and give
Central to Estonian culture – and to many others – is the idea of reciprocity. We received so much hospitality during our trip, we are...
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bernienapp
Mar 13 min read
A word on language
The Estonian language is a case of, “don’t try this at home”, or ära püüa kodus seda keelt õppida. I probably got that wrong. Estonian is...
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bernienapp
Feb 212 min read
Heart of oak
Growing in the middle of a football field on Saaremaa is an oak voted European tree of the year in 2015. Someone had a sense of humour....
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bernienapp
Feb 172 min read
An involuntary gold miner
The story of Bernhard Lehova, grandma’s younger brother, always had an unreal quality to it. In dad’s telling, his uncle returned to the...
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bernienapp
Feb 63 min read
Cold case reopened
Cousin Inga pulled out two letters dated 1949 she had discovered 3 weeks prior to our arrival. Hidden in the back of our great-aunt...
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bernienapp
Jan 313 min read
The end of old Estonia
A warming climate, a Pope in difficulty, and a boy born Temujin in 1162 figured among key events - to my mind - that ended millennia of...
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bernienapp
Jan 312 min read
Kukeseenekaste
The chanterelle or kukeseen is the cream of mushrooms in Estonia, and many other places too. We often joined friends in the search for...
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bernienapp
Jan 193 min read
A tale of 2 chessplayers
Did our grandfather ever play Paul Keres, Estonia’s national chess hero? I have not been able to find out, though it is a tantalising...
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bernienapp
Dec 26, 20232 min read
A monument to socialism
Everywhere we cycled in Estonia the abandoned ruins of white, silicate brick buildings spoke mute testimony to the failure of collective...
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bernienapp
Dec 21, 20232 min read
The first Christmas tree
Tallinn saw the world’s first appearance on public display of a Christmas tree, in 1441. The Brotherhood of the Blackheads – not a...
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bernienapp
Dec 14, 20233 min read
The sword
A long, iron blade arcs swiftly, cleaving flesh and bone, an arbiter of destiny. A twist of fate for Kalevipoeg, Estonia’s mythical giant...
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bernienapp
Dec 3, 20231 min read
Kilekotikurgid
Everywhere we were invited, the table had a plate of homemade, freshly pickled cucumbers from the garden. Sour to the taste, larger than...
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bernienapp
Dec 3, 20234 min read
Losing a house, gaining a family
The hospitality we received in Estonia was outstanding. Our search for Napps in grandfather’s hometown confirmed this in a single,...
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bernienapp
Nov 22, 20233 min read
Looking at Russia
Wooden houses and tall trees line the Narva river; fishermen dot a smooth, brown, steady current. Russia’s face to the West, 100 metres...
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