Blogs from Saaremaa, Estonia, Europe - page 3

10 June: IT'S OVERCAST with winds gusting SSW to force 9 and no let-up forecast for tomorrow. Yachts are tucked in at the docks rather than venturing out into a blustery head sea. I decide on an inland route for my bicycle tour, hoping it will be more sheltered there. I take one of the so-called EuroVelo routes -- a paved road with little traffic that suits me just fine (although, later I veer off to thread my way through farmland on a dusty gravel road). I pass farmsteads with the inevitable old stone buildings utilized as a shed, barn or even main building. The island's history dates back more than 6000 years when seal hunters first used Saaremaa as a base. That's pre-bronze age, long before the Egyptian empire! I come across the site of ... read more

8 June: THE TIME HAS COME for my first break from the cultural journey I am undertaking these six weeks. I'm heading for the island of Saaremaa, a weekend and summer vacation spot for residents of Tallinn. I pack up my belongings, pull the hidden shoulder straps out of the convertible 22-pound carry-on case, attach the smaller backpack and, voila (or whatever the local word is), I'm off on the trolley bus heading for the central bus depot. Only I make a mistake. I end up at the Balti jaam (central train station). A kindly cobbler shop owner tells me to take tram number 2 clear around town to the Autobuusijaam. Well, with all these jaams no wonder a foreigner gets into the sticky. The coach trip to Kuuresaare, the capital of Saaremaa (pop. 16,500), takes ... read more

Geo: 58.2534, 22.4892I had some trouble sleeping last night - I was coughing and wheezing all night long, and couldn't really breathe. Perhaps my body is breaking down now that I'm 30! Mary Moment #22: Mary screamed in the middle of the night, scaring the crap out of me. And when I started screaming "Mary, what's going on???", she wouldn't answer me. Probably having nightmares about traveling with me ... Breakfast was included at the guest house - pretty standard stuff for this part of the world. There was a Spanish soap opera playing on TV. Telenovelas are so cheesy! But they also have Spanish hotties, so I'm not complaining. We set off to find another car rental agency and managed to get a car. Saaremaa isn't a very big island - we drove around the ... read more