Documentary: Estonia bolstering its defences

Rimi Express: Estonia's first self-service supermarket with no staff

Rimi, one of the largest supermarket chains in Northern Europe has opened its first self-service employee-free concept store in the heart of Tallinn's Noblessner district. Known as Rimi Express, the store is a trailblazer in sustainable and innovative retail, constructed from environmentally friendly wood materials and covering 32 square metres.

Customers gain entry into the supermarket by scanning their bank card at the entrance, after which the doors open automatically. Customers can then independently select and scan groceries from a range of 600 everyday essentials. These items include packaged fruits, vegetables, ready-made meals, snacks, drinks, hygiene products, and cooking ingredients. Alcohol, tobacco, and items requiring weighing are not available.

The shopping process is entirely cashless, with purchases completed at self-service checkouts using a bank card. An automated people-counting system regulates store capacity, maintaining safety by monitoring the number of shoppers inside and controlling access when capacity is reached. Those who do not make a purchase can easily exit the store by pressing the exit button.

 

 

Rimi Express serves as a pilot project in Estonia as the first employee-free concept store. The success of this project has led to plans for expansion, with the second Rimi self-service store opening at the Rimi Olympic Centre in Latvia. 

Tallinn is the safest capital city in Europe

According to a recent ranking by Euronews.com, the safest European capital city is Tallinn. In second place is Prague in the Czech Republic followed by Warsaw, Poland. These cities have low crime rates and a perception of safety for visitors and residents alike. At the other end of the spectrum, Brussels, Stockholm and Marseille dominate headlines with machine gun rampages, teenage hitmen and mafia turf wars. Violence of this nature is rare in Tallinn.

Numbeo has also released their Safety Index by City for 2025. The top destinations offers both historic charm and peace of mind for travellers.

 The top 15 safest cities in Europe are:

1. The Hague, Netherlands
2. Munich, Germany
3. Trondheim, Norway
4. Zagreb, Croatia
5. Ljubljana, Slovenia
6. Eindhoven, Netherlands
7. Bern, Switzerland
8. Groningen, Netherlands
9. Cluj-Napoca, Romania
10. Tallinn, Estonia
11. Zurich, Switzerland
12. Reykjavik, Iceland
13. Prague, Czech Republic
14. Helsinki, Finland
15. Bergen, Norway

What is Estonia's Onion Route?

Estonia's Onion Route (Sibulatee) is located on the western shore of Lake Peipus in southeastern Estonia. It is a region where Estonian and Russian cultures and heritage intertwine. The route stretches along Lake Peipus, connecting villages such as Kolkja and Varnja that are known for onion farming and other traditions. The village of Alatskivi is considered the capital of the route.

Last Saturday the annual Onion Route Buffet Day took place throughout the region inviting anyone who loves onions, fish, pastries and home-cooked meals to visit the area. In addition to restuarants offering local cuisine with tasty treats, many pop-up cafés were open on the day, mostly in people’s frontyards, gardens, and courtyards. Alatskivi Castle was also full of activity.  It's an end of summer event that the whole family can enjoy.

More information about Sibulatee / Estonia's Onion Route can be found here.

Who are the wealthiest people in Estonia?

The Estonian financial newspaper Äripäev recently released its annual rankings of the TOP 500 Richest People in Estonia based on their company holdings and share value. Once again Wise founders Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus are at the top of the list followed by Bolt's Markus Villig. Äripäev notes that Kristo Käärmann set a new record this year - never before has the wealth of the person in first place been this high. Käärman's assets are.believed to be worth €2.19 billion.

 Äripäev's list of the top ten wealthiest people in Estonia are:

Kristo Käärmann (Wise)
Taavet Hinrikus (Wise)
Markus Villig (Bolt)
Jaan Tallinn (Ambient Sound Investments, Metaplanet Holdings, Soft Park Investments)
Margus Linnamäe (MM Grupp)
Oliver Leisalu (Bolt) 
Raul Kirjanen (Graanul Invest, Biofuel)
Oleg Ossinovski (Skinest Grupp)
Anders Anderson (Graanul Invest, Neoinvesteeringud) 
Martin Villig (Bolt)

Photo Flashback: The snowstorm of 1913

Christmas peace was disrupted on Christmas Eve in 1913 when a big snowstorm hit Estonia. Tallinn and its surrounding area was affected by heavy snowfall and raging winds that threatened to sweep people off their feet. Residents reported that they had not experienced extreme weather of this nature for several decades with snow falling non-stop.and the streets piled high with snow. 

On that day, people worked tirelessly to dig adequate access to the front doors of their homes but unfortuntely there were not enough draft horses to haul all the snow away.

The streets covered with huge mounds of snow would have been quite a sight to behold.

 

Photo; Tartu Road and Liivalaia intersection. 

Internationally acclaimed Estonian composer Arvo Pärt turns 90

World-renowned Estonian composer Arvo Pärt celebrated his 90th birthday today. He gained international recognition in the 1980s for developing his groundbreaking tintinnabuli style - a meditative approach to composition that has since become one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary classical music. Pärt has earned countless accolades over the years, including more than a dozen Grammy nominations, with wins for Best Choral Performance in 2007 and 2014. Arvo Pärt currently holds the title of the world's most performed living composer. 

 

 

Born in Paide on the 11th of September 1935 Arvo Pärt studied music at the Tallinn Music School and Tallinn Conservatory before starting his career as a sound engineer. He spent a decade working in radio before becoming a freelance composer. Pärt composed many of his pieces whilst living abroad. In 1980 he moved to Vienna then spent the next thirty years living in Berlin, Germany. In 2010 Arvo Pärt returned to Estonia and settled in the coastal village of Laulasmaa. His family opened the Arvo Pärt Centre in 2018 in honour and preservation of his work.

 

The old Kreenholm textile factory

The Kreenholm Manufacturing Company was a textile factory located on the river island of Kreenholm in the city of Narva in Estonia. It was founded by German industrialist Ludwig Knoop in 1857 who was a cotton merchant from Bremen in Germany. Knoop acquired the whole island and founded his textile factory there.

At one point, Kreenholm's cotton spinning and manufacturing mills were the largest in the world and consisted of 32,000 acres of land and employed over 10,000 workers.

The factory was built using red-brick, English-style architecture and was once considered a symbol of industrial prowess.  Narva’s powerful 27-foot waterfall made it possible to use cheap water energy to power much of the factory's operations.

The first workers strike in the history of Estonia took place at the Kreenholm textile factory in August 1872. Poor working conditions led to a cholera outbreak that killed over 500 people. At that time employees were starting work at 5am and working 14 hour days in an environment where factory windows were always closed. After a series of negotiations, some small improvements were made. 

After periods of state ownership and privatisation following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the  Kreenholm textile factory eventually went bankrupt in 2010,  Today, the site is an important piece of Estonian industrial heritage, offering insights into the history of industrialisation and serving as a backdrop for cultural events. 

Where to buy Estonian school caps

Over the years, I've been asked by people living outside of Estonia, where they can buy Estonian school caps. They may have seen old family photographs of their parents as students wearing their caps and want to purchase one as a keepsake. I bought a school cap many years ago in memory of my grandfather by contacting the school. Alternatively, it is possible to contact the manufacturer directly to place an order. Velmard has a range of school caps available at 35€ each.

Children across Estonia begin the new school year

The 1st of September marks the beginning of the new school year in Estonia. More than 160,000 students will start the new academic year today with around 14,000 of those children being first graders. Children in Estonia don't wear compulsory school uniforms but they all proudly wear school caps. These 'koolimüts' foster a sense of community and school identity among students. Very often school caps are worn long after graduation and into adulthood on special occasions such as reunions and the Estonian Song Festival / Laulupidu.