Have a fun filled time by the sea in Tallinn this weekend

The 15th Tallinn Maritime Days will take place this weekend from 14 - 16th July 2023. Tallinn Maritime Days is a diverse and exciting summer festival designed for the whole family to enjoy. All five of Tallinn's harbours will have children’s areas, street markets and live entertainment. Guest ships will arrive in the capital for exploration and bay trips, and sea taxi's can be taken to move between the ports. 

 

This year's theme is "Meri on, meri jääb", which pays homage to Kihnu Virve, who left a deep mark on Estonian folk music and maritime folklore with her sea songs.

More information can be found on the Tallinn Maritime Days website.

Support new Estonian book 'Literally Estonian'

Karel Polt, an Estonian currently living in the USA has recently launched a fundraising campaign to publish his new book Literally Estonian. The 132 page hardcover book is a quirky way to learn about Estonian customs, traditions, beliefs, and word meanings. The book features a lot of wordplay using humour and contains many fun facts. In total there are over 400 Estonian words, phrases and sayings that are explained for a native English speaker.

 

 

Fun fact: To an Estonian, animals and birds are considered two different classes of living things. Animals rule the land and birds rule the sky. If you call a bird an animal to an Estonian, they will be confused.

To learn more and or to contribute to this interesting fundraising campaign, please click on the link: Literally Estonia

Traditional Estonian Dance

24th Tallinn Medieval Days Festival

Starting tomorrow and running for the next four days, Tallinn's old town will transform into a blossoming Hanseatic town once again. From 6 - 9th July 2023 the 24th annual Medieval Days festival will take place in Tallinn where merchants, craftsmen, musicians and dancers will woo onlookers with their skills and wares.

The opening parade will start by the Viru gates tomorrow at 5:30pm and the knights' tournament on Saturday begins at noon. 

Festival goers can learn more about medieval medicine at the Town Hall Pharmacy (Raeapteek), it's the oldest continuously running pharmacy in Europe. Visitors can also explore Tallinn's Town Hall (Tallinna Raekoda), which is Northern Europe's only intact and best-preserved Gothic town hall. 

With so much to see and do, Tallinn is the place to be this weekend!

Estonia's favourite brand remains YouTube

According to a recent study by Kantar Emor, YouTube is the most liked brand in Estonia for the fourth consecutive year. Second place was awarded to Kalev who narrowly beat Swedbank in third place. YouTube firmly maintained its top ranking, it is highly popular among men aged 25-35 years whereas Kalev is preferred by people under the age of 25, and Swedbank is a favourite brand for consumers predominantly aged 50 and over.  

 

 

Looking at the top ten of brands, Estonians value digital and technology brands the most.

Estonians in their element at song and dance celebration

A very special weekend just passed in Estonia.  The 13th Youth Song and Dance Celebration took place in Tallinn and what a magnificent event it was.  Despite the rain on Sunday, the Estonian spirit shone bright for all to see. Estonians may be known for their reserved nature at times but during celebrations such as this, there were so  many happy smiling faces, glowing with happiness that it was clear they were all in their element.  

More than 30,000 performers took part in the procession to the song festival grounds in Tallinn yesterday where over 90,000 spectators gathered to watch. It was a spectacular sight and I regret not going,  but I've already taken a few trips this year. Thank goodness for the internet so I could watch it live in the comfort of my home.

The dance celebration at Kalev stadium.

 

 The beautiful national costume from the different regions of Estonia.

 

Procession to the song festival grounds.

 

To sing as one.

This is what it means to be a nation. 

To preserve language and culture as a community. 

A truly beautiful sight!

First performance of The Youth Dance Festival 'Bridges'

The 13th Estonian Youth Song and Dance Festival commenced last night and what a marvelous sight it was! The dance celebration stirs such strong feelings of unity and national pride. A true expression of the Estonian spirit!  Simple wonderful!