Estonia Facts and Trivia
I have abundant facts and trivia about Estonia for you that I thought was interesting. First, the facts:
- Skype, the free internet calling software was primarily invented here;
- Ferries come and go all day from Tallinn to Helsinki. The fastest ones, either the STAR or SUPERSTAR, take two hours and cost approximately $37-45 dollars one way. Check Tallink for the ferry schedule between Tallinn and Stockholm. The ships depart Tallinn at 6:00 p.m. and arrive in Stockholm at 9:00 a.m. the next day. They only sail between May through August and have different class staterooms;
- There is a plaque in front of every historical building in English and Estonian with detailed information;
- Tallinn's population is 1.4 million;
- Estonians speak a Finno-Ugric language that was totally beyond our comprehension;
- Tallinn Ulemiste Airport has direct flights from all large European capitals, served 1.8 million passengers in 2008 and is only 10 minutes from the center of Tallinn;
- Tallinn is midway between St. Petersburg and Stockholm;
- Estonia was one of Europe's liveliest points of trade in the Middle Ages;
- Tallinn has the world's oldest continually operating pharmacy first mentioned in 1422;
- St. Olafs church was the tallest building in the world in the Middle Ages, first mentioned in 1267;
- Tallinn's old town was first mentioned in 1154 and is northern Europe's best preserved medieval town;
- Estonia has 1,521 islands and approximately 1,450 lakes;
And, now the trivia:
- It is common for all Estonians to go to the sauna on Saturday night;
- The Top 10 souvenirs according to the Estonian Tourist Bureau are - something from a blacksmith, a bottle of vana-Tallinn liqueur, hand knitted sweater, something from linen, original Estonian art, a book about Estonia, ceramic model of an old town landmark, something from crystal, something from juniper and a bottle of vodka;
- If you don't eat in a restaurant, they will not let you use their toilets;
- Are you up for a "porkuni" barrel race where two people sit in a large wooden vat and use kayak paddles?;
- Credit cards are accepted everywhere and don't even get me started about the plethora of ATM's;
- Estonia became part of the EU in 2004 and loans were given freely to the relatively unsophisticated people who set about buying houses, apartments and cars with a fervor. Two years later, it was a rude awakening to discover they had to pay the loans back. Especially when you don't have the money. Sounds familiar...;
- The Baltic Sea is composed of melted glaciers, ice water and is brackish. Not many species of fish can survive since it isn't salty enough;
- Estonia's closest ties are to Finland. The country was seized by the Swedes in 1561 and held for 150 years until the Russians took over. There is a strong Russian feel to all of the Baltic States although they certainly don't like to hear that;
- Prices were much higher then we expected; and
- Estonian cuisine is really a mixture of Russian and German with potatoes, sauerkraut, pork, beef and mutton.
Enough?...
Traveling to Acapulco? Click here to search cheap flights on direct routes with Mexicana.
Comments
about the ferries:
when the sea is free of ice, even faster ships can take you from Tallinn to Helsinki with 1 hr 30 min (not Tallink, but Linda Line: www.lindaline.fi)
Tallinn's population is about 400 000, but population of Estonia is about 1,3 million (yes, Estonia does not equal Tallinn, we have some other places too)
Thanks so much for taking the time to both visit Travels With Sheila and commenting. I appreciate your input since it's just impossible to learn even one-quarter about a country when you visit. Especially, when tourist agencies and guides give conflicting information. Thanks again and Happy New Year.
Posted by: Siim | January 14, 2010 10:16 AM