Tuesday, May 20th, Helsinki, Finland

Today, we flew back from Inari to Helsinki to hve a goodbye dinner with the six of us who chose this additional leg of the OAT Baltic Capitals adventure.  Most of the day was the kind of travel you'd expect getting back from a location where one or two flights a day show up.  We used the time to reminisce about the great experiences we've had.  Tomorrow, we catch separate flights headed west for 17 hours to home.  

With  a ten-hour time change, we should be arriving back in Santa Rosa tomorrow evening around seven..

Monday, May 19th, Inari, Finland

Greetings!

That's not a shot of either of us on a sleddog run, but today we visited a woman who eight years ago answered a friend's request to take in some unwanted huskies on her newly-purchased large property.  "It was a lifechanger for me, and things just grew from there."  She, her 6 year old son, and 42 sleddogs greeted us this afternoon for a lesson in multi-species cooperation and support.

One of a number of mid-range sleddog experience companies, with some sporting over a hundred dogs, she explained the details of raising and training the huskies (who all don't look like the typical "Huskie") for forming teams of experienced and inexperienced pairs up to twenty meters ahed of the sleigh.  Going out daily on 20-40 kilometer runs, and longer for races, we were fascinated how this rugged and dedicated mother maintains this lifestyle.

It isn't for the money, as her kennels, feed, and workhours consume every dollar and  minute of the long days so far to the north.  But tourists are coming to kayak, ski, hunt, fish, and ride sleddogs in a winter where the snow and ice are deep, and the reindeer abound.

Earlier in the day, we visited the Siida Sami Museum, chosen European Museum of the Year in 2024.  It was not a far walk from our hotel, and the collection of repatriated objects from throughout Finland is spectacular.  Their use of multi-media, translations in may languages on every display, and story-telling presentations can't be beat.

To see the photos taken today, click on Monday, May 19th, Inari, Finland.

Sunday, May 18th, Ineri, Finland

Greetings!

Our second to last day on this adventure finds us being driven to around the Evolo/Ineri Lake area, to visit a reindeer sledding farm, where the farm manager shared insights on how he has cared and trained his fourteen castrated male reindeer to pull thoswe who want the memory of riding in Santa's sleigh.  His talents in many other ways, including woodcarving and caretaking a magnificent Sami-built storehouse, delighted us all. 

At mid-day, we returned to our hotel for lunch, rested, and prepared for a long walk with our tour guide to look for birds, trees, and the Ineri River.  Unfortunately, my camera overheated and you'll just have to imagine how tranquil and nurturing the snow-covered pine forests of Northern Finland really are.

To see all of the few photos taken today, click on Sunday, May 18th, Ineri, Finland.

Saturday May 17th, Inari, Finland

Greetings!

Today, we got up very early, were driven to the Helsinki Airport, waited in line for an hour in a very long line.  There was a FinnAir strike yesterday, and everyone who couldn't fly then wanted to fly today.  Checking in our bags meant queing up through 15 long twisting lines to get through security.

We flew to Evolo, a village 1124 kilometers north of Helsinki, in Lapland, Finland.  We had lunch at the home of a Sami woman who is the great great grandaughter of the Village founder, and who is working hard to preserve the language and culture of the Sami.  In the afternoon, we drove to Inari, our last stay in Finland, where we'll be staying until we leave for Helsinki on Tuesday.

There are just six of us on this post-tour, and we've become good friends.  This last week, as the spring begins to appear, and we travel north to a place where the sun stays up longer and the cold hasn't quite ended, we're so glad we chose to stay together longer than the core OAT trip.  Most of us have been together for three weeks.  

Inari is a beautiful village in a land of iced-lakes, reindeer, and forests.  Tomorrow, we'll visit a museum, a husky farm, and take a long bird walk around one of the local lakes.

If you're wondering what happened to Friday, so am I.  If I can find the photos I took during our visit to Malmgard, a manor established in 1612, and occupied for many generations by the same family, I'll post it.

To see all of rhe photos taken today, click on Saturday, May 17th, Inari, Finland.

 

Friday, May 16th, Helsinki, Finland

Greetings!

Today, we drove into the countryside outside of Helsinki to visit Finland's second oldest town, Porvoo.  Established in 1380, Porvoo has multi-colored wooden houses lining its quaint, cobbled streets.  It is a lovely walkable town, with a church containing a unicorn on one of the pillars near the alter.

Next, we drove to Malmgard Manor for a tour of an aristocratic estate owned by the same family since 1612.  The Creutz family, a line of Swedish nobles, displays its male owner portraits around an enormous ballroom surrounded by bedrooms, libraries, and waiting rooms.  The latest Count guided us through each, and explained that the estate now specializes in organic farming and brewing.  We enjoyed his story of his obligations and challenges in continuing it history.

Later, he provided lunch in the converted milk barn which now holds his bottling operation, and serves as his tasting room for his newest product - apple wine from his own trees.

On the way back to Helsinki, we stopped by the Sibelius Monument, dedicated to the one of Finland's greatest musicians (Jean Sibelius).  The sculpture, a work of abstract art depicting a pipe organ - is an instrument he is not known to have written anything for.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Friday, May 16th, Helsinki, Finland.

Thursday, May 15th, Helsinki, Finland

Greetings!

Today, we left our converted prison hotel, and our local guide (Sofia) took us on a tour of Helsinki.  We boarded a tram out in front of our hotel, and rode it to various spots in the Central City.  Along the way, she pointed out architectural highlights, historically-important influences, and contributions from commercial and political leaders.

One particularly spectacular building was the Oodi Helsinki Central Library.  With space for almost everything the residents of a city could need, we marveled at the many opportunities to learn not usually associated with a library which seemed available inside.  A wide array of equipment and useful tools for craft, music, business development, and personal growth can be accessed.

Taking advantage of a free afternoon, a small group of us decided to take the ferry boat to the Helsinki sea fortress (Suomenlinna).  The weather and wind were beginning to test our layered clothing, and we viewed the harbor's sites from the warmth of the cabin.  

Paulius invited us to have dinner together at the hotel at 6pm, and the conversation in the quiet dining room coverted lots of countries we visited and experiences we have had.  As usual, our bucket list continues to get longer and better planned.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Thursday, May 15th, Helsinki, Finland.

Wednesday, May 14th, Helsinki, Finland

Greetings!

After breakfast this morning, we loaded up our luggage on our tour bus, and drove to the ferry to Helsinki, Finland.  A ten-story passage, with restaurants, shops, gardens, and lounges, it took a couple of hours to take us to the Finnish capital port (and included a lunch).

Pat and I had been to Helsinki in 2007 on one of our first multi-country travels in search of my heritage.  The trip included Norway, but began in Helsinki.  Pat remembers most of the sights we are seeing now, and some of them are coming back to me as she triggers my memory.  One of them is a huge church carved into solid rock.  Only this time, a charge is asked to see it.  We passed, but others took in the full scle of it.

The harbor market was more upscale food vendors than before, and featured far more reindeer offerings.  Nevertheless, we made note of the possibility if we decided to come back to the area in the next two days we're here.

Paulius then took us on an orientation tour of the are on the was to our hotel.  We're staying in a converted prison on a peninsula on the perimeter of the City, and we were able to use our three-day transit card to ride the trolley directly to it. 

Unpacked and rested, we met Paulius in the hotel lobby at 6pm to walk to an excellent Finnish restaurant for dinner. Meatballs, potatoes, and beets with beer and a great cake and ice cream desert were served in a warm, crowded venue.  We spent the evening comparing notess on the many places we all have in common travels.

To see al of the photos taken today, click on Wednesday, May 14th, Helsinki, Finland.

Tuesday, May 13th, Tallinn, Estonia

Greetings!

This morning, we listened to another local professor enlighten us on the recent history of Estonia.  At least he tried to, before our group started grilling him with tough questions on relations with Russia, and the future of the 25 % of the Estonian population which speak Russian and have been given limited citizenship rights.  He was a good sport, however, and seemed to be enjoying being put on the spot concerning a country which loves freedom restricting the rights of a minority.

Next, we walked to the KUMU Art Museum, which featured permanent and temporary collections of Estonian art from the 18th century to the present day.  Robin, our guide at the Museum, was delightful in his enthusiasm and love of helping us understand the arch of art in a country which experiences such changes in its culture and freedom of expression.

Finally, after lunch, we took the tram and walked to the Telliskivi Creative City - a neighborhood where startup businesses and entrepreneurial talent have found low cost rental storefronts.  We also had to taste the gellato ice cream at one of the district's favorite stopping places.

After dinner at a local pizza restaurant, a portion of the group followed Paulius to a local bar to watch the first semi-finals of the 2025 EuroVision Song Contest.  

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Tuesday, May 13th, Tallinn, Estonia

Monday, May 12th, Tallinn, Estonia

Greetings!

Americans should know more about Estonia's history.  Very much like the American revolution, this small country (1.4 million) struggled against external colonial powers (several of them).  Twice, seventy years apart, they gained their freedom.  in 1918, they became an independent country under terms dictated by the end of World War I.  Twenty years later, two colonial powers (Germany and the Soviet Union) decided they should belong to the Soviet Union.  A year later, Germany violated the Treaty, and invaded.  When World War II ended in 1945, the Allied Powers agreed to cede Estonia to the Soviet Union, and it remained there until 1990.  

Estimates of the number of those who were killed by both the Soviets, Germans, and then again by the Soviets during their the 52 years of occupations are unclear, but are probably in the hundreds of thousands.  That they were mostly those whom each side considered a threat to plans to pacify and integrate its people into the occupying culture is clear.  And an enormous number of those who survived endured multi-year round trips to Siberia.

Unlike Lithuania and Latvia, large numbers of Russian soldiers were imported into Estonia during the periods from 1940-41 and 1945-1990.  This made the final push for independence by Estonia very difficult, and continues to complicate peaceful relationships between the two countries, as well as intensifying relations within the country.

During the period from November of 1988 to August of 1991, the people of Estonia established a government against the will of the Soviet Union.  Committees, referendums, elections, and treaties eventually resulted in a coup attempt by Soviet hardliners in August of 1991.  An excellent film (A Singing Revolution) is available on Amazon, with shorter version of the same name on YouTube.

Our walks today through the old town and central portion of Tallinn were wonderful.  A great combination of original and reconstructed buildings from the periods of Estonia's independence exists.  The almost begun spring was in full display, and for the first time we were able to shed some layers of clothing and enjoy the sun.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Monday, May 12th, Tallinn, Estonia.

 

Sunday, May 11th, Tallinn, Estonia

Greetings!

Today, we crossed over from Latvia to Estonia.   It was a long drive, wherein we stopped only for bathroom breaks at gas stations and at the Loosalu Lake Bog.  About 30 miles south of our final destination, Loosalu is the largest in Estonia.  It was a great break from a long drive, with perfect weather and an easy boardwalk.

This bog is the oldest organic landscape in Estonia, reaching in some cases up to 10,000 years.  The first bogs started emerging just after the last ice age.  As the 1km thick glacier ice sheet was melting toward the north pole, the meltwater was collected in depressions.  Plants grew and died within those shallow and oxygen-deprived lakes, and the dead plant material didn't become decomposed but rather created ever-lasting peat/turf, and turned the water acidic.

The shot pictured here is a Labrador Tea, actually a Rhododendron groenlandicum, and this time of the year is the best time to see them.

Just before arriving at our hotel in Tallinn, we stopped at the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds.  We watched a video on the bus titled "The Singing Revolution", which featured a gathering here during the last days of the fight for Estonia's independence from the Soviet Union.  It's well worth watching, and provided us with important history of Estonia's dramatic return to the independent country it had begun in 1918.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Sunday, May 11th, Tallinn, Estonia.

 

Saturday, May 10th, Riga, Latvia

Greetings!

This morning, we visited the Riga Central Market.  Occupying four Zepplin hangers, which were moved from their original locations many miles away to a location more useful for the city's vendors to rent stalls and deliver products each day.

Lessoning number of regular users, both vendors and buyers, has raised the possibility of their use for sporting exhibits.  We asked our guide if it might be basketball, but she was convinced that seating woud be a problem.  Hockey was also an option, but the cost of equipment to keep it cold enough would be huge.

Our "Day in the Life" Tour component with OAT was our visit today to a goat farm near Riga.  Anna and her family hosted our group to share their family's history of an organic goat farm which currently has 80 goats milking 60 liters per day.  Anna told us how her grandparents took their upbringing in Riga, and combined it with risk and determination, to survive since Latvia's independence in 1992.  

We saw a very complete working farm, which not only produces goat milk and cheese, but all of the basic sustenance needed to feed a large extended family.  Currently providing feta cheese to high end restaurant chefs in Riga, Anna is close to completing her doctorate in animal science, and she and her mother have been invited to participate in major international conferences to educate the goating community.

In an example of a small world, Anna's mother told us that on one of her trips to America, she had visited the Redwood Hill Goat Farm, and Armstrong Redwood State Reserve.  Pat and I mentioned to her that we know those spots in Sonoma County well.

After leaving the farm, we traveled to sites which memorialized the imprisonment, deportation, and murder of tens of thousands of Jews in Latvia during the period from 1941 to 1944.  Our final stop let us view several mass graves in a forest wherein evidence was found in the 1960's that 25,000 Jews had been buried.  

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Saturday, May 10th, Riga, Latvia. 

 

Friday, May 9th, Riga, Latvia

 

Greetings!

After a morning talk from a local professor on the recent history of Latvia titled "Latvia Now-Separating from Soviet Inheritance", we were guided through the neighborhood to the Old Town.  With over 300 buildings designed in the period from 1890 to 1918 in the Arte Nouveau style, we found plenty to examine on the way to the three largest squares in the area.

We passed by the Freedom Monument just at the time of its changing of the guard, and spotted the remaining flowers left there by yesterday's celebration of the victory over Nazism in Europe during World War II.  We were going to visit a Nazi prison today, but decided it made better sense to wait until tomorrow to avoid the crowds who might be using it as a protest against the war in Ukraine.  

The several town squares in Riga have plenty of restaurants, grocery stores, tourist shopping outlets, and bars.  in the shadows of four story apartment buildings with beautiful facades, bustling people navigate cobblestone streets.

We skipped lunch today, and headed back to the hotel after our Old Town tour.  It's colder than usual in the Baltics at this time of the year, and our wollen hats and layered clothing just wasn't doing enough to keep down the chill.  Back in the room, pat read on her IPad, and I worked on this journal post.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Friday, May 9th, Riga, Latvia.

Thursday, May 8th, Riga, Latvia

Greetings!

Today, we crossed into Latvia.  Before we left Lithuania, however, we visited an underground Russian-made missle silo.  Home to four of the most powerful missles developed by the Soviet Union, it was decommissioned in 1978, and never fired even one of the missles.  We were able to climb down into the severaal levels of the silo, and were guided through each by a local resident.

Powered by huge generators and rooms full of electrical panels, the installation walls contained posters and military documents from the period.  A special section detailed the events and materials from the 1962 Cuban missle crisis.  Videos also provided broadcasts from around the world reporting on the daily events.

Just before leaving LIthuania, we visited the Hill of Crosses.  Over 100,000 wooden and metal crosses, of all sizes and purposes, have been placed by citizens on a hill just out of sight from the main highway.  Filling a need to remember every victim of hatred and war, the structure has been a source of pride for those anti-government voices for sixty years.

www.zelp.bio is the website of a farm just inside the Latvian border on which 43 hectares of sea buckthorn is grown and used to produce 20 different products.  Lip balm, hand cream, juices, oils, and many other nutritional and skin care uses are resulting from this couple's hard work and innovation.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Thursday, May 8th, Riga, Latvia.

Wednesday, May 7th, Klaipeda, Lithuania

Greetings!

We took a short ferry ride to a 80 mile long peninsula today known as the Curonian Spit, whose southern half belongs to Russia, and the northern half to Lithuania.  A massive sand dune and UNESCO World Heritage site, it straddles a protected lagoon on one side and the Baltic Sea on the other. 

In the 12th century, the spit was the home of a now nearly extinct Baltic ethnic group (the Curonian-Kusiai) reputedly credited with fierce warrior-like reputations.

Just south of the landing are of the ferry, he spit road leads up to a trail known to locals as the "Hill of Witches".  Forty years ago, dozens of wooden-carved totems were installed depicting figures from legends of mythological figures, including serpents, goblins, and devils. 

Finally, we drove to near where Lithuania and Russia meet for a view of both the Lagoon and the Baltic Sea.  We walked along the Baltic beach looking for washed up amber, before visiting an amber museum and learning how to clean and polish small pieces of the ancient tree resin.  

The Baltic Region contains the largesst deposit of natural amber in the world, dating back approximately 44 million years to when the melting ice caps created the world's largest estuary covering forests of pine in an area the size of Canada.  Currently, storms in the Baltic wash up sunken shards of amber, to be found afterward on the beach.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Wednesday, May 7th, Klaipeda, Lithuania.