Let me just start out by saying that my typed blog can in no way truly express the crazy day I had yesterday. I really don't think I have laughed so much in a long time. Before I tell you of my adventures yesterday, I'll tell you about my weekend. Although it was fun, nothing too special happened. Saturday afternoon Emily, Joanna, and I , all three Americans, went with a Finn named Hanna around the city. She wanted to show us a side we had not seen yet. We walked around this really posh area that had beautiful buildings. Then she took us to the ocean! We walked across this sketchy bridge to an island. It had a beautiful view. It was neat to see parts of the sea frozen. Hanna explained that due to global warming, there is not as much ice on the sea as usual at this time of year. To take a break from the cold and warm up a little, Hanna took us to this sweet restaurant where we chatted over a cup of coffee (or really tea and hot chocolate).
Saturday night there was a 70's party in another building. I think everyone studying abroad this semester was there, ok not really, but it was very packed. The Americans were used to the crowd, but a lot of the Europeans thought it was crazy! I guess they are smart and only have enough people at parties so that everyone can actually breathe.
Sunday morning a couple of us all had brunch together. Obviously groups and clicks have formed since the first week. Many of us really don't like that things have become clicky at times. So, the group I have been hanging out with decided to "bridge the gap" with a group of Belgium girls who are so sweet. They had never had a brunch before, so we tried to show them a proper Sunday brunch. The rest of the day was actually a really frustrating day for me. I hate going to church and getting upset. I think it has only happened once and that was when I was in Mexico. I have been going to this church since I have been here, but for some reason I had problems with Sunday's sermon. I won't go into detail, but he basically said the clever can't love Jesus. Ok that was really summed up, but that was his basic point. There were also these two guys at the service I have never seen before. One man had a briefcase with a large neon cross on it, and the other man had a jacket that read "Don't go to Hell, Love Jesus Christ" on the back.... yea. I mean that's cool if that's your thing, but that is not my thing (not the message of the jacket, but the way it is presented). So yea, Joanna and I left in a semi-foul mood. True we may have laughed just a little at the two guys, which lightened the mood a little.
Tuesday (yesterday) was a great day and a great adventure. Abbie, my Scottish friend, and I went to Tallinn, Estonia!!!! We rode the ferry at 8 am to arrive in Tallinn around 10:00. I just want to point out that I had to get up around 6:30 so we could be there by 7:30... that is so early! The sun wasn't even out yet! We did get to see the sunrise on the ferry though, which was beautiful. We also saw ice everywhere on the water, which was not so beautiful and slightly frightening, but a little cool at the same time. Abbie and I ended up sleeping away most of the ferry ride, which of course made time go by quickly. I also want to point out that because we went on the week day, we only paid 14 Euros for a round trip on the ferry to Tallinn... that's so cheap to travel to another country!
Once we arrived in Tallinn we headed straight for the old city, which is very touristy but very cute. Considering we woke up before the sun rose, we were rather hungry. Luckily we found this cute coffee shop called, Cafe Rose. I got a ham and cheese pastry and Abbie got a mini pizza, which was just enough to hold us over until lunch. Once we were fuelled, it was time to explore!
One of our friends lended us his tour book of Tallinn which had a nice walking guided tour. The old city was filled with cute building, cobble stone streets, castles, towers, neat stairwells, amazing churches, lots of themed restaurants which were weird, and a lot of souvenir shops. It was so neat though! It reminded me so much of a Disney cartoon come to life. I kept expecting Bell to pop out of some cottage window and start singing about books and being different. We took way too many pictures, many awkwardly by ourselves since there were only two of us. We also have so many of the same pictures - me in front of the neat door, then Abbie in front of the neat door... creative, huh?
We ended up eating lunch, or rather, we feasted, at Pepperjack. Yes, not a very Estonian name, but it was so good. Abbie and I had these huge booths that looked a little like a throne all to your selves complete with candlelight and a stained-glass window. The food in Helsinki, along with everything else, is so expensive. Although these prices weren't as cheap as wanted, it was still about the half the price of Helsinki's restaurants. This was actually our first time to properly eat out since arriving in Helsinki (Hesburger doesn't count). Between the two of us we had two starters, two mains obviously, and crème brulee. For our main we both ordered steak and potatoes with a mushroom sauce. As for our starters we ordered some "garlic bread" which was not garlic bread but still very tasty and some fried dumplings, both complete with of course a side dish of sour cream. Everything was amazing, and we were stuffed when we left.
The ferry ride home I think was actually the best part of the whole trip, well the last 2 hours of it at least. The whole time we had been camping out at the top level where it was quite so we could sleep. Little did we know that two floors down there was a ton of entertainment at the bar, just waiting for us. After we woke up from our nap on the way home, we decided to check out the bar. We heard the live music, and we thought it would be entertaining to maybe watch some drunk people... boy were we right.
The live music was Steve Webb, a man well past his twenties, thirties, maybe even forties who was still living his dream with died long black hair, and a gig on the ferry to Tallinn where he could rock out. When he took a short break, Abbie and I asked him where he was from since we were debating his accent. Turns out he grew up Whales, lived 20 years in California, and even lived in Arkansas for a little bit. Of course I told him I was from Memphis. He actually is on some Memphis online music station called All Memphis Music.com (He of course wrote it down for me). He was really nice. He even dedicated a Johnny Cash song to me. Abbie was a little jealous that I got a dedication and she didn't.
While we were talking to Steve, this drunk Finnish girl came up because she wanted her song to be played, some Finnish some that said "Good morning America". Neither Steve, Abbie, or I knew the song, so of course she sung it for us... Steve still didn't know it. When he finally slipped away from her, she put all her attention on us, lucky us. She could not get over why we were in Finland of all places. So she asked us a million questions, all the time apologizing for being so nosey. Finally I just ended the conversation by saying it was great talking to her. We thought that was the end of her, but we were wrong.
So after my Johnny Cash dedication, our drunk Finnish friend also got one. Sadly it was about some girl who walked home lonely because she was with someone but she forgot or something, I'm really not sure. All I know is I'm glad that wasn't my song. However, our awesome Finnish friend yelled when she got her dedication. Naturally I turned towards her to do a "YEA!" kind of motion. As soon as I did I regretted it, and of course Abbie wasn't too happy. She just said I had to stop doing that people because it gets me in trouble. Well, of course she came back over and started talking again about her dedication. Then she called me Yankee!!!! I was like, OH nonono, I am not a Yankee. Of course she didn't know about the whole North thing, she just thought she had offended me, which she hadn't. Well somehow we finally got her away as well.
So at this point we are laughing at all the drunk people who all wanted to dance but had some trouble. Then, Steve Webb started playing the John Lennon's "Imagine". This older drunk man apparently loved this song. He was kind of dancing and pointing to Steve Webb all the while singing and walking-seems dangerous, I know. Well of course I said, "That guy likes the Beetles, Wew!"... Abbie immediately said, "Oh No! You have got to stop doing that... the wew, why did you wew?" The reason she said all this was because the older gentlemen started leaning closer, and closer.... I started getting creped out. So I finally turned my head right when he went in for the kiss!!! Don't worry, he only kissed me jacket. Although Abbie was jealous about the song dedication, she wasn't too jealous about the kiss.
The adventure on the ferry did not stop there. When we were standing in line to leave the ferry, we had this mean older lady behind us. I think we were moving much to slow for here, even though there was no where to go. She kept pushing us out of the way. I had my hand on the railing, but not for long, because she pushed my hand off of it! We have decided a lot of the Finns just don't know how to form a line. We kept having people skip us and push and shove the whole time. I think when Abbie finally stood still and didn't move for a complete minute, the lady got the point. I of course just thought the whole thing was so funny.
So that was our Tallinn trip. It was a lot of fun, but the ferry at the end was the most entertaining by far! Above are pictures of me with the sunrise (had to have proof that I was up that early), some pictures from Tallinn, and a picture from the 70's party.
Saturday night there was a 70's party in another building. I think everyone studying abroad this semester was there, ok not really, but it was very packed. The Americans were used to the crowd, but a lot of the Europeans thought it was crazy! I guess they are smart and only have enough people at parties so that everyone can actually breathe.
Sunday morning a couple of us all had brunch together. Obviously groups and clicks have formed since the first week. Many of us really don't like that things have become clicky at times. So, the group I have been hanging out with decided to "bridge the gap" with a group of Belgium girls who are so sweet. They had never had a brunch before, so we tried to show them a proper Sunday brunch. The rest of the day was actually a really frustrating day for me. I hate going to church and getting upset. I think it has only happened once and that was when I was in Mexico. I have been going to this church since I have been here, but for some reason I had problems with Sunday's sermon. I won't go into detail, but he basically said the clever can't love Jesus. Ok that was really summed up, but that was his basic point. There were also these two guys at the service I have never seen before. One man had a briefcase with a large neon cross on it, and the other man had a jacket that read "Don't go to Hell, Love Jesus Christ" on the back.... yea. I mean that's cool if that's your thing, but that is not my thing (not the message of the jacket, but the way it is presented). So yea, Joanna and I left in a semi-foul mood. True we may have laughed just a little at the two guys, which lightened the mood a little.
Tuesday (yesterday) was a great day and a great adventure. Abbie, my Scottish friend, and I went to Tallinn, Estonia!!!! We rode the ferry at 8 am to arrive in Tallinn around 10:00. I just want to point out that I had to get up around 6:30 so we could be there by 7:30... that is so early! The sun wasn't even out yet! We did get to see the sunrise on the ferry though, which was beautiful. We also saw ice everywhere on the water, which was not so beautiful and slightly frightening, but a little cool at the same time. Abbie and I ended up sleeping away most of the ferry ride, which of course made time go by quickly. I also want to point out that because we went on the week day, we only paid 14 Euros for a round trip on the ferry to Tallinn... that's so cheap to travel to another country!
Once we arrived in Tallinn we headed straight for the old city, which is very touristy but very cute. Considering we woke up before the sun rose, we were rather hungry. Luckily we found this cute coffee shop called, Cafe Rose. I got a ham and cheese pastry and Abbie got a mini pizza, which was just enough to hold us over until lunch. Once we were fuelled, it was time to explore!
One of our friends lended us his tour book of Tallinn which had a nice walking guided tour. The old city was filled with cute building, cobble stone streets, castles, towers, neat stairwells, amazing churches, lots of themed restaurants which were weird, and a lot of souvenir shops. It was so neat though! It reminded me so much of a Disney cartoon come to life. I kept expecting Bell to pop out of some cottage window and start singing about books and being different. We took way too many pictures, many awkwardly by ourselves since there were only two of us. We also have so many of the same pictures - me in front of the neat door, then Abbie in front of the neat door... creative, huh?
We ended up eating lunch, or rather, we feasted, at Pepperjack. Yes, not a very Estonian name, but it was so good. Abbie and I had these huge booths that looked a little like a throne all to your selves complete with candlelight and a stained-glass window. The food in Helsinki, along with everything else, is so expensive. Although these prices weren't as cheap as wanted, it was still about the half the price of Helsinki's restaurants. This was actually our first time to properly eat out since arriving in Helsinki (Hesburger doesn't count). Between the two of us we had two starters, two mains obviously, and crème brulee. For our main we both ordered steak and potatoes with a mushroom sauce. As for our starters we ordered some "garlic bread" which was not garlic bread but still very tasty and some fried dumplings, both complete with of course a side dish of sour cream. Everything was amazing, and we were stuffed when we left.
The ferry ride home I think was actually the best part of the whole trip, well the last 2 hours of it at least. The whole time we had been camping out at the top level where it was quite so we could sleep. Little did we know that two floors down there was a ton of entertainment at the bar, just waiting for us. After we woke up from our nap on the way home, we decided to check out the bar. We heard the live music, and we thought it would be entertaining to maybe watch some drunk people... boy were we right.
The live music was Steve Webb, a man well past his twenties, thirties, maybe even forties who was still living his dream with died long black hair, and a gig on the ferry to Tallinn where he could rock out. When he took a short break, Abbie and I asked him where he was from since we were debating his accent. Turns out he grew up Whales, lived 20 years in California, and even lived in Arkansas for a little bit. Of course I told him I was from Memphis. He actually is on some Memphis online music station called All Memphis Music.com (He of course wrote it down for me). He was really nice. He even dedicated a Johnny Cash song to me. Abbie was a little jealous that I got a dedication and she didn't.
While we were talking to Steve, this drunk Finnish girl came up because she wanted her song to be played, some Finnish some that said "Good morning America". Neither Steve, Abbie, or I knew the song, so of course she sung it for us... Steve still didn't know it. When he finally slipped away from her, she put all her attention on us, lucky us. She could not get over why we were in Finland of all places. So she asked us a million questions, all the time apologizing for being so nosey. Finally I just ended the conversation by saying it was great talking to her. We thought that was the end of her, but we were wrong.
So after my Johnny Cash dedication, our drunk Finnish friend also got one. Sadly it was about some girl who walked home lonely because she was with someone but she forgot or something, I'm really not sure. All I know is I'm glad that wasn't my song. However, our awesome Finnish friend yelled when she got her dedication. Naturally I turned towards her to do a "YEA!" kind of motion. As soon as I did I regretted it, and of course Abbie wasn't too happy. She just said I had to stop doing that people because it gets me in trouble. Well, of course she came back over and started talking again about her dedication. Then she called me Yankee!!!! I was like, OH nonono, I am not a Yankee. Of course she didn't know about the whole North thing, she just thought she had offended me, which she hadn't. Well somehow we finally got her away as well.
So at this point we are laughing at all the drunk people who all wanted to dance but had some trouble. Then, Steve Webb started playing the John Lennon's "Imagine". This older drunk man apparently loved this song. He was kind of dancing and pointing to Steve Webb all the while singing and walking-seems dangerous, I know. Well of course I said, "That guy likes the Beetles, Wew!"... Abbie immediately said, "Oh No! You have got to stop doing that... the wew, why did you wew?" The reason she said all this was because the older gentlemen started leaning closer, and closer.... I started getting creped out. So I finally turned my head right when he went in for the kiss!!! Don't worry, he only kissed me jacket. Although Abbie was jealous about the song dedication, she wasn't too jealous about the kiss.
The adventure on the ferry did not stop there. When we were standing in line to leave the ferry, we had this mean older lady behind us. I think we were moving much to slow for here, even though there was no where to go. She kept pushing us out of the way. I had my hand on the railing, but not for long, because she pushed my hand off of it! We have decided a lot of the Finns just don't know how to form a line. We kept having people skip us and push and shove the whole time. I think when Abbie finally stood still and didn't move for a complete minute, the lady got the point. I of course just thought the whole thing was so funny.
So that was our Tallinn trip. It was a lot of fun, but the ferry at the end was the most entertaining by far! Above are pictures of me with the sunrise (had to have proof that I was up that early), some pictures from Tallinn, and a picture from the 70's party.
Courtney,
ReplyDeleteI love your blog!
I am getting such a kick out of reading it.
What a difference with you in Finland and Cybil in Kenya! I don't think your mom and I could have predicted these adventures years ago.
Stay warm and I am praying for your computor to get back up soon.
Carol
Memphis-70 degrees yesterday-38 today!