The title says it all.
Yes, I'm finally home now, and found some time to quickly skim over the last days of my time abroad, as well as vent about some challenges that I managed to face on the way home.
The official program ended on the 19th, and we all said goodbye that night over a round of beers at our favorite pub, Hell Hunt, in Tallinn. 3 of my peers were off on a 6AM flight the very next morning, whereas me and the 2 others were staying for an extra week.
Since my parents weren't arriving until the 21st, me and Adam, one of the two staying longer, decided to sign up for a day trip to Lahemaa Natl Park through Tallinn Traveler Tours on the 20th. Tallinn Traveler Tours is a part of Like a Local Guide, so we figured we might as well test out their company since we just completed a project for them.
So, we woke up early that morning, and took off with a group of 6 elderly Brits and out tour guide (who also happened to be the woman we did our project for!) to Lahemaa. It was a blast. I learned a ton about the history of Estonia, mainly Soviet history, and we even got to eat "Europe's best smoked salmon," as the cook claims, on the side of the sea in an ex-captian school. After indulging on the heavenly homemade food, we hiked the shoreline, then hopped back in the van to continue the tour. The tour ended with a 4km hike through a bog. What a day.
Me and Adam grabbed some dinner after that, and hit the hay. Next morning, we woke up and caught a ferry to Helsinki, where I would be meeting my parents later that day, and he would be meeting up with a friend. We split ways, and I parked it on a park bench for an hour, until I saw the rents wandering through the square, looking for me. We met with hugs, then proceeded on with the week long vacation in Finland, Russia, and finally back to Tallinn.
Long story short, we spent 2 solid days in Helsinki, caught a 6AM train to St. Petersburg, spent 2 nights in Russia, took a train back to Helsinki on the 3rd day, then hopped on a 10PM ferry to Tallinn to end the trip. We spent 2 full days in Tallinn, then got on separate planes home on Saturday morning.
Overall, Helsinki was quiet, since it was Midsummer. This is the time of the year where there is the most amount of daylight, and everyone evacuates the cities of Tallinn and Helsinki to go to their cabins up north. Huh, sounds familiar. We still managed to get around and see lots of things though, my favorite being Nuuksi, a national park just west of Helsinki.
St. Petersburg was....hot and crowded. Personally, I'm not one for crowds or heat, so the days spent in Russia were memorable, but not for my favorite reasons. The city is home to 5 million people, which is 5 times bigger than Estonia. Helllllo, culture shock. It was a sticky, hot 85+ degrees both days, and by the end, I couldn't wait to get back to Tallinn. In the end, I was very glad we went to Russia though, it was truly an experience to say the least.
Once we got off the ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn at midnight on Wednesday morning, we were exhausted. Thursday, we woke up and took a self-guided tour of Tallinn. I showed my parents around Old Town, which was more than familiar territory to me after spending 15 days there. We enjoyed the rest of our time there as well, shopping, exploring and eating good food.
Saturday was the day from hell for me. My plane left 6AM from Tallinn, which was the only flight that wasn't delayed that day. Keep in mind that this was the one day I couldn't have go wrong, since I bought tickets in April to see Trampled by Turtles and Atmosphere in Duluth that very night with some of my good friends from school. I had been looking forward to this night since April.
But of course, I got to Frankfurt, and we were told that the plane we were to take from Frankfurt to Chicago had technical difficulties 20 minutes past our original boarding time. Cool, I thought. I hoped and prayed that I would still be able to catch my flight in Chicago with only a 2 hour layover and customs to go through.
Once we were able to board the plane, we lined up on the runway to take off, and the unthinkable happened. The power went out. Okay...my heart began to race and my stomach dropped. I couldn't miss this concert, I just couldn't, how could this happen to me.
2 and a half hours later, I sat in the same spot, still in Frankfurt. There was zero hope I could catch my flight from Chicago to Minneapolis, and I had no clue what was going to happen once I got to Chicago. I may end up staying the night there, and completely missing the concert and time with my friends. We eventually took off, and I couldn't be more unhappy.
We landed in Chicago almost 9 hours later, right as my plane to Minneapolis was taking off. I was fortunate enough to be in the front of the plane, so I literally grabbed my things and hauled ass off the plane to see if anyone could possibly help me catch a plane to MN that night.
After nervously getting through customs, I got my checked bag and waited in a line to talk to a lady about getting another flight. Once I met with her, my heart took off. This was it. She would tell me if I was able to get home and on to Duluth.
She spent what felt like eternity typing away, not showing any emotion or saying what she was finding out about flights to Minnesota. So naturally I was having a panic attack. A flood of relief spread over me as she printed off a receipt boarding pass, there was a flight leaving at 5 for Minneapolis that I could realistically catch with only an hour and a half to spare. Time to run.
I dropped my bag at the connecting flight station, and took off to get my real boarding pass. Of course, I was told to go to the wrong terminal, and wasn't corrected until the third person I asked. I had to run like a maniac to the right terminal after frantically asking a police officer where to go. Pretty sure I made a fool of myself that day in Chicago, but I had a good reason. I just HAD to get to Duluth that night, and I wasn't about to let this bull crap situation tell me otherwise.
Well, I made it to my gate in time, but guess what. The flight was delayed an hour and a half. Just my luck. At least I had a ticket and a seat on that plane, that's all I was concerned about.
I would be landing in Minneapolis around 8 that night, which put us at arriving in Duluth close to 11. I figured we still may be able to catch the end of the concert, so once I landed in MN, I sprinted through the airport to meet my parents and Camille, my friend from France who is here on an internship.
Camille was able to drive, thank goodness. So I cashed out for an hour after catching up with her, and I later woke up to the lights of Duluth shining bright against the dark sky. I couldn't help but smile. We then parked and met my friends Hayden and Caycie at the gates, where Hayden handed us our tickets and Caycie grabbed my hand after gathering me in the biggest hug, and pulled me and Camille up to the stage.
The rest of the night was magical. The stars shone over the stage in Canal Park, I got numerous hugs from my much missed friends, and sang, danced and laughed the rest of the night away with them. TBT was incredible. I heard from people that they were really fun to watch live, and they were nothing short of inspiring and amazing. It was sure a night to remember, and I couldn't have asked for a better ending to such an intense day. Everything was perfect.
The next morning, we all woke up in our friend's house after crashing on the couches and floor of the living room. We slowly got our stuff together, then met one of my roommates, Abby, for breakfast, then decided to all take a walk in Canal Park before parting separate ways.
After saying goodbye to everyone and getting more hugs, I couldn't help but feel so grateful for such awesome friends I have. I missed them a lot while I was gone, even though it wasn't all that long. And yes, I already miss them and Houghton, but I have a month of summer in MN left before I can get back to them in Houghton.
On the drive back to the cities, I also reflected on what an adventure this past month in Estonia has been. I wouldn't change it for anything, and am also grateful for everyone who made it possible. It means a ton!
Well, thanks for reading! This is the end of this blog, I guess. Back to my original blog for the time being!
Yes, I'm finally home now, and found some time to quickly skim over the last days of my time abroad, as well as vent about some challenges that I managed to face on the way home.
The official program ended on the 19th, and we all said goodbye that night over a round of beers at our favorite pub, Hell Hunt, in Tallinn. 3 of my peers were off on a 6AM flight the very next morning, whereas me and the 2 others were staying for an extra week.
View of Tallinn from the Gulf of Finland
Last night in Tallinn with the group, taken at 11:30PM
Since my parents weren't arriving until the 21st, me and Adam, one of the two staying longer, decided to sign up for a day trip to Lahemaa Natl Park through Tallinn Traveler Tours on the 20th. Tallinn Traveler Tours is a part of Like a Local Guide, so we figured we might as well test out their company since we just completed a project for them.
So, we woke up early that morning, and took off with a group of 6 elderly Brits and out tour guide (who also happened to be the woman we did our project for!) to Lahemaa. It was a blast. I learned a ton about the history of Estonia, mainly Soviet history, and we even got to eat "Europe's best smoked salmon," as the cook claims, on the side of the sea in an ex-captian school. After indulging on the heavenly homemade food, we hiked the shoreline, then hopped back in the van to continue the tour. The tour ended with a 4km hike through a bog. What a day.
Ruins of a Soviet submarine base
Me and Adam grabbed some dinner after that, and hit the hay. Next morning, we woke up and caught a ferry to Helsinki, where I would be meeting my parents later that day, and he would be meeting up with a friend. We split ways, and I parked it on a park bench for an hour, until I saw the rents wandering through the square, looking for me. We met with hugs, then proceeded on with the week long vacation in Finland, Russia, and finally back to Tallinn.
Long story short, we spent 2 solid days in Helsinki, caught a 6AM train to St. Petersburg, spent 2 nights in Russia, took a train back to Helsinki on the 3rd day, then hopped on a 10PM ferry to Tallinn to end the trip. We spent 2 full days in Tallinn, then got on separate planes home on Saturday morning.
Overall, Helsinki was quiet, since it was Midsummer. This is the time of the year where there is the most amount of daylight, and everyone evacuates the cities of Tallinn and Helsinki to go to their cabins up north. Huh, sounds familiar. We still managed to get around and see lots of things though, my favorite being Nuuksi, a national park just west of Helsinki.
St. Petersburg was....hot and crowded. Personally, I'm not one for crowds or heat, so the days spent in Russia were memorable, but not for my favorite reasons. The city is home to 5 million people, which is 5 times bigger than Estonia. Helllllo, culture shock. It was a sticky, hot 85+ degrees both days, and by the end, I couldn't wait to get back to Tallinn. In the end, I was very glad we went to Russia though, it was truly an experience to say the least.
We saw the Hermitage, you can see the line to get in...
Spilled Blood Cathedral
Once we got off the ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn at midnight on Wednesday morning, we were exhausted. Thursday, we woke up and took a self-guided tour of Tallinn. I showed my parents around Old Town, which was more than familiar territory to me after spending 15 days there. We enjoyed the rest of our time there as well, shopping, exploring and eating good food.
Saturday was the day from hell for me. My plane left 6AM from Tallinn, which was the only flight that wasn't delayed that day. Keep in mind that this was the one day I couldn't have go wrong, since I bought tickets in April to see Trampled by Turtles and Atmosphere in Duluth that very night with some of my good friends from school. I had been looking forward to this night since April.
But of course, I got to Frankfurt, and we were told that the plane we were to take from Frankfurt to Chicago had technical difficulties 20 minutes past our original boarding time. Cool, I thought. I hoped and prayed that I would still be able to catch my flight in Chicago with only a 2 hour layover and customs to go through.
Once we were able to board the plane, we lined up on the runway to take off, and the unthinkable happened. The power went out. Okay...my heart began to race and my stomach dropped. I couldn't miss this concert, I just couldn't, how could this happen to me.
2 and a half hours later, I sat in the same spot, still in Frankfurt. There was zero hope I could catch my flight from Chicago to Minneapolis, and I had no clue what was going to happen once I got to Chicago. I may end up staying the night there, and completely missing the concert and time with my friends. We eventually took off, and I couldn't be more unhappy.
We landed in Chicago almost 9 hours later, right as my plane to Minneapolis was taking off. I was fortunate enough to be in the front of the plane, so I literally grabbed my things and hauled ass off the plane to see if anyone could possibly help me catch a plane to MN that night.
After nervously getting through customs, I got my checked bag and waited in a line to talk to a lady about getting another flight. Once I met with her, my heart took off. This was it. She would tell me if I was able to get home and on to Duluth.
She spent what felt like eternity typing away, not showing any emotion or saying what she was finding out about flights to Minnesota. So naturally I was having a panic attack. A flood of relief spread over me as she printed off a receipt boarding pass, there was a flight leaving at 5 for Minneapolis that I could realistically catch with only an hour and a half to spare. Time to run.
I dropped my bag at the connecting flight station, and took off to get my real boarding pass. Of course, I was told to go to the wrong terminal, and wasn't corrected until the third person I asked. I had to run like a maniac to the right terminal after frantically asking a police officer where to go. Pretty sure I made a fool of myself that day in Chicago, but I had a good reason. I just HAD to get to Duluth that night, and I wasn't about to let this bull crap situation tell me otherwise.
Well, I made it to my gate in time, but guess what. The flight was delayed an hour and a half. Just my luck. At least I had a ticket and a seat on that plane, that's all I was concerned about.
I would be landing in Minneapolis around 8 that night, which put us at arriving in Duluth close to 11. I figured we still may be able to catch the end of the concert, so once I landed in MN, I sprinted through the airport to meet my parents and Camille, my friend from France who is here on an internship.
Camille was able to drive, thank goodness. So I cashed out for an hour after catching up with her, and I later woke up to the lights of Duluth shining bright against the dark sky. I couldn't help but smile. We then parked and met my friends Hayden and Caycie at the gates, where Hayden handed us our tickets and Caycie grabbed my hand after gathering me in the biggest hug, and pulled me and Camille up to the stage.
The rest of the night was magical. The stars shone over the stage in Canal Park, I got numerous hugs from my much missed friends, and sang, danced and laughed the rest of the night away with them. TBT was incredible. I heard from people that they were really fun to watch live, and they were nothing short of inspiring and amazing. It was sure a night to remember, and I couldn't have asked for a better ending to such an intense day. Everything was perfect.
The next morning, we all woke up in our friend's house after crashing on the couches and floor of the living room. We slowly got our stuff together, then met one of my roommates, Abby, for breakfast, then decided to all take a walk in Canal Park before parting separate ways.
Mike&Hayden
Camille, Abby and Caycie
After saying goodbye to everyone and getting more hugs, I couldn't help but feel so grateful for such awesome friends I have. I missed them a lot while I was gone, even though it wasn't all that long. And yes, I already miss them and Houghton, but I have a month of summer in MN left before I can get back to them in Houghton.
On the drive back to the cities, I also reflected on what an adventure this past month in Estonia has been. I wouldn't change it for anything, and am also grateful for everyone who made it possible. It means a ton!
Well, thanks for reading! This is the end of this blog, I guess. Back to my original blog for the time being!
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