Day 36 - A Day of Silliness

Today we started off at Argo’s place, just chilling in the morning, waiting for the girls to get up. Once they were up, we were off!! Firstly we headed into Antsla to get some phone credit and to visit the post office for one of Argo’s sisters. When we arrived to the post office, we saw that we couldn’t get in, it was closed. We read the door with the opening times and it was meant to be open, then there was another note which read something long the lines of “gone on holidays for 2 weeks, be back later” like what the hell! Could you imagine if this happened in Australia, it is something just not conceivable! There would be big problems, and this just wouldn’t happen. Mum and I had a giggle at this idea “sorry, gone away”. Insane. As we started to drive out of Antsla, Argo stopped at a shop and when he came back to the car he had bought a big punnet of Estonian raspberries. They were incredibly delicious and there was so much of them! They were so sweet and Jasmin and I almost ate the entire big punnet.

​We then arrived at Sangaste where we went to a manor house. We met with Argo’s sister and her kids. As soon as we arrived the kids started. They were insane just screaming, running and having the best time. I really liked watching them and seeing the joy in their faces as they were just connecting with each other and being themselves. It was really something special. We walked around the gardens looking at all the beautiful plants the Count of the manor had collected from all over the world and planted here to see if they would grow. There was an old Oak Tree that had been here for over 300 years. It looked incredible and still with new growth, it was incredible. The grounds were just kept so well and stunning, I could really see myself living there. When we were inside, there were some wonderful stories of the Count that lived here. He became famous because he started to cultivate wheat rye and by the time he finished he had made a generation of it that did not die, to withstand all the strong weather conditions, as well as making some really good Vodka. This Manor house was kept beautifully and really honoured this family and the contributions they had made. The rooms were grand and really a good representation of how they might have lived back in the day.

​After we looked at the Manor House, we went to this interactive experience, where we could play with many old inventions and somewhat see what it was like living in the period they did. It was still on the grounds of the Manor House but in a different area. We spent about 15 minutes looking for the kids and Argo as they had run off at some point. After a while, Rainer, Mum and I decided to just go in. Once we were inside, we could hear them and we wondered how they got in without a ticket. Argo said they were like feral country kids and ran into the exit when someone came out, and he had to follow them. Once we met up with them, I saw them riding this bull thing and so they asked me to operate it for a bit. I may have low key encouraged two of them to get on it at the same time, and then sit backwards, to see if they could hold on. We had a lot of fun with that, spent about 30mins there. Then I saw some dress ups! They put on some clothes, including Vanaema Argo, and started to do a little performance for us. It was hilarious and something very memorable. They were riding horses, playing into their roles and having the best time. We were laughing so much and it felt good to experience that kind of joy through the eyes of the kids, I really enjoyed it. There were so many fun interactive things there, showing how inventions were made, including the phone, electricity, some weird exercise machine and a range of other things. Once we finished there we had some lunch. that was another adventure, they were very focused on food being fair shares, I guess Danae and I were the same back in the day.

​We then headed to a lake. It was such a beautiful lake and it wasn’t super cold. What strikes me as being different, but I was very aware of it, is how they just get changed, no shame in being naked here and it doesn’t matter. When I had to get changed, I guess I took the same mindset and did just behind the car. Granted, there was no one around, but still, this was very different for me. I am glad I did it. When we went down to the lake Mum finally went in. she was not sure if she should or not but I told her she would probably regret it if she did not go in the lake at least once while we were here. There is something about swimming in a lake that is really Estonian and not something we can just do back home in Australia. It is something really special, and not to mention it was our shower for the day.

After this we headed back to Argo’s Talu and had a small rest, then they all came over! We had a beautiful dinner outside in the middle of the Talu at a long table. The boys were cooking lamb burgers, which they used on the national farm café day a few weeks earlier. I don’t usually like lamb but this was really good. We sat out there for a while and Argo’s mum and sister kept giving mum wine and Vana Tallinn. I think it was easier for me to say that I don’t drink, at this point, which is somewhat true now. After dinner, we went to light the fire they intended to do for Jaanipäev (midsummer) but it was to dry to do it in June. It was a big fire and looked spectacular. It was lit with a small bit of paper and a small fire, no assistance like we do back home. There was apparently some asbestos roofing in the fire and when the flames hit it, it was banging, a bit like fire works. Argo tried to tell me he had put gun powder in there. When I was sitting there, having conversations or sitting quietly I was noticing how everyone was doing their own thing, and it didn’t matter. Mum, Argo and I were sitting and talking about the war, history and Russians, his sisters were making marshmallows with the kids and picking berries and his mum was wondering around doing a range of things. It was beautiful to see how they could all just do their own thing and what they felt rather than just sitting down at the table. There is so much freedom here in doing what you feel like doing, especially in this context, and no one really cares or minds what you do.

​It was a really lovely day and I enjoyed being part of Argo’s family for a short period of time. They were so welcoming, warm and kind towards us and really did look after us. I am so grateful we had this little experience in our holiday, even though there was no shower or proper toilet.
Until tomorrow
Marissa xx