Hiiumaa: A land for forest nymphs, fairies, and cyclists

If I could ever imagine a place that might be filled with small magical nymphs or fairies flitting about, I think that place would be Hiiumaa, a small island north of Estonia on the Baltic Sea. The last ten days I spend cycling through the woods listening to the sounds of singing birds, wind whipping through the tops of trees, and the occasional mosquito honing in on its next target.

The map
The itinerary

Day 1-2
Place: Tartu - Pärnu
Means of transport: Bus
Weather: Pretty rainy
Mood of vacationers: Excitement undampened

We are rained out and resort to kicking off our vacation by bus and head to the seaside resort town of Pärnu. While there, we stay with a friend's parents and are able to do some exploring of the town and even take in some of the flicks associated with the international film festival taking place there.

Day 3
Place: Pärnu - Virtsu - Muhu (over 110 km)
Means of transport: Bicycle, ferry
Weather: Cloudy and cool but without any raindrops
Mood of vacationers: Thrilled to be biking finally





Finally, we had a clear day, so we took off from the city to the bike trail going up the coast towards the port to the islands. Although we had intentions of making more pit stops, the weather looked a bit threatening and we were feeling energetic, so we kept on. This was our longest day of biking, but it felt good. Quiet forest roads with only one patch of nasty construction. When we rolled into Virtsu and the ferry was waiting, we decided to make our way to the island of Muhu for the evening. There, we lucked out and were able to stay at a rustic horse farm in a stable-like room with good company and really scrumptious home-made and home-grown grub.

Day 4
Place: Muhu - Orissaare
Means of transport: Bike
Weather: Pouring cats and dogs and other small animals
Mood of vacationers: A bit damp



We left the lovely horse farm to make it to the larger island of Saaremaa for the day with hopes the weather would improve; however, in a short distance less than 30 kilometers and a little more than an hour of biking, we were soaked and looking for refuge. We ducked into the tiny town of Orissare and found a dry place at a school-converted-hostel and spent the day reading books at a cozy cafe with fireplace. Brrr. I wasn't sure if it really was summer or not and wasn't too convinced a summer biking trip in Estonia was a brilliant idea anymore.

Day 5
Place: Orissaare - Emmaste - Haapsalu
Means of trasnport: Bike, boat, Uli's parents' rental car, boat
Weather: Brilliant blue skies in the morning later turning to dark clouds and rain
Mood of vacationers: Much like the weather



We got an early and excited start to our day thanks to the gorgeous blue skies and bright morning sun. The first ten kilometers were gorgeous. Spirits raised, we took pictures of the coast and began to enjoy the settling in of silence and the feeling of vacation. Of course, the promised day was a bit too good to be true! Uli's bike lost a pedal that resisted repair by duct tape, so he pedaled one-footed to the port where we caught a boat to Hiiumaa. His parents, also vacationing in Estonia, met us at the port and whisked us away as it began to rain to the bigger mainland town of Haapsalu. Barely making the ferry, we were happy to be dry and on the way to fixing the bike.

Day 6
Place: Haapsalu
Mode of transport: Foot
Weather: Sunny - Cloudy - Rainy
Mood of vacationers: Relaxed and happy



We stayed an extra day in Haapsalu with Uli's parents and fixed the bike in a snap in the morning. We enjoyed the beautiful coastal town and were even treated to an afternoon at a spa hotel and a brass concert on the promenade in the evening. After the rest and beautiful day, we were rejuvenated and ready to hit the road once again.

*I am reminded of my grandmother when I add the tidbit that there was excellent blueberry pie in a cute coffee shop downtown!

Day 7
Place: Haapsalu - Kärdla - Luidja
Mode of transport: Bike, ferry
Weather: Windy and cool
Mood of vacationers: Content (except for those grumpy moments when cycling against the wind)



We took off early in the morning to put our vacation back on track. We enjoyed a nice day of cycling, complete with a great pit-stop in the northern coastal town of Hiiumaa, Kärdla for a nice lunch and finishing at Hiiumaa's most beautiful beach in Luidja. We were lucky enough to find accommodation in a house meant for mothers and their young children (a kind of mother-baby camp) as it was the only room in the vicinity and we were pooped from a long, windy day of cycling. We finished our day with a sunny beach picnic and looked forward to a couple of days of rest.

Day 8
Place: Luidja - Kõpu - Ristna - Luidja
Mode of transport: Bike
Weather: Cloudy but nice
Mood of vacationers: Relaxed, happy, and satiated after forest blueberry eating







We took off in the morning to see the farthest point west on the island. Complete with wild blueberries and strawberries growing in the forest, an old lighthouse built on the highest point of the island (68 meters), gusty coastal wind and waters, and lovely forest paths, we had one of our best days of cycling and vacation exploring this remote area of the island. In the evening, we returned to a barbecue complete with three two-year olds and their parents, a couple of cats, a bottle of wine, dozens of mosquitoes eating Uli, and lovely dinner of sausages and fresh salad.

Day 9
Place: Luidja - Emmaste - Käina - Suuremõisa
Mode of transport: Bike
Weather: Mostly sunny!
Mood of vacationers: Downright õnnelik :)



What we thought would be a longer day of cycling turned out to be a piece of cake and we arrived in Käina early hoping to visit the sea or do some swimming. After searching for a sea inlet, we were disappointed and decided to instead head to our cottage accommodation in nearby Suuremõisa for a relaxed evening of strolling about the area, picnicking, and reading. Allika, the place where we stayed for two nights, was a gorgeous Estonian country home restored and decorated traditionally and surrounded by lush garden, rose bushes, and flowers.

Day 10
Place: Suuremõisa - Kassari - Suuremõisa
Mode of transport: Bicycle
Weather: Gorgeous, cool but sunny
Mood of vacationers: Completely relaxed



We took a day trip to the southernmost point of the island where it was rumored there was good swimming. Highlights did not include swimming (it was a bit too cold!) but rather a 3 km stretch of the island jutting out into the sea where you can walk and practice skipping stones.

Day 11
Place: Suuremõisa - Haapsalu - Tallinn - Tartu
Mode of transport: Bike, ferry, bike, bus, bike, train
Weather: Sunny
Mood of vacationers: Relaxed but a bit melancholic the trip was already over



Time to head back to Tartu to take care of some final details before going to the U.S. We headed off on an ambitious day of travel all the way back home to Tartu with memories of the quiet forested seaside in Hiiumaa. A great vacation.

The summary
Phenomenal trip with great memories. Check it out for yourself in the photo gallery below!

2007-07-09 to 2007-07-18 Jenn Uli Estonia (Hiiumaa) bike trip

Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam...

On my way back to the place where skies are blue and the deer and the antelope play and taking off in less than two days for some Wyoming summer vacation, and I can hardly contain my excitement (that's why I share it here!).

Quatsch!

I have been missing in action the last month or so, and so I thought it was due time to catch y’all up on my whereabouts and doings.

The second half of June was spent in an enchanting town of fountains and springs in Western Germany, Aachen. My experiences there were full of lush green countryside, happy family and friends and neighbors eager to teach me the fine subtleties of the German language (most frequently uttered word in the environments where I spent my time: Quatsch! or Nonsense!), and the end of an arduous doctoral masterpiece and the many festivities associated with its finale. I met a lot of new people, went to a ballroom dancing tournament, visited a fantastic exhibit of the photorealist American painter Chuck Close, got more than my fill of cool rainy days (aha! There’s a relationship between the greenery and precipitation!), meandered through a wonderful city and enjoyed its fountains, churches, main square, Starbucks, colossal book stores, and other secrets.

From 2007-06 Aachen

As a cultural aside, it was really interesting to note some of the ceremonies associated with finishing doctoral work in German universities. One such celebratory custom is one I would like to see adopted elsewhere: the doctor hat. When PhD students finish the grueling task of their degree, they are presented a handmade hat from their colleagues which includes personal, academic, professional, and whimsical notes about the time they spent studying together. I include Uli’s hat here as an example. His hat included a lego home (used as a model demonstrator for the eHome systems of his doctoral work in informatics – click here for more details and here for a video about his work), sandals in a cotton-bed of snow as he wears them year-round, a Linux penguin, an mp3 player of his laugh (quite distinctive, you’d say if you ever met him), and other anecdotes and inside jokes from his studies. A representative makes a presentation of the hat with an explanation for colleagues, family, and friends and the reception. To me, it seems a special memento, personal honor, and meaningful testament to the time spent together in community learning and studying for the last time (at least in a degree program). A very nice sending off.

The last weeks have been rather busy as well. I finished up at the University of Tartu for the year and moved all of my accumulated mass of possessions to another location for summer storage until I return in the fall. A good week was spent scurrying around dealing with landlords, immigration, healthcare, and other fun bureaucratic quatsch.

The last ten days have been total paradise biking on the Estonian coast and islands. More on that adventure in the next post (pictures forthcoming).