Saaremaa or Bust!

A few weeks ago I had the incredible fortune to travel with Ambassador Levine, PAO Michelle Schohn, and other embassy staff to Saaremaa, the largest of Estonia’s 1500 islands. I had already heard on numerous occasions how Saaremaa was the most beautiful of Estonia’s 15 counties, so it was really no wonder why I jumped at the opportunity to go.

Leaving at 7:15am sharp meant it was still pretty much pitch black outside – signs of the coming winter. But the streets were alive with cars on their morning commutes to work. It was dark, rainy, and windy pretty much the entire time – which meant the ferry ride was rough. I’ve head Estonia’s ferries have come a long way in the past decade or so, but boy was I impressed! There was food service even though the ride was a mere 20 minutes long, it was clean and spacious, and the decks offered large viewing areas from which you could gaze out at the sea. It wasn’t an awesome day to be on the deck though – the ferry was literally bouncing up and down in the water and things were falling over inside – it’s really a good thing I don’t get seasick!  But before we knew it, it was over and we were pulling into Saaremaa.

I think what struck me first was the contrast between the now bare trees and the still green fields. They were exactly the same green color of crayon I used to draw grass with as a child. Soon enough the verdant Estonian landscape gave way to the small city of Kuressaare, the largest on the island. Since back home we don’t have many old, charming buildings like here in Estonia, I really had to marvel at the colorful, small buildings. I later learned that Saaremaa does not have a single traffic light on the island! Unless you counted the harbor, which everyone seemed eager not to.

Ambassador Levine in Kuressaare Libaray's American Corner

Our first stop in Kuressaare was the Kuressaare Library where we were given a tour of our American Space there as well as the rest of the library. I was impressed with their resource pool and hope that the new addition of a video conferencing camera which we brought for them will allow students and visitors alike to engage with American instructors, college representatives, etc.

Students in Saaremaa drew pictures of pumpkins and ghosts in celebration of Halloween.

After lunch at this fantastic Italian restaurant down the street with the library director and her colleague, we returned to the library for the Ambassador’s talk with a group of high school students in Kuressaare. The Ambassador spoke on a wide range of U.S. domestic and foreign policy issues such as NATO, Iran, and Syria. The students asked insightful questions at the end, and the Ambassador was pretty impressed with their English skills.

Many students were eager to ask the Ambassador questions during his speech.

After checking into the hotel, we met with the county governor and his colleagues. After meeting and drinking coffee (in my case tea), we headed out for Luksusjaht – a yacht building company on Saaremaa. I didn’t really know what to expect, but it was pretty incredible! We got to walk through the different processes of yacht making – from the design phase all the way to the showroom. They say you learn something new every day and I think my time in the yacht factory is a perfect example. For example, I learned they create Styrofoam models of a yacht to see if the design is feasible. That was probably the most Styrofoam I have ever seen in one place!

Look at the size of that yacht!

Luksusjaht creates everything from motor boats to 80-foot long luxury yachts. They currently have an 80-foot one in production, as well as a 53 foot yacht. We learned that their record is making four 53-ft yachts in one year! That’s three months for each one! I was also quite impressed with how many women work at the factory as well. When we made it to the showroom part, I got to actually step foot in a yacht! (Probably the only time I will ever find myself on board a luxury yacht). It was pretty incredible with its two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a pretty spacious deck. I also learned while there that of all the yachts they have sold only one is still in Estonia.

Posing by the beautiful sky.

After the tour of Luksusjaht as we were walking to the restaurant where we would be eating dinner with the governor, I mention how warm it was outside. Apparently you don’t say that in Estonia – if you say it’s warm, it will cool off considerably in a very short time span. And it did – a mere 2 hours later when we walked back to the hotel, it felt 10 degrees colder!

Dinner was incredible – I got to taste some traditional Estonian food, which was delicious. We also got to meet the new mayor of Kuressaare and heard about his remarkable bike trips across Asia and Europe. We heard stories about biking through Iran and about his trip to North Korea, of all places! It was a delightful and interesting evening of conversation.

The next morning after a good night’s rest we headed back to the county government building to meet with the governor and other staff. We were given a briefing on Saare County’s major economic sectors and various flagship businesses. We learned that although Saaremaa is a common tourist destination in Estonia, tourism was not a major contributor to the county’s economy. The three top industries were food processing, construction, and small craft industries. One such small craft is boat building – like Luksusjaht. We discussed ways Saare County might be able to boost tourism to contribute more to the county’s economy and also learned about many limitations. For example, even though the ferry system is quite reliable, it is the only consistent way to get onto the island. There are not many flights servicing Saaremaa and direct flights from places like Sweden, Finland, and Latvia are even harder to come by.

Ambassador Levine with Saaremaa County Governor Kaido Kaasik

Our last visit of the trip was to the Kuressaare Castle. It was incredible! It has never been severely damaged or destroyed. I also noted the interesting fact that the castle has never been taken by force – it reminded me of the Aleppo Citadel where I have been on numerous occasions that has also never been taken by force. I loved that the castle still has a functioning moat; I was tempted to ask if there were alligators or crocodiles in it.

Kuressare Castle

Even though Kuressaare Castle is a pretty tiny castle, it was still by no means small. There were loads of rooms and we didn’t make it to all of them. I think it’s safe to say we were all impressed by the large historical artifact collection the castle lays claim to. The coats of arms in particular stood out. The view of the Baltic from the defense watch towers was simply stunning, especially on a sunny day.

Ambassador Levine, Governor Kaasik, and Exhibition Manager Salumäe on defense watch tower.

All my experiences in Saaremaa only reinforced my view that Estonia is essentially the hidden gem of the Baltic. There is so much life, so much beauty, and so much history that I will be happy if I can take in even a fraction of what Estonia has to offer.

Blog post by PAS Intern Ayesha Hamza

Photos by Social Media Assistant, U.S. Embassy Tallinn