Battle of the Baltic States - September 2-4th, 2021

The Baltic States

Our hero and his lovely companion briefly beset themselves upon all 3 Baltic States, spending one meagre day in each country. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are kind of the same in terms of physical geography, size of each country, number of inhabitants and development but they differ in terms of language spoken, religion, ethnic make-up and history. Before giving you some facts, please understand that Gym is fascinated by these kinds of things so please bear with us. This is from the CIA factbook, with some of Gym's commentary:

• there are 2.7 M Lithuanians, 1.8 M Latvians and 1.2 M Estonians;
• while each country has has some Russian ethnicity in the population, Lithuania has the least number of ethnic Russians while in the others, Russians are 25% of the population. There are as many Poles as Russians in Lithuania at 6% each. There are far less Russian speakers in Lithuania than in the other two countries;
•  Lithuanians are 77% Roman Catholic. Estonia is 54% agnostic and 16% Orthodox. Latvia is the most diverse with 36% Lutheran, 19% Catholic and 19% Orthodox. These stark differences  bely the geographic placement of thee country and the historical circumstances that occurred;
• all three countries have negative growth rates. The populations are skewed towards the middle-aged  and seniors, with the median age of about 44 in each country. They all have high percentages of elderly people. The fertility rates are less than 2 children per mother. Young people are leaving the country for better jobs elsewhere in the European Union and they are not coming back; 
• GDP spent on healthcare is about. 6.5% in each country. In Canada we spend 11%; and,
• GDP per capita is higher in Lithuania and Estonia at about $36,000. Latvia is poorest at $30,000.

These countries were visited from south to north beginning with Lithuania and finishing in Estonia. The comparison is a little uneven because we visited the capitals of Latvia and Estonia and only the third largest city in Lithuania. Notwithstanding, all three cities were important port cities for their countries.

Klaipeda, Lithuania

There were a couple of things that set this stop apart from the subsequent visits to Latvia and Estonia. The first was that Klaipeda was not a capital and it did not have the fancy government buildings, operas and theatres that Riga and Tallinn did. Gym and his lovely bride also spent less time touring the city itself. They went to an Amber factory and more importantly an Amber Factory Outlet. Gym learned that Amber is a compelling substance. Not only is Amber fashionable these days but there are regenerative and curative reasons for attaching some Amber to your body. Gym was impressed enough to try and find something that went with his wardrobe but sadly failed. Then he was told that if you "flavor" vodka with Amber bits for 24-48 hours before you consume it, you can turn back the clock. So, Gym is bringing back two sacks of Amber gravel.

When our intrepid wanderers finally left the shop they went on a walk about the old city center and a drive through the suburbs. The city centre was mostly rebuilt after WW2 but the cobblestone seemed legitimately original. The old City Hall was impressive, as was the quirky local art, which includes a bronze cat, a mouse and a mermaid lounging on a park bench. The suburbs have mostly erased the soviet-style apartment blocks and are green and modern.

Most of the tour of Klaipeda was spent in this Factory/Store

A boatload of Amber

This guy is cutting Amber into various sizes for jewelry

It comes in a wide spectrum of colours

Some finished product, none went with Gym's outfits.

Beautiful dining ware

a pricey picture frame

After we got out of the amber shop we came to this 
central square where Adolph Hitler spoke to the Lithuanian people 
at the beginning of WW2.

This is the Klaipeda City Hall from across the Dane River

The Meridianas permanently stationed on the Dane
not far from City Hall

A bronze sculpture of a cat sporting a moustache and a weird tail.
You must rub each ear and the tail to get good luck and you 
can see that many people have done so.

A bronze of a mermaid lounging on a park bench.

A bronze of a mouse on a street corner. It is the 
smallest public art you will ever see.

A bronze dog on the pier.

Leaving the river and entering the Baltic you can see a beautiful beach.
The water is a little cold though.
 

Riga, Latvia

Although Latvia is the poorest Baltic State you are immediately impressed by the ornate architecture that abounds, as well as the outstanding guilds and churches in the old town center.  The tour began with some time spent exploring just about all of the facades of Alberta Street (named after Bishop Albert who founded Latvia). Here there are several Art Nouveau facades by Mikhail Eisenstein. They were built around 1901. 

Then Gym, Mrs. Gym and the small group followed the guide on a walking tour of the old town. There are a dozen beautiful churches and three ornate buildings constructed by medieval guilds there. Many spacious squares are a main feature of the old town and in the narrow alleys and tunnels that connect them, there are cool little cafes, bars and shops. A couple of segments of the old town wall can still be seen. 

Although Lithuania is bigger and more wealthy than its neighbor to the north, Latvia seemed to be richer in the architecture that Riga has retained or in some cases, reconstructed after WW2. 

A facade of Mikhail Eisenstein on Alberta Street

Another Eisenstein Art Nouveau example

These facades are the most iconic sites in Riga

Our guide Anna passionately describes the detail

This scene is on many postcards

House of the Blackheads was built centuries ago for the
Brotherhood of the Blackheads, a guild of merchants, shipowners and foreigners.
It was completely destroyed in WW2 but rebuilt in 1999 by a wealthy banker and 5000
locals who donated a few euros each. It is a museum.

Riga City Hall

Riga claims to be the site of the first decorated
Christmas tree in 1510

Colourful scene from the old town

St. John's Lutheran Church

From a Grimm's Fairy Tale this bronze depict's
the rooster which is on the cat's back, which is on the dog's back, which is
on the Donkey's back. Rub the donkey's nose for good luck.

We 

Some of the oldest surviving parts of old town

Here Anna the guide is standing in front of a beer garden
that is built under a portion of the old city wall

In Livu Square the flower beds look like waves to remind all that
it is built on the site where the Riga River used to flow.

The Freedom Monument

Artwork hanging inside the courtyard of a
building on Dome Square

Gym tipped these guys who opened with the Star Spangled banner 
but when they noticed my Team Canada hat, they started playing O Canada

The photographer kind of screwed this up. 
The green building, the yellow one and the recessed white one 
are the 'three brothers', the oldest buildings in Riga.
The picture should be centered on the yellow building so you can see the entire green one.

St. Jacob's Cathedral

Pope Francis has been here

The President's Palace

Vansu Bridge was near where the Marina was docked

Tallinn, Estonia

Our adventurers begin their guided tour in the suburbs of Tallinn. The first stop was at the palace built for the Russian Czar, Peter the Great. It is a Renaissance-style structure with a massive Italian-style garden in the back. The beds were laid out in distinct patterns and shapes.

Then a short walk up the hill, behind the garden, brought the tour to the palace of the President of Estonia. We stopped at the gates and by chance witnessed Madam President of Finland come out of a breakfast meeting in the palace and drive away in a motorcade. A few minutes later, Madam President of Estonia left the palace via the back driveway.  It was an exciting way to start the day.

Estonia was the only former soviet country that seemed to retain some of the soviet-style architecture. It wasn't really evident on the same scale in Latvia or Lithuania. After returning to the Mercedes mini-bus the tour wound deeper in to the suburbs where there are many concrete apartment blocks from the soviet era. Although these structures are ugly, they were built in groups of multi-story blocks that were surrounded by lush forrest. The green space made the rather boring architecture more pleasing to the eye.

Not far away was the ruins of St. Bridget's Convent in Pirita district. It is hauntingly beautiful. In operation from 1436 until 1577, when Ivan the Terrible and a bunch of his soldiers, came over from Russia, sacked it and burned.it down, leaving only the outer walls. It was never rebuilt. Not far from the convent is Tallinn Song Festival Grounds. It was built for the 1980 Moscow Olympics and today is used for concerts. ELO, Duran Duran and even Celine Dion have played there.

The guide that day, ended with a walking tour of the old town. Gym found this to be the most charming of all the historic city-centers visited on the trip to that point. It has a very fairytale-like feel to it, with much of the original outer walls, gates, narrow alleys and squares somehow still intact, after the many conflicts of the past thousand years.  

Gym and his dear wife concluded with "special coffees" in the central square where there is a great Christmas market in the fall. Then our heros tipped the guide and hiked back through the winding streets to the port.

Estonian Parliament

Tall Hermann Tower 

The Baroque palace of Peter the Great who died before 
it was completed. It's a museum today

the Italian-style garden in the back

A statue of Poseidon 

The President of Finland leaves a meeting with the
President of Estonia

Then the President of Estonia leaves out the back gate

Estonian girls play tennis on a nice day in September

Tallinn Song Festival Grounds, built for the 1980 Olympics

Gustav Ernesaks statue stands overlooking the amphitheater. 
He was an Estonian composer and choir conductor

The front of the ruins of St. Bridget's Abbey

Inside the abbey church, from the alter towards the front wall

a church hallway

The Viru Hotel, another vestige of the soviet era. Gym's sister has 
been to thee museum in the base of the building which is 
full of KGB listening devices taken from the rooms

Flower stalls in front of the main entrance to the Old City

From inside thee old city looking back at the gate towers

On the right is the old city wall which is quite high and has
museums built into it.

standing on a narrow cobblestone street, looking down 
into a shop in the basement

Town Hall Square where Gym and Mrs. Gym had a 'special coffee'

Our guide Roosi and the boss

In summary, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia each have distinct identities. Although they share some history, they also have their own unique backgrounds. Each one was spawned in the 3rd and 4th Centuries A.D. Most recently, prior to the 1990s, all three of these countries were part of the U.S.S.R. Since the 1990's they all have shaken the communist yoke and have become independent countries and members of the European Union. In 2021, it is difficult to see remnants of the soviet regime in these places but some 20-45% of the population still speak Russian. 

All three countries were cool. Gym's favorite was Estonia.