New Thing #22 – Visit two new countries in 24 hours

The 52 New Things project goes international this week  for the first time, creating havoc in no less than two different countries and two capital cities in the space of 24 hours. Obviously, given my base in the original seat of the empire and with all of Europe at my disposal, there was little need to travel far. After some quick research and the odd virtual pin in a map, a decision had been made. Watch out Finland and Estonia, 52 New Things was on its way with a new camcorder and mischief on its mind.

Seen on an ad for a jazz club

One three hour and a fairly tedious EasyJet flight later and I landed in Helsinki along with two friends, Tim and Mark. The airport was clean, shiny and almost completely deserted, something that it shared with the city centre. It was Thursday night, granted, but it was staggeringly quiet compared to London. The streets were deserted, the shops closed but due to its proximity to the Arctic Circle it was practically daylight, even at 11pm. Not only was this eerily confusing, but it also played havoc with body clocks and general mental stability. Stumbling out from a bar at 3am to be confronted with bright sunshine and empty streets is a bit like being in a bad Armageddon film, only without the ability to freely loot shopping centres and watch bad American actresses die in implausible ways.

Helsinki's White Cathedral

Helsinki aesthetically was a little underwhelming, a city of mixed architectures and old trams. It had clearly absorbed some Russian culture and blended it with the typical Scandinavian penchant for effortlessly slick design and functionality. We wandered around looking at the impressive Helsingin Tuomiokirkko (White Cathedral) and the bustling little port which seemed to house the only real signs of life. But undermining all of our attempts to enjoy the city was the constant, morale-shattering, wallet-busting prices. Beers cost €6, or around £5 for three quarters of a pint. A main meal could easily top €20 (£18) while a 15 minute taxi ride from the airport set the three of us back over €60. These astonishing prices not only served to empty our wallets worryingly quickly, but also undermined what in most other respects was a perfectly nice city with some absolutely lovely people.

Having rinsed the best part of a month’s wages on 2 meals and 5 beers in 12 hours, we decided to leave Helsinki and caught a ferry for the 90 minute ride to the Estonian capital Tallinn. We soon discovered that the majority of our fellow passengers were Finns escaping for the weekend to stock on cheap vodka and even cheaper cigarettes. I liked the sound of that…

Tallinn's old town. Almost as pretty as Croydon

We arrived in Tallinn in the pouring rain, 14 hours after touching down in Helsinki. New Thing 22 completed, we concentrated on exploring the city and meeting some locals. A remarkably pretty city, the centre of Tallinn is based around the medieval walled old town. How it survived so well after years of occupation by everyone from the Swedes to the Germans to the Russians is a miracle but by and large the city remains intact. The Russian influence, which was present as recently as 1991 when Estonia gained independence from the Soviets, is still rife and vacationing Russians were everywhere. Sadly, so were the British stag parties. My heart sank when we bumped into our first rugby team dressed as blonde bimbos complete with short skirts and boob tubes but  everyone seemed well behaved and mostly respectful, with the locals welcoming the tourism.

Estonian lady singers. Watch out Cheryl Cole

We spent 3 days and 2 nights in Tallinn in total, enjoying the scenery, history and culture. And, if I’m honest, the cheap beer and delicious food. At a far more respectable £2.20 a pint and with a vast array of domestic beers to choose from, we were spoilt for choice. We had also timed our visit perfectly to coincide with the city’s cultural festival and so were treated to displays of traditional Estonian cooking, singing and archery, all of which looked a lot like English cooking, singing and archery if I’m honest, just in garishly-coloured clothing.

Much like in Finland, the people were the standout feature of the country. Eager to help, polite to the last and with almost perfect English, the Estonians were some of the warmest and most welcoming people I have met. They were fascinated by the 52 New Things project, even when we drunkenly made them say the name to camera (video to follow shortly), and some even made suggestions for new things to try (sadly they were mostly suggestions by intoxicated soldiers in bars and almost all were along the lines of “sexy time with preetie laydees”). And I would be remiss not to mention that as well as being flawlessly polite, the Estonian women were incredibly beautiful. I am sure the men were as well but I didn’t look at them as much.

Drunk soldiers and chauvinistic gawking aside, I was genuinely impressed with Estonia and its people. Having been under everything from Swedish to communist rule for thousands of years, the country had finally got its freedom and was clearly incredibly proud of itself. Everyone was fiercely patriotic yet cheered on the England team as they battled the US in their first World Cup match. People didn’t laugh at our attempts to speak Estonian or even Russian, patiently coaching us through the basics of the language. And even when we’d fall out of one of the many bars in the early hours, confused by the daylight at 3am and even more confused by the Estonian love of fried pigs ears, the people we met were open, fun and apparently delighted by us (or so we thought). I cannot recommend enough visiting the country for yourself. Just avoid the fried pigs ears. And the drunk soldiers.

After a weary trip back to Finland and a cheeky bonus new thing of Finnish street food (three types of fried fish) it was time to head home. Mentally exhausted by the lack of night time, poorer than I’ve been since my student days, and with a stinking hangover fuelled by Estonian vodka, I should have been miserable. But the excitement of two new countries, two new cities and the experience of meeting some of the nicest people on my travels left me feeling exhilerated, uplifted and optimistic.

Everything, in fact, that I’d wanted from this project.

(Video to follow shortly)