2016-06-30

【Aiden in English】

        Estonia is one of those countries that kids at my middle school scratch their heads upon hearing the name. It also may bring curious pronunciations along. Tallinn is its capital city, which is a modern term. Not long ago, the city would've been a little more than a town of peasants, but the revolutions in technology and science have brought about great urbanization to the country, and nearly 40 percent of the country's population lives there. Yet oddly, the most beautiful sight to see is a living museum of spired churches and medieval architectures. 

        The history center or old city makes up most of Tallinn, dominating the culture and lifestyle. It has been deeply influenced by the Teutonic, Danish, Tsardom of Russian, and Soviet regimes. Getting a second house is supposed to be much cheaper than renting an apartment in the center of the old town, since not only are the buildings extremely old, but also the old city center is quite ... small like a birdcage. To start, everything is built on a set layer of cobble. Although it gives off a fancy look, it is really annoying to travel on. Just imagine, you look up to see a church or any sight in particular, and you just so happen to step into a crevasse on the ground. It isn't the best idea to have us walking, but on the other hand, the streets are barely large enough to fit a single car. Unfortunately for some tour bus drivers, certain streets were for living purposes, and parked cars often got in the way. 

        It's ironic that the country of Estonia has been fighting for its freedom for so long against the former USSR and now accepted so many of them into its society. To be fair, there aren't too many fights breaking out like our perfect US society, and most can't be distinguished from one another if you're a tourist. Yet, for the tour guide, it was as easy as reading a book, pointing out races in the restaurant, bus, and streets. It went literally like "Hey, she's Finnish" or "Wow, another Russian waiter". I guess I shouldn't be surprised since mom has the same ability as Chinese ethnic groups. Also, apparently, one out of every five Finnish people in Finland has been to this country, as there is a ferry that runs 3 trios back and forth, each length is fifty miles across the Finland Gulf. Ironically, again, Finland was not an option of escape during the Cold War, as the country was trying to avoid the former USSR's wrath as well. 

        Another weird fact about Estonia was the place for sailing competition during the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympic Games. As the former USSR still held dominance in the country, it wanted to show wealth in weapon power and the money to impress, so the bad treatment of the people had to be temporarily removed. New houses with beautiful outer decorations were constructed before the Olympics, but the insets were quite dull. Nowadays, the city looks about the same as it had, having beautiful streets. Of course, not every house was changed, and people saw the boxed, poor houses residents would usually be treated to. Today, we just look at the former USSR government and laugh at its foolishness. The irony is present again since it is the decorations of the former USSR that really spice up the old city thrill. 

        Estonia is a country that has been only a pawn in a game of chess for so long, and after its independence in 1991, I highly doubt Russia will ever touch Estonian territory ever again. Ironically, that's where we are going next.

【红霞译文】

        在我就学的初中部，但凡听到有人提及某些国家，同学们禁不住搔头挠腮难掩困惑之意，爱沙尼亚便名列其中，连同它的发音无不令人感到高深莫测。首都塔林是近代才开始使用的名称，之前无异于几户人家组成的穷乡僻壤，科学技术革命给它带来了翻天覆地的变化，塔林由此发展成为举国闻名的大都市。爱沙尼亚约有40%的人口居住在这里，然而最摄人心魂的美景却是古城教堂尖塔林立，中世纪老式建筑栉比，一座浑然天成的博物馆活脱脱地展现在我们游人的面前。

        塔林大部分区域都属于历史中心，不仅散发出浓郁的文化气息，而且还保持着传统的生活方式，过去一直深受条顿、丹麦、沙俄和前苏联的影响。想必在古城买栋二手房要比租套公寓划算得多，一来老宅子年头沧桑，二来面积小得……像个鸟笼子。这里什么东西都建筑于鹅卵石之上，虽说马路表面花哨漂亮，但走在上面颇觉吃力，试想一下，如果你光顾得抬头看光景或其它博取眼球的东西，稍有疏忽便踩进石缝之中，后果可想而知。再者道路相当狭窄，路面充其量仅适合一辆汽车通行，这可真让不少旅游大巴司机骑虎难下，尤其穿行私车停靠马路的居民区更是如此。

        对于像爱沙尼亚这样的国家，要想从前苏联那里争取自由简直是天方夜谭，习惯成自然，当地人早已被潜移默化，公平地说，他们用不着花力气去打破常规，美国何尝不是这样。作为游客，你根本看不出来俄国人之间有何区别，但导游却熟谙门道，无论在餐馆里还是马路上，能够准确无误地分辨种族差异，随口道出“嘿，她是芬兰人”或者“呃，又一位俄罗斯服务生”。我想本人没啥好惊奇的，正如妈妈可以轻而易举地区分中国各数同胞一样。导游之所以对芬兰人了如指掌，是因为每五位芬兰人当中就有一位来过爱沙尼亚，要知道两国每天各有三班客轮来回穿梭芬兰湾五十哩路的海域。滑稽的是冷战时期，隔海相望的芬兰并不是爱沙尼亚人摆脱前苏联统治的理想天堂，自身难保的芬兰政府因生怕得罪邻家超级大国而不得不把叛逃者送回本土。

        再讲一段搞笑的插曲：追溯到1980年莫斯科夏季奥运会，当时爱沙尼亚受命于苏联指令承办帆船比赛项目，为了显示军力威武国富民强，塔林市区凡是有碍于政府形象的东西全被临时取缔，赶在开幕之前又加盖了许多简易楼房，虽然城市外表焕然一新，但新老搭配却极不相称。如今，塔林依然保持原有风貌，优雅的街区烘托出传统民居特有的文化氛围，显然苏联当局并没有完全销毁古迹建筑，现在所有火柴盒式丑八怪的简易楼房都是以前面子工程的产物。今天当我们回首苏联自欺欺人的行径禁不住大笑起来，出乎意料地，苏联简易楼房把塔林古风反衬得更加浓厚。

        爱沙尼亚曾作为苏联手中的一个棋子被下了很久很久，直到1991年独立才真正拥有自由。如今，我敢打赌俄罗斯人再也不敢对爱沙尼亚为所欲为。无巧不成书，我们下一个目的地将是俄罗斯……