A rural day gave the chance to see in real life some of the buildings we’d seen in the Open Air Museum. Large wooden barn type houses together with the Soviet era housing for workers on the rural collectivs. The latter now are flats of varying degrees of rejuvenation.
It’s twinned with the Fens and Broads – flat. Gorgeous flowers adorn the fields and any gaps in the forested areas. Sild is a bridge, which explains what the name of the Swansea based Estonian folk band meant. We crossed on what was the largest reinforced concrete bridge in Europe when built in 1904. Not satisfied with that, they surfaced it with cobbles, a delight to shake over.
Parnu (population 9k) is where Estonians come for the beach on the week it is sunny. The housing and buildings along the main street to the sea seems to have developed in the 1910s, then reallocated (incl to the Red Army) when annexed by the USSR. Then given back to the family of the original owners (good records) in the 90s, then sold on again.
Elephants are a good way to keep the area pedestrianised.
Tomorrow last bit on the coast for a while….
Travelling reflections 