Together with our Estonian friends, we went for a walk along the trail in Meenikunno bog and forest. It was abominably hot and at times during the bog section I almost regretted ever getting out of the house today. I was quite glad to get into the shade of the forest. Not cool, exactly, but definitely less hot. Plus there is that cool viewing tower there.

For a while there I could enjoy both the walking and the talking. And the blueberries. Unfortunately the last third or so of the trail was full of ants. Anthills everywhere in the forest and ants everywhere on the path, so instead of a leisurely walk we marched straight on, barely talking and rarely stopping, and were relieved to reach the end.

In the afternoon we drove to Värska for lunch and swimming/bathing. I don’t think I’ve ever been there, even though it’s very well known for its mineral waters and healthy mud and whatnot. The café at the sanatorium was so-so; the beach was small and grassy and not at all crowded even on a Saturday.

The water at Kiidjärv the other day was really warm; even I went in without wincing and took a long swim. Pühajärv yesterday was much larger and much chillier. Today’s swim was in a small bay of Estonia’s largest lake, and felt almost as warm as a bathtub.

We continue to visit our favourite places in Estonia. Today: Otepää adventure park.

Adrian, having grown in both height and weight since last year, could join us on the ziplines for the first time. Bot Adrian and I were almost (but not 100%) sure that he would love them. He voiced his hesitation; I kept quiet about mine and told him that of course he would love it. Luckily, he did.

We feel quite at home here by now, having visited the park several times in the past. It’s almost becoming a bit boring, for me at least – the kids are more fond of traditions whereas I want more novelty. Perhaps we can find other such parks somewhere in Europe.

Taevaskoda, “Heaven’s hall”.

A layer of the sandstone cliff had collapsed some time in the past year, like it was sloughing off a layer of old skin. All the names and dates scratched into the cliff face were gone, as well as the lichens and other assorted things growing on it. The cliff looked unusually fresh and bright.

Of course people couldn’t just let it stay that way; new tags had already been carved into the sandstone.

Falling turned the sandstone into sand. Ordinary, yet not ordinary: pink, beige, pale yellow.

Before visiting Taevaskoda we stopped for a cooling swim at Kiidjärv. The kids mostly splashed; I chased a runaway beach ball across half the lake, as the wind drove it this way and that.

While Ingrid is playing computer games with her Estonian friends, Adrian and I walked to a playground. It was hot and we didn’t stay very long.

We’re in Tartu.

During our past summer trips, we’ve been staying in various short-term rental apartments. (I can recall six different ones at least, ranging from just about liveable to really nice.) This summer we got the chance to stay at my father’s apartment since he spends all summer at his cottage in the countryside anyway.

His apartment is literally across the street from my childhood home. From his balcony, I can look straight at the windows of the kitchen and children’s room where I lived for twelve years. Ground floor, far left, just above the two parked cars. Two rooms, kitchen, small bathroom and toilet. Estonian apartments all tend to have a toilet separate from the bathroom, both tiny, rather than one more spacious room for both.

We moved there when I was about two and a half, and I lived there until I was fifteen. One of my very earliest memories is from a visit to that building when it was nearly ready for moving in. I remember the concrete stairs in front of the building not being quite ready yet, or maybe there was a pit in front of them – I couldn’t climb up and had to be lifted up.

Much of it still looks the same on the outside, even though it’s probably all modern on the inside. The old leaky wooden windows have been replaced with modern aluminium ones. I remember the way our window frames were winter-proofed with masking tape.

There used to be grass and bushes in front of our windows instead of that little parking lot. There’s plenty more parking space just outside this photo that also used to be green back then, when not many people in the building had cars.

The great thing about staying here (apart from being free of charge!) is that one of my closest childhood friends still lives in that building. So the kids can just walk across the street to hang out with their friends, with no need for me to drive them anywhere.

On our way by ferry from Stockholm to Tallinn.

Packing for the traditional summer trip to Estonia.

The good thing about going there by car and ferry is that we can pack everything we might conceivably need, with no concern for weight or volume. Rubber boots, board games, a whole crate of Legos, and so forth.

We ran into a couple of Adrian’s friends while catching Pokemons – all wearing the summer “uniform”.

The drought and heat wave continue, and the pool gets more use than ever. So do the pool toys. The inflatable crocodile seems to have reached its end of life: suddenly it started leaking from various seams. One by one, I’ve tied off three of its four legs to try and stop the leaks. Enough is enough; today we bought a new croc. I got called “best mum ever” when I also bought a giant clownfish. I guess I don’t buy them toys very often!