Newspaper

Local newspaper, Koillissanomat, published our journey diary.
It´s written by our 6th graders.

Some more images of the art workshop:

At Kuremäe:   the holy oak.

Walking three times round the oak makes you healthy:

In the Kuremäe Pühtitsa nonnery:

Kalevipoeg´s heart resting in the private garden at Kuremäe:

And this should be Kalevipoeg´s children´s bike!

Because the weather was cold and rainy, we couldn´t have a picnic by Lake Nõmmejärv as planned. So we had to go back to school and have our lunch there.
After lunch we spend time together dancing and playing:

And in the gym: playing dodge ball and basketball.

And then there was already time for our farewell evening!!!

We offered traditional Estonian food for dinner.

Professor Seppo Zetterberg who was just visiting Ida- Viru County was so kind and found time visiting us.

  Meeting Mr Zetterberg was  interesting and educating for both Estonians and Finns and
offered also humorous moments. Thank you very much for being with us, Seppo!

And then there was time for last words  and presents! We as hosts had the big joy meeting our Taivalkoski partners! It was nice to see how the kids made friends - step by step. Now everyone has the contacts to keep in touch - let´s hope those relations endure!

The project products made by the Taivalkoski students and teachers and given to the Illuka students:

Koirien Kalevala - a very suitable present, we appreciate it very much, thank you, Taivalkoski!!!

The happy end of the day - while we were playing and dancing, the weather decided to change at last and the sun came out.. So the Finnish students could spend their last evening there on the stadium.

Friday, 22nd April

 8.30 am the suitcases were packed, breakfast finished and the last hugs and greetings shared. Time to leave for Tallinn, time to start the long trip home. The days have passed so rapidly!

 We believe we could make it - offer a different school week out of the routine; give and get some more knowledge about our folklore and traditions, widen our mental outlook, find new friends and make the old friendship stronger; learn new words in Estonian, Finnish and English.

Thank you all for a very good company!

Friday April 22nd

On Friday it was time for us Finns to start our journey home. We traveled to Tallinn and then by boat to Helsinki.

See you next time!

Thursday April 21st, Farewell event

So, it was our last evening in Illuka. It was time for a farewell event. First Seppo Zetterberg, a Finnish friend,  told us about Estonian and Finnish history. It was very interesting. He also told us how Elias Lönnrot had visited Estonia before collecting Kalevala.

After that we gave and got some presents and ate tasty Estonian traditional food. What a wonderful week, thank you everyone!

Thursday April 21st afternoon

After the trip to Kuremäe we spend a nice afternoon in Illuka´s school. We played together.

Thursday April 21st, Kuremäe

In the morning we went to Illuka´s Kunnanhallitus and took an "official group picture".After Kunnanhallitus we visited in a nunnery in Kuremäe.

In Kuremäe we saw the holy oak and heard a legend how Kalevpoeg lost his legs and now those legs are under this holy oak. We also saw Kalevpoegs´s heart (of stone) and his grave.

This day we followed the Kalevipoeg´s footprints in Southern Estonia. Our first stop was in Vooremaa by Lake Saadjärv in the Ice Age Centre. Here we learned how the landscape of Estonia was created by the glaciers of that time- the drumlins (voored in Estonian) what local people called Kalevipoeg ´s plough furrows.

In Tartu  we met Kalevipoeg himself - actually his monument which commemorates the soldiers died in the Estonian Liberty War 1918-1920. Kalevipoeg is  a symbol of bravery, freedom and hope for the better future.

Next we found the Faehlmann´s house in Ülikooli street. Robert Faehlmann, one of the main figures of the national awakening period in Estonia in the 19th century. Elias Lönnrot was Faehlmann´s friend. He lived and worked in Faehlmann´s house for a half of a year.

On our way home we made a stop in Kääpa and walked in the park of the Kalevipoeg´s museum.

Everyone tried to climb up the Kalevipoeg´s chair!

Another stop - this time at Lake Peipsi, in the town Mustvee. This is the place where Kalevipoeg wanted to build a town and walked through the lake to Russia to fetch planks and stones.

And so the long day ended. Tomorrow we are travelling and hiking round the Illuka Community.