Ööpäike (Night-sun).

Nii. Legs are feeling it. Lungs are breathing it.

The full swing of a Scandinavian summer is more than in the wings. Actually as of .. yesterday (Pööripäev), it's officially here. And as of tomorrow, the waking up at 4-something to 10-something sunlight starts its recline. Much work is at hand as well, though we've been striving (together with Tuuliki.. I haven't started speaking in monarch-style. Yet.) to cycle and paddle it into the background for as long of periods as possible.

I take back all talk of possibly selling Лайка (Laika, my bike) in favour of a sportier, forward-leaning springed and multi-geared version. No more. Although she's as old as the Soviet space program (most likely), she's also as eye-raisingly durable as it (though appearance and funding may show otherwise!). Yesterday she definitely proved herself.. adventure details are as follows.

I own a telk (tent) (as anyone reading my posts on Pärnu a year ago may remember) and a magamiskott (sleeping bag). Both bought on the same day from very discount locations. Both are flipping awesome as well. Worked out getting off of work for a few concurrent days with Tuuliki, and we decided to head out into the woods. Well, bog.

Tuuliki's cousin had a lõpetamine pidu (graduation party) somewhere outside of Kohila, so we figured a drop in on that and spin out for some camping would be fantastic. Oh, and it was. Took the train to Kohila (costs as much as a bus ticket if you buy it from the driver, i.e. more expensive than a regular bus ticket.. I resolve to make more use of trains soon) and biked out from there. Passed up buying beer until we made it closer to the campsite, which we later found out to be a misfortune, as the closest store on that end of the trip closes at 4pm on weekends. Makes sense, right? No one puts their party shoes on after that time on a Saturday.. Anyways, found out the place while evading wild dogs and enjoyed some kuklid (sort of like biscuits) and grilled sausages while playing the relative-get-together-game for a while. Got my ass kicked in a basketball shoot-out by her drunk uncle, who then started calling himself Jordan non-stop. I put smiles on faces, that's me. After escaping from the madness (and after enjoying a fucking a m a z i n g kringel made by her vanaema), we rode once more past the dogs ready to break-dance our legs into chew toys and headed for Järlepa järv (lake). After long length, found our way past the mõis (local mansion once belonging to the Baltic German feudal lords), locked up the bikes together for the night and ran cheering into the bog. Words drop out of usefulness in describing this part of the journey.. absolutely brilliant, it became. Found a dry spot (more like the dry spot) about half-way around, facing the sunset (a phrase used somewhat lightly, as it doesn't exactly get dark again for more than 5 minutes until late July), with the door a meter at most from the waves lapping silently into moss. Made Tuuliki a pro with her first bear-bag, roasted some õllevorstid (beer sausages) and burgsid, and.. well.. breathed it all in. Deeply.

Next day made it onto the 'road' (another lightly-used term, and something that makes me wildly proud of Laika's performance given the fact that I can see the stitching under the tires in some places) around noon, bidding a 'tšau' to Järlepa järv and the two residential swans (and five ducklings and two ducks and a billion tadpoles and the signs of põhjapõder (reindeer) and metssiga (boar) we found around the tent), and in wistful glances at the place as long as this sentence, headed in a south-east by north'ish direction. In avoiding big roads, we found out what the different styles of lines on the map meant. The one we took initially, for example, is described on the legend as being something used about 150 years ago for logging and now is mainly just a jumble of rocks. Incredibly beautiful, and despite running through situations in my mind of how long it would take to hike back to civilization and find a bike tyre the deeper we got in, it was.. well, still incredibly beautiful. Made our way basically all the way around the lake and bog and mets and such on that road, which took us to Oru; another 'town' with an old mõis, school, and jumble of Soviet communal farm buildings (well, another light term: more roof than building in some cases. In Soviet times, you made use out of what you could get your hands onto. This architect got roof pieces.). From there, Tuhala. Amidst gathering storm clouds, we peered into the Nõiakaev ('Witch's well') and loaded ourselves up with some natural energy from an energiasammas (energy-post.. in a spiky editorial I'd like to write, I'd very much propose replaing the Vabadussõja võidusammas due to be opened tomorrow with one of the log posts as in Tuhala.. much more fitting and much less of a fucking annoyance). From there, made our way back off of our shortly-enjoyed asphalt and onto a mid-quality gravel road for a long though equally fantastic bout.

It should be mentioned that in almost no, I repeat, no small Estonian town, both to my and Tuuliki's aggrivation, can be found as much as a bar to order a bowl of instant noodles from, much less small restaurant or .. anything. HahahahhahaAAARRRRRR.

Journey went something like Tuhala-Nabala-Lähtse-Kiili-Mõisaküla-Kurna-Jüri-Lasnamäe. Altogether at least some 55 km. And a delicious Puls ingveri õlu to follow (ginger beer). All with Tuuliki. Here's another spot where words take their leave.

Brief Estonian recap: Rongiga Kohilasse, rattaga Järlepasse siis sissemine rappa ümber järve, seiklusemine, telgimise kohta leidmine, telkimine, siis tagasi Järlepasse, mingi metsatee ringi Orusse, Tuhalasse (nõiakaev), Nabalasse (pärast aega ja tormi), Kiilisse, Jürisse (ka pole mingit kuradit restoranit) ja lõppuks Tallinnasse. Homme: Vääna-Jõesalusse! Uued kummid? Vist mitte.. sõidame ikka edasi!

Today: some work. Grudgingly, hurried, necessary.

Tomorrow: Jaanipäev!!

Somewhere in the blog archives should be attempted recants of last year's. What is tomorrow.. I rest even attempting to ette kujuda (.. mm.. jah.) the living. Heading to somewhere around Vääna-Jõesuu, mere ääres (next to the sea).. Saun, sõbrad, vorstid, õlu, päikeseöö .. ja kõik koos Tuulikiga.

I'll make attempts to translate all of that as everything goes forth. Literary expression always follows in the wake, though.. it's the 'then' .. the inexpressable and uncatchable moment which carries the full interpreted meaning and warmth.

Edasi, вперёд..