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Before I came to Estonia I spent about two years in Portugal.
So some people thought I was mad to exchange hot weather and a (semi) Mediterranean lifestyle of shorts, siestas, long lunches and late nights for the cold, darkness of some ex-Soviet occupied country that few people were sure of where it was, but how wrong they were….

I love this place. It’s infectious.
The nature has not been exploited like it has back ‘home’ in England, good old-fashioned home cooking abounds, the people are friendly (once you get past the cool exterior) and the sense of humour is wonderfully dark.

And despite the fact that real estate is selling like hotcakes, the city of Tallinn and the rest of country has not suffered death by construction like the south coast of Portugal..yet.

Have I got any complaints?

You might be thinking I am not happy about the typical minus 10 degrees, deep snow or ultra short days in winter?
But no, it’s all fine. Compared to Brighton, my home town (which is great and definitely worth a visit) in England, the weather here is better: no horizontal rain, no whipping Channel winds.
Ok, so it’s cold but it’s predictable.
A thick Muhu (a little island off the west coast of Estonia) jumper and woolly hat and you’ll be fine.

So if you are reading this and thinking..hmm Estonia…Tell me more

Well what do you want to know?

1. Kids sell each other premium SMS services in the playground
2. People laugh at the idea of chequebooks (ebanking is de rigeur)
3. Drivers use SMS to buy parking tickets
4. eVoting has just come into force and the Social Ministry has a blog
5. Tallinn is more beautiful than Prague (yep and it has not been invaded by Americans….yet): the centre is medieval and on the UNESCO protected World Heritage List
6. In autumn you can pick as much as you can eat from the forests including blueberries, cranberries, mushrooms, wild strawberries (those little ones that just make your mouth water when you just think of them) and even the rare, but delicious, cloudberry

I could go on and on (and on) about what I love about Estonia but instead I suggest you look here: Estonica

Oh and did I say that nearly everyone (under 40) speaks English (and probably Finnish, Russian and maybe German too) and Estonia has broadband access in every school and amazingly the literacy rate is the highest (check that to be 100% sure) in the world.

If you would like some other non-Estonian opinions on Estonia then maybe start here recommended reading from Mika Tuupola, a blogging Finn, in Tallinn.

STOP PRESS: It’s 2007 and I know split my time between London and Tallinn and despite London’s allure, I’d rather be on the beach in Võsu.