In the photo above, Sister Davis is rubbing shoulders with a dapper chimney sweep that was located outside our hotel in Tallinn. See how polite he is to carry Sister Davis's purse? Chimney sweeps used to be very important people...there were once a LOT of chimneys to clean in Tallinn and in the souvenir shops, you see little chimney sweep dolls for sale.
During our visit to Tallinn, it got very chilly. Time for hats, boots, coats, scarves and gloves.
Winter is the time of year that Sister Davis loses stuff. There is so much extra clothing to keep track of, that gloves fall from her pockets, hats get misplaced, scarves get left behind. Elder Davis walks a step behind her just so he can tell her what she has dropped. So far this winter, Sister Davis hasn't lost anything but it is bound to happen .
The day after FHE, the Bonner's and the Davis's thought it would be a nice day trip to go to Narva, Estonia. The Bonner's have been several times as they do apartment checks in that city. Narva is right on the Estonian/Russian border and we heard that the actual border between the two countries is still being negotiated.
On the way to Narva....
A quick stop for pictures of the 13th-century Rakvere Castle:
It was a gorgeous, sunny day....a rarity in the Baltic. We all needed that sunshine. Missionaries often get depressed during the dark winter months and are told to take extra vitamin D to counter the affects of so little sunshine. Since September most of our days here have been foggy, overcast or rainy. It makes you appreciate how much sunshine we get back home.
Russian side....
The castle below is also on the Russian side of the Narva river.....
The Narva castle with the Tall Herman tower is on the Estonian side of the river.
The border crossing: On the Estonian side, cars are inspected and documents carefully checked. As cars drive (or some people walk) to the Russian side, the same thing happens...cars are inspected and documents checked. There are always lines to wait in when crossing into Russia or Belarus. People are warned it can take 24 hours waiting to cross by car into Russia. You are given a number and then told when to report to the border checkpoint so you don't have to wait in the actual line. One person we know, waited 6 hours in line, gave up, turned around and went home, hoping to try another day.
These pictures show Russian and Estonian sides of the river...
...just a small river between the two countries.
This building was one of the few to survive the bombing of Narva.
Narva has a population of about 65,000 people but that number has been declining for lack of jobs. It is still the third largest city in Estonia.
And on our way back to Tallinn, the gorgeous sunny day, made way for a gorgeous sunset.
The sun was setting around 4:00 PM. We wouldn't get back to Tallin until after dark!
Back at our hotel we had to decide where to eat....how about that Taco Express place right next to our hotel?!
The food was pretty good....
Elder & Sister Bonner are fun people to spend the day with!
We love ESTONIA!
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