This is just an introduction to the blog I will be writing once I get to Estonia. First off, I wanted to let everyone know why I am writing this blog. I was fortunate enough to receive the Huge Foundation Study Abroad Scholarship which will greatly help me fund this exciting opportunity to study abroad in Tartu, Estonia. Harry Huge actually helped Estonia gain their independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, which makes this scholarship even more exciting to receive. There are some requirements for getting the scholarship, and by writing this blog I am helping to fulfill part of the requirements.
The title of my blog simply comes from the response I have gotten a majority of the time I've told people I'm studying abroad in Estonia. People tend to give me a blank look and say "oh cool... where is that?". In their defense, Estonia is pretty small. With a population of about 1.3 million, it is one of the least populated countries in the European Union. Tartu has only 97,000 people, less than my own hometown. But this lack of awareness about this country is part of the reasons why I want to go. I can't claim to know much about Estonia myself. While my interest in history does focus on Imperial Russia and the Cold War, most of my focus has been learning about Hungary and Russia when they were part of the Soviet Union. When trying to decide where to go to study abroad, I wanted to go somewhere a little different than most people. Tartu fit my needs pretty well class wise (lots of classes were able to be classified as history classes by CofC) and I liked the idea of going somewhere that was once part of the Soviet Union. But back to the part about no one knowing where in the world Estonia is. As a historian (yes, I feel like I can take on this title now), I believe everyone's history has importance, not just histories that are "popular". I want to go to Estonia and learn everything I can about their culture and history so I can come back to the United States and share my knowledge with everyone I know. I won't be leaving until the end of January, so I'm going to make sure to read a least a couple books about Estonia's past. I would hate to go there and know nothing about their country!
I'm also very excited for the travel I will be able to do when I'm there. While there are many places I would like to go, Russia is an absolute must. If you know me, you know I'm kind of obsessed with Russia. Something about their history to me is just addictive, I can't ever get enough. My favorite gymnast, Aliya Mustafina, is from Russia, so I hope to see her compete while I'm there. She will probably compete in the European Gymnastics Championship in Bulgaria, but that is a bit of a journey. There is a cup in Kiev she might compete in, but with what is happening in Kiev, I'm not sure if that would be a good choice to go to. I also really want to go to Moscow, especially to see the ballet, and the imperial palaces in St. Petersburg. If I have money/the time, I also want to go to Hungary, Czech Republic, Ukraine (but since they're having a uprising right now, that might not be wise), and maybe Lithuania. I think some of this desire to see everything I can comes from my great grandpa. He passed away this summer and I helped sort through some of his things. It was really inspiring to see all the snapshots of the places he went in his very full life.
Update: Sad news is that I will no longer be going to the Olympics as I wrote before. It was turning into a very expensive and long trip. Just the visa was going to cost over three hundred dollars, so it was just not the kind of money I wanted to spend for basically one day in Russia.
The title for this first post comes from the slight panic stage I am in. I don't know how I fooled everyone into believing I'm adult enough to go live in another country for a semester. I feel like I am so unprepared for this trip and I keep waiting to realize I forgot to do something and my trip will be canceled. I'm a control freak and I am very anxious that I have no idea how their classes run at Tartu. I have no idea what to pack. I'm being told I should only bring one suitcase, but I don't know how I can do that with all the heavy winter clothes I will need. Yes, it is going to be very cold when I get there (It is twenty eight degrees there today), and I do not have that much experience with snow. We went to the mountains when I was in fourth grade to play in the snow and I don't remember being all that thrilled with the cold. But it should warm up within a month of me being there, so I think I can get past the snow.
I think that's all I have to write until I get to Estonia. I'll be leaving Elk Grove on the 28th to spend a few days with my aunt and cousins in Chicago, and then I leave for Estonia on the 31st. All of this feels very far away and very close at the same time!
If anyone has any questions about my trip, just let me know!
Sarah
'
No comments:
Post a Comment