BONJOUR L'ESTONIE

Who decorated the first Christmas tree? A battle in Baltics is branching out

Latvia and Estonia – Two of the three nations that make up the Baltics – don’t have a ton to hang their hats on when it comes to international notoriety. So, it’s understandable if the two are battling it out over who can claim to be the home of the decorated Christmas tree.

Both countries think they have a sturdy stump to stand on. In honor of the 500^th anniversary of what officials believe to be the first tree, Latvians in 2010 erected a permanent Christmas tree sculpture in Riga made of metallic mirrors. The sculpture proclaims Riga as the “Capital of the Decorated Christmas Tree”.

Estonians, however, are singing a different carol, where historians say the first Christmas tree was seen in 1441, almost 70 years ahead of its neighbor.

This is more than just harmless bickering over which nation started decorating Christmas trees first. Holding the status as the tradition’s motherland is one of the meaningful draws for tourists at the coldest and darkest time of year in Northern Europe.

This year, for instance, the Live Riga tourist agency this year sponsored a Christmas Tree Trail of 25 stylized trees designed by artists and placed in various sites and neighborhoods to light up the dark and snowless parks and squares. One tree looks like an unfolded Rubik’s cube, some others resemble giant snowflakes. Yet another tree by the National Opera is surrounded by mannequins in sunglasses who look like The Men in Black.

In the market for a Christmas shopping bargain

Rising prices mean Tallinn has lost its top spot to Budapest in the annual Post Office Travel Money Christmas Markets Barometer, published this week as Advent markets get underway across Europe. Tallinn, the 2012 best buy, now costs 59 per cent more for a two-night break than this year’s bargain choice, Budapest.

At £529 for a two-night break for two in early December, Budapest emerged as cheapest of 12 European cities, costing around 39 per cent less than Munich or Basel (both around £866). These were the most expensive cities surveyed for the Post Office Travel Money barometer, which includes two evening meals with wine, coffee, festive drinks and snacks, two nights’ B&B accommodation, return travel and airport-city centre transfers.    

Even though sterling is worth just 0.3 per cent more year-on-year against the Hungarian forint, Budapest prices have fallen by 8.8 per cent compared with November 2012. By contrast, barometer prices for meals, drinks and other out-of-pocket expenses have risen 15 per cent to £123 in Tallinn – only partly as a result of a UK pound that is five per cent weaker year-on-year. When these higher prices were added to flight and accommodation charges, the overall total of £841 accounts for the Estonian capital’s fall to eighth position.

Latvia’s capital Riga (£530) was a close runner-up to Budapest (£529) when all the weekend break costs are taken into account - but this was because of the low package price (£378 for two in Riga compared with £450 for Budapest). Once visitors arrive in Riga, they can expect to pay considerably more than in Budapest because Post Office research revealed that meal, drinks and transfer costs were 91 per cent higher (£152 compared with just under £80).

Classical Christmas concerts to take place all December long in Tallinn

Chamber choirs and soloists to perform a whole series of Christmas concerts in Tallinn in December, the Tallinn City Council reports. Tallinn city Council supports the festive concerts.

On Thursday, December 13, a chamber choir Collegium Musicale will perform together with baroque music ensemble Mauritius. The concert's main theme is the Christmas with Vivaldi, informs LETA.

On December 27, Collegium Musicale will perform with Hortus Musicus, directed by Andres Mustonen and Endrik Juksvarv.

On December 19, a short concert of chamber music titled The Academy of Young Artists will take place at a hall of the National Library. At the same day, a concert Christmas Joy in a Cheering Trumpet Call will be performed in a St.John's Church.

The concert will be repeated on December 25 at the Cathedral of Tallinn. On December 28, a concert of the baroque music Corelli will take place on the St. John's church. On December 29, 2012, chamber choir Voces Musicales will give a concert at St. John's church.

Tallinn declared top budget location to spend Christmas holiday

The Christmas Market Barometertallinn survey conducted by the British retail postal service Post Office Ltd. described Estonia as a special and stress-free location to spend Christmas, which it said was in part due to cheap airfares.

Tallinn is followed by Budapest and Prague as the cheapest locations, according to Post Office's website.

Factors such as housing, two cups of coffee, dinner and wine plus transportation are taken into account. A two-day Christmas trip in Tallinn is calculated to cost 460 euros per person.

Lighting of Advent candles kicks off the Christmas season

Advent candles were lit all over Estonia on the weekend with Tallinn’s mayor, Edgar Savisaar, performing the honors in the capital while 50 Santas gathered on the island of Vormsi.

Savisaar summoned people to think more about their loved ones and to have faith that this year has been as good as all the past and future years, reported ETV.

A speech by the Lutheran dean of Tallinn, Jaan Tammsalu, reminded townspeople that happiness is worth waiting for but that people have to be prepared and work hard.

He added: “Peace during Advent and focusing on what’s truly important and the right preparations can lead us to our most delightful Christmas. We may find a wonderful meaning to our lives, we will realize we are loved, that someone cares for us and this in turn will give us a great strength to care and love.”

While Christmas lights were lit, 50 Father Christmases gathered in western Estonia for the 12th annual Father Christmas get-together.

The 50 Santas visited children in the small mainland town of Palivere and the town of Haapsalu before heading to Vormsi for their conference, reported ETV.

Tallinna Jõuluturg 2012 - Tallinn Christmas market 2012

Dates: 24th Nov 2012 – 8. Jan 2013
Open every day 10:00 – 19:00
Hot Christmas drinks till 23:00
Christmas program On Fridays 17:00 – 19:00
On Saturdays and Sundays 12:00 – 14:00

- At the Town Hall Square of Tallinn, next to the majestic Town Hall, a Christmas market will be held with a touch of fairy tale where anything is possible!
 - The heart of action will be the most important Christmas tree in Estonia, surrounded by Christmas cabins/stands.
 - A Living Christmas land is decorated with trees, Christmas decorations and Christmas lights.
 - The difficult but exciting work of decorating the Christmas market is done by a really well-known specialist of the trade Shishi.
 - Merchants will be offering a broad range of handicrafts not found in regular shops. Guests can chat directly to masters and buy Christmas decorations and other handicrafts as original gifts for filling the sack of Santa Claus. Goods that are bought can be gift-wrapped straight away.
 - Local caterers are offering Estonian Christmas cuisine starting from black blood pudding and sour cabbage to ginger breads and body and soul-warming Christmas drinks.

Rõõmsaid Jõule kõigile

Nüüd jäta päev ja jäta töö,
sest kätte jõudis jõuluöö.
Sa palju verivorsti söö
ja lase lõdvaks oma vöö,
et siga saaks su kõhtu täita,
sülti käega makku aita,
hapukapsas pole laita,
pärast sööki kõhtu paita.
Võta pihku topeltkringel,
anna puhkust aasta pingel.
Piparkoogid, vahukoor.
Saabub varsti aasta noor!!!

Tallinn's toppled tree to be trimmed

After twice toppling down over the weekend, Tallinn's Christmas tree will be going back up - albeit in a shorter form - on Tuesday morning, municipal officials have said.

High winds from the storm that lashed the Baltic coast on Sunday again brought down the tree, which stands at the center of the capital's busy Christmas market. Nobody was hurt in that incident either, and in both cases the falling tree also missed the nearby wooden sales huts.

Ivo Parbus of the Central Tallinn District Administration told uudised.err.ee that the tree would be remounted on the square with additional measures taken to ensure its stability. These include cutting an additional four meters from its base.

The tree, which originally stood at 24 meters, will now have the much more modest height of 17 meters.

The same storm, named Berit, also knocked over the municipal Christmas tree in the nearby town of Keila, in addition to causing power outages throughout the country.

Steve Roman

The Christmas market opened yesterday

According to the organizers, the Christmas Market has never been just a venue for vending, but rather a cultural experience that includes Father Christmas, the design of the market and a varied concert program on weekends that involves actors from VAT theatre, dozens of choirs and dance groups, writes LETA.

The cultural program of the Christmas Market began on November 26 with a concert by Luther's studio chamber choir; true arrival of Christmas season will be celebrated today, Sunday, when at 14:00 the first Advent light will be lit.

Several church choirs will be singing and the lights will be lit on the Christmas tree brought to the heart of Tallinn from Harju county Hirvli village. The Advent candles will be lit every Sunday at the same time. Together with closing program of the European Capital of Culture 'Happy End' on December 22, the Christmas Market will celebrate the beginning of winter; on December 24, the Mayor of Tallinn will declare Christmas peace there.

After the New Year different ethnic groups will present cultural programs. The Christmas Market will be open from 10:00-19:00 until January 8, 2012. Tallinn Christmas Market has been chosen as one of the most beautiful Christmas Markets of Europe.

Juhan Tere

Christmas trees to bring holiday joy

TALLINN - The Christmas tree, real or artificial, is a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. It’s hard to imagine Christmas without having a Christmas tree in your home. The debate about the environmental impact of artificial trees is ongoing. Generally, natural tree growers contend that artificial trees are more environmentally harmful than their natural counterpart.

Every year millions of families shop for and buy a ‘real’ cut Christmas trees from Christmas tree farms and local lots, which make buying a Christmas tree as trouble-free and simple as possible.
This year will not be an exception, when Estonian State Forest Management Center (RMK) is organizing guided Christmas tree trips to the state forests. Christmas-tree gurus will have a chance to select their own Christmas tree, chop it down, and bring it home from the forest on their own.

Guided forest trips are being organized at 15 locations across Estonia through the end of December, with a brief program on nature education preceding entry into the forest. Christmas tree trips for businesses were launched from Dec. 14-16, but trips for private individuals started on Dec. 17 and will last till Dec. 24.

According to RMK, suitable locations for finding a Christmas tree have been pre-selected by RMK’s specialists, so that participants will be left with just the joy of paying, choosing the right tree, sawing it down and hauling it off.

Latvia and Estonia joust over first Christmas tree title

RIGA — Latvia and its Baltic neighbour Estonia are exchanging friendly jabs over the claim that each was home to the first-ever town Christmas tree some five centuries ago.

As the Latvian capital Riga marks what it says is the 500th anniversary of its tree, its Estonian counterpart Tallinn has hit back.

"I received a present from the mayor of Tallinn, Edgar Savisaar, a short Christmas tree," Riga's mayor Nils Usakovs told AFP.

"He congratulated us on the 500th anniversary of the Riga Christmas tree and reminded us that Tallinn is celebrating the 569th anniversary," Usakovs said.

"It's good that the sole topic of disagreement between Riga and Tallinn is who has the oldest Christmas tree," he joked.

In the ongoing jousting, Latvia's tourist office rented billboard space in Tallinn inviting locals to see the home of the tree -- at Riga's festival.

According to researchers who back the Latvian side, the first tree wasn't actually the classic evergreen known today.

In 1510 a group of merchants built a pyramid-shaped wooden structure dubbed a "tree", decorated with dried flowers, fruit and vegetables, and even straw toys.

They are thought to have paraded it around their meeting hall before burning it to signify the end of the old year and the beginning of the new.

Estonians, meanwhile, insist that the world's first Christmas tree was erected in front of Tallinn town hall in 1441 as part of a winter ritual where merchants and single women danced around the tree and later set it on fire.

Vintage Estonia : Christmas ornaments

Vintage Estonia showcases the creative talent, graphic design and illustrations of Axel Roosman, produced when he was a young man living in Estonia between the years 1918 ~ 1940. These vintage ads are now available on T-shirts, hoodies, tank tops, mugs, aprons and other items, that make for a truly unique gift giving experience to share with friends and family.

NOW you can pick your own shirt styles and colours. Take note however, that dark colours like black, brown and navy will not always be the best colour choice for your apparel item as the images will not show up as well. Click on the Flag and Products Icon to see the product categories. Happy shopping!

Happy New Year !

A most prosperous New Year to everyone Shaan from Tallinn

Merry Xmas : Tiiu Kuik - Elle - Norway - January 2010

Wishing everyone a "Happy Xmas Day"

Estonian Christmas market offers anti-crisis cheer

Locked in one of Europe's deepest recessions, Estonians in dire need of some anti-crisis cheer are flocking to their capital's annual Christmas market, a magnet for locals and tourists alike.

Spread across the centre of Tallinn's picturesque Old Town, the market showcases the hugely popular handicraft traditions of this small Baltic nation of 1.3 million people.

"Despite the recession there are plenty of customers. But you can see times are hard because of the increase in the number of thieves, who act quickly, like rabbits," Mahe Jarmut, a grandmother from the island of Saaremaa, wearing traditional costume and a sheepskin jerkin to fight off the winter chill, told AFP.

The Estonian economy is forecast to contract a whopping 14 percent this year after a spectacular boom turned to bust. After growth of 10.4 percent in 2006 and 6.3 percent in 2007, the economy started shrinking in 2008 as a property and credit bubble burst and consumption withered.

From her small wooden stall, Jarmut sells objects carved by her family from boiled and stripped juniper wood, from honey spoons to tables, with price tags from two to 160 euros (three and 230 dollars).

Ottawa Eesti Seltsi jõulupuu/ Ottawa Estonian Society Christmas Party

Laupäeval, 19. detsembril kell 3 p.l./ Sat, Dec 19th at 3pm

German Lutheran Church on Preston St., Ottawa ON
Jõuluteenistus armulauaga toimub Laupäeval, 19. detsembril - kell 15.00 - Martin Lutheri (Saksa) kirikus, 499 Preston St. (Prestoni ja Carlingu nurgal). 

Jõulujutlus: Õpetaja Kalle Kadakas Torontost, Orelil: Carol Gurofsky.
Jõulupuu ja koosviibimine järgnevad vahetult (umb. kell 5 p.l.)
Ottawa Eesti Seltsi ja Pauluse Koguduse ühisel korraldusel kiriku suures saalis keldrikorral. 
Eeskava: Kõik Ottawa lapsed ja noored (vanusepiiri ei ole!) on teretulnud esinema.

Palume ühendust võtta Ülle Baumiga telefonil 613-747-8192 või epostiga

[email protected]
Jõulupakid lastele + tellimisi võtab vastu Helen Naarits telefonil 613-789-4222. 
Paki hinnaks on $9.
Annetused einelauale on teretulnud nagu ikka! 
Palume ka abi ruumide ja einelaua ettevalmistamisel ja hiljem korda seadmisel.

Mark your calenders – December 19th at 3 p.m.
Rev. Kadakas from Toronto will be holding our annual Christmas church service at the German Lutheran Church on Preston St.
To register children with Santa, please call Helen Naarits at 613-789-4222.
Cost for a present from Santa is $9.
The family gathering is a potluck.
For more information, follow this link:

Ottawa Estonian Society

Estonian President to send over 2,300 Christmas cards

Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves will send this year 2,320 Christmas cards, which will cost a total of 28,266 kroons, Õhtuleht/LETA reports.

The card was designed by Dan Mikkin whose work is titled “1,340,341 good wishes”, referring to the number of Estonian inhabitants.

Printing the cards cost 23,522 kroons plus VAT, said President’s chancellery adviser Kristel Peterson.

Last year, the Presidential couple and President’s chancellery sent over 3,200 Christmas cards.

The Christmas cards that the State Chancellery will order and of which Prime Minister Andrus Ansip will send 500, cost around 28,000 kroons. State Chancellery orders both e-card and paper card from OÜ Menu Kirjastus.

Father Christmas abandons traditional whip in Estonia

Father Christmas has abandoned his traditional birch whip in Estonia after a conference of holiday performers decided it was too frightening for children.

Estonia's Father Christmas has traditionally carried a bunch of twigs to keep naughty children in line - although the weapon remained an unused threat. He would remind children that they would not receive presents if they misbehaved.

But at the Baltic nation's annual Father Christmas congress, delegates decided to do away with the whip.

"Good children must grow up without the whip - or the fear of the whip - so we've called upon all Santas to leave them at home from now on," one Father Christmas attending the conference told Estonian television.

But other traditions proved more difficult to update, the Santa noted.

"On delegate asked for the freedom to choose the colour of Santa's coat, saying he feels allergic to red and wants to wear a yellow coat instead, but that request was turned down by the congress," he said.

Tallinn Christmas Market to be opened on Sunday, 29th of November

On November 29, the traditional Tallinn Christmas Market will be opened on the Town Hall Square.

The market will be open until January 7.

Jüri Lump, deputy elder of the Tallinn City Centre District, noted that the Christmas Market that is highly valued on the international arena has expanded this year and besides the Town Hall Square, the market also operates in the other focal points in the city centre.

"In addition to the market centre with 65 Christmas Shacks, trade and entertainment activities also take place on the Harju Street, on the Vabaduse Square, in Tammsaare Park, near the gates on the Viru Street and in the Rotermanni Quarter,” said Lump.

At 2 o’clock in the afternoon on Sunday, Mayor of Tallinn Edgar Savisaar and the Dean of Tallinn Jaan Tammsalu will light the first advent candle on the Christmas Tree on the Town Hall Square.

The Tallinn Christmas Market was recently included in the list of top Christmas markets in Europe compiled by the UK news portal Times Online.

Blood sausage party at the NY Estonian house

NY Eesti Maja Verivorstide Talgud/ Blood Sausage Party at the NY Estonian House
Laupäeval, 5. detsembril kell 2 pl - 6 pl/Saturday, Dec. 5th from 2pm to 6pm
New York Estonian House

If you want to make your own blood sausages, join us on Saturday, Dec 5th, at 2pm to 6pm.  We offer a good company and every participant will have the opportunity to take 2 ring-shaped sausages to go.  Cover: $15.00.  Please do confirm your participation before Dec 2nd, 2009. 
Info: [email protected] or [email protected]