Tallinn, Estonia: A conversation with Catherine (b. 1998)
I meet with Catherine for coffee about a week after the COVID restrictions in Estonia end.
Where we meet in Rotermann Quarter is packed: a product of the ending restrictions, the warm weather, and the impending holiday of Jaanipäev (Midsummer).
I was born in Tallinn. I grew up and have lived here my whole life. I haven’t lived in other countries or other places yet — that makes my life a little boring, maybe. Maybe with university studies I will be able to go to other countries a bit more.
My bachelor’s degree is in engineering, in Materials Technology. I chose it because of the project I did in high school. I made a model of the country of Estonia, showing how types of stone and rock are different across the country. For instance, in southern Estonia there is a lot more sandstone. I made part of the model out of wood, and learned how to mill and do other types of construction. It was really interesting and that is how I fell in love with wood.
I just finished my first year of master’s courses at TalTech. The program is known as Wood, Plastics, and Textiles.¹ Together there are maybe 18 of us, although the different tracks don’t necessarily have courses together. I am studying wood, so I don’t have classes with textile students.
Because of the lockdown, we don’t even know each other. We didn’t get a chance to make a group chat and meet each other in person. It made this year really hard — we didn’t get to work together on course projects, or ask each other questions. Maybe in the autumn we will plan an event together.
A lot of students failed their classes this year, compared to a normal year. We had more writing assignments that we needed to complete — instead of coming in to do the practical work. Maybe this was more difficult for some people.
My life during the lockdown was a little more like normal. I do work at the offices in TalTech half of the time, and work on my courses and projects the other half. But I felt a huge drop in motivation. When everything is online, it’s so easy to spend your time scrolling on your phone and not pay attention. For students, it was easy to think of online classes as boring or easier. But for the teachers, it must have been really difficult to not see the feedback from students during courses.
The lockdown here in Tallinn ended last Friday.² The area around here, Rotermann City, was packed with people. I wasn’t here but I saw some Instagram stories — there were a lot of young people throwing a giant party in Telliskivi. It was the first time people were allowed out, and allowed to drink in public again — it was the first big party after the COVID restrictions were loosened.
The Midsummer holiday is also coming up soon. For us, it is a big holiday to spend time with friends and family. You will see a lot of dancing, and bonfires everywhere. You might see people trying to jump over fires — if you see campfires with lots of wood in a tent shape, then it is for Midsummer.
We say there is always a curse of Midsummer — half the time it is raining. The weather up until the holiday might be beautiful and clear, but during Midsummer it might be rainy and cloudy.
One of my hobbies — maybe you don’t know that much about it — is pole dancing. I’ve been dancing for a few years now. Pole dancing requires a lot of arm and shoulder strength — now that lockdown has ended, I can go back to the gym and do some strength training again.
You should try it out. The first few times you do go to a class, the instructor will make it look so easy and effortless. You will also get bruises. There are tricks where you hold onto the pole with your ankles, or your knees, so you can get bruises that way. Also on your thighs. But with more time, you become immune to them. You get a thicker skin.
I can also dance in high heels. Eight-inch heels.
Our generation is facing judgment based on freedom of expression. Finding out your sexual orientation, your identity, as well as your sense of style. For instance, I have tattoos — and my mother was very concerned that I would not look professional, or that I would have difficulty finding a job. But, we must learn to respect our bodies as works of art and remember to be true to ourselves.
My mother speaks Russian, so I understand a little bit. But it’s a very difficult language. She speaks to me in Russian, then I speak in Estonian. I can speak conversational Russian quite well, but I learned at home. So when it comes to complicated conversation topics, it is hard for me to find the right words.
The Russian speakers living here can get some more jobs. They know more languages, and they can speak them well. But there is still a lot of anti-Russian feeling here. Russian people are a lot more passionate. Estonians are a bit more shy and keep their opinions to themselves.
We’re a very small country, so it is very important to appreciate one another and be kind. Arvo Pӓrt is one of the most famous composers in the world, and we built the Center for him to show our appreciation for him.
Estonians are often stereotyped as being cold and closed off to strangers. Only when we have had the opportunity to get to know each other do our personalities shine through. It’s as if we have an attitude that “it’s not our business,” so when something happens to someone on the street, most of us won’t try to help. Slowly, but steadily, the people are growing.
This is part of a conversation series centered around the country of Estonia. Click here to read the introduction.
