Our 54-mile ride today (Friday) began in Latvia, and crossed into Estonia at mile 13. Just before entering Estonia, we stopped at a Latvian pastry shop to spend our remaining Latvian money (a few dollars in coins, which were about to become worthless to us once we left the country). The delicious pastries were so cheap that, despite gorging ourselves, we couldn't use up our Latvian money, so we gave the remaining amount to the woman behind the counter.
Estonia gained its independence in 1991. While all three Baltic States have had very impressive economic growth since that time, leading to their being referred to as the "Baltic Tigers" (a term modeled on the "Asian Tigers" of Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan), Estonia has grown the fastest of the three. Estonia's GDP per capita has increased from 35% of the European Union average in 1996 to 65% in 2007. In 1994, Estonia became one of the first countries in the world to institute a flat tax (i.e., one tax rate for all income levels -- initially 26%, subsequently decreased to the current 21% -- as opposed to a graduated tax that imposes higher rates for higher incomes). In view of the flat tax and the impressive economic growth, Estonia has been something of a "poster child" to fiscal conservatives, including those in the United States, who advocate a flat tax. Their ardor, however, has cooled since Estonia was hit very hard by the 2008 worldwide economic downturn.
Estonia's language is similar to Finnish. These two languages bear very little similarity to any other language in the world. This makes it difficult for outsiders like us to figure out what Estonian words mean when we read signs, menus, and the like. Fortunately, like their Scandinavian "cousins", many Estonians speak good English, and a lot of things are written in both Estonian and English.
Our destination town of Parnu, with a population of 44,000, is a popular tourist town by the Baltic Sea. Its town center is hopping, with outdoor restaurants brimming with customers and free live music on the streets.
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| Latvian pastry shop close to the Estonian border |
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| At the border crossing from Latvia into Estonia |
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| One of the first scenes after crossing into Estonia |
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| Another beautiful property in rural Estonia |
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| An Orthodox church in Parnu |
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| Street scene in Parnu, with outdoor restaurants filled with customers |
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| One of the live bands on the streets of Parnu |
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