Peppersack

The Peppersack is one of those restaurants you see heavily advertised in all the touristy literature.  Charlie went there a few weeks back with people from work and thought we would really enjoy it.  He said there was a bit of live entertainment so we booked reservations to be able to enjoy it.  If you do click on the link I provided, I recommend viewing the "History" and "Movie".  

 The kids enjoyed the slice of lemon at first.  Our reservation was for 7:30 so we were super famished as the kids are usually getting ready for bed at this time.  We started out with barley bread and garlic spread.  This was a huge hit with the whole family.  I lost count of how many pieces of bread the kids ate.

 Zach's "sour" face.

 The kids both chose the sausages and fries.  I didn't try the sausages but the fries were quite tasty.

 I had "Miss Moller's Happiness" which was ratatouille with wild rice.  I really enjoyed it and found it quite filling.

 Charlie had the "Artisan's Dream" which was grilled beef tenderloin, with warm vegetable salad, oven baked potatoes, and cherry wine sauce.  I had a bite of his tenderloin and it was delicious.  Judging by lack of food on his plate when it was removed, I'd say Charlie thought so too.

 The entertainment was a bit later than we were expecting, so we let the kids order dessert.  They had ice cream with strawberry sauce and fresh fruit.  It must have been tasty because they ate it well.

 She looks like she is afraid I'll ask for a bite!  

 With the signal of music, the entertainment began and a fight ensued.  

 Look at her face!

 Zach watched the show, but was not distracted from eating his treat.

 I took tons of pictures of the fight, but will spare you.  Pretty much there was yelling, fencing, and fisticuffs up and down the stairs for several minutes.

 The Grim Reaper came in and the two men fighting stopped and watched.  As he disappeared from view you could hear a woman scream...

 ...and then he walked out carrying what he came for...a pint of ale!

 The girl came down the stairs, none too impressed with either of them.  Properly subdued by the slap she gave one of them and the scare of the Grim Reaper...

 ...they decided to share a pint between them!  

 One last view as we were leaving

We truly enjoyed our experience.  The funny thing is that as we were walking through Old Town to get back to the car were stopped twice by people dining that work with Charlie.  

Estonian Open Air Museum

I've been blessed to scratch another must do item off my list.  Today we went to the Estonian Open Air Museum.  If you click on the link you can check it all out.  There are 12 farms you get to explore.  It was wonderful and I would love to go back.  It was only 12 Euros for the family and we did lots of walking and exploring.  

This is the entrance.  

 For some reason I felt I should take a picture of the map.  Clara thought it was a great idea so that if we got lost we could look at the picture.

 Aren't the restrooms cute?

 The scenery was gorgeous.  You could rent bikes, but it looked like several people brought their own.  It is only a ten mile trip so perhaps we could bike over there one day and explore on our bikes.

 It was nice to be able to let the kids run their little hearts out.

 Each farm was amazing.  These are actual Estonian structures that have been relocated.  Of course, repairs might have been made in some cases.  It was fascinating.  Each building had signs with information, and one of the languages provided was English!

 My kids want to sit on everything.

 I was absolutely amazed by the thatched roofs.  

 This garden was beautiful.

 Of course, we could not resist going down to the water.  

 This was the point where Zach was pretty much tuckered out.  Offering a shoulder ride perked him right up.

 Getting to go inside a wind mill gave him that extra burst of energy though.  Of course, he fell stepping in, scraping both shins, which was demoralizing for him.  Luckily he handled it well, but didn't turn me away when I picked him up.

 Luckily, it wasn't long after this picture that Charlie took him for another shoulder ride.

 The last farm we visited had a blacksmith at work which was very neat.  Zach was off and running when he saw the sheep.  This was actually quite funny.  This guy was grazing with his head down when we approached.  Clara started baaing at it.  It quickly lifted its head and started baaing right back! She and Zach started doing it.

 And they both came right on over.  

We could have spent much more time exploring.  It was beautiful and the kids didn't want to leave.  I must go back for their Christmas village!

Exploring Pirita

I have been really wanting to get out and enjoy all that Pirita has to offer in terms of biking.  There are so many trails.  We have walked them many times, but I felt that the kids were up to taking their bikes out for a spin instead of riding circles around the house.  As it turns out, today was very nice weather: around 70 and sunny.  The kids were game, so after fixing them lunch and tidying up the house we set out on our bikes with a few Euros in my pocket and my keys.

Zach handled the sidewalk quite well.  The trails were a bit difficult because at times his training wheels  completely lifted his back tire off the ground.  I decided we would just stay on the trails long enough to get us to Pirita tee and ride on the paved paths along the water.  Crossing the highway (these are great for pedestrians with crosswalks and lights) went very well.  The kids listened and executed the crossings quickly.  After riding a little, we came upon a small playground so we took a break and let the kids play.  I knew we were quite close to the beach so we took the trail everyone was taking toward the water and came upon Pirita Beach.  It was very nice.  We parked the bikes, took off our socks and shoes, and put our feet in the Baltic.  There was more playground equipment to enjoy here too.  We will definitely be back as you can walk pretty far out and still not be in up to your knees.  The waves are very gentle and perfect for small kids.

After enjoying the beach for a short while we went in search of a snack.  We found an ice cream stand and the kids had an ice cream bar while I had a burger (I didn't eat lunch with them earlier and had worked up an appetite.  After finishing our treat we set out to make it back home.

As it turns out, Zach was quite worn out.  He got quite frustrated with the difficulty on the trail and needed lots of encouragement, but we made it home.

I'm thinking it might be time to see if he can handle the bike without training wheels.  Hmmm...sounds like another adventure!

Viking Village

Our wonderful CLO decided to organize a trip for the adventurous moms to take the kids to Viking Village.  I'm pretty much up for any suggestions so immediately responded.  Mikaela and Donna felt the same way.  We set out last Wednesday and although the forecast called for rain it was a gorgeous morning.  Being a responsible parents we brought rain coats for the kids and Donna also brought her umbrella.  We sort of wandered into the village as there were no clear directions on how to proceed, but we knew we were going to take a boat ride of some sort.  

The picture below was taken as soon as we unloaded from the vehicles.  

 You can see the girls getting some air on this swing.

 Clara and Jack on the see saw.  Zach and I gave it a try too.

 Amelia is enjoying the decor.

 Well, it turns out this is the boat we got to ride on.  AND we got to power the oars.

 Here we are all getting settled.  There were six oars and three adults.  Our guide did the steering.  Katie was the biggest kid and did quite well with rowing.  With a treasure map in hand we set out on our adventure.  

 Our guide, Neil, had to be the most patient guy ever as we repeatedly bumped into the shore, trees, etc.  He did look up to the sky and say we did not want to tarry as a storm was approaching.  It looks sunny though, doesn't it?  Zach started saying he wanted to go, crawling up in my lap, and it turns out I CAN row with one hand!

 After passing a tree with a skull in it, we pulled up to the bank and Neil led us on a trail (after warning us of stinging nettles) to a tree with some clues to the location of the treasure.  It wasn't there.

 Seriously, this was a trail.  Can you see it?  It was tough.  I ended up putting Zach on my shoulders.

 Shortly after getting back in the boat, we experienced quite a drenching rain.  Luckily Zach was a trooper at this point.  Donna broke her oar with her super human strength.  We booted two of the kids and the three adults and Katie managed to get us back to our starting point in good time.  We laughed SO much between getting started and the rain.  As you can see, we got rather wet, but Clara's hair is nice and dry.

 When Neil does a job, he does a job.  We got out of the boat and resumed searching for the treasure.  Through clues the kids discovered it might be in the blacksmith's area.

 After the kids found it, Neil carried the treasure box out and made sure everybody got their Kalev gold coin.

We had a fantastic time, but after the treasure hunt we just wanted something warm so went off to enjoy the fare from the tavern.  I ordered the piratica soup (trout, carrot, leek, egg, and fresh dill) with garlic bread and black coffee.  The kids each had a hot dog, french fries, and hot cocoa.  We decided to call it a day after that.  We were quite uncomfortable.  Donna's car said it was 58 degrees when we got back in the car.  I realized when we got home the kids were not nearly as soaked as I was so do not think they were quite as tuckered out.

It was definitely a day we will never forget and quite the adventure!  Maybe we'll make it back one day and see everything the village has to offer.

Hair Cuts!

My wonderful friend and sponsor recommended a place for us to receive professional grooming.  Zach was beginning to look rather shaggy by my standards so he had top priority.  His appointment was early this evening but it went so quickly she was able to give Clara a trim too.  Check out the lovely braid she did afterward.  I can barely pull off a standard braid!  I was very pleased with her English and skills so set up an appointment for myself as well.

Another Score for Tallinn

Before we ever left Japan, I was scoping out places to visit here in Estonia.  One place I found that looked like fun was a children's museum called Miia-Milla-Manda near Kadriorg Park.  Kadriorg Park is beautiful and has been highly recommended by several people, but I really wanted to check out the museum too.  The other day I had Charlie swing into the Kadriorg part of town to get an idea of where everything was.  We saw an awesome playground and what I thought was the children's museum.  Once we saw the playground I promised the kids I would take them soon.

Today, the forecast looked good so I asked the kids if they would like to give it a try.  They were in favor.  We hopped on the bus and strolled through the beautiful Kadriorg Park.  As we approached, I was not very sure of how to proceed but found our way into the museum and paid 5.20 Euros for the family rate.  That is when I found out the playground does not belong to the museum but is a public park...which is free!  Sporting our stickers allowing us to go back and forth all day, we went back out to the large playground.

This playground was awesome.  There were several play structures, but the rest of the fun was in the sand.  There was a fenced in area just for younger tots, and then a larger area with monkey bars, merry go rounds, etc and swings too.  There was a water fountain that Zach had a blast in as well.

The museum is a treasure.  I cannot wait to share the pictures (waiting on the cable in our household goods).  The kids had a blast.  One room was like a giant playroom with a little puppet theater, doll house, kitchen and more and then there was another area set up to be various historical offices (post office, grocer, photo studio, etc) where the kids could play with the items or even dress up.  We took a break and visited the small cafe with quite reasonable prices.  I had a cinnamon roll, Clara had a big cookie, Zach a smiley face cookie and we split a bottle of water, all for less than 3 Euros.  After we finished with the museum we went back out to the playground.

When the household goods shipment arrives I can definitely see biking with the kids in the trailer to this area and packing a picnic lunch to enjoy while looking at the lovely park.  I was very pleased with this find and know we will be back many times.