"SILENCE PLEEEASE!"

"An effort made for the happiness of others lifts above ourselves." - Lydia M. Child

Another trip, another emotions and another country that I can cross off my must-go list. This time I visited Turkey with a few other compatriots. The trip for us, Estonians, was organized by Urmo so huge thanks to him for that. At first, the nine of us went to Adana where we participated in an Erasmus+ project called "Mother Earth" which was focused on agriculture topics. Besides our country, there were also other countries - Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey. After staying almost a week in Adana, we went to Istanbul with our Estonian group and played tourists for a couple more days before we headed home.

Estonian Mafia - Jan, Johannes, Toomas, Siim, Madis, Tõnis (Silver & Lisbeth are missing from the pic)

Project "Mother Earth" group

First of all, I knew that this trip was going to be lit because I knew most of our group before going to this journey and they all have unique fucked up personalities so what could've go wrong, right? When we arrived to Tallinn Airport, we had our first chats and beers. I resisted alcohol as long as I could so I didn't order any beer but when I was told that there are free drinks and food on our flight, I lost my sobriety. We drank wine, whiskey & beers on the plane to Istanbul and were quite tipsy when we arrived to the first destination. "Vacation-mode" was fully on. On the second flight to Adana we already started to feel our first hangover symptoms but that didn't take away our mood and energy. In Adana, we were picked up by the Turkish organizers and taken to the hotel we stayed the following week. My roommate for the week was Madis.

On our way to the hotel

The first official day at the project was like Erasmus+ projects always are - the quietest. People don't know each other yet and some conversations and get-to-know-each-other games are awkward. Thankfully, it didn't take long before the ice was broken and we all got along very well. We also went to explore Adana and went shopping. Our Estonian Mafia held together but one Turkish guy showed us around. Eventually, he turned out to be one of the coolest dude during this trip. Thank you, Buğra! Although, this evening everyone from our Estonian group except Tõnis were too tired to go out to the city with the others. We sat on the balcony and pretty much talked about the meaning of life. Tõnis kept our Estonian flag up and partied in the city with the others.

Madis & Siim's Tank Top Inc.

Jan & I walking past a little swagger 

Motorcycle culture 

Mahmut Orhan ft. Sena Sener - Feel

The second day started really badly. If I remember correctly, this happened in the morning. I had just bought new shorts the previous day and I didn't know the shorts had such small pockets. I had an iPhone 7 Plus so you can start imagining what happened. I & Madis went to Jan & Siim's room, we were on the balcony and when I sat down, all of the sudden I felt my pocket was empty. Before the phone had even smashed down from the third floor, I looked at Madis and just said "putsis" which pretty much just means "fuck", after the saying we heard how to phone contacted the ground and when the cigarettes were finished, we went to check the damage. My screen was a complete spider net. Fortunately, I have a phone insurance so I get a new phone very soon. But still, thanks to that event, I didn't have any chance to take photos of the trip myself so all of the pictures here are made by the others so thank you very much! However, the incident aside, this day we had a local expert presenting us their agriculture politics in Turkey. We also discussed agriculture opportunities and issues that our countries are facing right now. Fun thing is that Estonia is the tiniest and we are producing the least amount of crops comparing to Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey but we were still the most arrogant country at the project. This night we also had our first cultural evening. It was time for Estonians and Bulgarians to introduce traditions of their countries. Our presentation was almost all improvisation and we failed with singing but it was all fun. We served food and drinks for the others, of course we had Vana-Tallinn and black bread as the main attractions on the table. This night was crazy, I also got the first good chance to talk with the main organizer Türkü. I really like her, her personality is just crazy. I still don't know where she takes all her energy - "Silence pleeease!" Furthermore, one Turkish guy reminded me of a character from a TV Show Narcos. He looked exactly like El Limón who was the last sicario of Pablo Escobar. Samet = El Limón. We partied until the morning and did some crazy stuff. I'm not going to write all the fuck-ups we did but maybe photos will enlighten you a bit.

"I know you are bored, I am bored too." - lecturer x)

 Proudly presenting our country

Tõnis, Urmo, Johannes & I posing with Türkü's mother @ cultural evening

The third day was really hard to get going. I've only slept for an hour and I had a headache but I didn't care, I knew I needed to push myself. We started the day with customizing our own T-shirts and hats. Estonians again were the most childish ones and you can see what we wrote on our clothes from the pictures. When the clothes were ready, we had to get on a bus and we went to a huge farm - Ali Baba's farm is one of the biggest in Adana. The countryside air and walk in the farm was refreshing. The only thing I hated was that that there were peaches growing and we were allowed to eat them but of course Toomas Erik is allergic to good stuff like peaches for example.. However, I can't eat many fruits and vegetables but I can eat kebab. After the farm tour, all of us went to Ulaş Kestek Kebap Restaurant. I love Turkish kebab but I wouldn't eat it every day. Stomachs full, we headed back to the hotel. Also I think it's worth mentioning that all the bus drivers in Turkey are like Jason Stathams and Vin Diesels - they drive like maniacs, they have pimped & tuned buses and they let the music play really loud for us so we could dance like crazy. When we went back to the hotel, we partied so hard in the bus and waved at the city folks. We even made a stop to dance outside. It was crazy! Finally, when we got back to the hotel it was time for the second cultural evening - Hungary and Turkey this time. Turkish food will always be one of the highlights of the cultural evenings.

Getting the farming clothes ready

Pimp My Bus

 Farmville

 Farm princess with her workers

Serenay, Siim, Türkü, Tõnis & I @ Ali Baba's farm

"Afiyet olsun"

Thankfully, the last night didn't end in the morning so I had so much energy on the fourth day. We went to visit The University of Çukurova that day and we enjoyed the massive scenery of this wonderland. Sadly, the university itself left me cold because when someone asked that what makes that university special then the presenter pretty much said that they have a lake. This was really odd. The presenter didn't really do her job well in my opinion but no hate. After the lecture, the fun part started. We were given pickaxes, shovels and trees to plant. This was the part were I got the chance to finally use my energy overflow. We sang "Sepapoisid" which is a well-known Estonian song about working and planted the trees so we could come back there in future to show these grown up trees to our grandchildren. I think that it was fun to work like this for an hour or a two but doing this regularly from day to day at this temperature would be a total nope for me. We were quite exhausted when we arrived back to the hotel. Instead of sleeping we played around with the Estonian group. We played ninjas and ran around in the hotel and then we started to knock on people's doors and when they opened, we threw water into their faces. I'm sure some of them thought that we were drunk or did some drugs but nope - pure boredom was our drug. After this, we also went to see the old town of Adana. Even later when we were tired of walking, half of us went to a bar called Sir Şinasi Bar and we grabbed some beers. Tõnis danced like crazy (this was casual) and I just had a chat with the others. At our end of the table (Estonian Mafia side) was also Buğra and once again, he proved to be a really cool dude. We shared some secrets and practiced his English because he had an English exam coming up. I remember that I really wanted to chat with Türkü but she was so busy all the time because of she had to organize everything. Finally, when she could sit down with us, I talked with her and got to know her even better. She tried to prove that she can cook but she still has to prove it to me. ;)

 Estonian people are beautiful

Third-wheelin' with Hanife & Samet 

Frank Sinatra - Somewhere Over The Rainbow 

One Bob Marley quote you said to me would fit here, Türkü :)

Minecraft 2.0: Turkey

Los Adanas

"Lunar surface on a Saturday night"

Last selfie before leaving the bar

On the fifth day, we went to enjoy the sunny day at the beach. The water was so warm and salty and as clever as we arrogant Estonians thought we were, we tried to swim to an island "nearby". It seemed to be closer than it actually was, also it wasn't easy to swim against the waves. I & Silver turned back earlier than the others but they were picked up by the coast guard a little bit later and returned to the shore. Furthermore, when I went for a walk alone, some Turkish kids invited me to play football with them. I think they were like ten years old or something close to that. We played on the street and at first I was barefoot which I regretted so bad later. I had and I still have huge blisters on the underside of my feet. Later that evening, I went out with Türkü. In addition to that, Tõnis also had a date with a Turkish girl so first we dropped him off and then we went to enjoy each other's company in La Noche Bar. We brainfucked until Tõnis called us to pick him up. When we arrived and Tõnis got onto the car, he was so excited about his fresh experience with this Turkish girl. Yes, the guy got laid. Anyway, this night was I think the greatest of the whole trip. I had some sweet dreams that night.

"Morning After", starring Jan-Erik Sarv & Siim Udras 

Naked for attention 

Date night

When it came to the sixth day, I realized that we were supposed to leave this place and these people very soon. However, before the leave we visited the Provincial Directorate of Agriculture in Adana. We heard more about this sector works in Turkey. After the visit, we started creating our own tiny greenhouses where we put soil and different seeds to grow. Türkü promised to take care of our gardens and I know you are reading this, you bastard - check of our crops! We also made our own fruit salads but I was packing while my group prepared the dessert. Our fruit salad looked fantastic, maybe it also looked like you get diabetes after eating this but at least it looked good. Right after that, we had our Youthpass ceremony where we got our diplomas. Unfortunately, then it was time to leave for team Estonia. We said our farewells to everyone and Türkü sent us to the airport. I really would like to thank Türkü & Hilal the most for making this project so amazing. Hilal, you are going to be an amazing teacher! Türkü, I still remember the final moments with you in the hotel and also at the airport. Thankfully, I'll see you soon in Germany! Also, Ádám and Angel, you players need to visit Estonia! Hit me up when you are here.

Important faces everywhere 

Silver trying out his new job

 Gardener Training 101

Hilal & Türkü - perfect match for organizing this project

The same evening, we arrived to Istanbul. It was much colder there than it was in Adana, also it was raining. Adana was really hot, Istanbul was like Estonia in summertime. After the arrival, we went straight into our hostel and even though we were really tired, we didn't want to waste any remaining time by sleeping. The hostel had a really good-looking bar where we decided to order food and drinks before going to sleep. It was mojito-o-clock and we smoked hookah. The city was even more alive than Adana and part of me liked it but people in Adana were way more friendly. It's probably because people in Adana weren't used to see tourists in their city but in Istanbul, the locals (mostly salesmen) saw us just as walking wallets.

@ Hostel in Istanbul

Powerful

The following day we split up into a few groups and everyone did what they wanted to do in this metropolis. I, Tõnis and Siim went to a bazaar which is a huge market in Turkey. We stayed pretty much the whole day there seeking around and buying stuff. I bargained with pleasure. I loved to talk with the salesmen whether I was going to buy something from them or not. It doesn't matter how low you go with the price, if he or she sells you this then he or she is winning for sure. This evening it was important for me and Johannes to get back to hostel on time because it was Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid. We watched the game screaming, letting all the remaining emotions out. I was on Liverpool's side so when Ramos fucked Salah up and dived later I was so mad but Bale's first goal was beautiful, nothing to say against that. Shame on Karius though, he let the team down.

TEMUFI Photography

Champions League Final

Because we didn't stay up late the previous evening we weren't too tired on the next day. We went in groups again to explore the city and this time I wanted to go sightseeing. When it comes to knowing Turkey then Urmo is the right man because it's like his second home. We visited Hagia Sophia and Basilica Cistern. Thinking how people have made these wonders hundreds of years ago is just amazing. The day was relaxing and educating for me. We also met a cool Syrian guy in a spice shop and he told us many interesting stories about his homeland and shared his views on different issues we have in current world. I also bought a pair of fake Vans Converse shoes that day which still aren't broken which is a miracle. The day was relaxing but the night was crazy. As we knew that it was our last night there, we got quite wasted that night. We met some cool people from New Zealand and Australia and the next thing that comes on my mind is that I filmed when Madis used clipper to make Siim his first pair of earrings. After that we even tried to put some in his eyebrow. It was mad.

@ Basilica Cistern

 Best spice shop and best salesman - we bought organic "sexual activity booster" and you can see how happy these guys are

Good view, good company and good food

The final day was really sleepy. We had to stay in the airport for a long time and so we slept there. I also slept on every flight. My energy had finally ran out. When I arrived to Tallinn, I went straight to attend an exam which I passed without studying before. However, it felt like I needed a vacation after this vacation. The best sentences that I remember from this trip the most - "Come here, my friend, come to my shop, best price, best shop!" & "Silence pleeease!!!". See you soon, Turkey!

PARTY HARD...

 ...SLEEP HARDER!

TARARA

"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." - Jimmy Dean

Wonderful, exhausting but my emotions are great after the five days I spent in Hungary. Like most of you know, I started university like a month ago, I also joined an organisation called BEST. So, why I had this amazing journey to Budapest? The BEST organisation has it's local groups around whole Europe (BEST stands for Board of European Students of Technology) and therefore regional meetings (later called RM) are organised so different local groups could come together to discuss about their plans and doings (and also have some fun!). This RM which called name is RM of Tararas was really special for me because it was the first international event with BEST for me and it also wasn't my local BEST group's regional meeting I attended, I was an out of region (OoR) participant, so to speak an Estonian spy.

A group photo of all the participants and organizers

But what I did there? Mm, we had some training sessions, I had to introduce my local BEST group and of course, we had lots of fun and I met many new amazing people. I started my trip on Thursday by waking up in 4 a.m to catch my flight. It was little bit scary because it was my first flight alone but it turned out that I actually like to travel alone. When I arrived in Budapest I took some time to enjoy the city center and considering the fact that I'm not an artsy person, I loved the architecture of the city. I went to have a lunch and then went to the place the RM was going to take place using public transport. I was the earliest participant in there and met with some of the organizers. At first, I felt really odd in there because the more people came the more I felt lonely because I knew no-one in there.However, thankfully my roommates from Ukraine interacted with me. Thanks to them I started to enjoy the RM right away. Since the RM took place like 25 km from Budapest, we had no idea where we could find the nearest shop. I can say we didn't find one but we found a strip club even though we sadly forgot to go there. Anyway, in the first evening I had to present my LBG (local BEST group) which is as you might know LBG Tallinn. I was little bit nervous because I haven't been in the organisation for a long time yet and I'm not quite familiar with it's structure and projects yet. Thankfully, the presentation went fine, I managed to make the crowd laugh for a couple of times which is important to me as it makes me more confident during the presentations. After that, we had a party and we danced and had a huge amount of fun altogether. I met more and more people and therefore felt more and more awesome.

Emotions after the workshop about social media promotion

We had a training session about presentation skills which I think was the most useful session for me this meeting 

Also, we got many wristbands from other LBGs

It wasn't an easy morning. I hadn't slept much and had to wake up early and the first training session I had chosen was IT tutorial which taught us how to properly use BEST's private website meant only for the members. It lasted for almost four hours but we had some coffee breaks too. After that we had a quiz about BEST and it's history. I was quite bad at it but at least we were in teams so I many wise gals and pals surrounding me, hehe. Furthermore, I attended a workshop about social media promotion. I'm quite familiar with the topic but I still got some new advice which I'm also going to use with my blog's FB page. Besides that, it was time for dinner and the last session was about different departments of BEST. After working hard the whole day, it was time for another party. What I still didn't do was that I couldn't manage to go to sleep early to be rested for the following day.

Feedback is the way to perfection 

Egészségére!

Still, even though I was tired in the morning, it wasn't hard for me to take part of the session because it was about presentation skills and everyone had to talk and perform in front of the others. It was quite scary at first because I'm not used to perform in English but I liked that we got feedback from the others and learned some new tips and tricks to reduce podium stress. But then the day got bad for me. For some reason I had severe back pain, I couldn't move without pain and if I made any wrong move it also made me hard to breath. I managed to take the group photo but after that I had to skip the remaining two sessions I wanted to attend. I just laid in my bed and took many painkillers. I even called my mother and best friend to know the hell is happening and what should I do. Fortunately, painkillers did their job and I managed to attend the international evening. IE was awesome, imagine every country putting out its most special food and drinks. I prepared chocolate, mustard with bread, some candy and the classic Old Tallinn liquor. Somehow, I went to sleep at 6 a.m and woke up at the afternoon when most of the people had their things packed and Polish guy pulled me out of the bed.

The vibe of the international evening was amazing!

 Ha-ha, I picked that photo because it's like I'm playing an imaginary saxophone - finally I can say that I can play an instrument

Hot damn! 

My awesome neighbors from Ukraine

Living the life on the edge

The whole event was really educating and fun at the same time but this wasn't the end. We took a bus to the city and some of us left and we said our goodbyes but some of us including me stayed in Budapest for another day. Firstly, we went to one of the organizer place and ate lunch. Afterwards, we went to the city and enjoyed the pure beauty of the city. When the sun went down, we decided to go to a bar and got some beers and enjoyed the last few hours together. Love you, guys, see you around Europe!

 Trying to look like the statue

 Budapest is one of the nicest places to go for sure

GROUPIE!

 Sorry for blocking the view xd

A small collage of our adventures in the city

That wasn't all for me either, the following day I met up with a friend of mine from an Erasmus+ project which I attended last spring. We had a coffee and did a quick catch up on our doings lately until I had to leave to airport. It was nice to see you again, Anett!

 @ Budapest

My selfie skill isn't really good tho 

Starbucks spelled my name incorrect but I'd like my first name to have only one "o" anyway

Yeah, so far everything seems all good and stuff like that. There is only one thing I wish would've gone better which are the elections in my hometown. My political party didn't win and I didn't manage to get a seat in the city council. It's my own fault because again I have so many things to do and I lost my focus at the end of the campaign. But what I learned from that is that I should try everything even though if I'm not sure about myself - therefore, there won't be any regrets later.

TARARA song aka Kungs vs Cookin’ on 3 Burners - This Girl