Exploring Estonia: Pärnu

Pärnu

We walked the length and breadth of Pärnu's old town, taking in the most notable sights - St. Elizabeth's Church, built in 1747, Catherine's Church, the Red Tower (Punane Torn), and other buildings from past centuries - while also searching for somewhere to have a meal in the old town that was both tasty and reasonably priced. On the latter point I have an observation to share: it is not necessary to go to the eateries or cafés listed in tourist brochures or located on old town streets; one should not be afraid to slip into inner courtyards, where signs pointing to restaurants are hard for an inattentive traveller to notice. These spots are well known to locals, tourists rarely stumble upon them, and there one can eat well at reasonable prices.

In the information centre, which had quite a lot of reference literature and maps in languages we could understand (including Latvian), the consultant recommended tasting the Estonian national food or drink - Kama. This is essentially a flour made of coarsely ground and roasted wheat, barley, rye, and peas. The drink is prepared by spooning Kama flour into a cup and pouring over yogurt, kefir, sour milk, or buttermilk. It must be said it is quite a peculiar drink - a matter of taste.

We lingered a little longer at the Red Tower, as it is open free of charge to all visitors; inside, souvenir and bead handcraft shops have set up permanent residence on two floors. Right there on the spot, various decorations and jewellery are melted and shaped from coloured bottle glass fragments.

Pärnu New Art Museum

Then we visited the Pärnu New Art Museum, which had drawn my attention via an event described on chaplin.ee - an annual international nude art exhibition "Man and Woman." This year was the 18th such exhibition, titled "Man, Woman and Electricity," in which 39 artists from Estonia, France, Denmark, Sweden, the USA, Chile, Finland, and Belgium participated with their works. The exhibition ran from 8 June to 11 September. Entry: 1.60 EUR.

On display were works executed in various techniques - oil and acrylic paintings, photographs, sculptures, audio and visual performances. Several works spoke to me, including Estonian painter Piret Rohusaar's fiery paintings with the same title as this year's exhibition, "Man, Woman and Electricity" (2011), and Estonian painter Juss Piho's "Signs" (2009). A distinctive artistic solution was Urve Küttner's works featuring small perfume bottles in the shape of a female bust. We also examined with interest photographs in a vintage style, and photographs of nude human bodies underwater (a surreal sight). The emotions and reflections of that moment I also left as an entry in the guest book.

For anyone interested, the museum address is Esplanaadi 10, Pärnu (58°22'51''N 24°29'58''E). ;)