How much is the Cow on the Window?

Photo by Vahur in Varnja, 27 June.

Vacuum Microphone

A girl's got to sing when a girl's got to sing.

Photo by Vahur in the backyard of Tartu Write's House, 12 June 2014

Nail File

In South Estonia, people like it big. For example, we build huge nail files that foreigners mistake for houses.

Photo by Vahur 12 June 2014,  in the back of the Writers' House in Tartu

Estonian Ranger

 ...or just playing Cowboy Superhero? Who cares, it looks cool & steampunk anyway. Photo by Kaili, Räpina, South-Estonia, april 2014.

Weird and Beautiful Ice Vehicles

"Karakat" or "karakatitsa" is a self made vehicle for on-ice fishing. The huge tires (often the inner tyres of large airplanes) make the karakat unsinkable, so one can go winter fishing even if ice conditions are tricky. Each year a Karakatitsa Festival is held in Kallaste.

Karaktitsa is not the only option - some use custom made hovercrafts.

Photos of the Karakatitsa Festival by Vahur Afanasjev, 22 February 2014 in Kallaste, by the Lake Peipsi (Peipus), in the area mostly inhabited by Russian speaking Old Believers who fled to Estonia from repressions in Czarist Russian in 16.-17. century.

Fear Factor

As all European, and, especially, Eastern European countries, Estonia is full of Le-Corbusier-insiper concrete buildings. Most people hate those... and problably these have the most inhabitant, by percentage. I, personally, rather like the buildings for the straightforward look, logical room planning, economical and environmentally practical central heating. If placed correctly (the distance between two buildings has correspont to be their double height) and surrounded with a touch of nature (grass, tress, bushes, flower beds, playgrounds), they're ok.

But what I hate, is that in 1990ies people took extreme liberties in fucking up the face of these houses, closing the terraces, balconies and loggias any way came to their mind. Oh, well, there's some vernacular coolness about it, too, but in general - it's ugly. What impressed me on this 9-storey house in Tartu Annelinn (Ann's town), is the last floor grated terraces. I guess there was some reason in those metal bars at some point, but the current level of criminality is so low that I hardly imagine somebody breaking in from there and carrying all the stolen stuff (TV set?) away over the roof... On the other hand, in the mid 1990ies, there was a wave of stealing bikes from 2-3 storey balconies. So maybe I'm just snobbish and the bars have to be there.

By Vahur Afanasjev, Tartu, 2010

Anarchy in USSR

Who the f... was this person, who managed to sell anarchy symbol to the Traffic Police (Militia) of Soviet Estonia, as a logo of voluntary/assistan constables. Must have been early 80ies... Discovered by Mare and Vahur in a secondhand in Tallinn.

How to use a wheelbarrow

Topic for meditation: what would you use a three-wheel wheelbarrow for? By Vahur Afanasjev, 15 July 2011

Industrial Cemetery

Photo by Mare Sabolotny, May 2011 in Paldiski

Estonian Mushroom

Leucopaxillus giganteus, diameter 44 cm. Photo by Aapo Ilves, 14. 09. 2010, Räpina, South Estonia.

Astronauts grave?

Abandoned & forgotten cemetery & helmet. Photo by Aapo Ilves, 22. 08. 2010, Kärsa, South Estonia.