walk the line

One Republic, 11.11.14, Tallinn. 

These are from a book called Disorder in the American Courts and are things people actually said in court, word for word, taken down and published by court reporters that had the torment of staying calm while the exchanges were taking place: ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that morning? WITNESS: He said, 'Where am I , Cathy?' ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you? WITNESS: My name is Susan! __________________________ _____ ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact? WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks. __________________________ __________________ ATTORNEY: Are you sexually active? WITNESS: No, I just lie there. __________________________ __________________ ATTORNEY: What is your date of birth?  WITNESS: July 18th.  ATTORNEY: What year?  WITNESS: Every year.  __________________________ ___________  ATTORNEY: How old is your son, the one living with you?  WITNESS: Thirty-eight or thirty-five, I can't remember which....

Estonians are very friendly and open when there's the trigger that pushes the button that makes the emotion pour out. Sophie is a fantastic trigger. Walking her is like being in some socialising hub, everybody wants to pet her and starts a conversation with me. One couple actually stopped their car in the middle of the road and ran around 100 meters into the field to come pet her.

Went to see " Begin again ". I have been waiting for the movie for quite a while.  Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailee Steinfeld, Cee Lo Green, Catherine Keener. I'd prefer it's original name " Can a Song Save Your Life " but the movie is sweet, not cheesy and full of passion. Music is good and it characterises the life in NY so well, god I miss this city.  Vianney lives in Sweden now and came to visit for a weekend. What a lovely bar-hopping in Tallinn's cool, random, soviet and/or creepy bars.  I rarely watch tv. I mean, I'm addicted to many series but I like to watch them when I have time, not depend upon tv-schedules. This year, after being tired of work: dealing with crazy people for 8 hours straight, answering phone-calls when some Irina or Jelena whose husbands have disappeared without a trace to Russia or somewhere over the ocean, blame me for not letting them get divorced, or some Nikolai doe...

It took a couple weeks to get used to being in Estonia BUT I didn't get a culture shock like last time I came back after being away for a year. It just felt lovely to be home. It was such an inspiring year, I'm full of motivation. I still sometimes turn my head a little too quickly when somebody talks in Estonian behind me on the street, with an amazed look "Estonians??", and still wanna say "excuse me" when I walk into somebody or "hi" and "cheers" when buying something in a store. Other than that I think I haven't completely forgotten my own language. Love driving my car again BUT the roads are horrible, never have I ever seen such large-scaled road-works EVERYWHERE. Driving to the city at rush hour is close to impossible. Of four lanes (2 both sides) often only one operates as a curvy slalom lane. And this is only one of the many closed roads. 

Jihye and her boyfriend Leo picked me up from the bus-stop in Seoul. After a quick light dinner headed to her place, as I was staying with her and her family. Her family friends came to visit and their daughter is an illustrator, so we had a little art-lesson. 

One week in Hong Kong. Had time to meet my dear old friends, make new ones and do the touristy stuff. Lantau island, Victoria Peak, Sai Kung national park and beach, markets and Hollywood Road, Soho, Wan Chai party district, art museums, Victoria Harbor and the Avenue of Stars. Hong Kong did not impress me too deeply. It's a mix of Western and Asian, yet unlike Bangkok I didn't find that something that makes it still authentic and special. Also, I managed to catch a cold. Damn AC. But I can only blame myself as every time I was inside I ran towards the ice-cold air-conditioner. The weather was super hot and humid.. No matter day or night, sun or no sun, the moment you put your nose out of the conditioned room you melt and drown in sweat.

We went rafting near Cairns and a very talented photographer took some action-shots!

I love how Aussies shorten every name or word in general. Brisbane is Brissie, Rockhampton is Rocky, kangaroo is roo, volunteers are vollies, mosquitos are mozzies etc. The first time I heard the word 'mozzies', I couldn't stop laughing! The cutest name for these often unbearably annoying creatures. Also, arvo as afternoon, or tea as dinner.. Gotta admit I was pretty confused in the beginning. Then again these abbreviations and all, are addictively handy, so please forgive me if I keep shortening all the words and no-one understands me.

The Hardest Part Of Traveling No One Talks About  - Kellie Donnelly "But the sad part is once you’ve done your obligatory visits for being away for a year; you’re sitting in your childhood bedroom and realize nothing has changed. You’re glad everyone is happy and healthy and yes, people have gotten new jobs, boyfriends, engagements, etc., but part of you is screaming don’t you understand how much I have changed? And I don’t mean hair, weight, dress or anything else that has to do with appearance. I mean what’s going on inside of your head. The way your dreams have changed, they way you perceive people differently, the habits you’re happy you lost, the new things that are important to you. You want everyone to recognize this and you want to share and discuss it, but there’s no way to describe the way your spirit evolves when you leave everything you know behind and force yourself to use your brain in a real capacity, not on a written test in school. You know you’re thinking dif...