Greetings from Russia

Crossing a border between Estonia and Russia was a challenge and an adventure on its own. We woke up early in the morning to deal with it as soon as possible, but it took us a few hours before we actually managed to get on track. And no, we were not waiting at the border. Do you remember the cartoon with Asterix and his 12 works? The part when he was supposed to get some official form from a public office? Well that is exactly how it looked like. The first thing was, that we were told to buy car insurance before going to the border. Normally it could have worked, but unfortunately we chose to cross it on Sunday, meaning all the possible insurance points in Estonia were closed. We were driving from one to another trying to get some help just to find out in the end, that we can simply buy the insurance when we're already in Russia and that no one on the border will even ask us for one. We were relieved, but only for a moment, since then it turned out that we are missing a formal registration for our car without which we are not allowed to drive in the border region, You may apply for such registration online, but then you need at least one week of advance or you may do it in the border city Narva itself, in the international transport center, but you should also turn up there at least a day before your planned trip to Russia. You will get the registration after showing your pass and the car documents (costs 1,10 EUR) After that you will only have to pay the fee for a border bridge (3 EUR). If you are in a hurry and have some good reason to get to Russia on the same day you may try negotiating. Big smile and some basic Russian skills will be very helpful. If you are lucky you will not only get to the border on the same day but you may be able to skip a big part of the waiting queue, so it's worth trying. As long as you're in it is not as bad as some people say. No long hours of waiting or detailed control. But it helps to get all the necessary forms as soon as possible. You should get them before getting to the checking point but from our experience I can say you won't unless you ask for it. What we needed was a migration card for us both and the declaration form to enable us to take our car to Russia. Both filled in twice. Apart from that no problems or payments to be made.

Camping paradise

I am in love with Baltic States! It's the best camping location one could ever get! One camping ground better then the other. And the views... It's incredible how green and lovely those places are. We decided to be one day late for Russia just to have a bit more time to see it all. But it's not even near to enough, so I am certain we will be coming back! It's definitely worth it! We were really deeply impressed! Not by the big cities, cause neither Vilnius nor Riga managed to convince us in 100% (though they were nice indeed), but the rest of the countries did. It seems to consist only of trees and lakes. If any of you is planning to do some camping I can really recommend this direction. Perfect location, perfect facilities, simply amazing!

Right behind the border between Poland and Lithuania comes a perfectly organized tourist info which can provide you with detailed information on all the camping grounds and hotels in those 3 countries. From our side we can recommend Camping Slanis in Trakai, where you can swim in an extremely clean sea with a view on a castle, Camping Sigulda Pludmale, where we were for a change bathing in a river in a sweet little valley in the middle of a national park and camping in Toila, right at the see. All nice and clean, ranging between 12 and 15 Euros (for us 2 and the car). We didn't miss any opportunity to take a bath, though I have to admit it took some courage to bath in the cold Estonian sea.

There are only 2 disadvantages about this region, mosquitoes and the poor condition of some roads, but for polish people both shouldn't be much of a surprise :) But honestly after driving through Warsaw, we though we've seen it all. Well we were wrong. And we found it out the moment when I decided to drive a bit on my own. Let's say I had my first off-road training. It will certainly be useful later on. And few moments later David ended up on an unpaved road, or should we say 20km of deep sand driving? It was shaking so badly that our side door started popping out. It was hanging somewhere between being open and closed, making a terrible noise. That is why we were extremely happy when we saw a VW sign in Estonia, in Tartu. We were hoping we can get some advice. We lost our hopes when we read that the repair services are closed on Saturday, but we decided to come in and ask anyway. It turned out that Estonian VW dealers not only speak fluent English but also really know the cars they are selling (including the ones they used to sell 20 years ago!). The sales manager we met analyzed and solved the problem in a few minutes, making our further trip much more enjoyable. And once again showing us how nice and helpful people in this area are.

That is why we entered Tartu in really good moods. And the city made it even better. It was certainly my favorite location so far. Not too big, not too full, simply nice and pretty. And it really has something to offer. I was especially impressed by the ruins of the old cathedral (being used for university classroom in good weather periods, definitely the best looking one we have ever seen!). But also the rest of this student city will stay in my memory as one of the nicest spots I have been too. I didn't regret we decided to go there instead of Tallinn, not even for a minute.

So if you are still trying to plan your summer holidays, pack your bags, grab a car or a tent and come to visit the Baltic States. I am sure you won't regret it!