Hello. It's been quite a while, hasn't it? I missed you too, old friend. I know you've been waiting for my final entree. I was nervous. This is a goodbye. I was never good with goodbyes. The knowledge we might never see each other again. The necessity to find the right words. The bittersweet conflict between the desire…

My last group picture in Estonia... Hello there! The last weekend of September was my last talgud . For this one, I would be group leader with Anu. We discussed (via mail and face-to-face) about which meals to prepare. We talked about the transportation and side activities as well. We arrived at the hotel a little over an hour and a…

Tere! On Thursday the 18th, after an eventful holiday in Finland, I was driven by a mother of 3 lovely kids to Lihula, to attend the  Matsalu Nature Film Festival  (17th edition), organised by ELF's member Silvia. The festival (named after the neighbouring  Matsalu National Park , a very important bird sanctuary) lasted until Su…

A white sheet and a srong light are all you need to catch insects at night Hello! On Friday the 6th of September, we left for Vatla, arriving at our sleeping place (an old school) for the evening, joining there our group-leader Eva-Maria and the rest of the group.  After eating a warm meal, an entomologist gave us a presentation of …

I think this lighthouse just had a brilliant idea. Bien le bonjour! The 22th of August, we drove to Osmussaar. Thanks to the wind, the boat ride was unforgettable. Kirke and I, the closest to the bow of the boat, felt like being on a rollercoaster. Once arriving on the island, we were driven by locals to our house, which also works …

This project requires a lot of people... こんにちは ! On the 17th of August, Kadri and I took the train from Tartu to Tapa. There we joined a group of international volunteers - a class of Hungarian students, and a few of their teachers, as well as a few other volunteers from Italy, France, Japan and Taiwan through the EstYes program. T…

Thanks for the button, Jaan. Hello everybody!  On the 7th of August we departed for Saarnaki island,in the west. To get there, we drove to Rohuküla, where we took the ferry to a port on Hiiumaa. From there we drove to a small port where we were led to Saarnaki. Mighty vikings taught the locals how to safely dock ships. They still us…

Tere! On the second of August, after a good week of rest, I went with Kadri and Kaia (and other volunteers, one of them a local journalist) to Karula, sleeping in the very house I slept in one month prior.  We went there to complete what had been done there: pulling out the Himalayan bastardos  Impatiens glandulifera . Indeed, they …

I'm Elina Melet-Garel, a student from France, and I will be volunteer here in Estonia until the end of November/ beginning of December 2019.  For the past two years I have been studying naturalism, and how to lead activities that raise awareness of nature conservation. Next year I would like to continue my biology studies and th…

Dank jullie wel en tot ziens Dag iedereen! On Tuesday afternoon, on the 23th of July, a group of Belgian volunteers came in Tartu. Through the organisation Bouworde, they had the opportunity to come here in Estonia for two weeks of environmental work (and some tourism as well).  We all gathered and went on our merry way to Haanja Na…

Butterflies! Moths! Come see my insects! Hello everybody ! On the18th of July, we took off for the west of the country, direction Hobulaid (Horse Isle in English). As its name indicates, wild horses used to live on the island, but everything changed when a forest grew there. Our tasks was to restore meadows on Hobulaid. Once we wer…

Don't Fear the Reaper. Gutentag! Previously, on Antoine in Estona.... Now, on Antoine in Estonia.... Right after coming back from my talgud on Rammu (see previous episode), Triin and I immediately went to Palupõhja. After putting our clothes into the washing machine (of course I forgot to check the dates and thus thought I'd…

One of us accidentally cut down a lighthouse! Please don't tell anyone! Hello! The 8th of July, group leaders Tauri and Triin took a volunteer and myself to a harbour, where all of us (13 people in total) took a boat to Rammu. After the lovely ride, we brought the tools to the house some of us slept in (most of the others slept …

Tere! At the end of June, I went for my second talgud. I assisted our group leader Liis in buying the groceries for the week-end, along with one of the volunteers. I then drove us south to Karula National Park, where we were joined by the rest of the group (9 people in total). We stayed in a lovely place, an old school, with picture…

Here's a picture of the little guy Bien le bonjour, my dear fellow! I must apologize for my late entry, I'll try to be more regular from now on (and will post a couple of one today and tomorrow). We'll talk today about the mascot and my second talgud (in another post).  One of my tasks was to design and create a mascot (…

Here's one of the toads we're trying to help out Hello there, and welcome to this new entry. What did I do when I first came here? Kadri (my supervisor) and I discussed about what I would do here during my stay, as well as the logistics involved with my rent. My first talgud was in Lohusuu, at Lake Peipsi, one of Europe'…

Hello there! Allow me to quickly introduce myself. My name is Antoine. I'm 26, French, and I'm currently living in Tartu, Estonia. I've previously studied Computer Science and Mathematics. This has nothing to do with my stay here. I'm working as a volunteer (as part of the European Voluntary Service) for ELF (Eesti…

The cables have to be fixed as high as possible and it is good to have a self-moving ladder in hand. (Elina, Urmas ja Omar) In mid-March I had the opportunity to assist with the installation of the Capercaillie lek camera. It was installed in cooperation between Eagle Club and Birdlife Estonia in Lääne-Virumaa Tudusoo SPA. Thi…