A Word A Week Challenge – Hat

A Word A Week Challenge – Hat challenge is very good for me, as I love hats and all the head covers, I have quite a lot of them in my closet and I wear one every day. But I wouldn’t bother you with photos of my head with hat, so I chose three collections for you.

The first one is a commercial for Staropramen brewery in Prague and I like it a lot. Staropramen beer is for everyone :-).

Prague Staropramen beer hats

The second collection is from my favorite Baltic states, most of them are from Tallinn market. Next time I am there I will definitelly go for one!

Beautiful colorful (mostly) “hats” from Tallinn market. The bottom right is from Lithuania, castle Trakai

The last shot is from Prague Christmas Crafts Markets and there I already was succesfull, one of them I wear this winter. See the earings bottom right and left from them above the black hat with red string there is a blue-green one and that’s the one I have bought.

Prague Christmas Market Hats

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Weekly Image Of Life: Places

This summer it will be already five years, when I visited port Vergi for the first time. Immediately I fell in love with the place but I can’t explain you why. Maybe it was the weather and clouds, maybe the water, maybe the feeling of freedom … Most probably all these together and what is strange, my husband fell in love with the place too. Last summer we went there once more, with our family and small dogs, and the feeling was there again.
Port Vergi is a small port in natural park Lahemaa in North Estonia, you can park your yacht here, there is a small restaurant and hostel opened during summer. But I think this info is not that important, beacuse it is the feeling, which is inside me when I remember port Vergi. I hope you will be able to feel it at least a bit from my shots.

Post is written for Weekly Image Of Life: Places.

Sea, restaurant / hostel, port

View from restaurant

Wanna take a boat?

Pub and delicious food there, no I don’t mean our dogs, I mean the bottom line

Stones at the sea

Travel theme: Glass

This week’s Travel theme is Glass. I love glass, I visited lots of glass factories and Czech Glass – Crystal, metallurgic, blown – is really beautiful. You can read about one type of Czech Christmas Glass ornaments in one of my previous posts here. Today I am going to write about my other loves. First, I love bottles, mainly old colorful bottles (emtpy ones :-)) with embossement. Second, I love Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania – read my post about it here) and one place I really enjoyed to be was Estonian National Park Lahemaa at the North coastline of the country.

I love this

My glass shots will take you to maritime museum in a small village called Käsmu. During summer there are really really long days in Estonia, and as there is still the light at the late evening, you are not going to sleep, because why to go to sleep during the day? Therefore, I was wandering around the village at about 11pm when I found a big house, Sea Museum, that was opened and I went in. I was taken by all the beautiful glass bottles in windows, and now I share them with you.

Getting closer

Looking through the window.

Widows full of bottles

I am asking, who drang them all?

Green collection

And not only glasses.

How many greens do you know?

Colors of Baltic States

Baltic states – Estonia, Lavia and Lithuania – are three small countries in North East Europe and are on my Top List of Favorite Places, where I was and enjoyed it there a lot. Even though the history of these countries is very similar, they are not the same and every one of them has its stunning beauty.

Tallinn garden festival in the park behind the walls of the old city, Estonia

From Estonia I will choose colors, flowers, Lahemaa national park, medievel hansa city Tallinn and summer town Parnu. In Latvia I like to swim (more precisely walking in the water, as it is rather shallow) in Jurmala, the kitchen is the best here, valley of Gauja river is beautiful and adventure as well, walks in Riga’s park are nice. In Lithuania you can’t miss baroque capital Vilnius with independent Uzupis distric, lakes are so beautiful in Aukstaitia, Palanga beach and park are must see, dunas and sea at Neringa (Curonian split) can’t be miss.

Colorful house and small garden in Juodkrante, Neringa, Lithuania

July’s looong sunny days offer us the best opportunity to enjoy the places around. What I love in Baltics are the colors on the streets and all the details. Flowers markets there are the nicest I have ever seen and traditional handcraft works are so beautiful.

Flower market at Central Market in Riga, Latvia

When you are in Latvia, tasting auksta zupe (cold soup) is so refreshing, that you can easily became addicted to it, so when you come to Lithuania you are immediately going for saltibarscaj, which is not the same but pretty close, served with potatoes.

Saltibarscai, beetroot cold soup with cream, how served in Rumsiskes, Open-air museum in Lithuania

There you will learn that black and grey are also colors and not mistakes on the color chart.

Black swan on the pond in city park in Cesis, Latvia, there is a pair of them and they had a small baby this summer

Flax jumpers and wool socks, grey is just perfect there

But when you don’t like it, you can choose from all the colors of the world

Socks stall in Central Market in Riga, Latvia

Hats in all shapes and colors at town hall square market in Tallin, Estonia; even more can be found in Lithuanian markets

Flax jumpers both in Tallinn and Vilnius (cheaper there !)

Very close to the old town of Tallinn there is a big ship harbour for ferries to all around the Baltic sea, very crowdy but nice place.

Naval flags in Tallinn harbour, Estonia

Our hostel in harbour was colorful as well

Visiting summer cities like Parnu (Estonia) or Palanga (Lithuania) or Ventspils (Latvia) is perfect chance to spent some time by the sea at the beach, that is pretty close to forest. The cities are colorful, but you can always find a quiet place for coffee, just sit there and enjoy the air.

At the small park cafe in Parnu, Estonia

Wooden weather vanes are in nice colors and shapes, mainly in Nida, but also in Juodkrante, beautiful village at Curonian Split

Braided trees in Tartu, Estonia, but also in Vilnius, Riga and other cities

The best time for visiting is July, but I believe autumn colors must be perfect specially in national parks as Lahemaa in the north Estonia or in Aukstaitia in Lithuania as well as in Gauja park in Latvia.

The winter would be also nice, but the days are very short there, to feel warm and cozy you can choose from many jersey’s designs in Tallinn. Also trees are protected against the cold carefully :-).

But in fact it doesn’t matter which time of the year you will choose for your visit, as long you are dressed well and you travel with opened eyes and opened heart, in Baltic states you won’t be disappointed.

Jersey at the wool market bellow the old ramparts in Tallinn, Estonia