The other dimension of Tallinn

Alongside my colleagues arrived from Finland in Estonia, we’d lived a deep experience of being volunteers, standing at the borderline between what is fake and what is true!

We were handing aids to what we call the disadvantaged people, the people who rowed in line waiting for their turn to get a handful of food!

Old and young folks accompanied by their children, they all were gushing to get their rights through charity.

I thought to myself, how come the rear streets, the dark corners and the backstage of the city could be materialized in that aged man perfumed with the cheap tobacco, who walked in saying some local words, that was better than all the schools teaching Tallinn's culture! What’s called vagrant, he is indeed the naked truth, the concrete part of the city or he might be the underneath pillars holding up the mighty bridge!

I saw the greatest people of the town!

With StepEurope as well, on the second day, I had the privilege of conducting another poetry walk, but this time we’ve exceeded the borders and here we are, in Tallinn!

We commenced the march at the ancient wall of Tallinn, where our participants were asked to ignite their senses in bid of writing. After a long day stacked with activities, finally we got to gather our scattered selves, and assemble them on papers in form of poetry!

We managed to demonstrate the concealed impression, relationships, and the memories of certain places and turn the wall alongside the Old and Freedom Square into poems, or written masterpieces! People of Tallinn joined us, and illustrated the image even more by guiding us to the most magnificent sites in the town! The poetry walk has this time worked on social level attained through the collective spirit of communication, and the joint work, fruited eventually in people didn’t know each other who’d sentimentally interacted!

The last day of that rich and deep trip, we had the chance to eye how papers are being recycled and be useful again. We walked into the Ukrainian Culture Center located in the old town of Tallinn, where we were flanked by papers of different types slung on what seemed to be washing lines. A French volunteer escorted us illustrating the vague spatial elements. The flow was given later to a Ukraine volunteer who’d explained the phases that papers industry entails without causing any harm to the nature.

We’ve seen the wonderful outcome affixed to the walls in form of postcards and artworks made of the used papers.

Also, we got to wander all over the place endowed to the young people to show their creativity and to get together. We took up the stairs where two girls were facing each other, peeling fruits and vegetables. One of the girls is from Germany studying in Tallinn. I often have wondered: how could new arrivals know of such places concealed in the depth of the town?

“I actually googled a place in Tallinn where I could fill up my spare time” she said.

Voluntary work seemed to me an activity built on the mutual benefits between the volunteers and their host institutions. It provides people with great experiences without having to pass through the formal process proceeding any job. The individuals can also get their free food and accommodation in many cases. Above all, it assists people to expand or create new networks, the essential ground of any coherent plan!

I’ve had a conversation with one of the Estonian volunteers, while we were attending a joint workshop held by StepEurope, we realized how much of the actual communication we lack nowadays. And how even the social media have distanced people from each other, when their messages are being misinterpreted! This is the reason, why people should always be engaged in such vital activities. Yes! This is the optimal place to grow up a generation who has achieved a high level of common understanding.

Ahmed Zaidan


*Stay tuned for the second part of our #studytripEstonia, coming next week!