Why do the three Baltic countries have such a deep relationship with Russia? Take you into Estonia.

It takes about two and a half hours by bus from Riga, Latvia, to Tallinn, Estonia. The youth hostel in Tallinn is about one kilometer from the bus station. I wanted to drag my suitcase to the hotel when I left the station, but the road in Tallinn was paved with stones, so I had to call a taxi to take it.

Estonians in the Baltic Sea were formed in 12 and 13 centuries, and were occupied by Prussia, Northern Europe, Denmark, Sweden and other countries from 13 to 17 centuries. /kloc-At the beginning of the 8th century, Peter the Great of Russia carried out a crazy land expansion policy, which took Estonia from Sweden and incorporated it into Russian territory. Since then, Russia has ruled Estonia for more than 200 years.

After World War I, Russia perished, and Estonia declared its independence at the beginning of 19 18, but was invaded by the Germans. In the same year, 1 1, Soviet Russia claimed sovereignty over Estonia and sent troops to attack Estonia. Estonia, with the help of Germany, set up an army to fight against Soviet Russia, and forced Soviet Russia in 198.

In the early period of World War II, the Soviet Union and Germany signed a non-aggression treaty between the Soviet Union and Germany in August 1939, and Estonia was brought into the Soviet sphere of influence. Subsequently, the Soviet Union sent troops to occupy the whole territory of Estonia, overthrew the old regime, abolished the Constitution and established the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic. Later, Estonia was incorporated into the Soviet Union as a republic.

1941June, Hitler tore up the non-aggression treaty and invaded the Soviet Union. Three months later, he occupied Estonia. Estonia regarded the German army as a "liberator" and set up an Estonian division to cooperate with the German army against the Soviet Union.

After World War II, Estonia suffered crazy retaliation from the Soviet Union. Soviet troops bombed the capital Tallinn and other cities, killing many civilians, then arrested and executed people who resisted Soviet rule on a large scale, and released a large number of Estonians to Siberia. After Stalin's death, the Soviet Union relaxed its rule over Estonia in the 1950s and 1960s.

In the 1990s, great changes took place in Eastern Europe, and Estonia regained its independence on 199 1. From the18th century to the present more than 400 years, Estonia has been independent for only a few decades, and the rest of the time is basically under the harsh rule of Russia and the former Soviet Union, which shows how deep the feud between Estonia and Russia is.

199 1 Estonia turned to the west in many aspects such as politics, economy and society, and implemented the western presidential parliamentary system. Joined NATO and the European Union in 2004, and joined Schengen countries and the euro zone after 2007.

Estonia, a small Baltic country, can be described as a "blockbuster". Because 48% of its land area is covered by forests, and most of it is still in a primitive natural state, there are many lakes and swamps in the territory, and the geographical environment is located on the east bank of the Baltic Sea. In 20 12, it was rated as the country with the highest air quality in the world by the World Health Organization, and Tallinn, the capital, was also called "the holy land for lung washing".

Tallinn Old Town, a world heritage site, is the best preserved medieval city in the Baltic countries and one of the best in Europe. The old city is divided into upper and lower cities, with the city hall, La Kea Square, the old city wall, St. Olaf's Church and other attractions in the lower city, and the alexander nevsky East Cathedral, observation deck and other attractions in the upper city, so the upper city should climb up. Overlooking the old town of Tallinn from the observation deck, the scenery is very beautiful, which is not inferior to the small town of Hallstatt in Austria and Dubrovnik in Croatia.

Bars and restaurants are everywhere in the streets and alleys around downtown La Kea Square. In the evening, brightly decorated shops will light dazzling lanterns. With the arrival of tourists from all over the world, the square suddenly became very lively, showing a spectacular scene of blending ancient and modern. Professional folk performers perform bagpipes in the square, and unique music floats across the night sky, attracting tourists to cheer. Until late at night, the square was still crowded with people.

Tallinn, an ancient city, faces Finland and Sweden across the sea. Large ferries from Nordic countries call at the ship dock in Tallinn every day, especially on weekends or holidays. A large number of tourists come to Estonia for their holidays with their families and private cars. Estonia has low consumption and good climate, so it is also called "the back garden of Nordic countries".

My trip to Europe is from Shanghai by Aeroflot to Warsaw, Poland, then by coach from Warsaw to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in the Baltic countries, and then by ferry from Tallinn, Estonia, across the Gulf of Finland, to Helsinki and back to Shanghai from Helsinki.

When I travel to Europe, I usually go to at least three countries at a time. I divide Europe into many blocks, and connect several neighboring countries for sightseeing, which can save a lot of air tickets. Besides, I choose cities with large aviation hubs as my first destination, such as Frankfurt, Belgrade in Eastern Europe, Helsinki in Northern Europe and other cities. There are many flights to China in these places, and the air tickets are also cheap, but generally you have to buy low-cost air tickets at least two months in advance. Another cheapest way is to book a hotel online, which is the most famous hotel in the world.