Behind the Fallen Iron Curtain: Estonia

For the final installment of my "Behind the Fallen Iron Curtain" Series, I've saved the best for last.  The Republic of Estonia.

Estonia was THE BEST country I visited during my naval service.  No other country ever came close to Estonia's economic and social standings.  It would be easy to categorize Estonia as the typical post-Soviet control nation trying to find its own identity much like Ukraine or Bulgaria.  However, following the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Estonia wasted no time setting itself apart from the rest of Eastern Europe.  For inspiration, Estonia turned to the United States as an example of how to establish an economy, but they took it one step further.  The fledgling nation asked Milton Friedman to "design" their economy.  The results speak for themselves.  As an "export before import" nation, Estonia has the highest GDP of any former Soviet country. They rank third in the world in economic freedoms, civil liberties, and education (All children are required to be fluent in English, Estonian, and Russian).  Estonia is also among the highest GDP per-capita for EU and NATO nations.  The government debt to GDP ratio for Estonia, 6.7%, is the lowest in the EU!  Unfortunately, Estonia's history hasn't been as spectacular as its economy.  Estonian independence was officially recognized in 1920, but the young nation would only have until 1940 to exercise its rights as a sovereign nation.  From 1940-1944, Estonia was caught in a game of "Tug O' War" between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia.  Concentration Camps were built through out the country, and those who survived the Nazis found themselves sent to Soviet Gulags.  From 1944 until 1991, Estonia was considered territory of the USSR, even though the country tried to maintain its sovereignty.  Despite being at the mercy of two ruthless empires for over 50 years, and experiencing a "rebirth" in 1991, Estonians still maintain February 24, 1918 as their official Independence Day.  A glass cross and plaque honors those killed and tells the story of how their nation was born.  Truly incredible.   From an historical perspective, Estonia has a rich story to tell, but to the average citizen living through those times,  I'm sure it was Hell on Earth.  As a result, Estonian resentment towards Russia is quite high, and only 3% of Estonian exports go to Russia.  

The people truly love Americans.  I did not meet anyone who didn't have anything nice to say regarding the United States. I know this blog post isn't really telling you much about my personal experience in Estonia, but just being able to visit a country that is so economically "perfect", I really don't feel a need to drone on about my daily routine there.  The food was incredible, the weather was great, the sites were beautiful, the history of Estonia was phenomenal.  I would return without hesitation if given the opportunity.  

FUN FACT: Skype was designed and created by Estonians.  At 27.12 Mbts/s, Estonia has the fasted internet download speeds in Europe!

Behind the Fallen Iron Curtain: Ukraine

Good morning, readers-

One of the more interesting former Soviet countries I visited was Ukraine.   I say "interesting" because I feel that Communism still has a hold there.  Capitalism was apparent, there seemed to be a fairly large amount of tourism, economic competition and Western influence (there was a Baskin Robbins, McDonald's, Adidas, and even a Disney store), but there was something "in the air" if I may put it that way.  I did not have the same "democratic feeling" in the Ukraine as I had in Georgia or Bulgaria.  Ukraine, to me, seemed perfectly content with their position in the post-Soviet era.  I saw very little construction, but I think they made that transition years ago and have settled in.  Though, it doesn't help that a Communist rally marched down the street while I was eating lunch.  Seeing flags with the faces of Josef Stalin and Vladimir Lenin flying in the wind didn't exactly scream "Capitalism".  Overall, I did enjoy the Ukraine very much.  The food was great (I had Borscht and it was one of the best thing I've ever had).  I visited a massive cathedral in Odessa and brought back a hand painted porcelain chalice.  The public parks were very nicely maintained, and my group and I decided to pretty much hang around the area between the cathedral and the park (many shops, vendors, restaurants, & live music).  While in the public park, I noticed a bronze statue of a man on a park bench.  I can't read Ukrainian, but it strongly resembled Nikita Khrushchev.  I haven't been able to find anything information online, so who this man truly is, is a mystery to me.  But for now, I'll stick with Khrushchev because that's who it looked like.  I asked for permission to take a bus tour up to Pripyat/Chernobyl to visit the city (parts of it have been cleared for a guided tour), but of course the Navy said "no, you'll die of radiation and we can't afford to lose bodies".....naturally.  But I was about 7 hours away nonetheless.  I'd probably go back to Ukraine if given the chance.