We have been up, down and across Saaremaa about ten times in the last three days however we have a couple of final places to visit, one being (joy of joys) a cemetery where we hope to find Aunt Julie’s final resting place. Yesterday’s tour of the old homestead certainly was an insight into the harsh conditions inflicted on Estonian by Russia after World War Two. Youngest of the Sabur daughters Julie who had the foresight, inclination and opportunity to visit Estonia during the Russian era will no doubt, like all Estonians, never forget the cold blooded social cruelty practised under the name of communism.
As often happens I digress, so one final word. Communism in the the Marx and Engels Manifesto was a great theory whereby a society exists without different social classes in which the methods of production are owned by it’s members and everyone works as much as they can and receives as much as they need. History has proven this theory just does not work and inevitably leads to poverty, misery and corruption. Estonia (as with Czechia) has illustrated the point dramatically emerging from it’s previous downtrodden condition to the truly autonomous and socially wealthy country it is today.
After considerable confusion we managed a meeting with Great Aunt Julie.
leschalmers 