So this is, uh, episode number, whatever. These things don't have episode numbers. I don't give a crap a shit. Why are you censoring yourself?

Who gives a fuck anyway? What the fuck we're going to talk about today? Oh yeah, we went to go see an apartment today that my wife is going to potentially buy as one of these old Soviet flats. And what's happening is a lot of elder folks dying and then their kids are selling the apartments.

So some of these places have been lived in for since the Soviet times, 1960s, fifties, whatever. And this place has the original floor from, I think, the 40s, which was right when the Soviet Union came in and said, yeah, this is ours now, We want this for ourselves. I think that's how they talk. I don't know.

Anyway, no elevator, but had to carry the baby up because, you know, we got a baby. So baby was with us. And it was nice because when you're dealing with real estate agents here in Estonia, there's no small talk like you have in the US And so I have a baby with me, my wife is there, we go upstairs and then he just says here you can sit here with baby. And I just sat there with the baby.

He didn't ask any questions. None of that. So, well, how old is he? You know, I got one of mine myself, actually.

We had to switch to a bigger house just to be able to, you know, accompany our family. None of that. He just looked out the window while my wife inspected everything in this apartment. And I sat there taking pictures because they're just so nice to go into these old school apartments where you feel like you're in a museum almost.

It's like stepping back through time. There was a calendar from 1992, which I'm guessing is when the last person who lived there actually updated it. Maybe just gets a hold, you just don't care. So he asked as we were leaving.

Any more questions? And I asked Estonian It's the owner die and he replied yes, but not him here and which they have to tell you. Actually I believe it's the same in the USI think, but a woman is 95 years old, died and then her son is now selling the apartment. So that's where we come in.

So basically that's our strategy. Let's wait for people to die, buy and renovate, then flip for the younger generation who will then at some point die. It's all about death. That's the it's good real estate real estate's tragedy, a real estate tragic strategy his death.

But it's interesting to see the the decor on the inside which is so similar and yeah, same before everything has all the same architecture and all that stuff like in the open air museum that we are that we went to go see the other day and all the furniture, same thing. It's brown, big, bulky, same style from the same IKEA stores, Soviet IKEA. Instead of hot dogs, they have more soup. They really, I don't even know if they had one.

Don't get your history from this podcast, by the way, But she's taking out all that stuff and then she's going to renovate and she hopes to make a decent profit. So we'll see. Then maybe we can get someone to be the nanny so I don't have to just be there sitting by myself in the corner. Secretly, though, I loved it.

Today, we visited an open-air museum, and I'm pleased we did. It offered a glimpse into Estonian life from days past. Interestingly, Estonian peasants gained their freedom and rights around the same period slaves were emancipated in the USA—more in common than one might think.

The houses, primarily from the 19th century, were quite basic. My favorite was a 1960s-era Soviet-style apartment block with four units. One had been renovated; its occupants were the staff of the house and park. Touring a staff member's actual living space must be peculiar for them, but it's a testament to the impact of good innovation.

Upstairs, we entered a residence that appeared frozen in time since 1992. A newspaper heralded the "capitalism" sweeping into Parnu, featuring a topless woman on the cover. I guess more breasts suggest more capitalism? Yet sharing so openly could be seen as more socialist—free exposure for everyone.

My wife and her sister experienced nostalgia, recognizing familiar items, furniture, and toys from their childhood. Given the Soviet era's limited options—nothing like Ikea's variety—perhaps that scarcity allowed for greater focus on collective farm work. Nonetheless, they had many Western amenities: TV, radio, cassettes, Pepsi, and even a pirated Red Hot Chili Peppers cassette.

It was fascinating to see the way things were. The population was larger, with more industry and farming—everyone had employment and housing. Yet it was all sustained by non-existent money, leading to an inevitable collapse. These abandoned sites now serve well as museums.

The trip was enjoyable. We left Raiko in his stroller outside while exploring indoors, figuring nobody would mistake him for an exhibit in such a modern carriage. Don't call the police on us, it's a common thing here in the Nordics.

For lunch, we dined in a traditional Estonian house, where a woman in national attire took our order. My wife craved authentic Estonian dessert, so I ordered two portions of what resembled sweet cream cheese.

Overall a great day.

Eesti Vabaõhumuuseum

https://evm.ee/

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