Flower market

While visiting Tallinn or in other cities of Estonia, one is bound to find a flower market. Generally open every day, even during the cold months of winter, these colourfull stands are very popular. From roses to jonquils, or even sunflowers, there is usually a large choice for all occasions.

Indeed, estonians tend to give flowers to each other very often : to visit a friend, to give to work colleagues, at any small ceremony, all excuses are good to offer some flowers. Men can give a bouquet to women without any misunderstandings on his intentions, moreover, men can even receive flowers, without putting aside their virility (this takes a little time to get used to, but it can become very pleasant !).

Students give each other lilies of the valley, not on the first of May (as it is the tradition in France), but to celebrate the end of the school year and success in their exams in June. This comes from the fact that these flowers don’t bloom as early in Estonia as in France.

Another difference : if we tend to wrap our bouquets in a nice clear paper, estonians like to keep the surprise until the very end and not show everybody in the streets what they’ve just bought. They therefore wrap their flowers in an opaque sheet of paper, almost like newspaper, and stapple it up so no one can see. Receiving flowers is then like opening a present !