Tag Archives: music

Aug14

Bastille Day Fireworks!

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Sunday, 14-July-2024


Sunday was Bastille Day, the equivalent to the 4th of July in the US, and that meant fireworks.

The evening before, while my Mom and Steve and I were out having our (metaphorically) tearful goodbye dinner, we’d been graced with a full regalia of uniformed band members marching up and down the streets of Cassis, rocking out to what I assume was the French National Anthem. It was fun, we joined in on the celebrations, and appreciated the chance to experience another culture’s independence day events.


The next evening, while I was rolling solo again, I’d already made dinner and was absentmindedly flicking my way through YouTube when I heard a sound from the harbor, and quickly realized that darkness had fallen and fireworks had kicked off!

I quickly zipped upstairs to the glorious balcony that our apartment came with, and set my chair up to be fully laid back… and enjoyed the show.

Jul8

The Riga Digital Art House

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Wednesday, 12-June-2024


In my wanderings, I came across the Digital Art house.

I couldn’t quite tell what it was, at first glance, and got the impression that maybe it was a museum of digital art? Or that it was a working studio, maybe something akin to Industrial Light and Magic who does special effects for movies? It was interesting and noteworthy enough to stick in my mind, in either way, and so I made a point to include it in my wanderings as a stop for myself.

In the end, I swung by after visiting the post office, and found myself somewhere I hadn’t quite expected. Of all the options, I hadn’t expected “Bar, restaurant, and pseudo movie theater” to be the option… but here I was, sipping a latte and waiting for the current movie to end, and mine to begin.

They didn’t have blockbuster movies, or really even traditional movies, though… instead, this was a whole experience with art. I… can’t really say that I enjoyed it more than just looking at art, but it was definitely a really interesting experience.

In short, there were something like 25 projectors putting up video on every wall, ceiling, and floor around me. I lay out on a comfy beanbag chair, and watched the film play out all around me. Music accompanied it, and… yeah, it was visual and audio. I’d gotten a ticket to the next showing, which happened to be Impressionist Art, and so I was surrounded by Van Gogh and his peers, with the film building each painting up piece by piece around me.

It was… interesting. A fun experience in a fun city.

Jul4

Old Town days in Tallinn

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Various days, between Friday 07-June-2024 through Sunday, 09-June-2024


Another quick entry, similar to the farmer’s market – While exploring around the Old Town of Tallinn, I happened across the Old Town days festival!

I ended up staying quite a while, each time I came across the event. One time, watching dancers swing and twirl in synchronization. Another, listening to a full ensemble playing Estonian folk music in the rain. A third, walking around and seeing the different sides and colors of what I believe to be May-day-style colorful ribbon braids.




Now, I’d normally include some historic or similar context for these… some kind of information as to what Old Town Days was celebrating, or when the costumes or music were from. In this case, though, I don’t know any of that information. The festival was surprisingly light on information… which is to say, there was literally no explanation or event charter to explain what was happening.

I asked around, of course, chatting with a few other people nearby… but no one could give a certain answer… and those that could (people in costume) either didn’t speak English, or were busy twirling and dancing.

Instead of clouding the event with context and history, then, we simply see it for what it is. Beautiful music, interesting instruments, and beautiful dance. Even without context, it’s pretty amazing.