Ma ei tea isegi enam mitu aastat järjest me sõbrannadega iga kuu kokku saame, et koos midagi toredat teha. Viis-kuus aastat? Vahet ei olegi, see on lihtsalt selline tore traditsioon. Veebruaris oli minu kord sõbrannasid võõrustada või kuhugi välja kutsuda, aga mul ei olnud selleks aega. Kokku saime me alles sel laupäeval ehk juba otsapidi märtsis. Naistepäeva eel tekkis mul mõte, et miks mitte korraldada üks mõnus tüdrukute õhtu. Aga kus? Tartus ei ole mul sõbrannasid kuhugi kutsuda ja Ussipessa tundus nii igav.

Minu valikuks sai hotell London Tartu kesklinnas. Valik sai tehtud asukoha järgi – hotell asub Tartu vanalinnas. Raekoja plats, Ülikool ja Toomemägi  ning  ka söögikohad on kohe käe-jala juures, nii et ilusa ilma puhul on lausa  lust teha linnas väike jalutuskäik Toomemäele ning pärast leida einestamiseks just oma maitsele sobiv söögikoht. Muidugi ei saa etteruttavalt mainimata jätta ka hotell Londoni oma restorani Polpo, mis ka mitu aastat Eesti  parimate restoranide hulka kuulub. Hotell Londoniga on mul üldse eriline suhe. See oli üks esimesi hotelle, mida ma hotelle arvustades külastasin, mulle läks tookordne vastuvõtt nii südamesse, et olin natuke pahane, et mul pole põhjust Tartus rohkem hotellis ööbida. Elu tegi aga muudatused ja nii on mul aastate jooksul tulnud päris palju Tartus hotellides ööbida. Üheks minu valikuks on tihti olnud eelpooltoodud põhjustel just hotell London.

Te ju teate, et ma olen tegelikult Tartu tüdruk? Kui mulle nooremana ei sümpatiseerinud Tartu unisus, siis nüüd olen ma seda aina rohkem hindama hakanud. Laupäeval oli väljas imeilus päikeseline ilm ja enne sõbrannade saabumist oli ainuõige teha linna peal üks väikene jalutuskäik. Ma jalutasin üles Toomemäele, kõndisin Ingli- ja Kuradisillal, möödusin Tähetornist, Püssirohukeldrist, toomkiriku varemetest, Kristjan Jaagust, Musumäest ja meenutasin. Nagu vanainimene. Toomemäel on palju käidud – hea tujuga, paha tujuga, ajaviitmiseks, romantikaks jalutamas, enne klubisse minekut napsutamiseks (ikkagi vaene üliõpilane ka oldud) ja ühest loengust teise üle Toomemäe joostud. Toomemägi on minu arvates üldse üks kaunemaid paiku.

Kui külm põski ja nälg kõhtu näpistama hakkas, oli aeg tagasi tuppa suunduda. Polpost olin ma endale tellinud mõnusa baklažaaniroa ja klaasi tummist punast veini, viskasin end muretult diivanile ja nautisin “Tuulepealse maa” kordust. Kodune tunne oli. Mõnus ja hubane. Kardinate vahelt piilus tuppa soe päike, laudadel olid värsked tulbid ja appi kui klišeeilikult see kõlab, aga mu südamesse tungis kevad. Ma tundsin, et kevad ei ole enam kaugel.

Muide, kui te olete ka naistepäevausku nagu mina ja mõtlete, kuidas seda tähistada või milliseid vihjeid mehele anda, siis ma soovitan teil vaadata Londoni ja Polpo poole. Isegi kui te ei plaani seal ööbida, siis naistepäeva ajal on neil mitmeid häid pakkumisi. Kui teile meeldib šampanja, siis need pakkumised on teile. Mul on mõned lemmikšampanjad – Charles Heidsiecki pakkumistes ei olnud, aga Ruinart ja Veuve Cliquot ootavad teid Polpos igatahes. Ja kui sellest veel väheks jääb, siis 10.03 on Uku (ikka Suviste, muidugi) teid seal ootamas. Mmmmm….šampus. Mis teie siis arvasite?Uku Suviste peale mõmisemiseks olen ma liiga vana ja liiga abielus ja liiga ülekaaluline.

Sõbrannasid oodates panin sauna ka sooja. Võib olla isegi mitte selle pärast, et mul kodus seda luksust ei ole või et külm natuke ikka näpistama hakkas, vaid sellepärast, et mulle lihtsalt meeldib hotellitoas end mugavasse hommikumantlisse kerida. Ma oleks seda kohe teinud, aga viisakas oli sõbrannad ikka ära oodata korralikes riietes.

Ma ei olnud sõbrannadega nii ammu kohtunud, et üks neist oli vahepeal lausa lapse saanud. Okei, nali, ma muidugi teadsin, et ta lapse sai, ent tillukest Adeelet nägin ma siiski esimest korda. Kui presidendi vastuvõtule ehk vastsündinuga minna ei sobiks, siis tüdrukute õhtusööki ei saa üks pisike printsess küll kuidagi segada.

Kuna te viimati sõbrannadega midagi koos tegite? Kui sellest on pikka aega möödas, siis ma nii soovitan sellist natuke teistmoodi tüdrukute õhtut – hea toit, hea vein, hea seltskond ja nalja nabani. Me lõkerdasime nagu teismelised ja naersime täiesti tobedate asjade üle. Olime lapsikud. Täiskasvanu- mode off ja lapsik-mode on. Aegajalt kulub marjaks ära. Ahjaa, ma ei tea, mida koristajad tuba koristades pärast mõtlesid. Ei, me ei korraldanud mingit läbu, me lihtsalt sõime nii nagu oleks viimne päev tulemas. Asi oli nimelt selles, et kuigi Polpo kostitas meid suupistetega, läksid meie jutud ülikooli peale. Kuidas raha ei olnud ja siis sai Tsink Plekk Panges munariisi söömas käidud, sest rohkemaks polnud raha või priiskamise päevadel Tavernast pitsa tellitud. Nostalgialainel olles ja kuna kõik toidukohad olid ju käe-jala juures otsustasime me vanade aegade meenutuseks nostalgiatoite tellida. No sai natuke rohkem kui munariis ja väike pitsa;)

Õde tõi mulle varajaseks sünnipäevakingiks Helen Valk-Varavin ehted. Kinkis enda omad edasi. See oli temast nii paganama armas, sest ma olin aastaid neid talt ära proovinud moosida. Nii ootamatult tuletatigi mulle meelde, et juba järgmisel nädalal saan ma 37-aastaseks ja vaikne laupäevaõhtu läks üle…tahaks nii öelda, et rajuks tähistamiseks, aga pean ütlema, et lihtsalt rahulikuks sünnipäeva tähistamiseks. Kell me juba põõnasime nagu kotid. Või vähemalt mina. Sõbranna oli isegi kontrollimas käinud, kas ma ikka elus olen, sest ta polevat kedagi näinud nii liikumatult magamas. Ma olin lihtsalt väsinud. Mu viimase aja unegraafik oli tiba peapeale läinud ja see oli päris kurnavaks muutunud.

Hommikul ärkasime me teise sõbranna uksele koputuse peale. Ma pidin minestama. Kell oli üheksa. Ma ei mäleta, kuna mind viimati kell üheksa üles AJADA tuli. Ma lahkun hotellidest harilikult hiljemalt üheksa paiku. Seekord lahkusin ma toast 12 minuti enne kahtteist. Lihtsalt nautisin veel tuba, vaikust, puhkust, aega iseendaga. Tartust sõitsin ära soe tunne ja kevad südames. Jaah, topeltklišee, naerge- naerge, aga mõnikord lihtsalt on selline tunne, et mitte midagi ei ärrita ja kõik teeb rahulolevaks.

Pühapäevane Tartu oli traditsiooniliselt unine. Inimtühi. Aga päikeseline.

I’ve lost count on how many years in a row I’ve meet up with my girlfriends every month to do something fun together. Five, maybe six years? It doesn’t even matter, it’s just one of those nice traditions. This February it was my turn to host the girls or ask them out somewhere but I didn’t have any time. We ended up meeting this Saturday which obviously was already March. In anticipation of International Women’s Day I had a thought of organising a lovely girls’ night out. But where? I don’t have anywhere in Tartu to invite the girls over to and inviting them to my home, Ussipesa seemed such a boring idea.

I ended up choosing Hotel London in the middle of Tartu. I made the choice based on its location: the hotel is in the old town of Tartu, town hall square, university and the Dome Church Hill as well as places to eat are all just around the corner. So in nice weather it’s perfect for a little walk around the the Dome Church Hill and then for finding a place to eat based on what we end up fancying. Also, I must mention the hotel restaurant Polpo, which has been among the best restaurants in Estonia for years. I have a very special relationship with Hotel London. It was one of the first hotels that I visited when I was reviewing hotels and I was so impressed by the reception that first time that I was almost a little bit upset that I did’t have more reasons to stay in the hotel when visiting Tartu. Life and circumstances, however, have changed and now over the years I’ve had many a reason to stay in hotels in Tartu. Hotel London has often been my place of choice for the aforementioned reasons.

You do know that I’m actually a girl from Tartu? When I was younger, I wasn’t keen on the sleepiness of Tartu but over the years I’ve come to appreciate it more and more. The weather on Saturday was gorgeously sunny and so the only right thing to do before the girls arrived was to go for a little stroll around the town. I walked up to Dome Church Hill, across the Bridge of Angel and the Bridge of Devil, past the Old Observatory, Gunpowder Cellar, ruins of the Dome Church, statue of Kristjan Jaak Peterson, Kissing Hill; I walked and reminisced like an old lady. I’ve walked across the Dome Church Hill many times – in good spirits and bad, in order to pass the time or be romantic, to have a drink before heading out clubbing (I’ve been a penniless student after all!) and ran over the hill to make it from one lecture to another. Dome Church Hill is one of the most beautiful places in the world in my option.

When the cold started biting my cheeks and my stomach started rumbling, I knew it was time to head back indoors. I had ordered a lovely aubergine dish and a glass of well-rounded wine from Polpo. So I threw myself on the couch and enjoyed the rerun of “Windward Land” on the TV. It felt nice and homely. Snug and cosy. The warm sunshine was pushing into the room through the curtains and there were fresh tulips on the table and I know this will sound awfully like a cliché but I felt how spring was making its way into my heart. I felt like it was no longer far away.

By the way, I don’t know if you believe in celebrating International Women’s Day the way I do and are wondering how to celebrate it and what hints to drop to your man. Either way, I suggest to have a glance at Polpo and and Hotel London. Even if you don’t plan on staying there for the night, then they have a number of good offers around International Women’s Day. I have a couple of favourite champagnes, they didn’t have Charles Heidsieck on their offer but Ruinart and Veuve Cliquot are waiting for you in Polpo. And if that’s not enough, then on 10^th of March Uku (Suviste, obviously!) will also be there for you. Mmmm…. Champagne! What did you think? I am too old and too married to think about Uku Suviste:D

While I was waiting for the girls to arrive, I turned on the sauna. Not only because I don’t have that luxury in my own home or because I felt a bit cold but mainly because I just love wrapping myself into a comfy bathrobe when I’m in a hotel room. I would’ve done it sooner but I find it more polite to greet your friends in proper clothing.

It had been so long since I’d last seen my friends that one of them had even had a baby in the mean time! Okay, I’m joking, of course I knew she had had a baby but this was the first time that I had met tiny Adeele. Taking a newly born to the presidential reception is a bit against the rules of etiquette but the tiny princess cannot ruin any girly dinners in any way!

When’s the last time you did something together with your girlfriends? If it has been a while, let me recommend you a slightly different girly evening: good food, good wine, good company and laughing until you cry. We giggled like teenagers and laughed over silly stuff. We were completely childish. Adult mode off and childish mode on! Every now and again it hits the spot completely. I’ve no idea what the housekeepers must have thought when they were cleaning the room. No, we didn’t turn the room upside down, we just ate like it was our last meal ever. Although Polpo provided us with snacks, we started talking about our university days. How we didn’t have any money and how we went to eat egg-fried rice at Tsink Plekk Pang because that was all taht we could afford, or how when we splashed out, we ordered pizza from Taverna. Feeling nostalgic and with everything being so close by we decided to order all those student foods for sake of memories. And of course we ordered a bit more than some egg-fried rice and a small pizza.

My sister brought me an early birthday present – Helen Valk-Varavin designer jewellery. She re-gifted her ones. This was so damn sweet of her because I have tried for years to talk her into giving them to me. And so suddenly I was reminded that I turn 37 next week and our quiet Saturday night turned into… I’d like to say into a wild celebration but I must admit just into quiet celebrations. At ?? o’clock we were already asleep like babies. Or at least I was. One of my friends had even checked on me to make sure I was alive since she had never seen anyone sleeping without moving one bit. I was just so tired. Lately, my sleeping schedule has been turned upside down and it had become quite exhausting.

In the morning, we woke up to another friend knocking on the door. I nearly passed out. It was nice o’clock. I can’t remember the last time that I had to be WOKEN at nine o’clock in the morning. I usually check out of hotels around nine. This time I checked out twelve minutes to twelve. I just stayed to enjoy the room, the peace, the rest, the time for myself. I drove out of Tartu with spring in my step and a warm feeling in my heart. Yes, a double cliché; laugh away but sometimes it just feels like nothing can upset you and everything makes you feel good.

Sunday in Tartu was traditionally sleepy. Empty. But full of sunshine.