CIEE Tallinn

🌍🇪🇪✨ 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐇𝐒𝐒𝐀 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐚 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐧𝐝.

What an incredible journey it has been.
Over the past weeks, our students didn't just study 𝐃𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐜𝐲 & 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.
They experienced it firsthand through conversations with experts, visits to key institutions, and by exploring how democracy, security, international cooperation, and innovation shape our world.

Students highlighted visits to places such as the Riigikogu, Stenbock House, NATO CCDCOE, and Ämari Air Base as some of the most memorable learning experiences of the programme. 

🏛️ 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.
🌍 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞.
🤝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬.

The feedback showed that some of the most meaningful moments happened beyond the classroom: spending time with host families, joining local family activities, exploring Estonia independently, and sharing unforgettable experiences with fellow students. 

🏡 𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬.
🚀 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.
💙 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.

As this summer comes to a close, we leave with more than photos and souvenirs. We leave with new perspectives, unforgettable memories, and a deeper understanding of the world and our place in it.

To our students: thank you for your curiosity, courage, and enthusiasm.🫶🏻

To our host families: thank you for opening your homes and sharing Estonia with the world.🙏🏻

To parents: thank you for trusting us with this journey.💖

And to future Global Navigators: your story could be next. ✈️🌎

✨ 𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲. 𝐁𝐢𝐠 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐬. 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬. ✨

🇪🇪💙🌍
CIEE High School Study Abroad

🏡✨ **𝐇𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐒 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄** ✨🏡

One of our amazing **𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬** shared something that perfectly describes this unforgettable summer:

💬 *"Before hosting, we never imagined it would be this amazing. Students from both groups were incredibly kind, intelligent, and thoughtful. We're so happy you chose us as a host family."* 💙

Every student had a **𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞** experience because every home was different—but one thing stayed the same: **𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞.** 🫶🏡

✨ **𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲** is so much more than having a place to stay.
It's about **𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞**, **𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞** from the inside, **𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬**, and creating **𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.** 🌍❤️

**𝐓𝐎 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐒 — 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔!** 💙

Thank you for **𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐨𝐫𝐬**, **𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬**, and **𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬**. 🏠❤️

We are **𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥** for your kindness, generosity, and for welcoming our students into your families. By saying **"yes"** to hosting, you gave them something no hotel ever could—**𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.** 🇪🇪✨

Because 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐬 also 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭.🇺🇸🇪🇪

#𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 #𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐄𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 #𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲𝐀𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 #𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐚
CIEE High School Study Abroad

📚🇪🇪 𝗔, 𝗕, 𝗖… 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆… 𝗔, 𝗕, 𝗖? 😄

Learning about Estonia isn't just about history, culture, and politics—it's also about the 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗴𝗲! 🗣️

Throughout the programme, our students pick up basic Estonian words and everyday expressions, and this time they even challenged themselves to read from an Estonian ABC book (Aabits). 📖✨

From tricky pronunciation to lots of laughter, every new word is another step toward experiencing Estonia like a local. 🇪🇪🫶

𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶! 👏 Who knows… maybe they'll be speaking fluent Estonian one day! 😉✅

🇪🇪📚
CIEE High School Study Abroad

☀️🌊 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀, 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 & 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆!

Our HSSA students spent an 𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 day exploring 𝗣ä𝗿𝗻𝘂, Estonia's 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹! ☀️🏖️

🥗We kicked things off with a 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 at Surf'n'Soul, then headed to the beach for some sunshine, a 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 dip 🌊, and a stroll through Pärnu's charming streets. 🚶‍♀️🌼

😄💛 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝘀𝘂𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 — the perfect way to spend a summer day with amazing people! 🌅✨

🩵 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗲𝗻𝗱, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀. 💙

☀️🌊

CIEE High School Study Abroad

📖 Story Time with Belen: The “Peanut Butter” That Wasn’t 😅🇪🇪

When Belen reached for what she thought was peanut butter, she confidently spread it on an apple… only to discover it was actually pâté. 🍎😂 It wasn’t quite the snack she expected, but it quickly became one of the funniest memories from her homestay in Estonia.

The laughs didn’t stop there. Some of Belen’s favorite moments came from simply spending time with the people who welcomed her into their home.

“My favorite memory with my host family was hanging out on the beach with my host sister and her friends and getting to celebrate both the sisters’ birthdays.” 🏖️🎉

Living with a host family also gave Belen a new perspective on everyday life in Estonia. As she reflected, “Life in Estonia is oriented around family time.” Whether it was morning conversations with her host mom or making memories with her host sister, those daily moments became the most meaningful part of her summer.

As her time in Tallinn comes to an end, the hardest part is saying goodbye. “I will miss my host sister and getting to talk with my host mom in the mornings.”

When asked if she would recommend a homestay to future CIEE students, Belen’s answer was simple:

“I would definitely recommend staying with a host family because it integrates the actual culture into your trip and makes the experience so much more special.” ❤️🏡

For Belen, a summer in Tallinn wasn’t just about exploring a new country—it was about finding a second home.

🇺🇸👩‍💼 Future diplomats in the making! The US Embassy Cultural Attaché sat down with the high school students on Thursday!
Why Estonia? 🇪🇪 Beyond its remarkable history of resilience, students are exploring e-governance, innovation, and Estonia’s unique approach to diplomacy
- building a foundation for future careers in international affairs. They discussed everything from the daily work of a U.S. diplomat to bilateral relations, culture, and global affairs. 🤝

👋🇪🇪✨ Today was a day of lasts for our High School Summer Abroad students as they said goodbye to their incredible guide, Siim, after weeks of learning and exploring together.

The morning began at Balti Jaam, where students learned about the station’s transformation throughout Estonia’s history, before taking a walking tour through Telliskivi Creative City to discover the powerful murals that celebrate creativity, freedom, and self-expression. 🎨🚉

After lunch, the group visited the Tallinn TV Tower, reflecting on its importance not only as Estonia’s tallest structure but also as a powerful symbol of the country’s resilience and independence. 📡💙

As the program begins to wind down, students are leaving with more than just memories—they’re taking home new friendships, fresh perspectives, and a deeper appreciation for Estonia and its people. 🌍❤️

💼🔍✨ Today, our High School Summer Abroad students visited the Estonian Career Centre, where they explored future career possibilities through interactive, hands-on experiences.

Students toured the facility, used career exploration cards to identify professions that matched their interests, and tested their skills through exhibits like VR simulations and a dexterity challenge, helping them discover potential career paths in a fun and engaging way. 🥽🧩

✨ Fun fact: Estonia consistently ranks among Europe’s leaders in workforce digital skills and innovation, with a strong emphasis on preparing students and professionals for careers in technology, entrepreneurship, and other rapidly evolving industries. 🚀🇪🇪

✨ 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 🇪🇪 HSSA II

We explored how and where 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐲 works in Estonia!

🏛️ One interesting fact:
unlike the 🇺🇸 𝐔𝐒𝐀, where the 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 is both head of state and head of government, Estonia’s 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 leads the government, while the 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 has a more ceremonial role.

💡 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 • 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞 • 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞

🌍

CIEE High School Study Abroad
RIIGIKOGU