1900

“You are in Paris, man!”

When Vilde was working in Tallinn at the Estonian Courier in 1900, he was burning with the wish to go on a longer trip to Europe.When he was already sure of his destination – the Paris World Exhibition – it turned out that the tsarist-Russian police had made a precept about Vilde’s, “a person who has caused mischief before”, foreign correspondence has to be checked or, if necessary, changed. Vilde’s sharp pen and revolutionary ideas were feared. The newspaper was advised to publish only brief newsy items. Thus Vilde was deprived of the expected royalties. Later on when Vilde compiled his travelogue, he had to give up everything that had been interesting, replacing it with items about culture and art. When the 35-year-old writer finally was given his visa, he was on his way as always starting from the Baltic Railway Station. He had booked and purchased the international round-trip ticket and thus had regular itineracy.

Paris was for him something unearthly, a town in a different dimension – the Mecca of arts and culture. When he arrived at the Central station, he could but sigh, “We were in Paris! Really in Paris! The blood in my heart started to hum and rose heatedly into the cheek.” On the way there Vilde had been reading guidebooks and made plans for sightseeing, The World Exhibition, Louvre and the Eiffel tower, opened to the public only two years before, were obligatory.

Vilde loved his sojourn in this Babylon of people: he wandered in its streets, he observed the people and their conduct, he rested at many a café and enjoyed the spectacle.”Automobile seems to be quite a common vehicle in Paris – still mostly for pleasure rides. The horse has to withdraw, giving way to steam, gas and electricity,” he was contemplating while watching the busy traffic of cars, horses and coaches that all seemed to have their place in it. Vilde spent three weeks in Paris that he never visited again.