Grenzübergang Narva

As a Jewish traveler from North America, I was horrified to see and experience the retaliation and unethical treatment against the people trying to enter Russia from the European Union specifically Estonia. My heart breaks for the Russians who only have this option to cross into Russia. I waited 8 hours in line. Based on my observations and speaking to the locals, it is well known that the Estonian border Police intentionally hold the line and harass almost every individual, especially if they are Russian. Part of my trip in Russia was to donate some religious items and small amounts of money to synagogues in need. Once I arrived at the border station, the officer tried so hard to find every excuse to give me a hard time. He forced me to throw away 50 Euros I had in an envelope for a synagogue in Moscow. They treated me like a criminal, searched my bag and kept asking me the same questions over and over again. I was traumatized and in disbelief. For me it was more personal , even though I'm not Russian, my relatives were persecuted in Europe because they were Jewish. These Estonian border officers and their government are no different than the government and soldiers with the *black white and red flag* that persecuted the Jewish, Disabled and LGBTQ people in Europe during WWII. The Russian side was very welcoming, and they built water fountains for people to use. It was all positive vibes on the Russian side. If you can, try to enter Russia via the Middle East and avoid the EU. I hope one day an undercover journalist exposes what's going on here and other EU border crossings like this. Shame on Estonia and shame on the EU.

Unfortunately, Google maps reviews can't rate Zero star. 2025 December 27th was the worst day of my trip. I checked out my room at around 6 a.m. and rushed here to queue for customs clearance. The queue looked to be about 150 people, but the departure side didn't let people in until 8:10 a.m. Imagine the cold wind at the end of December, with two hours of icy rain falling, everyone shivering. At 1 p.m., it was finally my turn to go in, but the process was even more brutal than I had imagined. I was interrogated as a "spy" or "prisoner," as they were afraid I would take European wealth to Russia. They demanded that I immediately exchange all the euros I had for rubles or US dollars. Honestly, I didn't know this stupid rules. The official then led me outside and instructed me to go to a money exchange to make a transaction. As a result, I was asked to buy at a lower dollar rate of 1 euro to 1.05 dollars, and I exchanged 1,530 euros. At that day's exchange rate, I lost 155 dollars. When I got back to the front of the line, the people there wouldn't let me in; I had to rejoin the queue.The official who came to open the gate knew me but ignored my predicament, so I ignored her and cut into the line. After another round of questioning, it took me a total of 7 hours to cross the Estonian border. I really thought I had reached a third-world border crossing. However, in Russia, I cleared the border in just 10 minutes. The EU is deeply afraid we'll bring the euro into Russia and also supports Ukraine, but all I can say is that while the EU talks about human rights and sympathizes with Ukrainians in the trenches, do they also sympathize with those crossing the border, even if they are Estonians? These is not right, I will never set foot on this proud and inefficient land; Estonia is even worse than my country.

This border made me pro-Russian, shows the current real face of Europe. Left for hours outside standing at -20, waiting for a guy to open a small plastic fence, which is what protects the naz.., oh no, sorry, the Estonian border guards, from doing their job humanly and decently. Got an actual interrogation, rudeley asked where and why am I going in Russia and where I live in europe, which, when going out, is NEVER asked in any other border point in the union, since these questions aren't EU's business. They will search your bag, like they do for drugs, but more in a attentive way, they will search for euros, I heard some people manage to sneak them in, and after what I experienced, I hope those euors will go to some Russian artillery piece that destroys some European paid weapon in Ukraine. Important to notice by the way, that this border its not crossed by the Russian army or government, but by mostly civilians who have nothing to do with the politcs, or simple turist who simply ignores propaganda and still believes in friendship among people, so I really fail to understand why so much inhumanity. But by the other reviews among all bad ones I read some kids being happy about the situation, (uno di questi é pure italiano, che, se mi stai leggendo, spero veramente il peggio per te) which again, shows the face of europe, being only able to be "strong" against the weak and weak against the strong.