The story of INTERN YI WEI
About me
My name is Yi and I am a student at Estonian Business School (EBS). I have been doing my internship at MinuSadam Art & Crafts ceramic studio in fall 2025 and this spring 2026.
My ethnic background is Yugur and I am originally from a small city (Kumul) near the northwest border of China. However, I went to school in the capital Beijing. I speak Mandarin, English and conversational Kazakh. Yugurs have their own language as well, but since we do not have it in written form, I have not learned to speak it. I grew up in a reserved Buddhist family, so I lived a quiet life and have not travelled very much.
Why I came to Estonia
When I was in middle school, there were several extracurricular activities and I chose film appreciation.
One day we watched a clip from a movie named “Risttuules”; which was an Estonian film about small nations sufferings during the WW II. It was the first time I got to know this country. I did some research on the history and culture of Estonia and it seemed interesting to me.
Years later, when I considered where to study, the memory of that film just crossed my mind.
This was the main reason why I came here and now it feels like a beautiful coincidence.
Why am I doing an internship here
I met Liisi Mari, Ly’s daughter, during my first semester at EBS, and by the second year we became a bit more familiar with each other. When I mentioned that I needed to find a place for my internship, she asked me if I was interested in doing it at a ceramic studio. At first I was a bit hesitant, because I did not know anything about this industry, but then I thought: Why not? Trying new things would be fun.
So far my experience here has been great, the studio offers a warm environment. I also appreciate the opportunity to work with Ly, a creative ceramicist. It has been interesting to follow the struggles of starting a small pottery studio and the efforts you have to put into developing both products and the customer base at the same time. The biggest challenge for ceramicists like Ly, I guess, is to take care of your own marketing after working long hours at the studio.