After a long winter in
Finland, and months of wearing layers and my winter coat, it‘s safe to say that
I have a revived appreciation for the all-blooming spring. Only after such
harsh winters do I really notice when nature comes back to life, with leaves
and blossoms on the trees, and flowers sprouting from the grass. I say flowers,
but what I really mean is dandelions. At home we consider this to be a pest of
a weed, but as some Lithuanians seem to consider it a lovely, yellow, radiant
flower, I will humour them. The argument of the dandelion continues – weed or
flower?
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| Lithuanian Flag |
Now I can finally see
the reasoning behind the colours of the flag of Lithuania. I have learned before
that the colours represent the sun (yellow), the land (green) and the blood of
the people (red). For weeks, I have heard people refer to Lithuania as a green
country, and until now, I had seen no evidence of this. Maybe I was more sceptical
than the average person, since I am from the emerald isle of Ireland; my
homeland is known as green, not Lithuania. But now, I have to say, I am
beginning to see the similarities. Except that the green fields are missing
animals; I’m used to seeing fields full of sheep, cows, or even horses, but in
Lithuania there are empty. Strange, it seemed to me, but not the strangest
thing I’ve come across here.
Last week, when I was
in Siauliai, I noticed a sign that was put up in the student dorm, informing
residents that there would be no hot water for one week (giving the specific
dates this would happen). Little did I know, the same shock would come to
Klaipeda, but with no warning, and no informative sign. Only the freezing cold
water pumping through the taps, not turning any warmer, made me realise
something wasn‘t quite right. It turns out half the city is without hot water,
and apparently this is an annual occurrence (strange). It seems that they feel
the need to carry out post-winter maintenance and cleaning every year, but I
had hoped that Klaipeda would be spared, at least until I leave. No such luck.
Instead, I have been developing innovative ways to motivate myself to have a
cold shower, with exercise being the most prominent one.
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| Sometimes they can be loud in a good way... |
One has to get used to
change when coming to a new country. However, I’m not sure if it’s because I
have been spoilt by the quiet Finnish people, or if I am just getting old, but
Lithuanian people (in general) are LOUD. Usually I can drown out background
noise, especially if it involves people speaking in a language I don’t
understand, but it sometimes proves difficult here in Lithuania. Maybe they
don’t know it, but at least to me, they are noticeably louder than what I have
been used to. Between answering a mobile phone on a bus, chatting in the
street, or banging doors, I am still sensitive to the sounds, despite thinking
that I would have adapted somewhat by now. However, it turns out I’m not the
only one who thinks so. In Vilnius, we met an interesting man from the US, who
was commenting on the guy working in McDonald’s banging and smashing as he
worked, disturbing those who were eating. Perhaps it is just another part of
Lithuanian culture to get used to.
The culture continued
in an amazing weekend in Vilnius. There were five of us girls going together,
one Northern Irish (me :) ), two
Spanish, one Italian and one Turkish. We travelled by bus from Klaipeda for
four hours before arriving in Vilnius on Friday afternoon. While on the bus, we
were sitting opposite a rather elderly lady, but it was obvious that she was
curious about us, and after making some remarks in English, it seemed she was
searching for a moment to interact with us. After three hours of the bus
journey, she finally plucked up the courage to ask where we were from and from
there sparked a great conversation that lasted the remaining hour. Turned out
she is from Hamburg, Germany, but she has travelled all over the world and
lived in Africa, Romania, and is now living her 8th year in
Lithuania. After discovering that she doesn’t know the Lithuanian language
despite living here for quite some time, I don’t feel so guilty not knowing
that much myself!
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| The modern view of Vilnius |
I had pretty high
expectations about Vilnius, after hearing so many good reports. But I have to
say, the city lives up to expectations and beyond. I was really impressed with
how clean and tidy it is, and loved the style and architecture of the
buildings, as well as the cosmopolitan atmosphere. It’s so different from
Klaipeda. From the top of the tower of the old castle in the centre of Vilnius,
you can see a panoramic view of the city, but it’s like looking at 3 different
cities – the old, the new and the different! Each part of the city has its own
unique style, and the contrast between the old and new is so intriguing. We
enjoyed the atmosphere of the old town, dining in Vapiano in the modern side of
the city, and the character of the Uzupis district.
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| Classical music next to a wall of graffiti = Vilnius :) |
I chose this weekend
in particular to go to Vilnius because there was a huge music day event
happening on Saturday 19th May, when all kinds of musicians play in
the street for all to enjoy. This made the old town especially have an amazing
feel to it, and I really enjoyed walking through the cobbled streets, enjoying
all kinds of music and performances. It ended up the perfect timing for
experiencing Vilnius, with all the exciting events, and even Sarah (my US
friend studying in Siauliai) happened to be there at the same time, so we met
up with her and our group expanded even more, to two Americans, a Slovakian, a
Hungarian and a Lithuanian. They joined our tour of the city and we explored
Uzupio together.
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| The Uzupis Constitution |
The Uzupis district is
probably one of the most interesting things to see in Vilnius. It’s a small
section of the city that has its own constitution created after the fall of the
Soviet regime, on display on the walls there (a good read!), its own anthem and
flag. Here you can see the past Soviet times, with artistic flair and character
engraved along the narrow, winding streets. It also offers beautiful views over
the rest of Vilnius, and if you have time you can stop and enjoy the view on a bar
terrace (although, I really mean if you
have time, because we waited more than 40 minutes just for drinks, so don’t
order while you’re thirsty, otherwise you will be dehydrated!)
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| Happy faces after finally receiving our drinks! |
On Sunday morning, we
took a trip to a fascinating place located just outside of Vilnius, called
Trakai. It sports wonderful scenery, with the main attraction being a restored
castle situated in the middle of a tranquil lake. I’m so glad we took the time
to go there on our final day – the surroundings were just stunning and you
could easily spend hours there just walking and soaking up the nature. We were
also lucky because the weather could not have been any better – all weekend we
enjoyed warm, sunny days (although this proved difficult to handle on the
return journey to Klaipeda in a sweltering hot bus with minimal ventilation and
no working air conditioning, so in the end I was ready for a cold shower, for
once!)
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| The beautiful Trakai |
But as the hot water
returns to my dorm in Klaipeda, and the sunny days shine even more, I will keep
my lovely stories and memories of Vilnius, and catch up with my work. I fully
intend to return there again, especially considering that it’s definitely the
cheapest capital city I’ve ever been to! Let’s see how the rest of Lithuania shapes
up…
