Side Trip from Riga: Vilnius, Lithuania
It's an easy, inexpensive, comfortable four-hour bus ride from Riga to Vilnius. (With free wifi, coffee, and movies!) With our EU Digital COVID Certificates in hand, we were excited to be allowed to pop down to Lithuania for a few days. I knew next to nothing about Lithuania other than one of my favorite Denver Nugget players from the good ol’ 2000's was from there (Linas Kleiza).
Me and the one Lithuanian I know, Linus Klieza of the Denver Nuggets. (2009)
It's been neat to compare and contrast the three Baltic capitals. In my mind I lumped all three countries into one basket with their similar histories: WWI, WWII, Soviet Occupation, etc. It's a bit like lumping Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia together. I'm guessing many would say those three states have more in common than they don't. From the surface exposure of Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius, it's a fair comparison. Ultimately, their shared/similar histories make them more alike than I think they want to admit.
Sure, Tallinn is more Nordic than Vilnius. Riga has more art nouveau. And Vilnius is so much cheaper and almost feels more authentic. Like they aren’t trying to prove they are or are not something specific. They just are.
Of course this is an opinion based on six weeks in Riga and just two days in Tallinn and Vilnius, so take it for what it's worth.
Three crosses and the castle
There aren’t many hills in Lithuania, though Vilnius has a few nice ones. The Hill of Three Crosses looks out over the whole city and was originally a tribute to six Franciscan monks tortured and killed by pagans when they tied them to crosses and threw them down the hill. Now some say they are considered a symbol of the national identity as well as that of resistance to occupation.
We hiked up the (bazillion or so) steps to enjoy the view. We were alone with the view for a short while before we made a new friend that joined us on our exploration of the town. Our new friend, Noel, was visiting from Ireland and has traveled probably as much as we have. We had a lot of fun and are looking forward to visiting Noel in Ireland sometime!
Next up was the Gediminas Castle Tower. Just a short distance away is the remaining fortification tower of Gediminas' Castle. Legend has it that the Grand Duke Gediminas dreamt of an Iron Wolf howling at the top of the hill, which he took as a prophecy of the great city that would one day by Vilnius. Standing at the top of the tower, it was no surprise the tower was never taken. The steep slopes surrounding us would be easy to protect in an attack.
Old Town
Much like Riga and Tallinn, Vilnius has a beautiful mostly pedestrian old town with churches, old buildings, and cobblestone streets. And delicious gelato and a chocolatier.
National Library of Lithuania
Because I 💗 libraries, we made our way out of Old Town to visit the National Library of Lithuania. They have a neat display of faces made out of books that I wanted to check out. And, of course, I had to get my get my library card. (For those keeping count, this is my 12th library card.)
The Republic of Užupis
Užupis is a small neighborhood not far from Vilnius’ old town. In 1998 the residents declared itself an independent republic with its own constitution. The constitution is printed and hung on a wall in town in no less than twenty languages.
My favorite is number 12. A dog has the right to be a dog.
The 14th Dalai Lama is an honorary citizen and even planted a tree there. Totally worth a wander!
