If you had told me anytime before last week that I would not only visit Lithuania, but that I would love it, I would not have believed you. I didn't even know where Lithuania was, nor what was special about it.
But the wonderful thing about travel is that it can be serendipitous, and you end up in places you would never have imagined you'd end up in, and find they were exactly where you needed to be.
I was in Riga with my newfound travel buddies, and Tanya and Jason were keen to go, and I didn't have anywhere better to be, so I decided to tag along with them, and then Adrian decided to tag along too. So our happy little travelling foursome continued a few days more. We bought a bus bound for Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.
For those who don't know - Lithuania is a little country below Latvia and next to Russia. It is - together with Latvia and Estonia - known as a Baltic State, as its an ex-Soviet state that sits on the Baltic Sea. It has a similar history to the other Baltic States - repression by Communist Soviet party, then by the Nazi German party, then again by the Communist Soviet party... but they have all been recently liberated and are now free sovereign republics. Do you know how they did it - I love this story: two million people from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania joined hands across 600 miles and sang national songs (that were forbidden by Russia). Its called the Singing Revolution, and it brings tears to my eyes. All three Baltic States have incredible museums dedicated to describing the political, cultural and human impact the repression of the last 50 years has had on their countries. Estonia had videos showing the Singing Revolution; Latvia had the best museum I have been to ever, with so much interesting memoribilia, such clear description of events, and even mock-ups of how the concentration camps were like; and Lithuania had the most disturbing of all, the building of the KGB that was used for imprisonment, torture and executions... I have never felt such a pre-sentient chill as I did when I walked into the Confinement Cell were prisoners were sent before they were to be executed, or when I felt the hole where bullets that had just killed innocent people entered the stone wall. It was eerie, awful, sickening stuff. But so essential - if ever you want to feel humble or put your life's woes into perspective, book a trip to Eastern Europe, and then prepare to be silenced. The terror and inhumanity these countries have seen is more than anything I can imagine. And - I go to Auschwitz and Birkenau tomorrow.
Anyway, notwithstanding the horrific history of these countries, what has impressed me most is the degree of forward-looking going on. Compared to Russia which I found stuck in its horrific past, the Baltic States have shaken off the vomit, taken a few painkillers, and are now well into a recovery. The customer service is superb, the people are happy and positive, they are welcoming tourists and building appropriate infrastructure... its a complete joy to travel around these countries.
And Lithuania - well, it just impressed me. Not so touristy as the others, but very ready for tourists. The best clubs I have been to in Eastern Europe by a long stretch. The most lovely food, cheap and good quality. And I stayed in a wonderfully homey hostel, where we very quickly met everyone, and had a large group of people from all over the world to explore the city and clubs and bars with.
We even did a day trip out to the Hill of Crosses, a surreal spot 3 hours out of Vilnius where people have erected crosses to commerorate their dead. Over the years, millions of crosses stand or hang from other crosses, covering a hill, and creating the most surreal tinkling noise as the breeze moves through the forest of crosses.
During Soviet days, the hill was bull-dozed as the Communists sought to destroy all religious activities (because religion might create a spiritual resistance to their oppression), but each night, unseen people risked their lives and freedom to replant more crosses, in defiance of their oppressors. Its wonderful to stand in a spot where so much emotion and passion has been felt. There is a saying here, that during the oppressive Soviet times, Estonia was the brawn of the resistance, Latvia the brains, but Lithuania was the soul. I loved Lithuania for it.
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