My husband and I arrived at the Vilnius, Lithuania, airport and took a taxi to the Congress Hotel which was located near the Old Town. We were to meet our tour group by Overseas Adventure Travel the next day, so we had some time to explore on our own. Even though we had yet to meet our wonderful tour director in person, Marius Bernatonis had already contacted us and given us great ideas as to how to spend the day.
We walked around the Old Town, through pedestrian-filled streets to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Stanislaus and St. Ladislaus before hiking to the top of the Hill of Three Crosses and enjoying the panoramic view of the city below.
Since we had gotten a late start after our plane trip from Frankfurt, we were then ready for dinner at Bernelių Užeiga which gave us the opportunity to sample some traditional Lithuanian dishes including beetroot soup and a zeppelin, so called because of its resemblance to the aircraft of that name.
The zeppelin is a potato and meat dumpling with a luscious bacon gravy. Both dishes were served with sour cream which seemed to be served with most dishes in Lithuania and adds an additional dimension to food. After dinner, we strolled around while enjoying the temperate weather and the fact that it is daylight until around 11 pm in the summer. There are so many places to grab a drink and just enjoy being there.
Next day, we were on our way to visit the Lukiškės Prison, built in 1904. When we arrived at the prison, we walked through a small dark metal corridor before arriving in a concrete-lined silent room. No one greeted us. As each visitor walked in, they either sat or stood in silence waiting—we all hoped--for a tour that allowed us to leave the foreboding jail and church at the conclusion.
In many parts of Lukiškės Prison we could not take pictures, but the mental images will stay with me for a long time. The older cells had only holes in the ground for toilets—they did not even have porcelain or drainage. Our guide and one of the tour group members said they remembered these toilets from their school and from orphanages when they wer young—and they were, at most, in their 30s. The prison was built for 700-800 inmates, but it once held 9,000 prisoners, most of them political at that time. The prison was in use until 2019 when it was transformed into a cultural center.
We toured the attached church which was opened one year after the prison. At the time, Lithuania was under Russian rule and the Czar believed religion was best way to reform prisoners. Later, under Soviet rule, the church was used as a prison itself. Now the former church is used for concerts. The prison courtyard is a great example of this transformation. The day we went through, a Sunday, a stage was being set up for a concert and vendors were selling local wares. (Just a note: Though both were very interesting, I probably wouldn't suggest visiting both the Lukiškės Prison and the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights if your time is short.)
As we walked back towards our hotel, every square seemed to host a celebration of some kind. The three squares we passed had a car race celebration, Autumn 1006, a jazz music festival, and a Hari Krishna celebration. People were strolling the streets and drinking and eating in the plentiful sidewalk cafes. The festive atmosphere was contagious and great appreciated after the somberness of the Lukiškės Prison.
This ancient city, founded in1323, was built because of a dream that came to the Grand Duke Gediminas of an iron wolf that was howling on a hill, a sign that the capital would be strong. Lithuania, as a country, has repeatedly demonstrated that strength. During the 20th century along, Lithuania was under 3 different dominating powers—Russia, Germany, Soviets—and also became independent twice. Poland’s solidarity movement encouraged and taught them in its protest against Soviet occupation. On August 23, 1989, protestors from Vilnius, to Riga, Latvia, to Tallinn, Estonia, joined hands to stand together for freedom in the longest unbroken human chain ever—the Baltic Chain. They didn’t have Internet to communicate their plans. They couldn’t use Soviet-controlled television or radio. Instead, they could only use word of mouth, phone calls, and letters to communicate the plan.
Although Lithuania actually gained its freedom in February or March, depending on which date is celebrated, Lithuania’s big independence day is on July 6th when the weather is better and more conducive to celebrating.
Needless to say, Lithuanians takes their freedom seriously. They understand the fragility and responsibility that freedom brings and are willing to work for it. Just a note: Lithuania has a parliamentary form of government. The president must give up his/her party membership when elected to be neutral and serve all Lithuanians.
Vilnius is a city where, during the summer month, you can walk around, sit in an outdoor café, and enjoy simply being. It ranks as one of my favorite cities—in the summer. (Winters are very cold.) We ended this day with tapas at Fortas Smoke. Vilnius has wonderful food. It seems as though you can find any type you want.
The next morning, we took a walking tour of the town led by Marius who is from the city and shared so many extras with us including his home. The third Catholic Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus of Vilnius was built in the same location as a pagan temple once stood. (The first two cathedrals on this site were destroyed. Lithuania was the last pagan country in Europe. Notice the crosses in Lithuanian. Almost all of them have a sun in the middle—a sign for the pagan sun god.)
The cathedral’s bell tower actually leans—it’s not your imagination when you look at the picture. The tower was built on the original three floors of the city’s watchtower. In front of the church are also the Miracle Tiles. Visitors stand on either tile, close their eyes, make a wish, and turn around clockwise. Your wish is made.
Also in the Cathedral Square is the Grand Dukes’ Palace in the Cathedral Square. There were originally two castles—an upper and lower—built in this place by Lithuanian dukes. The palace now houses art and history museums.
Our walking tour took us through one of the Jewish Ghettos—the Jewish town inside the city. (The two areas were designated by large and small. It was not called a ghetto during that time. It was simply the area where the Jewish people lived.) The area started growing in the 1800s with continued growth until the 1940s when approximately 1/3 of the city was Jewish and the city had over 100 synagogues and places of worship. When the Nazis took over, they implemented rules for Jews who were gradually force back into the ghettos. Almost everyone living in the small ghetto was exterminated within 3 months because these were the people who couldn’t work. Those living in the large ghetto were exterminated later. By 1944, there were no more Jews in the city. Out of 40,000, only 2,000 survived.
We passed many beautiful churches on our walk and many colorful courtyards that we were able to glimpse through open gates. St. Casmir’s church was one with an interesting history. It was built as a Catholic church. When Russia took over, they changed it to Russian Orthodox. The Germans came and changed it to Lutheran. The Soviets invaded and it was changed to a museum of atheism. Upon liberation, Lithuanians changed the church back to Catholic.
We passed by the Wall of the Literates which has pictures or books embedded in the street wall, and heard about the signing of the original Lithuanian Declaration of Independence in 1918, all on our way to St. John’s Church which is located within the highly ranked University of Vilnius.
Our walk continued to the Town Hall Square and exploration of the area around it including multiple churches and a quick visit to part of the original medieval city wall. (Lithuania has adopted the sobering, but excellent, custom of adding bronze markers on the sidewalk to designate homes from which Jews were taken and killed.)
Our last stop of the tour was at the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights located in the building that served as the former KGB headquarters from 1944-1991. Even walking by the building is a sobering reminder of Lithuania’s long fight for freedom since markers along the façade contain names and dates of those who fought and died to obtain it.
Inside, the brutality of the Soviets was even more obvious. One room had been used for executions—a person was escorted into the room where a person who was positioned behind the door stepped out and shot him in the head. The body was thrown down a chute, the blood hosed off through a drain in the floor, and the process was then repeated. The basement of the building was utilized to hold prisoners, especially political dissidents including more than 360 priests. The last political prisoner was not released until 1987.
Even though we actually visited the Republic of Uzupis another day, it would have fit within our walking tour so I’ll add it here. This creative center located within Vilnius was a place I had wanted to see. The neighborhood declared itself a republic on April 1, 1997 and adopted its own constitution. (Notice the date. It’s important.) From that time, Uzupis has expanded and includes many artists. Its location on the Vilna River gives it an even more bohemian feel.
Even though we didn’t wade through the river to the colorful swing, we enjoyed watching others as they splashed happily in the shallow waters. Of course, Independence Day is celebrated on April 1st at which time the water fountain becomes a beer fountain. Uzupis has its own currency. The only catch is that it is only good on Independence Day. Art is everywhere in the area that was once one of the worst areas in Vilnius. Now Uzupis comes complete with its own constitution, parliament, and ministers. The Dali Llama has visited Uzupis four times since its inception.
Their symbol is the palm of a hand with a hole in it symbolizing that those living in Uzupis shouldn’t keep things for themselves.
After dinner at a former favorite restaurant of the Soviet upper class, we were off to walk around, find a café, and enjoy a drink while watching passersby. We loved the extra time we had in the evening before darkness descended since the sun doesn’t set until around 11:00 pm.
Our next day we enjoyed a day trip to Trakai Castle and its surroundings. A quick boat trip around the island and then a walk to the castle took us to the first capital of Lithuania.
Afterwards we visited the Karai community and had a cooking lesson—which was even better because we got to eat what we had made—kibinai which are meat pastries. The Karai, who are members of the Kipchak Turkish tribe—came from the Crimea to Trakai to guard the castle’s inhabitants in the 14th century.
The Karai always build three windows in the front of their houses—one for God, one for family, and one for the grand duke. They believe only the Old Testament.
And, all too soon, we left Vilnius with its relaxing atmosphere, diverse foods, and wonderful history and headed to Klaipeda, Lithuania, located on the Baltic Sea. (The stop on the way to Klaipeda was amazing. We visited with a 96-year-old woman who had been sent to Siberia by the Soviets when she was young. More in the blog on Klaipeda.)
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