Destination: Vilnius, Lithuania

As one of the three countries which make up the Baltic states (along with Estonia and Latvia), Lithuania is a small nation which had been under Soviet rule in the past and has since become quite well-off in terms of economic growth and development. Aside from hearing a few acquaintances who’d visited a few years ago, I had little knowledge about Lithuania, and I would base myself in its capital, Vilnius (pronounced “vil-news”), for three nights to discover this relatively-unassuming Baltic country.

Getting to Vilnius from Warsaw was surprisingly-easy. Even if it didn’t seem simple at first, I managed it. Initially, I’d thought about taking a train between the two cities, but it turned out that railway systems weren’t the best: it would’ve required a transfer at Bialystok, a Polish city, before possibly needing to go through Belarus to reach Vilnius. That journey would’ve taken a whopping 13-14 hours for only a 470-kilometer distance. Hence, trains weren’t ideal.

I ended up finding a bus that went directly from Warsaw to Vilnius. Journey time would take 9-10 hours, which was still a lot, but a lot better than the trains. Plus, it wouldn’t require passing through Belarus (which I would need a visa to enter), and the ticket prices were cheap at 14€. It ended up being a comfortable bus ride, as it was fully-equipped with Wifi, a toilet, a TV screen (with plenty of movies and even Internet access), even coffee and tea. I also befriended a Korean girl on-board, as we ended up discovering that we would be staying in the same hostel in Vilnius and also visiting Riga right afterwards!

*If you’re curious as to which bus company I went with, it was Lux Express, an Estonian-operated company. I also used it for my journey to Riga, and I have nothing but good words to say about it. Cheap, good Wifi, and lovely complements, I can’t recommend it enough!*

There was a bit of a roadblock between Bialystok and Kaunas, which set back our arrival time by 30 minutes, but in any case, the bus pulled into Vilnius’ bus station towards 21:00. Thankfully, it was still light out, so I didn’t have a problem making my way to the hostel 20 minutes away in the Old Town. I checked in, made dinner in the kitchen, and got a beer with the Korean girl at the hostel’s bar before I, exhausted as heck, crashed that night.

I spent the following day exploring Vilnius, starting with the main cathedral in town. Its exterior looks rather unconventional, more like a Greek temple than a church. Pretty interesting, though, and I also saw the small, easy-to-miss Miracle Tile right outside, which is to symbolize the end of a long human chain created by Lithuanians, Estonians, and Latvians as a peaceful protest against Soviet occupation in the late-20th century.

Not far from the cathedral was the Gediminas Tower, one of the last remains of the city’s castle fortifications from the 13th century. It was an uneven hike up to the tower, for the cobblestone path was jagged and filled with gaps, but I soon reached its entrance and paid 5€ to climb it. Stunning views of the red rooftops and green forests greeted me at the top, and I’d gone on a clear, sunny day for blue skies, too.

Next stop was the Three Crosses, located on another hill close to the tower. Legend has it that seven friars were killed at this location, and the three, white crosses are to honor them. It was in a forested part of town, so I saw plenty of greenery while hitching up to the observation deck, where I admired the towering crosses and views of Vilnius from above. I realized that I could’ve just saved the money I’d paid at the Gediminas Tower and gotten the *free* views of the city from the Three Crosses– they’re virtually the same, so point noted for next time!

It was nearing noontime and I, rather hungry from hiking the two hills, decided to break for lunch. My hostel had recommended a local restaurant for affordable, Lithuanian food, so I headed there. I hadn’t known too much about Lithuanian food before I arrived in Vilnius, but I quickly discovered it was a lot of meat and potatoes cooked in just about any way possible.

I made the mistake of ordering too much food for myself, as I got cepelinai (meat-filled potato dumplings) and bulviniai blynai (potato pancakes). I got a half-portion of the former and a full portion for the latter. Portions were unexpectedly huge, which shocked me once the dishes came out. I enjoyed the cepelinai the most, with the potato dumpling being chewy and the meat inside tender and deliciously-greasy. I don’t know how I managed to *barely* finish both dishes, but I knew that I had to do a lot of walking afterwards to burn them off.

Following my massive meal, I went to the Vilnius train station to purchase tickets in advance for my trip to the Hill of Crosses the next day. After some communication barriers with the ticket lady, I got my round-trip tickets and headed back into the city center. I also came across a quirky street art of Putin and Trump, which made for some great political satire (and a noteworthy photo).

I headed all the way north of the city to see the Museum of Genocide Victims. Although I normally don’t visit museums (not my cup of tea), it was rather fitting to learn a bit of history of Lithuania’s past, especially under Soviet rule. Hundreds of thousands of Lithuanians were killed during the Cold War, and over 1000 prisoners executed. I toured the KGB cells where the prisoners were kept and tortured, which were unimaginable to have lived in– it was chilling to know that this took place not too long ago in the past, and who knows if it’ll happen again in the future.

From the museum, I crossed the Neris River to the more-industrial part of town. I was essentially there just to see the traffic lights on Constitution Street, which had female stop-go signs. A tiny detail, but a quirky one that I wanted to see for myself!

I crossed back into the Old Town and reached Užupis, a small, self-proclaimed republic within Lithuania. If anything, it’s more of a hippy-alternative part of town, with a few quirky boutiques, cafes, and bookstores to check out. I visited a bookstore where you can get your passport stamped with the “republic’s” logo (which I did!) and got an inexpensive coffee and cake (4€ total) at one of the cafes. Nothing much else to it, but it was a cute place.

It was around 16:00 when I returned to my hostel. I would be waking up super early the next day to visit the Hill of Crosses, so I stayed in that night. On my last night in Vilnius, however, I did hang out with hostel-goers before going out to a bar in town– I returned early, though, since I was tired and wanted to wake up at a reasonable hour to leave for my next destination.

Overall, I enjoyed Vilnius. It’s a small city that’s clean, has good architecture, and is actually quite cheap. Its blend of architecture and nature was refreshing, compared to dense, urban cities I’d visited in Europe (e.g. London, Rome, Berlin). Even if you can see most things within a day-and-a-half, Vilnius is an understated city that’s worth a weekend break from home.

I’ll recap my visit to the Hill of Crosses soon!

 

— Rebecca