Last Days in Lithuania

Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008--Vilnius

Breakfast here includes an egg. That's more than at the other places operated by the same company where I have stayed. It's nice to have an egg along with the cold foods.

I climbed a hill to the Three Crosses. They are a symbol of Vilnius and the people are especially sensitive about them, since the Russians forcefully bulldozed them down when they took over the country after WWII. That makes them also a symbol of resistance. Many pieces of handwork that I saw in the Genocide Museum had needlework showing the three crosses. Climbing the hill was interesting. Some teenage boys started up just ahead of me. They paused at the turn in the first flight of stairs because they were already exhausted. I managed to climb the entire hill without a pause. It's nice to be in shape!

Make several more local stops to see sights--St. Anne's Church which has nice brickwork on the outside and is delicate and beautiful inside, Vilnius University which is known for its beautiful courtyards, other courtyards in Vilnius Old Town, the two areas that were Jewish ghettos during WWII, etc.

I tried to go to a concert at a church. It had been listed in a program that was for several months with September being the last month listed. I guess the one I wanted to attend was canceled, because the church was closed with no activity around it. Therefore, I went to the store and self-catered again tonight--herrings on brown bread, beer, and waffle cookies.

Sunday, Sept. 28, 2008--Vilnius

I have now moved from the cheapest hotel (cheapest room in a place that rents multiple rooms) in Vilnius to the most expensive hotel in Vilnius--from Litinterp to the SAS Radisson Astorija. I used expiring frequent flyer points to get a room for one night. It's nice, but I wouldn't say it is worth 5 times what I paid at the other place (which is the price differential between the two). In fact, not long after I checked in, the power went off and stayed off for over two hours!

I am still exploring back areas of the Old Town in Vilnius. It is the largest old town in eastern Europe. However, I think I prefer the Old Town of Tallinn better. Tallinn seems to have more atmosphere to me, and it seems to be more complete (fewer gaps or places where new buildings have been inserted). While out, I found a nice market not far from where I am staying. The only market my guidebook mentioned is one that is far north from here, so it was fun to find this one which is so close and in a completed remodeled building. There are stalls for cold cuts, for bakeries, for meats, for clothing, etc. It is a big area not far from the bus and train stations.

Tourism is thriving here. Although it is the end of September, the streets are full of tourists--individual ones walking around with maps in their hands and groups going by bus from site to site. And many Americans seem to be here based on the accents.

I found a concert today. The church across the street from the hotel was scheduled to have one at 14:00 according to the same schedule I used for the previous one I tried to attend. This time, there was one, but it was at 13:00 instead of 14:00. Fortunately, I went to the door to see if anything was posted and discovered the earlier time. It was an organ concert and was well attended. It was a good mixture of old and new music. I found a piece named Orpheus by Ruth Zechlin to be intriguing--modern and haunting.

A cold front has passed through. It is breezy and uncomfortably cold late in the afternoon. But it seems to also be clearing out the skies which have been cloudy for 3 days.

Monday, Sept. 29, 2008--Vilnius to Klaipeda

There is light rain off and on today. It's the first rain I have encountered since leaving India other than the night rains I had in Georgia. I've had to bring out the umbrella. That makes it a good travel day, I guess.

Breakfast at the SAS Radisson was good, but the staff were very disorganized. No one came to meet me to see my room card either at the entrance or at the table. No one offerred to serve me coffee or tea, so I finally just got a pot myself from where they were standing. The orange juice container remained empty with no one noticing for quite a while. Anyway, I had scrambled eggs, salmon, mushrooms, broiled tomato, bacon, cheese, bread, juice, coffee, and pastries.

I took the bus at 10:25 and am now in Klaipeda. My flight to Copenhagen is tomorrow from Palanga near here. It's also raining off and on here. Will just relax this last day, I guess.