Lithuania 2017

Lithuania - Start into the Baltic vacations

  Normally, the most people are talking about the beautiful cities of Riga and Tallinn. Not so many people are thinking about Vilnius. But the capital of Lithuania is not only the second largest city in the Baltic countries, it is also known for the architecture in its Old Town, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. Prior to World War II, Vilnius was one of the largest Jewish centers in Europe and it was described as the "Jerusalem of Lithuania".

  Before entering to the Old Town, I passed the Gate of Dawn, a city gate and one of the most important religious, historical and cultural monuments. It was built between 1503 and 1522 as a part of defensive fortifications for the city. Then, I followed the Pilies gatvė ("Castle Street"), a short street from the Cathedral Square to the Town Hall Square. The Cathedral Square is the main square of the Vilnius Old Town, right in front of the neo-classical Vilnius Cathedral. It was founded as late as 19th century, during the reconstruction of the cathedral. One of the characteristic features of the square is the Cathedral's bell tower. Another notable feature is the bronze monument to Gediminas, one of the first Lithuanian rulers. Two other higlights of the Old town are the Presidential Palace, the offical office and residence of the President of Lithuania, and the St. Anne's Church, a Roman Catholic church, on the right bank of the Vilnia River, which was constructed on the initiative of the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander I Jagiellon between 1495 and 1500, after the original wooden church, built for Anna, Grand Duchess of Lithuania,  was destroyed by a fire in 1419.

  Then, I climbed to the top of the hill to see the Gediminas' Tower, the remaining part of the Upper Castle in Vilnius. The first wooden fortifications were built by Gediminas, Grand Duke of Lithuania. The first brick castle was completed in 1409 by Grand Duke Vytautas. The tower houses a museum exhibiting archaeological findings from the hill and the surrounding areas. It is also an excellent vantage point, from where the panorama of the Old Town can be admired. The Lithuanian flag was re-hoisted on top of the tower on the 7th October 1988, during the independence movement, that was finalized on 11th March 1990.

  After another hiking tour, I arrived at the Hill of Three Crosses, originally known as Bleak Hill, in Kalnai Park. According to a legend, seven Franciscan friars were beheaded on top of this hill, so that wooden crosses were built in the location since the early 17th century. It became a symbol of the city. In 1916, a concrete monument was designed, but torn down in 1950 by order of the Soviet authorities. The new and current monument, designed by Henrikas Šilgalis, was then erected in 1989.    

  As mentioned before, Vilnius was one of the largest Jewish centers in Europe. The Vilna Ghetto was a World War II Jewish ghetto, established and operated by Nazi Germany. During the existence of the ghetto, starvation, disease, street executions and deportations to concentration camps reduced the estimated population from 40,000 to zero. It was quite shocking, but also interesting to learn a lot about the Lithuanian history during a tour through the streets of the former Vilna Ghetto.

  Finally, I went to eat dinner and I tried many typical Lithuanian dishes. The traditional beetroot soup, which is also famous in Russia, was interesting, but my absolutely favourite food was the wild mushroom soup inside the bread pot. Another very delicious food were the "Zeppelinas", potato dumplings filled with minced meat and mushrooms and served with sour cream.

   During the first daily trip, I went to the Paneriai Memorial Park, where approximately 70,000 people were murdered by the Nazi Security Police, the SS security service and the Vilnius Special Squad. There are many monuments for remembering the cruelty of the past.

   Moreover, I went to the Trakai Island Castle, located in Trakai, approximately 30 km in the west of Vilnius. The castle is on an island in Lake Galvė and the construction of the stone castle was begun in the 14th century and around 1409, the major work were completed by Vytautas the Great. Trakai was one of the main centres of the Duchy of Lithuania and the castle held great strategic importance. After Grand Duke Vytautas the Great died in the castle in 1430, the castle was redecorated in a Renaissance style by Sigismund Augustus, but in the 19th century, castle reconstruction plans were prepared and after World War II, a major reconstruction project for a reconstruction in a Gothic-Romanesque style, was started in 1951 and was finished in 1961.

   On the second daily trip, I went to the Hill of Crosses, a site of pilgrimage about 12 km north of the city of Šiauliai in the north of Lithuania. Over the generations, not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought there by Catholic pilgrims. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but people estimate more than one million crosses there. There are different stories and myths about the origin of the Hill of Crosses. 

    "One of the fairy tales tells the story of a father and his sick daughter. When he slept, he dreamed about an angel, who told him to erect a cross on the hill and his daughter will get healthy again. The next day, the man went to the hill and erected the cross on the top. When he was on the way back, his daughter walked into his direction and she was healthy again." 

    The site took a special significance during the years 1944-1990, when Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union. Lithuanian people used the hill to demonstrate their allegiance to their original identity, religion and heritage. It was a venue of peaceful resistance, although the Soviets tried to remove new crosses and destroyed the site at least three times. On the 7th September 1993, Pope John Paul II visited the Hill of Crosses and declared it as a place for hope, peace, love and sacrifice.