Blogs from Siauliai, Lithuania, Europe

20 juillet C'est en bus que je traverserai aujourd'hui, la frontière Pologne/Lituanie. En direction de Šiauliai. Jamais je n'ai entendu parler de Šiauliai auparavant. C'est que je suis tombé sur d'étranges photos sur internet, des photos de Kryžių kalnas (hill of crosses), situé à quelques kilomètres de Šiauliai en Lituanie (sur la route de Rila, capitale de la Lettonie)... et je me suis donné la mission d'y mettre les pieds. Voilà donc ce qui m'a motivé à aller encore plus à l'est, de l'autre côté de la fin du monde: Kryžių kalnas. ... Assis dans un bus (Ecolines), j'ai droit à un écran personnel comme dans un avion lors d'une traversée de l'Atlantique. Posté au deuxième étage(!), je somnole en me laissant bercer par une playlist de musique russe que m'offre l'écran devant moi. C'est le ... read more

Vilnius is an easy place to like the city is compact so I have walked everywhere today, visiting a chilling museum in the old KGB building first, that describes the history of Lithuania in the 20th century, the cells and execution room in the basement were shocking. Next I continued along the main shopping street stopping briefly to eat before continuing on to Cathedral Square, the church is lovely, but the highlight is the stunning royal palace. It has been beautifully modernised/restored and explains the history of Lithuania during thre two or three centuries when the Duchy of Litnuania was the power in central europe. I was very impressed with the way information was presented, particularly as every exhibit was in English. I then went to the national museum which was average then climbed the hill ... read more

An diesem Tag bin ich von Kaunas nach Siauliai gefahren. Dieses Städtchen ist berühmt für den Berg der Kreuze, den ich mir angesehen habe und eine nahegelegene NATO-Basis.... read more

Since it was our last full day here, we decided to make an American lunch for everyone. The menu consisted of grilled cheese, tomato soup, a side of mac 'n' cheese and watermelon. All was going well until we realized we had no milk. I got to explore a new part of the kaimas as I jogged with one of the kids to the closest store to purchase the missing ingredient. Some kids really liked our meal, and some not so much, but overall we are calling it a success! The only way to cool ourselves off in the heat was to jump into the river. Several times throughout the afternoon we all swam, splashed around and played games in the refreshing water. It's a good thing we were warm, because for some reason there ... read more

This morning was filled with excitement when the kids found out we would be having a picnic at Skalų Kalnas, a hill and river nearby. The weather was hot, and after cramming 15 people in a 8 person car, everyone was more than happy to cool off in the river. After spending 4 hours in the sun, we knew it was time to go when we ran out of water and energy. Although we felt exhausted, it didn't take long before the kids bounced back . On a normal basis, these kids only have 2 caretakers that watch them throughout the day. Therefore, it is nearly impossible to keep track of what each of these 30 kids are doing at every moment. For example, one of the youngest girls was innocently digging in the dirt today, ... read more