Blogs from Vilnius, Lithuania, Europe - page 4

Our GPS has been of great help guiding us around Latvia, Estonia and now Lithuania but it needs to be used with discretion, as one morning it took us down a cart track which ended in a very rickety and narrow pedestrian suspension bridge. It also tends to send us in circles when trying to get us to a tourist information centre that can only be accessed on foot. And several of the centres we have tried to reach can only be accessed by foot or via complicated one-way systems which, when you want help finding somewhere to stay for the night and only have ten minutes to reach the information centre before it closes, can be frustrating. We've also noticed, when asking for a room for the night that as soon as we ask whether ... read more

Our gang of close friends at home(The Flamingos)are having their mid winter Christmas Party tonight and we won't be there.But......by the wonders of technology,namely Skype,we can at least get a look at who has brought what to eat and salivate if there is lamb on the menu and of course also get to catch up with those there.The party is at Ruth and Owens and we jacked up the connection day and time about a month ago so we had to make sure our internet connection in Augustow was going to work.And it did a treat! The weather had picked up since yesterday and the sky was clearing as we packed up for the short drive to cross into another country on the BBA V2,Lithuania. What a difference the sun coming out makes and with Augustow ... read more

I flew from Rygge to Vilnius early in the morning, dozing a little while, the passengers nearby being somewhat noisy. Having landed, I at first stood waiting for the bus but then went to find the train station. You have to walk some 30 meters, the train came in 20 minutes; it consists only of two coaches and reaches the city in no time; ticket was bought from the fare collector. Weather was totally different from Oslo – there it was colder and drier, while here drizzling and misty. The hostel was very close to the train station, but its door bore the sign of its being shifted to another building nearby owing to repair (the booking said nothing about that, mark a shortcoming). I was met by a Russian-speaking girl and shown to the room. ... read more

The small nation of Lithuania is overloaded with character, conviviality and culture. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the country’s capital, Vilnius. Although the city’s difficult post-Soviet past is ever present, a newly vibrant atmosphere has successfully subdued it. As you fly into Vilnius, you’ll still catch glimpses of the old – planned streets, factories, and those diminutive ugly high-rise apartment blocks. However, the centre of Vilnius feels like another world. Gone are those horrific grey edifices, replaced with a multitude of colour. For Vilnius, somewhat unusually, feels like a Mediterranean city. Winding cobblestone streets pass between beautifully coloured baroque buildings. Their faded blue, yellow and red façades deepen in intensity when the sun shines, while spectacular old churches appear behind every corner. You can’t help but ask yourself if you’re really in ... read more

Although my Erasmus time has finished, I will still write some blogs after holidays and other important events. And this latest one will come in two parts - my Baltic Tour. Although it was only a week long, the trip took me and my sister to four countries and six cities - its therefore no surprise that we had forgotten much of what went on at the beginning before the end was even upon us! The first day involved us leaving home at 5:30am to make it to the airport for a 7:30am flight to Vilnius. However as we were about the board the plane, there was a technical issue that delayed us by almost 2 hours. Although we didn't mind arriving later, as we already knew that we had plenty of spare time and we ... read more