Bus rule number one

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Bus rule number one

If there exists one rule about travelling in buses besides rule number one which says that you always arrive later than expected, it is that you arrive too early that one time you definitely don't want to arrive early - as experienced in windy Vilnius. Our night bus from Warsaw which we happened to catch after a dramatic last minute run through town was all but leaving late. And there was nothing which could delay us. Traffic was running smoothly and the border crossing was a matter of minutes. So it happened that we arrived in Vilnius at 4 am already instead of the scheduled 6 am arrival. (We had a suspicion though that they had known it all along but didn't want to tell.)
Late March mornings in Lithuania can be quite chilly and this particular one was certainly no exception. So we ended up standing at the Vilnius bus terminal with no onward connection and a freezing breeze around the nose. Luckily things came to life from around 5 am and after we had got some Litas from the ATM we soon found ourselves on the bus towards our hostel of choice, where we got back those hours of sleep which unexpectedly had been taken from us. Vilnius itself was a nice place but somehow missed the colossal buildings or medieval atmosphere of other Eastern European cities (although some potential is there). The recent repaintings give an impression of sterility. However, there are some nice alleys to wander around for a bit. A highly recommended daytrip brought us to the nearby Trakai castle which (although renovated as well) impressed us with its stunning setting amidst a couple of lakes. There is a museum within the castle walls as well with an extraordinary collection of back pipes!
You might be glad to hear that when we moved from Vilnius on to the Curonian Spit (a thin peninsula off the Baltic coast) bus-wise everything was back to normal and rule number one could be applied again. We were late but just managed to catch the last boat across the channel to the spit.


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Planet Portrait

* Top 3:

Trakai castle

Curonian Spit

Hill of crosses

* Our route: Vilnius - Juodkrante - Siauliai

* Dissapointment: Spaghetti with Ketchup in Pervalka

* Money Saver Tip: Travel in the low season and get discounted rooms without heating. Admittedly this is a stupid tip.

* We paid for a meal: 17-24 Litas

* Visa: no visa (for Swiss)




Planet Pictures

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Photos

Fairy tale castle of Trakai
If I didn't have estates in Tuscany and on the Cote d'Azur already, I would probably acquire this one.

Sand dunes on the Curonian Spit
Listen to mother nature on a wild walk through rugged terrain.

Church in Vilnius
A little bit too clean to our taste, but still nice.

Hill of crosses
A symbol of Lithuanian independence as the practice of putting up new crosses was forbidden under Sovjet rule.