So, I didn't manage to write any more blogs while I was in Australia.
I was traveling with one of my best friends from back in the day (Rob
Pike) and was usually too busy/inebriated to write anything legible. I'm
home now, and I just happen to have some Vitamin P and time on my
hands. So let's get back to this so we can finish it up.
Leaving Gdansk, Poland was incredibly simple. I generally try to head to airport early in case anything goes sideways in the process, but it certainly wasn't necessary here. There were like four other people in the whole airport, and three of them worked there. My next destination was one of the last outpost-type places that I always get strange looks for when I mention where I'm going. This place was Vilnius, Lithuania. And it definitely didn't disappoint in terms of being out of the way.
I've hit the other ex-Soviet Baltic states (Estonia and Latvia) already, and thoroughly enjoyed them both. Lithuania was purported to be the least Western of the three, and that turned out to be mostly true. The first thing was the inevitable taxi ripoff. It was like 5km to town from the airport, but they were charging the equivalent of like 30 bucks. I have no idea why I stressed over this since money wasn't an issue, but for some reason I was determined to not pay 30 bucks. I thought about it for days before arrival, and now it was time to earn my stripes.
So after much negotiating, I somehow paid...32 bucks. As a world traveler, you'd think I'd be better at this by now. And you'd be wrong.
As usual when I first get to places, I go for a long walk around the hotel area to get a feel for it, then find somewhere to eat/drink. Travel guides all mentioned various English/Irish pubs (fuck off, I integrate slowly) in the Old Town, but they were all shut down. Apparently the ex-pat community in Vilnius is so small that these places never get any business and inevitably close up shop after a few months.
So, I had to bust out my stellar Lithuanian skills at a regular bar to order. And by stellar Lithuanian, I mean pointing at stuff and adding "ski" to the end of every word. Obviously that backfired.
Tim: "Pleaseski? Beerski?'
Bartender chick: "I speak English."
Tim: "Oh. Sorry."
Bartender chick: "Try that first next time. This not Russiaski."
Vilnius 1, Timski 0.
I woke up the next day eager to explore since it was my only full day in the city. It was around -10, but anyone that knows me that I'm weird and I like the cold so I thought it was great. I set off to check out the biggest tourist sites first, which were a cathedral and the adjoining area. I was amused to come across three different wedding parties in the large square. On December 28th. Did I mention it was -10 outside?
The funny part to me was that all the guys seemed to have parkas on, and all the women in the wedding parties were just standing around in their dresses freezing. And visibly angry. Welcome to Lithuania.
I explored the entire Old Town (one of the biggest in Europe), and it was a strange mix of beauty and neglect. I'm an architecture nerd and loved a lot of the buildings, but there would be 62 graffiti'd garbage cans in front of them, which obviously spoiled the scene somewhat. There were other weird things too - like putting a gigantic domed bouncy castle right in front of one of the nicest-looking buildings in the city, which completely obstructed the view. Nice to see they still had that backwards Soviet spirit in spades I guess.
Food and beer were cheap though, so that was much appreciated. Overall it was a very walkable city, with a nice river running through it and stuff to see on both sides. There were lots of open, inviting squares and some small parks interspersed amongst the old town and residential areas. It was also a lot more chic that I expected, with fancy shopping areas and high-end restaurants all around my hotel. And my hotel itself was brilliant. The people are standoffish, but that's standard for this part of the world and I've always appreciated it. It's just part of the makeup. No fake smiles here, that's for sure.
Overall, I liked it. Riga and Tallinn were much cleaner than Vilnius, which is probably why most tourists like the other two Baltic capitals better. They're also much more tourist-friendly. But I grew to appreciate Vilnius' odd charm despite my short time there. Unlike places that totally rely upon tourism, Vilnius gave me the distinct impression that it didn't give a shit if I came to see it or not, it'd be just fine either way.
I like that.
Leaving Gdansk, Poland was incredibly simple. I generally try to head to airport early in case anything goes sideways in the process, but it certainly wasn't necessary here. There were like four other people in the whole airport, and three of them worked there. My next destination was one of the last outpost-type places that I always get strange looks for when I mention where I'm going. This place was Vilnius, Lithuania. And it definitely didn't disappoint in terms of being out of the way.
I've hit the other ex-Soviet Baltic states (Estonia and Latvia) already, and thoroughly enjoyed them both. Lithuania was purported to be the least Western of the three, and that turned out to be mostly true. The first thing was the inevitable taxi ripoff. It was like 5km to town from the airport, but they were charging the equivalent of like 30 bucks. I have no idea why I stressed over this since money wasn't an issue, but for some reason I was determined to not pay 30 bucks. I thought about it for days before arrival, and now it was time to earn my stripes.
So after much negotiating, I somehow paid...32 bucks. As a world traveler, you'd think I'd be better at this by now. And you'd be wrong.
As usual when I first get to places, I go for a long walk around the hotel area to get a feel for it, then find somewhere to eat/drink. Travel guides all mentioned various English/Irish pubs (fuck off, I integrate slowly) in the Old Town, but they were all shut down. Apparently the ex-pat community in Vilnius is so small that these places never get any business and inevitably close up shop after a few months.
So, I had to bust out my stellar Lithuanian skills at a regular bar to order. And by stellar Lithuanian, I mean pointing at stuff and adding "ski" to the end of every word. Obviously that backfired.
Tim: "Pleaseski? Beerski?'
Bartender chick: "I speak English."
Tim: "Oh. Sorry."
Bartender chick: "Try that first next time. This not Russiaski."
Vilnius 1, Timski 0.
I woke up the next day eager to explore since it was my only full day in the city. It was around -10, but anyone that knows me that I'm weird and I like the cold so I thought it was great. I set off to check out the biggest tourist sites first, which were a cathedral and the adjoining area. I was amused to come across three different wedding parties in the large square. On December 28th. Did I mention it was -10 outside?
The funny part to me was that all the guys seemed to have parkas on, and all the women in the wedding parties were just standing around in their dresses freezing. And visibly angry. Welcome to Lithuania.
I explored the entire Old Town (one of the biggest in Europe), and it was a strange mix of beauty and neglect. I'm an architecture nerd and loved a lot of the buildings, but there would be 62 graffiti'd garbage cans in front of them, which obviously spoiled the scene somewhat. There were other weird things too - like putting a gigantic domed bouncy castle right in front of one of the nicest-looking buildings in the city, which completely obstructed the view. Nice to see they still had that backwards Soviet spirit in spades I guess.
Food and beer were cheap though, so that was much appreciated. Overall it was a very walkable city, with a nice river running through it and stuff to see on both sides. There were lots of open, inviting squares and some small parks interspersed amongst the old town and residential areas. It was also a lot more chic that I expected, with fancy shopping areas and high-end restaurants all around my hotel. And my hotel itself was brilliant. The people are standoffish, but that's standard for this part of the world and I've always appreciated it. It's just part of the makeup. No fake smiles here, that's for sure.
Overall, I liked it. Riga and Tallinn were much cleaner than Vilnius, which is probably why most tourists like the other two Baltic capitals better. They're also much more tourist-friendly. But I grew to appreciate Vilnius' odd charm despite my short time there. Unlike places that totally rely upon tourism, Vilnius gave me the distinct impression that it didn't give a shit if I came to see it or not, it'd be just fine either way.
I like that.
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