"THREE CAPITALS IN FIVE DAYS" a Vilnius Travel Page by Sininen

I dare to use the title of ‘Three Capitals’ here because it sounds good even flamboyant, though there’s no evidence of that being the truth in the case of Trakai, though it might have served as a capital for a couple of years during the reign of Grand Duke Gediminas. Did you know by the way that in the 15th century Lithuania was the largest country in Europe? It spread from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea and in the east near to Moscow.

One of my Brazilian pals was travelling in the Baltic States and we had agreed to meet on the day of my arrival as he was off to Warsaw that night. We met in front of my guesthouse and he was my guide that day. We walked in Old Town and he told me about the buildings and the background to them, so I learned a lot of new things that day. We went into many churches that day and I must say that I couldn’t say which one was which as at the end all of them were mixed in my head. There are 29 churches only in the Old Town Vilnius! It was funny to see the cultural differences between my friend and me. He preferred the very decorated churches while those with white walls and ceilings appeal more to me. I think that they are calming and are better surroundings for calming down to praying and worshipping God. Also he liked streets full of people and was surprised how early they emptied at night. I love quite streets with no or very few people and that’s why I got up early in the morning to take a walk and take photos in peace before the street filled with people.

We had dinner at McDonald’s! It was the first time for me since 1998 when Ulla and I ate in one in Birmingham between the trains. Dalton is afraid of getting some tummy bug and therefore avoids local foods. Another difference! I want to taste local foods and never think if they could cause me upset stomach. We decided to go to the Gediminas Hill to see the Higher Castle or what is left of it. Somehow I thought that the climbing there would be harder so I chose to take the funicular. We admired the view over the city but didn’t go to the tower. Dalton didn’t want to climb up the 100 steps (72 of them only as I later learned) but offered to wait for me if I wanted to go up. Before he had to take his bus we still had coffee in the Užupio Café, which is set by the River Vilnia.