Baltics Archives - Wandering North

Andorra-Lithuania trip 2024 Latvia

Return to Riga

I had arrived in Riga by land coming from Vilnius, Lithuania. I think it was about 3:00pm when I arrived and I checked into my hotel. I had booked a bed at a hostel but something got screwed up with my reservation so at the last minute I ended up booking a room at a hotel in the centre. This was my second time in Riga, and I would only be there a short time, leaving very early the next morning. But I was delighted to have a bit of time to revisit the city.

It had been exactly two years since I was there last when I came for a four day long weekend in May. It was just as lovely as I remembered. I don’t really have much to say about Riga this time, because I said most of my impressions when I arrived the first time, so if you’re interested in going to Riga or knowing what it’s like, go back and read the two posts that I made in 2022. This time I’ll just say that it is terrific city. I think it’s one of my favourite cities in Europe. It’s very pretty and pleasant, with wonderful architecture, an interesting history, and a nice vibe.

I already had a sense of my way around, so I walked around the historic centre and took in some of the lovely streets and buildings that I had seen before, before going to a cigar lounge (The Oak Lounge) to sit and have a cigar of course. I wandered over to Albert(a) Street past the famous art nouveau buildings, which truly are exquisite.

I grabbed a bite to eat somewhere unremarkable. And I made plans to meet up with a friend. When I had been to Riga in 2022 I had booked a private historical walking tour of the city with a fellow and we got along quite well. At the end of the tour we went for drinks with some of his friends and it was the highlight of my trip. So I let him know that I was coming to town and we met up exactly two years later at exactly the same bar with a couple of the same friends and a couple of new ones. Again, it was my favourite thing about the trip. It’s just a good group of guys at a cool neighbourhood bar that I would have never found on my own. I like the bar so much that I’m not even going to say what it’s called or where it is because I don’t want to encourage too many people to go there and ruin its authentic feel. (But I will post a couple of pictures and if you can figure it out, good for you.) They have a little leafy courtyard where people drank and nobody minded if you smoked. I spent a couple of hours there, leaving after dark and walking back to my hotel.

*bar door on arrival; bar courtyard; bar door on departure, a few drinks later*

That was it. Like I said, it was a short visit. My flight the next morning was at 8:20 AM heading to Stockholm. The flight was part of the reason that I decided to go back to Riga in the first place, because the flight from Riga to Stockholm was ridiculously cheap and while I had been to Sweden I had never been to Stockholm and it seemed like a great opportunity. The day of my flight to Stockholm was the 8th day of my trip and I must admit that all of these crazy early morning flights, days constantly on the go, and late nights out was starting to catch up with me a little bit but I was still excited to see what lay ahead. Read on for Stockholm…

Andorra-Lithuania trip 2024 Latvia Lithuania

No Vampires at the Hill of Crosses

How to reach the Hill of Crosses from Vilnius

Apart from visiting Vilnius, the thing I most wanted to do was visit the Hill of Crosses. I had to figure out how to get there. The Hill is a couple hours from Vilnius, close to the border with Latvia, but close to little else. There are bus tours from both Riga and Vilnius, but they are long days and didn’t seem worth it, to go all the way there and back in a day. So what if I didn’t go back? I found a car & driver for hire that offered transportation from Vilnius to Riga, stopping at the Hill of Crosses and Rundāle Palace en route. Perfect. I had been to Riga before and loved it, so I was happy to return.

My driver picked me up early on the morning of May the 16^th. A young, skinny, rocker-looking dude who smoked cigarettes and didn’t have much to say. I enjoyed his company and appreciated that he answered any questions that I had about Lithuania.

The Hill of Crosses (Lithuania)

If you’ve seen pictures of the Hill of Crosses you’ll know it immediately by the name. It is a small hill in an open field covered in and surrounded by crosses of varying sizes. It’s unusual, even a bit eerie looking, and beautiful. I wanted to visit it as soon as I became aware of its existence.

The Hill of Crosses is not really a religious site; it is a site of protest. In the 1700s, Lithuania and Poland both became parts of the Russian Empire. On two occasions in the mid 1800’s there were wars of rebellion against the Russians by the Polish and Lithuanian people. The rebellions were put down, but the Hill of Crosses started as a response. Families of lost soldiers who did not have bodies to bury started putting crosses down in the middle of a field as a marker of their loss. During Soviet times, the Hill of Crosses became a place of protest, to assert Lithuanian independence against the Russians. From time to time the Russians would bulldoze the site, but the crosses returned – this, even though the Soviets declared placing crosses on the hill to be a crime punishable by imprisonment.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the hill of crosses has grown. It became a popular place for locals to put crosses to remember last soldiers or celebrate their national identity or hope for peace. And it has become a tourist site. The only rule about what sort of crosses may be placed there without a permit is that they must be less than three meters tall. Other than that, anyone can place a cross. And in walking around you will see crosses dedicated to certain soldiers, armies, or wars. But many have no such distinction and are just handcrafted, beautiful crosses of varying sizes.

It is a stunning sight. Even if there were no crosses there, the landscape is beautiful; fields of green, covered in yellow flowers, under the blue sky, and ringed with trees. The fact that these crosses are there in the middle of that landscape is a truly breathtaking sight. And it is a little creepy. Even in the light of day there’s something about eerie about walking in silence through these thousands of crosses. Because I’m an idiot who’s obsessed with horror movies, I started to imagine a horror movie in which vampires were attacking and the Hill of Crosses was the only place that people could find refuge from them. That’s a free idea if anyone wants it. Just give me a note in the credits.

The thing that I also found amazing, is that there is no business associated with this site. There is no entrance fee or guards and no people selling souvenirs. It is just there by the side of the road for anyone who wants to visit it. I’m so happy I made the journey.

Into Latvia

From the Hill of Crosses we drove across the border into Latvia. My second time there, but my first time visiting anything outside of the capital.

The next stop on the trip was visiting Rundāle Palace. Honestly, I wasn’t too interested in visiting the palace; I’ve seen palaces, and they are lovely but I don’t find that they vary too much from one to another. Nevertheless, I was happy to visit this one because it was effectively included in the trip. As it turned out, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Rundāle Palace. It was exceptionally beautiful and filled with period furnishings and surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens. There were only a few other people there at the time so I felt like I had the place to myself.

Rundāle Palace Was built in the Baroque style in the 1700s for Ernst Johann von Biron, the Duke of Courland, and who was also briefly the Regent of Russia in 1940. It’s not my style of decor, but it is undeniably impressive.

From Rundāle Palace, we drove further north and stopped briefly for a view of Bauska Castle, a castle built in the 1400s but mostly rebuilt in the 1800s after it was blown up during a war with the Russians in 1706. Another nice stop. If only just for a photo.

From there it was a short drive to Riga, on the shores of the Black Sea.

If you drove directly from Vilnius to Riga without stopping, it would be about a three and a half hour drive. With our stops it turned into more like a 7-hour day, but it was perfect. I got to Riga just in time to check into my hotel and enjoy the rest of the day.

Vilnius: It’s Pretty Amazing

I left Barcelona the day after my trip to Andorra and flew to Vilnius. A direct flight. My first time to Lithuania. There were really only two things that I wanted to do in Lithuania: see Vilnius and visit the Hill of Crosses. Vilnius was first on the list.

Lithuania is a Baltic state, which shares borders with Poland, Latvia, and Belarus, and has a coast along the Baltic Sea. It was a former member of the Soviet Union. Vilnius is Its capital. Lithuania doesn’t get a lot of attention from a tourism perspective, which led the government in about 2018 to come out with a tourism slogan comparing Vilnius to the g-spot: “Nobody knows where it is, but when you find it – it’s amazing“. Terrific.

Arrival in Vilnius

Since this was kind of a last-minute trip, I didn’t have my pick of places to stay. If there were excellent hostels in Vilnius, they were booked up by the time I went there, so I ended up staying at a proper hotel (a Conti Hotel), a little more than I wanted to spend but still within my budget and walking distance to the centre of the city. It was a nice hotel with a swanky lobby in a comfortable room.

My flight landed in the evening and by the time I got to my hotel (via taxi) it was about 8:30pm and the sun was low in the sky. I threw my bag down and walked into the city centre. I was immediately so happy. Barcelona is a good city, but it wasn’t my cup of tea. And Andorra was really just checking a box and I wasn’t that thrilled with what I saw. Vilnius was a welcome sight. I’ve said repeatedly that I’d love former Soviet countries; I have yet to visit one that I didn’t love. And Vilnius just felt so comfortable. I saw the orthodox churches, the charming buildings, and the cobblestone streets, felt the cool air and saw and the relatively stony faces of the people that I passed and I felt at home.

Unfortunately, shortly after landing I got a text message from work and it kind of derailed what should have been a perfectly pleasant evening, but aside from work drama that kept me up until the wee hours of the morning, I did enjoy my walk around the city and I had an excellent dinner on a patio over Georgian restaurant (Khinkalnya Vilnius), was persuaded to drink a couple of shots of chacha by the owner, and had a Cuban cigar on the patio. It was a great introduction to the city, and I couldn’t wait to wake up an explore. (I only got to sleep for about three hours, so I didn’t have to wait long.)

Wandering Vilnius

The next morning, as always, I got up early as it was my only day in the city and I had a lot to see. Vilnius doesn’t have a lot of specific touristic sites; the main thing is just to walk around and enjoy the atmosphere, all of the churches and charming cafes, public art, the pedestrianized streets with restaurants and cute shops.

I don’t know what it’s like to visit at other times of the year, but I think that spring was lovely. It was a little bit cool in the evening which I liked, and it was warm enough during the day to sit outside comfortably. The lilac bushes were in full bloom and everything was green.

There is a ridiculous number of orthodox churches in the city and there it’s worth ducking into all of them. Some of them had beautiful singing happening, and all of them had the glittering excess of Russian orthodox churches, which I love.

For me, one of the key things that I wanted to visit was an abandoned building just outside of the city centre. It was a pleasant walk across a bridge, aside from when an American man who was there standing on the street and proselytizing about Jesus told me I was ongoing to hell when I didn’t take one of his brochures. Oh well. The building is a spectacular abandoned stadium that was opened in 1971 as the Vilnius Palace of Concerts and Sports. It is a massive, brutalist-style concrete structure built in an unusual sort of wave pattern. At some point it was converted into a sort of mall and then it was closed completely in about 2004. It is now covered in graffiti. It is excellent and just a little creepy.

It is also located just near a Jewish cemetery which is also pleasant for a bit of a wander.

Užupis

The other place that I really wanted to visit in Vilnius is the semi-autonomous area of Užupis, which means “beyond the river.” It’s just a short walk from the Old Town, across the river (obviously). In 1997, a group of artists declared it the Republic of Užupis. It’s not really its own state, but it was set up that way. There is a border crossing and it has its own flag and constitution, which is on display in the street and includes such mandates as everyone has a right to be happy, man has the right to individuality, and everyone has the right to appreciate their unimportance. I dig it.

The motto of Užupis is “Don’t Fight”, “Don’t Win”, “Don’t Surrender”.

Part of the idea behind the creation of Užupis is a belief founded in the Aristotelian thought that people should live in small communities where everyone knows one another, which will result in people being more honest and happy. The area is a terrific place to visit. While it was once kind of a derelict ghetto, now it just feels like a proper part of the city but with lots of public art on display and at a lot of small independent businesses and artisan shops. In a way, it’s like Freetown Christiania in Copenhagen except without the focus on drugs.

*The Užupis Cat, which comes with a little poem. Worth finding.*

Back across the River…

I visited the MO Museum (Museum of Modern Art), which is relatively small but definitely worth a visit.

I thought Vilnius was delightful.

Smoking Cigars in Vilnius

Before dinner, I sought out one of Vilnius’ cigar lounges. For a former Soviet country, Vilnius is kind of difficult to smoke in. Indoor smoking wasn’t allowed, and it seemed to be banned on all of the patios. The Georgian restaurant that I ate at the night before let me smoke outside but only because I was the only person on the patio due to the cold weather. Fortunately, there are several hidden smoking rooms in the basements or backrooms of restaurants and a few proper cigar lounges.

I visited one cigar lounge in the old city, Cigarų namai, which was excellent. It had everything you’d want in a cigar lounge, an excellent selection of cigars, beverages for purchase and a calming room full of soft leather furniture. The only downside was they were playing the worst smooth jazz music that I’ve ever heard. It seemed like they only had one CD and it was on repeat. I was there for about two hours, and I heard the CD at least twice. I wanted to kill myself. At some point I just put in my headphones and listen to a podcast while I enjoyed my cigars. Music aside, it was a lovely interlude.

There is another cigar lounge called Cigarų kambarys (Cigar Room) located at Vilniaus g. 29 but upstairs with no obvious signage. I went there as well but it was empty.

I had dinner on a leafy patio and wandered the streets until it was dark. I was very happy in Vilnius, but I was also excited for the next day when I would travel by car to Latvia, stopping at the Hill of Crosses along the way.

Estonia Europe Russia Russia Trip 2007

Entering Estonia

A new day and a new country.  We caught our train early this morning. It lacked the romance of the Red Arrow, but was certainly adequate. We had our own little room with folding bunks and pillows and blankets, a little table and a window where we could watch the countryside pass by.

I am pleased to report that the ride was basically uneventful. It was relaxing. I had been nervous about going through Russian customs & immigration, but it was fine. We spent a half an hour at the Russian border and then about an hour at the Estonia border. We showed our passport several times and they searched the train, including under the seats and inside the ceiling.

We arrived in Estonia at 1:00. Note that we are now only 10 hours ahead of B.C. time, not 11 as we were in Russia.

We caught a taxi to our new temporary abode, the City Guesthouse. It is just outside the walls of the Old Town and is in a newish building. Our room and its amenities are the most modern that we have yet enjoyed (i.e. normal looking showers).

We had to get a new currency, the Kroon (pronounced “krone”, but Mz. Kitty & Johnny Z have undoubtedly already researched this and were well aware). We now have five different types of currency in our wallets (Canadian, US, Roubles, Euros, Kroons).

It is so odd now to see signs that are written in familiar-looking letters, as we had gotten so used to the Cyrillic signs.

Most people here seem to speak English, which is useful, because I can’t seem to wrap my head or tongue around the Estonian pronunciations.

So we put away our things and made our way past the medieval walls and into the heart of the Old Town. This part of the city dates back to the 11th century. It is truly amazing. Tiny winding streets with treacherous cobblestones snake past impossibly quaint buildings. Everything looks as though it were straight from the pages of an illustrated book of Grimm’s fairy tales.

Betty Lou is positively in love with the place. “I am so happy I could cry,” she exclaimed with a flap of her tiny arms. We were walking down one street and entered a little courtyard that belonged at one time to a monastery. Down a flight of stairs we were led into what would have been a part of the monastery but is now a private art studio. The room itself was wonderful – so cozy and medieval with an enormous fireplace. Betty Lou was enamored with the art and may pick up a piece before we leave (i am holding her wallet).

The town is positively littered with cafes and eateries of the most alluring nature. Cafes so inviting that I stopped for three espressos in our first three hours. Handmade chocolate shops are everywhere. I found two cigar stores, both with lounges (one of which is fabulous and had an atmosphere in which I am sure to pass a few hours before our stay here is done).

It is comfortably mild out. The sky was sunny when we arrived, but now is raining.

Tomorrow we have some serious sight seeing to do.

Ok, we are going to go back to our room (there is only wireless internet at our hotel so we are using an internet cafe down the street).

Head Aega (that’s good bye in Estonian),

Dale & Betty Lou

Tag: Baltics