I remember my mother telling me that, when she was in Berlin in 1945-46, she realized she might never be closer to Lithuania, the country from which her parents emigrated. Getting there, at the time, however, was impossible. It was occupied by Soviet troops and would be for the next 45 years.
As Julia and I were planning our visit to Berlin, I realized we would likely never be closer to Lithuania. We thought perhaps we could, in some fashion, fulfill my mother’s hope.
We arrived at the Vilnius airport around 6 pm on 19 June. Vilius Vaseikis, from Lithuania Visits, met us at the airport and drove us to the apartment in Old Town we had secured through him. It was located on Pilies Gatvė (“Castle Street”), one of Old Town’s main drags. While it was early evening by the time we had settled in, sunset wasn’t until just before 10 pm local, so we went out to eat and took a quick tour of our surroundings.
At a nearby restaurant, offering traditional Lithuanian cuisine, we shared herring and what one might call a potato sampler. A variety of potato dishes, including potato-stuffed sausage. There’s also a shot of the beer menu in the gallery, including one option with hemp seeds.
This video (2:18) is just a brief introduction to Old Town and our apartment/neighborhood. Much more to come from our first full day.