Vilnius (Lithuania): 2 Days

February 2020

We arrived in Vilnius (population: 544,000) from London’s Luton Airport on Ryan Air (under $50) late at night, and it was raining. We got on the first cab we saw outside the airport terminal and arrived at our Airbnb apartment 15 minutes later. We were happy with this 15 euro ride, but, later, we discovered that we paid a premium because it happened to be an airport taxi that usually cost 2-3 times more than a regular cab.

Jet lagged, we were up early the next day and walked into town looking for some food, but everything was closed.  We finally found an open coffee shop and breakfast of coffee and pastries.

We joined a free walking tour that started at the Town Hall at 10 AM every morning. Our guide was a student at Vilnius University, and she was quite knowledgeable and fun.

She told us how the Old Town was divided into ethnic areas of Jews, Poles, Slavs, and Germans due to the efforts of olden days when the government tried to increase the number of population by welcoming immigrants. 

The walking tour lasted about 2 hours and gave us a feel for the town.

In 1995 a group of artists raised a statue of Frank Zappa and declared the area across the Vilnia River from downtown the independent Republic of Uzupis.  The republic still exists complete with a 7 man parliament, a 12 man army and a constitution of 41 articles.

It was a cold and damp day, and a break at a coffee house was most welcome.

The constitution is displayed in numerous languages.  Article 13 says:  A cat is not obliged to love its owner, but must help out in time of need.

A lunch at this Lithuanian restaurant on Pilies Street, the oldest street in the city & the main shopping street, was quite homey and tasty.

We thought of going to the KGB Museum (Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights) by walking down on their main street, Gediminas Avenue, after lunch, but the rain kept pouring down. We got some rest in the comfy, cozy apartment & walked around the neighborhood before dinner.

Sv. Vito Cafe & Bar is a tiny place down the street from our apartment. What a gem! Great food, friendly service, eclectic setting – at a very reasonable price.

Once again, we woke up very early the next morning. We noticed light snow on the ground. We walked to the Gate of Dawn  and saw the famous Blessed Virgin Mary painting.

On the way back, we found one of the best bakeries in town, Boulangerie, open for business. Their morning pastries were perfect.

Our flight to Dubai wasn’t until late so we took a bus to see Trakai Island Castle. We took a cab to the main bus station in Vilnius, left our luggage at the baggage service center, got the bus tickets, and off we went. The trip took only 30 minutes, but, once we were off at Trakai bus station, we had to walk another 30 minutes to get to the castle. There usually are taxis or buses available, I had read, but, it was off season and everything was quiet at the station. We walked through the town of Trakai, an old capital, which could have been more interesting with old wooden houses and such, but it was cold and nothing was open. 

We walked around the castle and the surrounding area a bit, then we started looking for a restaurant to have lunch.

Luckily, this one was open & their food was great. We got to try the specialty of this area, kibinai, and dumplings. Their soups were spot on especially on a cold day.

When we returned to Vilnius, we took a cab from the bus station to a modern art museum, MO. It was not a big museum, but we could get a glimpse of an art scene in contemporary Vilnius.

We walked a few blocks to get an afternoon snack at Sugamore, a chocolate and pastry shop. Compared to other things in this town, prices here were on the high side, but, we still enjoyed the break.

I had a mild interest in Museum of Illusions a few blocks away, but, we were getting tired. So we took a cab back to the bus station, got our bags, and got on the bus to the airport (3 Euros). I had heard Uber worked well in Vilnius, but we did not have a local SIM card for our phone, thus, we could not try.

Vilnius pops up on the list of “under the radar must visit city” all over the internet these days, and we wanted to check it out. It did live up to the reputation with the atmospheric old town, reasonable prices, and friendly people. We were not equipped to handle the cold weather (actually, it was not too severe for winter) since we were on our way to tropical weather, but, still we enjoyed our time there. We could imagine how nicer it would be in any other season!

 

Trip route: LAX -> Vilnius -> Dubai -> Abu Dhabi -> Khor Fakkan, U.A.E. -> Muscat, Oman -> “Almost India” -> Khasab, Oman -> Dubai -> LAX