Hill of Crosses

Trakai Island Castle

The Baltic States: Vilnius

The next morning I flew to Vilnius, my first stop in the Baltics. As I waited for the bus outside the Oro Uostas Airport, my first impression of the airport was its similarity of the Colonial Revival styled post office in Flushing Queens New York. - symmetrical principal facade with central entrance, and multi-paned window sash on both sides. After a 45 minute bus ride, and a short walk from the main train station, I arrived at my hostel hungry, tired and cold. My meal for the night was a McChicken from McDonald.

I decided to go Trakai Island Castle the next day. You can catch a bus from the Main Bus Station in Vilnius, and it takes a little more than an hour to reach town, which historically occupied by Karaites till today. A small community, the Karaites have preserved their language and culture in Trakai since their settlement back in the 14th century. Here the houses are distinguished from the three windows to the street side - one for God, one for the family and one for the Grand Duke Vytautas. The walk from the bus station to the castle probably takes less than half hour and the walk can be pleasant if you take your time. 

Situated on an island in the middle of a lake, I can see the picturesque castle from a wooden bridge heading towards its main entrance. The castle was built in several stages, and it was also severely damaged throughout the years, so I am not surprised to see the distinctive dull grey stones in the bottom half of the castle to the glowing red bricks at the top.

Hill of Crosses is another interesting place in Lithuania. Take a bus to Siauliai, and another to Joniskis but make sure you remind the driver to let you off at “Kryžių kalna," otherwise chances are you might missed it. I did. Follow the sign down the road and after a mile, you'll see the Hill of Crosses from a distance. For over the centuries now, the hill is covered with crosses and carvings as well as thousands of effigies and rosaries. Pretty small but it is an amazing sacred place of pilgrimage that is totally out exposed to mother nature. Make sure you leave early cause it takes more than 3 hours to get there. 

I did not spend too much time in Vilnius. Having said that, it was partially due to weather. It rained all day the day I decided to explore the city. I had to duck in and out trying to keep myself dry in between sights. There are over 60 churches and cathedrals in Vilnius, and a few stand out. Gate of Dawn is part of the defensive fortifications built between 1503 and 1522, housed an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary Mother of Mercy in its chapel. The Church of Casimir is the first Baroque church built by the Jesuits, and it has gone through many phases from wars and fires in the 18th and 19th centuries. The facade is beautifully decorated with fine finishes and its rosy color exterior makes the church visible from many parts of the city. At night spotlights beam at the church makes it a memorable picture for any tourists that come to visit the city. Saint Ann Church is impressive with its elaborate facade. I found the church as I made a wrong turn one night out in the rain; bricks used to build the facade gave the church an old feel, and as raindrops fell from the sky it gave me this eerie feeling coming from a horror movie. Later I found out that different types of clay bricks were used to build the facade.

The Vilnius Cathedral and its bell tower in the Cathedral Square are the most impressive of them all. This is the most lively location in the city. A huge Christmas tree is erected in the square and as the Holiday Seasons approaches, temporary stalls are being set up for the holiday shoppers. The facade of the Cathedral is adorned with sculptures of evangelists from the past. Inside its crypts and catacombs are buried with famous people from Lithuanian and Polish past.