Lithuania

We’ve just arrived in Gdansk, Poland, where we’re starting what will likely end up to be perhaps two weeks across the country. First, though, it’s time to say farewell to the Baltics. We arrived in Tallinn on July 1 and have loved our time in the region. It’s amusing to note that a couple years ago Mark and I wanted to plan a 10-day trip in the Baltics and couldn’t schedule the time off; it was just too stressful. Now, in this new life, we had just short of three weeks – and of course, even then we didn’t get to see absolutely everything we wanted to.

Here are a few closing shots that include some of my favorite things – beautiful rivers and books. On one of the few sunny afternoons we’ve had recently I walked down to the Vilnia River, really little more than a stream that flows into the much larger Neris River, around which Vilnius was built. I found a little rock just the right size for my little butt, took off my shoes and socks, and sat in the sun with my feet in the water reading. That to me is heaven.

Vilnia River

Vilnia River

Sun, stream, rock, book - the four ingredients to happiness

Sun, stream, rock, book – the four ingredients to happiness

For our last day in Vilnius, we decided to hike to an iconic TV tower outside the city. It’s tall – the tallest structure in Lithuania – and draws attention, and in the winter they decorate it as the tallest Christmas tree in the world. What really sets it apart, though, is the role it played in Lithuania’s independence. In 1990, Lithuania declared itself independent of the Soviet Union, but Gorbachev and company had not accepted that outcome. In early January 1991, Gorbachev ordered Soviet troops into Lithuania, a key target for whom was the TV tower, important, of course, for control of the media. Soviet troops attacked on January 13 – Bloody Sunday – and 13 Lithuanians were killed trying to defend the tower. It was the last straw; the Soviets did not again use force to stop independence, and in February Lithuanians voted overwhelmingly for independence. Of course, none of that was obvious at the time – brave fighters took on the Soviet military to fight for independence, and some of them died for it.

The TV Tower

The TV Tower

A tribute to the 13 Lithuanian martyrs who, killed by Soviet troops while defending the TV tower

A tribute to the 13 Lithuanian martyrs who were killed by Soviet troops while defending the TV tower

For us, naturally, half the fun (and most of the time!) was getting there. Instead of just taking the tram out there, as Lonely Planet suggests, we walked there. It wasn’t clear exactly how to get there, but how hard can it be to find the tallest structure in Lithuania when you can see it from our hotel? Eventually we made it, after a hike of maybe five or six miles. What was interesting was that we left our hotel, walked through the Old Town, walked down the major shopping district in the new city, and within an hour or so were deep in a beautiful park on a trail as though we were in the middle of a wilderness area. It was a great way to get out there.  The only down side was that when we caught the bus back to the city, we ended up catching it the wrong way. So we got an extended tour of suburban Vilnius. About as uninteresting and unattractive as you might think.

Our trail in the Vilnius wilderness

Our trail in the Vilnius wilderness

OK, that’s it for the Baltics. Because of terrible land connections on either rail or road, we caught a cheap flight from Vilnius to Gdansk. So far it’s been great – we got here in time for lunch, which for me consisted of … you guessed it … Polish sausages! They were yummy.

One final note. Perhaps the strangest observation we’ve had over these weeks is how cool it has been, except when it’s downright cold. Here’s a preview of Gdansk; Mark at lunch on July 20. The only way to stay warm is with a blanket. If it’s this cold in late July, when exactly does it warm up here?

Lunch on a cold July 20

Lunch at a sidewalk cafe on a cold July 20

We never really even thought of going to Belarus until a few days ago when Jim noticed how close we are here in Vilnius to the Belarussian capital of Minsk. A little research revealed that it is tough but not impossible for Americans to get visas for Belarus, but that it’s easier from Vilnius than from anywhere else.

Suddenly we got very excited about jumping at an opportunity to do something unexpected. Never before have we had the flexibility to take such an unexpected detour — and to take whatever time we needed to “deal with” whatever obstacles were in the way.

[Note: As you live through our Belarus planning saga, you can enjoy these nice pictures of gorgeous Vilnius, though they have nothing to do with this story.]

Remains of the medieval Upper Castle of Vilnius

Remains of the medieval Upper Castle of Vilnius

Why did we want to go to Belarus? It’s not exactly on everyone’s hot list, but of course that’s what sometimes makes places extra appealing to us. I’ve always been fascinated by the world’s shrinking list of hugely dysfunctional countries. I spent the summer of 1986 in the crumbling Soviet Union, and I’ve had the pleasure of visiting quite a few other Communist or quasi-Communist states. And I find them utterly intriguing and appalling at the same time.

Across the rooftops of Vilnius from the Upper Castle

Across the rooftops of Vilnius from the Upper Castle

As far as dysfunction goes, Bealrus apparently shines. When the Soviet Union disintegrated, most of its newly independent dependencies threw off the cloak of Communism and embarked on reforms of various stripes. But not Belarus, a country that dug in its heels for the next quarter century, rejecting free markets, privatization of property, or any kind of political reform. It remains a stubborn dictatorship and an economic basket case that appears to be lost in time. The US government has listed Belarus as the only remaining “outpost of tyranny” in Europe.

In other words, we needed to check the place out. So following some online advice we researched travel and hotel options and then sought out a travel agency specializing in help with acquiring visas to Belarus. They told us to book our hotel stays and bring printed proof of those bookings, passport photos, and an outrageous amount of cash to “expedite” things.

The price quote was obviously arbitrary, involving some degree of payoff to someone. We were fully prepared for this and had decided it was worth it. This was the price of admission, and I honestly thought this was a case where you get what you need if you pay the price. In fairness to the agent, she warned that things do not necessarily work that way, especially for Americans.

So we booked three nights in Minsk. And then we booked another stop in Brest, a place with a fascinating history perfectly situated on our logical path from Minsk to our next intended destination of Poland. Plus just imagine the pun-making potential.

The gothic splendor of St. Anne's church

The gothic splendor of St. Anne’s church

When we arrived back at the agency with all our requirements in hand, the agent was greatly concerned about our hotel reservation documents, which included the terms for advance cancelation. She insisted this would cause problems, and that the embassy would not look kindly on us unless the hotels were paid in full and not subject to cancelation.

Rich wooden interior of St. Francis of Assisi church

Rich wooden interior of St. Francis of Assisi church

But she was also insistent that nothing we did would guarantee success. There is no way we are going to put down hundreds of non-refundable dollars for hotel rooms to help get a visa with no clear indication it will matter. Besides that, the booking services I used didn’t even offer a pre-payment option.

On top of all this, we’d only booked one room at each stop, and we were clearly going to each need our own set of booking documents with our own names on them.

A saintly gaze

A saintly gaze

After a lot of exasperating back and forth, we finally settled on a plan. Forget about the REAL hotel reservations. I just went online and booked one five-night stay at a bland business hotel in Minsk for me and another one for Jim. I emailed those reservation to the agent and then proceeded to cancel them. She pulled them into Word and doctored up the cancellation terms before printing them up. She seemed pleased with the outcome and told us to call her cell phone tomorrow. (I did genuinely feel she was rooting for us.)

After several calls and delays the next day, we learned that the embassy was not happy with the hotel documents. They insisted that we must provide reservation documents from the hotel that include SIGNATURES and SEALS.

A very graphic martyrdom

A very graphic martyrdom

How on earth am I supposed to provide something like that? It’s not as if I can physically go those hotels and get these fancy documents from them — without a visa! But she says they are used to this crap, and if I email them they might be able to produce them, scan them, and email them to me.

I remind her of all the problems remaining: the reservation submitted were fake, doctored, and already cancelled; the real reservations only have my name on them and still aren’t paid for; and since I’m paying an exorbitant fee to get a two-day visa (the only viable alternative), how do I possibly have time for all this complicated back and forth?

Reaching the end of our ropes, Jim and I decided we’d at least make one quick stab at getting these documents. So I emailed each of the hotels, asking if they could possibly send such a document for each of us. Meanwhile we started researching Plan B — heading for Poland from here as we originally intended.

To my surprise, both hotels responded to my email within a couple hours. One of them sent two separate documents, one for me and one for Jim, just as I’d requested. But they had no signatures and no seals. The other hotel sent a fancy looking scanned document with a signature covered by a very official looking seal. But it had only my name on it and was loaded up with all the cancellation terms.

Rococo insanity at the Church of Saints Peter and Paul

Rococo insanity at the Church of Saints Peter and Paul

By this time, we’re getting excited about Gdansk, Poland. But the transportation and hotel options are extremely limited. The perfect hotel has exactly one room left; most others are sold out. And transportation options are all terrible, except for one oddball cheap flight combo on LOT airlines.

Detail of one of 2,000 carved figures at Saints Peter and Paul

Detail of one of 2,000 carved figures at Saints Peter and Paul

The alternative to pursuing more of this hotel reservation catch-22 bureaucracy nightmare was to get to exciting Gdansk sooner with all that Belarus extortion money back in our pockets. It’s one thing to be willing to suffer the indignity of paying a bribe to get what you need. It’s quite another when the bureaucracy is so screwed up your bribes don’t even work.

So we decided to pull the plug on Belarus, darn glad we had hotel reservations that could be canceled without penalty. We’re staying in beautiful Vilnius until Saturday. And then Poland, here we come. Screw Belarus.

We’ve arrived in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, unsure of how long we’re staying or where we’re going from here. The question – the answer to which could come at any second – is whether the government of Belarus will give us a tourist visa to travel there for a week; we’ll tell the miserable story of how challenging this process has been when it’s over. Personally, I’m hoping we get in. Not so much because I want to go to Belarus, but because Mark really wants to go to Belarus. And if we go to Belarus, that means we get to do something that I really want to do – like, say, bicycle across France and through a bunch of other countries to the Black Sea next summer!

Either way, Vilnius seems to be a pretty spectacular city. It’s slightly smaller than Riga, but somehow to me at least feels more modern, more vibrant, and more Western. We’ve only spent a few hours wandering around, as a lot of our time has been taken up applying for and checking on the status of our Belarusian visa (see above). What we’ve seen, though, and what we’ve eaten so far, all speak tons for enjoying Vilnius. Here are some of our favorite pics.

Mark, having just entered the Old City through the Gate of Dawn, the only remaining gate through the old wall

Mark, having just entered the Old City through the Gate of Dawn, the only remaining gate through the old wall

A bike in the University

A bike in the University

A Baroque church, where someone was playing the organ - it was an amazing sound

A Baroque church, where someone was playing the organ – it was an amazing sound

Lunch - the police car in back was part of an entourage providing security for some high-ranking military person who was coming

Lunch – the police car in back was part of an entourage providing security for some high-ranking military person who was coming

Vilnius, from the top of a bell tower at the University

Vilnius, from the top of a bell tower at the University

Note in the lower right area what may be the world's finest balcony

Still from the top of the bell tower, note what may be the world’s finest balcony in the lower right

Old Town street

Old Town street

Residential architecture outside the Old Town

Residential architecture outside the Old Town

Churches

Churches

Lots of churches

Lots of churches

No end of churches - and no end to how quickly the color of the sky changes

No end of churches – and no end to how quickly the color of the sky changes