Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Vilnius

  • Vilnius – Funicular Railway

    There is a funicular railway which goes from the Old Arsenal building up to the base of Gediminas Castle, which avoids a walk up a relatively steep hill. It’s a modern innovation, having been installed as recently as 2003. Unfortunately, at the moment, it’s a bit broken.

    The hill on which the castle, and the railway, is located on is a bit prone to landslides. I’m not sure why the hill is deciding to collapse at this particular moment in time, but it’s causing a headache for those responsible for protecting the heritage of the site.

    The railway went out of use in 2016 and there were plans to repair it, although the cost of repair is substantial. And the funicular railway itself is controversial, with the Director of the Lithuanian National Museum wanting it entirely removed for disturbing the look of the hill.

    Personally, I think it’d be useful to repair it, not least because there’s no other practical way of those with limited mobility reaching the top of the hill. Given that the railway is relatively new, it’d seem a shame to lose something which I’m sure many people would enjoy using.

  • Vilnius – Gediminas Castle

    This tower, at the top of a hill, is part of the former Upper Castle of the city, of which little remains. Known as Gedimino pilis in Lithuanian, it originally dates to the end of the thirteenth century, although was much modified.

    The tower itself is mostly a 1930s rebuild which was overseen by the then Polish authorities, although there is some architectural integrity in terms of the restoration being authentic to its original appearance. Above is what the tower looked like in the early twentieth century, a much less impressive building, although it shows how much of the tower is modern.

    It isn’t particularly obvious that the tower is open, and a group of visitors in front of me decided that it wasn’t open and traipsed back down the hill. I was less convinced about this situation and went in anyway, and they told me that I was the first visitor of the day. It seems that the tower was closed earlier in the year due to work needing to be completed to the hill itself, but it’s fully open again now (although much work is still taking place to the hill itself).

    On the first floor of the tower is a computer simulated flypast of what the city centre of Vilnius would have once looked like. Some considerable effort must have gone into this.

    The view from one of the windows on the first floor, this would have once been an access point to the former defensive walls which defended the castle.

    The Lithuanian flag flying high on top of the tower, with this particular flag being from the national revival movement in 1988. The tower is seen as a symbolic location given its elevated position in the city, with a flag having been raised here on 1 January 1919 to mark the independence of the country.

        

    The above are all photos from the top of the tower, with the weather being surprisingly mild given that it is the middle of October.

    The admission charge of €5 seemed a little steep compared to the price of seeing other museums in the city, but it didn’t much matter for my visit as I got in free with my Vilnius City Card. A visit isn’t likely to take much more than thirty minutes, but the views across the whole city make a visit worthwhile.

  • Vilnius – Kitchen

    For anyone wanting to find Kitchen, a restaurant in Vilnius, it’s through that door and up the stairs. Located in a courtyard, they haven’t over-indulged with the signage, but they do have a menu board on the main street.

    A friendly server welcomed me and I mentioned that I wanted a table for one. I was offered a choice of a table inside, or the sole table on the outside balcony. This looked rather exciting, so I went for the balcony option.

    That’s the view of the church opposite the restaurant. The balcony really is a wonderful way of people watching. Well, watching people on the road, as I obviously couldn’t see anyone in the restaurant since I was outside and they were all inside.

    Free water and bottled water supplied, not something that I think is routine in Vilnius.

    The tastes of New York. Actually, New York probably doesn’t taste nice, if it has a particular flavour. But I like this brewery.

    Fishcakes often have a slightly irritating texture where the potato is overwhelming and it’s all too mushy. These were generously filled with fish, they were well seasoned and had a rather satisfying taste. The side salad was a little strong on leaves, something that is more than common in the UK. However, it didn’t mention salad on the menu, so I could hardly complain. I am rather ashamed to say I don’t know what the sauce was, but it was smooth, and seemed to be some sort of avocado Aioli.

    Since I was only here for a light meal, albeit one which turned into three courses, I opted for a feta and chicken salad. The chicken was moist, succulent and again well seasoned. I liked the slab of feta under the warm chicken, which seemed authentic and not some cheap replica under a different name. Again a little heavy on the salad leaves, but the orange, grapes and onions added additional texture and flavour.

    I was rather content sitting on the balcony, so I thought that I’d go with dessert and this is the cheesecake with lingonberries. The bottom of the cheesecake was quite heavy, but the flavour of the lingonberries (or what I assume are lingonberries) was rich.

    The toilets seemed rather grand, as you went in what looks like a normal toilet door to be confronted with another door in front of the toilet itself. Very plush, and I’m not sure how useful.

    Service was attentive throughout and I wasn’t forgotten about out on the balcony. There were a small group who meandered out to take photos of the church, but I didn’t shoo them away from my new dining area.

    The meal was relatively expensive as I’d gone to a restaurant in the main central area of Vilnius and didn’t go for the set menu option which would have been cheaper. It came to around £16.50, which I felt was reasonable for three courses, a beer and the free bread.

  • Vilnius – Norwich Union

    It’s still Norwich Union to me, not Aviva, but either way, they sponsor the bike scheme in Vilnius.

    I also always thought that the logo that was chosen paid homage to the spire of Norwich Cathedral, although I’ve just read the company’s ‘brand transformation’ documentation and it doesn’t mention that at all. Anyway, I think it’s Norwich Cathedral and so it was a lovely reminder of Norwich.

  • Vilnius – Statue of Grand Duke Gediminas

    Gediminas was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 until 1341 and is credited with being the founder of a new Lithuanian dynasty. If that wasn’t enough to win the hearts and minds of the people of the city, he is also known as the founder of Vilnius when he formed a permanent capital here. His statue and monument stands in a prime location next to Vilnius Cathedral.

    Unveiled in 1996, this sculpture was created by Vytautas Kašuba in 1992 and the monument is an important symbol to the people of Vilnius. The plinth is a gift from the people of Ukraine and the sculpture was cast without charge in Estonia.

  • Vilnius – Vilnius Cathedral

    The exterior of Vilnius Cathedral is grand and it’s the most important Roman Catholic church in the city. It was also an entire inconvenience to the Soviet authorities during the decades of communist rule, as they made efforts to minimise the influence of the church.

    Privately there were a few in the regime who wanted the building demolished, but it was accepted that this could cause potentially devastating levels of anger to be directed at the regime. So, they turned the cathedral into a warehouse and art gallery instead, although they did start some renovations to the building’s structure in the 1980s.

    Algirdas Brazauskas, who was the local communist leader who later became the country’s Prime Minister and President, gave the cathedral back to the Catholic Church in December 1988. The decision, which was partly forced as a concession because of the increasing support of the reform movement, was a success and 20,000 people came to celebrate the first mass in the cathedral.

    The portico of the cathedral. There has been a religious building on this site since the mid-thirteenth century, although the current building primarily dates to 1801.

    One of the six statues under the portico, this is St. Luke.

    The nave of the cathedral, which had a large number of worshippers contemplating when I visited. This made it feel more of an authentic religious experience than a building that predominantly just welcomes tourists.

    The aisles have some height.

    A memorial to Jonas Basanavičius, who is sometimes known as the Patriarch of the Lithuanian Nation.

    The pulpit.

    Behind the main altar, with the marble altar having been renovated in 2007. On the altar is St. Casimir’s reliquary, dating to 1637.

    The chapel of Saint Casimir, a prince of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the fifteenth century. He was canonised in 1521 and he was buried in this cathedral, with the chapel built in his honour in 1636. Given the number of fires and disasters which have befallen this cathedral, this chapel has remained nearly untouched since it was constructed.

  • Vilnius – Iceland Street

    During my trip to Riga last month, I read that many Latvians have fond impressions of Iceland because they recognised the independence of the Baltic states very early on.

    Iceland were the first country in the world who recognised the independence of Lithuania. This happened on 11 February 1991 and it’s fair to say that the Russians weren’t particularly impressed at this arrangement. Although Russia finally also accepted Lithuanian independence on 6 September 1991, it was only because so many other countries had already made their positions clear.

    Iceland made a clear political statement in 1991, and the above plaque marks that courageous decision. Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson was the Foreign Minister of Iceland who was behind the country’s decision, and he has today been honoured with Freedom of the City of Vilnius. And to thank the people of Iceland, they’ve also named a street in the country’s honour.

  • Vilnius – Bookafe

    It’s called Bookafe, so I was sold simply by the cafe’s name.

    There are lots of books in the cafe, giving it a relaxing and rather cosy atmosphere, although I was the only customer in there. Given that it was lunch-time, I was a little surprised how quiet it was.

    As the cafe was quiet, I thought I’d boost their takings with a slice of caramel cheesecake and a latte. It’s a different presentation of a latte, but it works taste-wise, as the coffee runs through the steamed milk. The cake was rich, which was to be expected, had a pleasant taste and seemed fresh.

    The service was friendly and the staff member spoke perfect English, although that isn’t particularly rare in Vilnius. There was an ice cream counter and outdoor seating which would combine to be a rather lovely experience in the summer, but somewhat less so during the middle of October.

    The cake and latte cost around £3.50, perfectly reasonable for the centre of Vilnius.

  • Vilnius – Energy and Technology Museum

    I wasn’t sure what to expect from this museum, as the write-up in the city guide they gave me in the tourist information office just said that it told the story of industrial Vilnius. What I certainly didn’t expect was to walk in and it’s a power station that was in use until twenty years ago.

    This is what visitors see when they walk in. An entirely intact power plant, it’s very impressive. The building was at risk of demolition when the power plant closed, but funding from the European Union enabled it to be refurbished to become a museum.

    The ladders to the higher levels are blocked off, but visitors can still access the upper areas later on during the visit.

    The museum has a clever set-up where they’ve placed their audio tour on their web-site, so visitors can just play the appropriate audio as they walk around. Although I use my data, the staff member explained that there was free wi-fi to allow visitors to access their web-site. On the subject of the staff member, she was full of enthusiasm and it’s great to get an introduction to a museum so help get a understanding of what there is to see.

    I did listen carefully to the audio tour, but since it involves engineering, I forgot nearly all of it immediately. The above chamber was something to do with heating something, and it was apparently a nightmare to clean as the staff member had to crawl in and then be subject to a hot floor and toxic chemicals. Nice….

    This is in a room which was originally walled up and it did something hot and exciting. They’ve knocked a hole in the wall now so that visitors can go inside.

    The control panel of the power station.

    I think this is a condenser.

    Something power related.

    On the upper level, which is reached by going up some rather steep steps. As I’ve discovered from other museums this week, Lithuania seems to have opted-out from the EU rules on not having steep steps in museums.

    Another photo looking down on the power plant equipment. It was originally built in 1903 and at the time it was the first power plant in the city, with the museum opening in 2003 to mark the 100th anniversary. The reason for it coming into use was that the city didn’t want to use gas from Berlin to light the streets, they wanted their own provision. This, as events later showed, was probably a rather sensible idea.

    A piece of art on the ground floor by Danas Aleksa which is called ‘Dialogue’. I’m guessing that it is a representation of how the younger generation use technology, but I have no idea.

    On the first floor there is a display of industrial equipment, which includes a printing press. And lots of printing blocks and letters of all different sizes.

    A display of various electrical equipment which would have been powered by the power plant during the twentieth century.

    There is a room for kids which has inter-active exhibits. This one scared me as I wasn’t expecting it, it’s called ‘music circles’ and if you stand underneath one of the lights it breaks the beam and it makes a noise. You’re meant to work out how to play a tune, but I moved away from the area….

    An early post box.

    A late nineteenth century water pump.

    The above two photos are of an old computer.

    It’s a nicely laid out museum and the central element of the power plant equipment certainly ensures that it fits its aim of being an energy and technology museum. I can imagine it’d be popular with kids who can explore the multiple levels of power plant.

    Entrance to the museum usually costs €3, although I used my Vilnius City Card.

  • Vilnius – Chopped

    I found out about this restaurant on Google Maps, as the exterior doesn’t exactly scream out that there’s a decent dining option here.

    There’s an outdoor seating area to the front of the restaurant, where I tried to take a photo of the birds flying about, but they, well, flew off.

    The interior of the restaurant, with a selection of different beers to choose from. I opted for the IPA.

    And here it is. At the appropriate temperature and tasted fine.

    And this is the centre-piece of the restaurant, they specialise in chicken and chips. Actually, that’s pretty much all they serve, although there’s a selection of twenty different dips to add some variety. Opting for a little spice, this is the piri piri sauce.

    The food was excellent, the chips had some firmness to them, although the inside were still fluffy. The chicken was tender and the coating was crispy and pleasant tasting. This style of restaurant is on-trend and is a personal favourite of mine. The set-up reminded me of Woolf & Bird in Norwich, which I only visited once, but intended to become a regular until they decided to close the restaurant down.

    Overall, for a quick snack in something other than a chain restaurant, it was all rather enjoyable. The service was polite and there wasn’t much of a wait for the food to be served.