Vilnius, Riga (again), back to Vilnius

Well, all I can say is "I'm an idiot!". And don't talk to me about improving my negative self-talk. I truly am an idiot. We'll get to that...

We left Riga in the rain, getting a Bolt (like Uber) to as close to the bus stop as we could, then making a mad dash in the mud to the terminal. We finally got aboard the bus and felt warm and dry for the first time since leaving the weird apartment.

The bus ride from Riga to Vilnius is just over 4 hours and is pleasant enough, passing through rural areas and small towns. There is a detour in place for road works at the moment and we had to cross the border at a place different to the main border crossing, on a tiny road near a tiny village with tiny roads that obviously weren't made to have buses navigating between the centuries-old clay and mud-brick buildings. 

But the only thing that actually denoted the border between Latvia and Lithuania was the police car sitting off to the side. They did nothing and we continued on.

We got off the bus in Vilnius in biting cold wind. Our Airbnb was only a 10 minute walk down the road, so off we set. As we were walking, I was having some doubts about our neighbourhood...

Georgia kept telling me that in some of these European cities, you can't judge the inside by what you see on the outside... I was unconvinced.

But she was right. Our place was just around the corner from these photos and didn't present a very good facade... but the inside was gorgeous! Big, nicely furnished, under-floor heating, lots of little extras and attention to detail. It was, by far, the nicest place we had stayed in during the week. And it was only a stones throw from the gates of Vilnius Old Town!

We were getting settled and sorting things out when Georgia opened the fridge to have a look, and my heart dropped to my feet... I have been taking a medication for a while that requires refrigeration. I had sorted out the logistics of travelling with it by buying a special medical cooler bag that keeps things cold for 24-48 hours depending on the situation, to get me through the long haul flights and other travelling. 

As soon as Georgia opened the fridge, I realised that I had left my meds in the fridge in the Riga place. Crap, crap, crap! (I don't think the word I used was actually that mild...)

Georgia made me go through my bags, even though I was sure I hadn't repacked it. We went through all sorts of scenarios like getting the Riga host to courier it to us, or hiring a car and going back and getting it. What turned out to be the most workable idea was for me to take a bus back to Riga in the morning, grab the stuff and get the afternoon bus back... Crap, crap, crap. (Again...)

Anyway. Once we had sorted that out and bought the bus tickets online, there wasn't anything more that we could do, so we went out to have a look around Vilnius, and eventually find some dinner. The entrance to the Old Town at the bottom of our street is The Gate of Dawn.

We went through this gate into and out of Old Town several times during our stay, and often we noticed people just standing in the middle of the cobblestone street, staring up at the window. We had had a look for ourselves and seen a gold image of the Virgin Mary, but nothing more or less special than we had seen anywhere else. We had a consultation with Google and learned that this is considered to be an icon that is said to have miraculous powers. I hope those that stop and gaze have something good come to them... 😇

Vilnius Old Town is lovely, and gets better and better as the sun goes down. The lighting of the buildings and the streets is quite eye-catching. 

Georgia said she had a good place in mind for dinner, so for a while we wandered while we built an appetite.

It was soon time to head to the restaurant. She said that it used a traditional medieval menu and had really good ratings. What she didn't say was that it was in a cellar!

I was really close to being adventurous. How many other times am I going to get the chance to try Beaver Stew. But in the end I couldn't do it. The food was pretty good, but simple, as I suppose it was in medieval times. The guys at the table next to us had the Beaver Stew and commented to each other that it was okay, but they probably wouldn't order it again.

After dinner we wandered home. I had to get up early to catch the 0700 bus.

And the weather was miserable! It was dark, cold, windy with sideways rain. The 15 minute walk through 'that' neighbourhood felt like a lifetime, but I got to the bus station in time. There's not much to say about the next 10 hours. 4 and a bit hours on a bus, an hour of adrenaline to get to the apartment, get the stuff, and get back for the 1200 bus, then another 4 and a bit hours on a bus. This time the police boarded the bus at the border on our way back into Lithuania. They did a very quick passport check of everyone and then left again.

While I was away, Georgia looked around a different part of the city, and went to the Museum of Ethnography. Once I got back we headed back out for another meal.

On the way back, we came across this projected on the facade of the Town Hall.

Given the fact that I had wasted a whole day of my time in Vilnius, it was lucky that we had three nights here, not just two like the other stops we had made. The next day we visited Trakai Castle...