Vilnius, Lithuania
Saturday, we headed to the bus station to take a four-hour bus ride to Vilnius, Lithuania. The bus ride was fairly painless and I slept most of the way. We broke off into small groups and explored the city. The little group I was with wanted to see the Gates of Dawn (partially because the name sounded pretty exotic), so we headed that way and were not disappointed. It’s in the old part of Vilnius, so we were able to see all of the cool architecture and landmarks. Cute little markets and cafes lined the streets.
Seeing that we had been sitting on a bus for several hours, food was a top priority. Inside the Gates of Dawn area was a cute crepe shop. The crepes were delicious and provided us with the necessary fuel to continue throughout the day.
Many paintings hung out for sale, so I browsed the artwork and ended up buying a small painting from a local. I love it. It’s a painting of Vilnius, so it has some sentimental value for me.
As our time in Lithuania was rapidly coming to an end, we decided to make our way to the Three Crosses. This monument was erected in 1916, but was town down by the Soviet Union in 1950. A new monument was put in its place in 1989.
In order to get to the Three Crosses, you have to hike up a steep hill through the forest, all while praying that you don’t trip and tumble down the mountainside. The hike was all worth it once we reached the top of the hill. We got a breathtaking view of Vilnius from the crosses. The sun was beginning to set, and I just wished I could stay and see the sunset from that perch.
Sadly, all things must come to an end, so we started the trek down the hill. Luckily, we were able to take the stairs on the way down. I’m not entirely convinced that the stairs were much better than the hill, though. All of the stairs were uneven, broken and rickety. Being cautious of stairs with my bad knee and clumsy record, I took my time getting to the bottom. Everyone got to wait as I cautiously took each step one at a time.
I stopped to grab lemonade on the way back to the bus, and my goodness, it was glorious! I don’t know why, but lemonade is not the hot commodity that it is in the states. This lemonade was fresh-squeezed with strawberry, orange, and lime. It was fantastic. I’m still fantasizing about it if you can’t tell.
Luckily, the bus we took home had free movies to watch. So that gave me ample time to watch Skyfall and Snitch. It was nice. There was also a gorgeous sunset just outside my window, so I was able to check that out periodically.
Riga, Revisited
Upon returning to Riga, guess where we decided to go eat? You guessed it. McDonald’s. Apparently, I’m an addict now. It tastes so much better in Riga than in America. That could be because they aren’t allowed to have as many mystery items in the food here. So yeah, we ate some fattening food, and then Jordan and I went on an excursion through Riga for a couple of hours. It was a good opportunity to walk off some of the calories I had just inhaled and also see some new parts of the city.
The next morning was a blur of sorts. I was pretty dang tired. We had to pack up all of our stuff and check out of our hostel. Luckily, the hostel people were kind enough to allow us to leave our big backpacks in storage and then pick them up before leaving. The hostel owners were also super sweet and made us waffles! There weren’t many and they weren’t very tasty, but the fact that they thought of us and made waffles was the sweetest thing.
Since the hostel waffles did not fill us up, we chose to go get some more food. Guess where? You guessed wrong! It was not McDonald’s this time. We went to a café that had served different kinds of crepes and pancakes for super cheap. It was awesome and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Sigulda, Latvia
We then met up with our local coordinator’s cousin (I think that’s the relation), and she bought us tickets to Sigulda, Latvia. It was about an hour’s drive, and I slept the whole way.
The village was quiet and peaceful. We chose to hike to Turaida Castle, rather than wait for an hour for a bus to take us. The walk was somewhat frightening but was incredibly beautiful. We walked on the edge of the mildly busy road, so I was a little concerned that I would trip and get hit by a bus. Luckily, that didn’t happen. On the way to the castle, we stopped to see the largest cave in Latvia, Gutmanis Cave. I think I’m used to glorious, spacious caves, because this hardly counts as a cave, and is more of a dent in a mountain.
Luckily, there were food carts parked at the cave, so I bought a bag of honey-roasted almonds. Mmm, they were so delicious. They tasted as delicious as the ones you buy at the mall during Christmas, which made me excited for the holiday season.
A short time later, we made it to the castle. It wasn’t a large spectacle to behold but was still very beautiful. Most of it had been reconstructed.
Turaida Castle was built in 1214, and the meaning translates to Thor’s Garden (no, I did not make that up, though I wish I did). After a battle at the foot of Turaida castle in 1601, a baby was found in the arms of her dead mother. The baby was then raised in the castle and grew up to be exceedingly beautiful. She was known as the “Rose of Turaida.” She fell in love with a gardener at the castle, so they prepared to be married. Shortly before the wedding, she received a letter from her love asking her to meet him at Gutmanis Cave (the place we had just visited). She went to the cave, but it was not her love that awaited her, rather it was a soldier who intended to rape her. Rose promised to give him her magic scarf that would protect him from injury, but he chose to test it on her, and she died.
Locals frequently come to visit The Rose of Turaida’s grave. In fact, most schools do field trips there each year. It is a beautiful place with an interesting history. I am glad I had the opportunity to visit.
In order to get back to Riga quickly, we took a bus back to Sigulda and then took a train to Riga. We then went upstairs to Cinnamon Sally’s and picked up our baggage. We went to a Subway across the street because obviously, we haven’t eaten enough. We loaded up on sandwiches for the ride home. I don’t know why, but we were all extremely giddy to be getting Subway. As in, we were all dancing in line and telling the “sandwich artists” how excited we were. I can almost guarantee that those guys had never seen people so thrilled to eat a sub. I learned the hard way though, that Latvians only have Miracle Whip and not mayo. It kind of ruined the taste of my sandwich. It was still a great sandwich, though, and much needed.
Back to Moscow
We then boarded our bus and said goodbye to our glorious vacation. I struggled again with sleep. I slept a little bit but was unable to get the necessary amount of sleep in order to avoid talking like a crazy person.
As soon as we arrived in Moscow, we rushed off to work. Yeah, I was a zombie all day. I also looked like a hag witch and smelled like a sewer. I’m sure the other teachers really appreciated me.
Somehow, I survived the day. My lessons were sub-par and my patience level with crazy kids was zero, but hey, I got through it.
The rest of this week has been a blur. I can’t believe how fast it has gone! I leave tomorrow for St. Petersburg. I can’t wait! We will be using a sleeper train, so I REALLY hope I can get some actual sleep in on the train. I will update you again on my adventure when I return.
I love and miss you all! Have a great week!
All My Love,
Madison
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