A place most people find difficult to find, but once found you’ll have a great time.
A new advertising campaign for Vilnius has taken flight with this title and tagline and I don’t think you could sum this place up any better. A little gem where not many people go but it is a great deal of fun and people should go more. I was apprehensive about Vilnius and Lithuanian as a whole as it was the country I knew the least about it out of the three Baltic states. I imagined a Soviet style breeze block society, where people where less free to express themselves and it would just feel dark, cold and grim. I couldn’t have been more wrong! Vilnius is a city of freedom, stunning views and once again in the Baltics a delicious combination of Old and New.
Vilnius was a city where beautiful panoramic views could be found across the city but mainly on Castle Hill and at the Three Crosses. I honestly haven’t been more impressed by many other views over a city as these ones, maybe it was because of the surprise, but I think it was the beauty of the city down below. From on top of the hill you can see all of the old town in its Romanesque glory, elegant and classic. Then you turn your head and you see the River Viliya bisecting the city with modern business buildings on the other side, impressive and sharpe, like a Lithuanian Canary Wharf. These aspects of beauty can all be seen from walking through the city as well but I feel the view from Castle Tower Hill shows the beauty of Vilnius the best. These views offer a sense of ore that makes you want to sit there for hours, a great place to watch a sunset and a great place to visit on holiday.
Another aspect of Vilnius I found particularly appealing was the creative and free street art. For me street art really gives you a window to view a city’s society under the face they provide for tourists. This window provide a view of Vilnius’ freedom and creative side. A street art exhibition was just around the corner of my airbnb and was very inspiring to see. But the real great work was the political stuff in the centre of town, many giving comical, two fingers up, to the right wing politicians, like Trump and Putin.
This leads me perfectly into my final reason for loving Vilnius. With it being close to Belarus you would be forgiven for believing Vilnius would be just another Eastern block city that makes sure it stays as close to Russia as possible. But it isn’t, Vilnius is an international free city with many of the population speaking fluent English making it very easy as a Westerner to travel there without fear of discrimination. Like its Baltic cousins it has been trying to cut off its ties to Russia for a long time and was very open about its disdain for their Soviet occupiers. The singing revolution began in Vilnius, where people lined the streets and sang to stop Soviet oppression all the way to Tallinn, it was truly incredible to look into and I would encourage you to as well.
Still looking for the G Spot? Well Vilnius is the place for you. Check it out and you will have the time of your life. I am sure it will have you screaming with happiness.
Thank you for reading. Hope I didn’t disappoint and you weren’t hoping to read about some saucy action from the red light district in Amsterdam. As always feedback is much appreciated, and if you enjoyed this blog post, go read some more of my stuff, or go look at my Instagram and Facebook.
