Greetings from Lithuania

I'm spending the month of July in Klaipeda, Lithuania and I will be blogging the experience. Some posts will be intentional but a lot of it will be stream of consciousness. I chalk up any terrible culturally insensitive things I may say to jetlag. Enjoy the journey with me!!

So...I don't actually have any pictures of time in Stockholm because, well, I forgot to unpack my camera. It rode comfortably in the belly of a jumbo jet.

Stockholm was a gorgeous city, but DEFINITELY a tourist trap... lots of retired british pensioners and people from other parts of Europe. Btw...Australians, they're EVERWHERE. The city is also ingenious at finding ways to pull money out of you, seriously I spent an insane amount yesterday just going through one national meusem and moving from 2 islands.

One thing I did appreciate about Stockholm was how well they blended some very old culture with very relevant modern activity. Much of the city is concentrated along three islands between a very large lake and the Baltic sea. The city has a very baroque feeling, especially when it comes to architecture, and while there were a few gaudy post-modern facades poking out of the relatively uniform skyline but overall most of the business in Stockholm found a way to meld itself into the established city. There were some very beautiful old apartment buildings that looked like they had been transformed into office buildings. Also, everything ran precisely on time…it was awesome.

BUT ON TO THE MAIN EVENT….

I arrived in Vilnius around 10, which is pretty late, but because of how far north we are the sun was only just setting. The airport is a ways out of town so we had to travel to get to the Hostel I planned to stay at for the night. The airport was also located in what I assume to be one of the seedier districts in Vilnius because it was surrounded by decaying Soviet era apartment complexes...and a few old farmhouses…with goats. There was barely anybody out on the streets and I was almost completely hazed over from having not slept in about 24 hours. When we got to “oldtown” which is where I was staying the sun was basically set and there was no street lights. I was also royally screwed over by my cab driver…I payed almost 3 times what I should have, but who can blame the guy…I was exhausted and in a very unfamiliar place with no one around, I might as well have been a calf.

That being said Vilnius is a beautiful city. I didn’t have the best first impression of Lithuanian, but then again ya gotta give em a second chance! The next morning after much rest and a shower I made a point to walk around Old Town and to visit the Hill of 3 Crosses. You can see most of the city from there and it was pretty breathtaking…once again, I forgot my camera, but don’t worry, I’ll be back there at the end of July.

The weather here is perfect and the food I’ve had so far is phenomenal. Good cheese, good sausage and some INCREDIBLE rye bread. I had these Zuchinni pancakes for lunch with sour cream, Lithuanians seem to find a way to put sour cream on everything. Everything (besides my first cab ride) has been very decently priced as well. I love how a lot of these European cities are dripping in history without seeming like they drown in it.

I’m off to Klaipeda this afternoon! I’ll be sure to take pictures this time.

European Travels- Stream of Consciousness 1

I'm spending the month of July in Klaipeda, Lithuania and I will be blogging the experience. Some posts will be intentional but a lot of it will be stream of consciousness. I chalk up any terrible culturally insensitive things I may say to jetlag. Enjoy the journey with me!!

I've finished the first leg of my journey and I am traveling into the city of Stockholm. The airport is about 30 minutes outside of town but the bus has wifi, which is pretty awesome.

Its currently 3:20 in the morning in chicago. We are 6 hours ahead and I think Lithuania will jump 1 more timezone. The plane trip went okay, not a whole lot of trouble, there was one crying baby but I more felt sad for the parents than upset. This was probably one of the worst times to fly on a plane because jetlag won't kick in until later this afternoon since the night only felt like traveling till 2:00am. It was weird in that we flew far enough north to fly over greenland. The sun never set, they had to close all the windows and turn off the lights to give the impression of darkness and night.

What I've seen of Sweden thus far is really beautiful. If you ever been to the Northwoods of Wisconsin than you get the picture. Lots of lakes, rivers, evergreen trees and farmland. I've seen enough volkswagens to permanently bruise someone's arm. The odd thing is that mixed in with all this evergreen beauty is a lot of IKEA looking factories...lots of flat roofs, clean lines, and proportionally spaced windows and sections. Stockholm should be fun!

Fall From Grace

A poem by an Irish poet. "Fall from Grace"

Returning another autumn we discover a changed regime.

A community reshuffled,

Losing my sponsors in that shake-up,

Roots too shallow.

I fall from grace.

New brooms with fresh sweeps

How easily we become how we're seen.

Failure throws an oblong shadow,

I cover hurts with a jaunty humor, pretend not to care, affect disdain,

Harden the core to day by day humiliations.

Tiny erosions of respect,

learn the slow rustings of shame

And laugh a bitter laugh while inside discs of trust skew and warp.

Were can you turn, you've made your bed now widower to your dream.

How many faces must a wound wear

Iconoclast, windmill tilter, self-saboteur.

Stunted years of a poise too hard won,

Yet in such moves the spiral turns,

Nothing,

A squall in a child's cup.

But you're the child, this is your cup.

I owe no master, my gods of innocence fallen

I cling a fragile self-reliance.