Day 57: Šiauliai to Vilnius

MAY 30 - It is another stormy day, so a good time to just move from one city to another. Complete the washing and drying of a ton of laundry. Get the bags and head a few blocks to the train station.

This unusual statue at the train station. It is a memorial to a citizen of Šiauliai named Stasys Nosys (1905-76). He was known for his physique and strength as a teenager, but was in an accident at his job at the railyard when he was 21, losing both his legs. He continued to perform great strength in circus acts for years afterward. However, during Soviet times, he was banned from appearing in public. The reason for this was that in the Soviet Union, there ‘were no disabled people’.

The long road ahead…and we are still carrying too much luggage.

Today’s route: (A) Šiauliai, and (B) Vilnius.

It is heavy rain when we arrive in Vilnius. Get a bus to our apartment, which turns out to be a fairly complicated place to find. Hit the streets armed with umbrellas but touring is a bit rough today. Manage to see the southern bit of Old Town.

The Gate of Dawn. This is the last original gateway of the Old City that survives. Above, in gold, is a painting of the Virgin Mary from the 17th Century inside a chapel. Pope John Paul II walked this street in 1993, just a few years after Lithuania gained independence. Pope Francis was also here, in 2018.

Lithuania