Vilnius, Lithuania

Vilnius is enchanting. I had to take an overnight bus to get here (as it was the only one offered). After I resigned myself to catching little to no sleep, I was really quite content with my plans.

I was content for only a short while; I soon realized my bus driver was a coke sniffing maniac. On the trip he:

A. Had absolutely no qualms about driving into oncoming traffic, even forcing gasoline tankers onto the shoulder, so he could pass vehicles that were "too slow", and they were all "too slow".
B. Stopped abruptly on the side of the road to buy some vegetables at a farmer's market.
C. Drove off the road, so that I was tossed into the aisle like a kernel of popped corn. People screamed, and the woman in front of me actually made the sign of the cross.
D. Arrived at our destination three hours early. Now this doesn't seem like a big deal, nobody (myself included) wanted to be on that god-forsaken bus for any longer than we had to. However, getting dropped off at a semi-abandoned bus station at four in the morning is not my idea of fun.

Fortunately, a very sweet girl and former resident of Vilnius took me under her wing. (I can not even begin to tell you how grateful I was to her.) We went to the city square and ran into some interesting characters (a guy that can only be partially described--black combat boots, no shirt, leather vest, swishy ponytail, and an affinity for Reamon) who directed us to a twenty-four hour cafe. There I found that Lithuanians really like mushrooms, as 50% of the menu had some sort of mushroom component in it.

After breakfast, I wandered off on my own to explore the old town. It was still quite early, so very few people were out and I mostly had the place to myself, which was very nice of course. Around eight, I went to check in at a hostel, thinking I could drop my bag off and make a payment. I didn't expect them to have a place available for me until the afternoon; however, they did have a bed available! I was so happy, I nearly leapt across the counter to hug the receptionist. Needless to say, I took a very long nap.

I believe I am so fond of Vilnius, because I can actually feel the city tilt as it grows toward the sun. Lithuania's history has been tumultuous to say the least, and it is really wonderful to see the country standing strong on its own. The people here seem to have an undercurrent of joy bubbling through them that is absent in the citizens of most other countries. I don't think they take their freedom for granted.

Today I went to a lakeside castle at Trakai, which was quite beautiful. After that, I had a brief nap before heading to a milk bar, where I had some odd combination of milk and orange juice. Very good in an "I think I like this, but it's still very possible I might yak" sort of way.

Heading off to Western Lithuania tomorrow, and I am excited about it. I hope you are doing something that makes you happy!