Outreach

What a busy week! On top of my regular work, I was asked to go on an outreach trip yesterday. J came with me, and we went about two hours away from the capital to a small town of around 2,000 people called Lukšiai. A group called the Young Americans were there to lead about 500 youth and children in a music/dance workshop. We were there for the opening ceremony - it was a blast! I'm still no fan of public speaking, but my remarks were a small part of the event. It really is amazing to watch this group of talented young people with unbelievably high energy working with and teaching so many children. In just 10 hours of rehearsal, all these children will learn an intense hour-long performance of everything from choral music to hip hop, jazz, and modern dance. But for us, even in just the two hours we spent with them, the music and dance lessons almost seemed secondary. I think we were more inspired by the cooperation and rapport the teachers developed so quickly with their students. The Young Americans are so encouraging - their energy is contagious. In just a few hours you could see a difference in the participants; their enthusiasm and confidence were growing. The workshop is spread over three days, so that in addition to rehearsal, there is time for team-building and other creative outlets. The Young Americans have tours in the US and different parts of the world - I think they are a really impressive non-profit organization. You should check them out!

Cross country road trip

This weekend, we finally ventured out of Vilnius and all the way across Lithuania to its southwestern-most point: Nida.  We crossed the country, drove onto a ferry, and then drove 45 km down one giant sand dune to within sight of Russia (Kaliningrad, that is). The whole drive took about 4.5 hours, with a couple of pit stops. Along the way, we learned to interpret all the road signs we passed, including this one to the right. I believe it means "picnic area", but should be more aptly subtitled: "Danger: falling trees!" or "Picnickers beware!" or, maybe "Timber!!"

Nida is the southernmost city on the Curonian spit, which is the Lithuanian end of a peninsula that juts out from Kaliningrad (the Russian exclave in the middle of Eastern Europe - on the far left of the picture above). It has the Baltic Sea to the west, and a body of water that they call a lagoon (not the same as a lagoon in the US) to the east. The whole Lithuanian section is about 20 miles long, and less than two miles wide at its widest. Its population is only about 2500 residents, although that number swells in the summer because it's one of the most popular beach locations in Lithuania.

Preferred mode of travel for the weekend

This land mass is actually a sandbar, and as such, it's constantly changing. Entire towns have been buried by the sand. In the Middle Ages, the trees that had been growing in the area were cut down for timber, destabilizing the dunes. It took an international conference in 1768 and a coordinated effort to reforest the area, thus keeping the dunes in place.  Driving down most of the spit, it looks like a normal forest of evergreen trees, except the forest floor looks like it was laid down over sand, with ripples and mounds rather than rolling hills or flat lands. There are a few exposed, "moving" dunes that remain, but according to our travel book, these could disappear in a few hundred years.

We stayed in a cute little B&B guesthouse with the traditional fisherman's cottage exterior. I didn't get a picture of where we stayed, but here's a similarly-decorated house in a different village. The owner was very friendly, and quite patient with me as I tried my best to communicate in Lithuanian. All in all, I think I got along quite well!

One of the main things to do in the area is go to the beach. We visited a little before the summer season started, so it was a little on the cold side (highs around 65 degrees F). I've had several natives tell me that they enjoy swimming in the Baltic Sea, but I couldn't make it any farther than this!  Maybe later in the summer we can try again.

 In addition to riding around the town and along both coastlines, we climbed up one part of the sand dunes to this sundial. I've never been good at reading sundials. The shadow fell between the numbers 8 and 9, but it was almost noon - go figure. All in all it was a good weekend and a nice first excursion around the country.

Update

View from Gediminas's Tower above part of Old Town Vilnius

I've thought of a hundred things to blog in the last month, but I haven't sat down to tell the stories. We're about to hit the two month mark, and it's really starting to feel like home for us. We're also staying busy and having a great time getting to know other folks in the community. Forgive me for the random thoughts and notes, but I just wanted to post a few pictures to catch up, so that then I can get back to a regular weekly (hey - what's wrong with some optimism?) blog.

J participated in a soccer tournament back in April. Sadly, our team didn't place, but they played hard and had fun. Don't their uniforms look great? Check out Jason catching a goal he blocked  (sorry for the fuzzy picture!)!

We've just done a little exploring around Old Town so far, but there are some amazing sights to see. Also, we've found a lot of great little restaurants that are relatively inexpensive. We took this photo from the site of the old fortress/castle from the 1500's, that originally protected Vilnius and the Grand Duchy. The tower that stands there now is a replica built during the last century, but it seems to be built to historical measurements, including the low stone ceiling that yours truly bumped into on the way up the small, winding steps to the top. We walked up the hill this time, but I believe the funicular is the way to ride up the hill in style!

I love seeing the hot air balloons that take off from somewhere in Old Town every clear evening - they are beautiful!!  I'm still getting used to the long days here. Twice this week I've gone to bed before it's dark outside (aka, before 10 p.m.), and let me tell you - that feels weird. I hear that when the weather is nice, people spend the evenings on the sidewalks and balconies of outdoor cafes, and the Old Town is full of people and energy. We've had one pretty warm week already, and I can attest that it is much more comfortable outside than in the apartment. It can get a little stuffy without air conditioning. This week it's been much cooler, and rather rainy (in Lithuanian, the phrase "The rain rains in Lithuania" has quite a ring to it).

We've had our share of little hiccups lately as well. Two weeks ago, we decided it was perfect weather for a bike ride. We put our bikes back together from the move, drug them down the stairs and we were ready to roll, right? Wrong. J's tire turned out to be irreparably flat, no matter how much air we tried to put in it. I managed to find a rental/repair shop who's manager spoke English, so we decided to take it to her to put in a new inner tube. Three hours and two stops later, I declared our mission a success. But sadly, just moments later, all the air had seeped out again. After 4 hours of effort, we gave up that weekend and went for a run instead.

But I'm happy to say that today we took the tire back today and had a second inner tube installed. Even with my poor Lithuanian (and the mechanic's limited English), we got it right this time! And so we were able to take our first bike ride around Vengris Park this evening - this giant park holds a large amphitheater in the center, and all trails through the woods to lead there. The amphitheater opens up into a large, flat grassy area that will hold thousands for major concerts. Today the field was full of people playing, reading, and soaking up the sun, with rollerbladers and bikeriders like us riding along the paved perimeter.

Happy Easter!

J. picked these out at the market this week.  Thanks, J!

Senamiestyje (In Old Town)

The Cathedral in Vilnius

Notice how this street suddenly becomes narrow...

Last week we started exploring Old Town, which is one of the largest medieval Old Towns in Europe (for more, see Wikipedia here). It is absolutely beautiful, even in early spring. On Sunday (aka April Fool’s Day), we set out to find the “independent republic” of Užupis, which is on the other side of the Old Town from us. Since I don’t like to walk around with a map in my face, we got lost a few times, but that gave us a chance to see more of the city. Many cobblestone streets narrow down to one lane, and some even turn into pedestrian areas unexpectedly (we’ve already decided there is absolutely no reason for us to drive this area – it looks like a nightmare to navigate!). At times there are wide sidewalks, others only a couple of feet or less. There are several large Catholic churches, and one Cathedral in old town.  Last weekend we walked by crowds of people out for Palm Sunday, many of them with evergreen branches (the equivalent of palm branches) – we got some handmade ones of our own. 

The flag of Užupis, at one of the bridges over the Vilna River.

Back to Užupis: once a year, this little area of town (re)declares its independence and stamps passports with their own immigration stamp. They also hold a ceremony every time their constitution is translated into a new language, often with Ambassadors from other countries in attendance. The constitution includes such articles as: "People have the right to live by the River Vilnelė, while the River Vilnelė has the right to flow past people."  Good stuff, constitutionally speaking! The diplomatic community is welcomed there. In fact, I found out later that I could have been appointed an Honorary Consul, stamping passports myself if I had alerted the authorities to my diplomatic status. If only…

There are lots of good beers here, although J has already insisted that we strike one of my favorites from our fridge. Evidently, the union that works for a subsidiary of a Carlsberg brewery voted to strike, but a Lithuanian court ruled that beer production is of “vital importance,” like medical supplies and drinking water, and therefore it is illegal for workers to walk off the line. You can read a bit more here. J. is standing in solidarity with the employees. I suppose there is a lot of German influence in beers here. The beers are usually listed in either light or dark varieties, and last night we found a third option of “farmhouse ales” – also quite tasty!

One of many churches in Old Town

We have yet to go to a traditional Lithuanian restaurant here, but surely that is on our list to try soon.  In the grocery store, we’ve found several interesting items that we’ve yet to try, such as forest mushroom flavored potato chips. Others, though, we’ve tried and liked, such as the spinach and cheese pastries and various types of sausage (the selection of meat is disproportionally large compared to the rest of the store!). Also, almost every restaurant serves fried bread, shaped like french fries, which usually comes with cheese sauce or garlic. It’s without a doubt unhealthy, but pretty tasty.

We’re going to see our first movie here soon – The Hunger Games, subtitled in Lithuanian. I’ve been looking forward to seeing it since I read the books last summer!

We have arrived!

We have spent all of five nights in Vilnius at this point, but I think I can give you a few first impressions now while they are fresh. Basically – it’s pretty awesome here!  Our housing is nice and spacious; the Old Town is literally around the corner; and I think my job will be really interesting and enjoyable. Of course, we’ve already made several missteps (“Oh, so what I’ve been using for laundry detergent actually is actually fabric softener?” or “What? No I don’t have children. Oh, this check-out line is for parents with young children only? Sorry, didn’t see the sign”).  But in general, we’re adjusting, and looking forward to living here!

About our apartment – you know us, and most of my (limited) readership has been in our last apartment in Missouri. We had enough space, but not much more.  Here, that is definitely NOT the case. We have three bedrooms, but since we don’t need them, one has been turned into an office/den, which means J and I have plenty of room to spread out.  The kitchen is also much fancier than anything we would ever have on our own. For example, the dishwasher and fridge are actually hidden behind the same paneling as the cabinets, so they just blend in. I had to ask ahead of time if we got a dishwasher, because I couldn’t see it in the pictures! The bathroom floors are heated (I haven’t tried this perk yet, since until today we weren’t sure what it was, but I’ll will tomorrow!). 

On the flip side, considering that we are in a post-Soviet country, there are still some remnants of the old system. One of them is that the decision to turn on the heat in the fall or off in the spring is made by the government. At least city-wide, if not country-wide, one blessed day in October (hopefully!), the radiators kick on. Before that, even if it is really, really cold in your apartment, the best you can do is to go buy an electric heater, because your heat won’t work. And you better buy it early, because there will be a run on heaters that first cold night. Also, I understand that residents often have little control over how much heat their apartment receives, even though they are responsible for the heating bill in the apartment. Unfortunately, it takes time and money to update these systems, and many buildings just haven’t been updated yet.

The Old Town looks beautiful!! We haven’t had a chance to really explore it yet.  I promise to post some pictures next time. I’ve heard that it is one of the largest preserved “old towns” in Europe, and I believe that a large swath of it is part of a heritage site or something like that. It’s worth checking out. The skyline is filled with beautiful burnt orange rooftops, church steeples, and white walls against a backdrop of evergreens in the distance.  It’s really hard to describe, but hopefully I’ll do a better job as I get more accustomed to it. It reminds me of a thought I used to have frequently in Oxford as I walked down ancient cobble-stoned streets: These buildings have been here for ages – they are older than my own nation. I like history and being in historical places. I’ll read up on my history of this area and have some good stories to go with pictures next time.

Overall, after one year of training (literally!), we are thrilled to be here, and I think we can say that it was worth the wait. When I’m over the jet lag, I’ll try to keep a mental note of the amazing and quirky things I see or hear, and also get some good pictures. Suffice it to say now, things are going well and I’ll have more to say when I am back to my normal sleep schedule. 

P.S. I counted 3 yarn stores when we walked around a small portion of Old Town yesterday. I’m still waiting for my knitting needles to arrive, but I can’t wait to go pick up some new yarns and get started on a new project. I’m not usually a spring knitter, but perhaps since it has snowed the past two mornings, I just don’t feel like it’s spring yet here. That is in stark contrast to DC, which was 80 degrees or more when we left.

Aš išlaikiau savo egzaminą!!

For the second time in as many years, I have spent 7+ months studying for a two hour test. For the second time in a row, I can say that I studied successfully! I even passed this time with a little room to spare. Passing my test this week also allowed me to check one more requirement for tenure off my list: I am now off of language probation. After nearly 12 months of training and preparing to go overseas, it’s finally going to happen! J and I  have been making preparations to leave over the last several months (let’s be honest, J has shouldered the majority of this work). This included stocking up on essentials, packing out, getting legal documents in order, and lining up all the technology logistics (why yes, you can use Tivo with the American Forces Network, and you can often buy the equipment for such things from previous tenants… which, of course, we have already done).

When we weren’t madly planning, I was studying or in class. Sometimes, I felt like I was going in reverse, losing what little ability I had to speak the language. But other days, my classmates and I found that we could, in fact, argue the merits of voting or discuss Rawls’s veil of justice in Lithuanian. Whether either of these topics will help me do my job remains to be seen, but they do sometimes spice up the classroom conversation. I imagine teaching a foreign language can be both tiresome and frustrating. I think our instructors spend the better part of 5 hours a day correcting grammar errors in every single sentence we utter. It takes a lot of patience to help us improve, and I can’t say enough about their efforts to get us all up to the required level without pulling all their hair out!

After seven months of spending every work day with a small group of classmates and two instructors, I was the first to leave this week. Even though I passed, I feel like I’m still going to have a hard time communicating in Lithuanian. I bet next time I post, it will be to tell you that I told the cable guy our salt needs replacing, or some other such nonsense.