Baltic Treasures

Baltic Treasures – Lithuania at the bottom, next on to Latvia and then Estonia.

 

Vilnius, Lithuania

June 3 – 5

We joined our tour group – 30 travelers in all and began the serious business of touring! Kori, our very organized and knowledgeable tour guide, is very good at getting us where we are supposed to be when we  are supposed to be there. Our friend Dick says, “It’s like trying to herd cats,” but she does it amazingly well.

This is the ever smiling, knowledgeable, efficient, mother of our crew.

While in route to the beginning of each tour,  Kori gives us background information and history. As I said, she is incredibly knowledgeable about the places and history which greatly adds to what we are seeing. Once we arrive at our tour destination, we break into two groups and local guides take over. These guides have a deeper insight into the places and their history and we have learned so much. I hope I won’t bore you in trying to retell a bit about what we’ve seen.

Old Town

A lookout tower view of Old Town Vilnius.

We entered Old Town Vilnius, circa 16th century, through the Gates of Dawn – a portal into the walled city. It was early and mass was being celebrated as we entered below.

The main gate into the old walled city. The Chapel of the Blessed Mary Catholic Church occupies the building, and there was a service being held as we walked below.

The famous Black Madonna is here. Not really black, the Madonna is carved of dark oak.

This chapel is the home of the Black Madonna but our guide informed us that to them she is the Blessed Mary.

 

 

We continued our walking tour learning about the old town and enjoying the sights of old buildings, winding alleys, cobbled streets and courtyards.

Our tour took us down narrow and charming streets and alleys.

Literacy Street – All along this alley there were plaques dedicated to Lithuania’s poets and writers.

Quaint shops

Tom and I in front of St. Anne’s Church – not the St. Ann’s that we were married in.

Short tunnels into interior courtyards gave us a glimpse of homes, shops, and Vilnius Old Town life

 

Another church gate into the old city.

The weather was perfect and it was a lovely way to spend the morning. We had the afternoon and evening to wander around on our own to shop take pictures…

Trakai Castle – Much of the castle was destroyed in 1655. In 1929 Lithuania was occupied by Poland and the Polish government ordered the reconstruction of the castle.

The next day we went to the Victims of Genocide Museum in the morning and in the afternoon we traveled to Trakai Castle.  The castle had been all but destroyed but has been reconstructed using what was left of the original castle combined with the new construction.

A gate into the inner castle – you can see some of the original structure.

Old costumes, furniture and everyday living items were displayed.

The drawbridge at Trakai Castle. I felt like I was in Camelot.

The mote used to be filled with water, but water levels have dropped.

 

It is an interesting and a fun afternoon.

 

 

 

Tomorrow we head for our next Baltic State.

 

 

 

Riga, Latvia

June 6 – 7

Today we arrived in Riga, the lovely capital of Latvia. On this tour we have a lot to see in a short time and as usual, we hit the ground running. Our first stop upon entering the city was at the opulent 19th century Riga Opera House which is still very much in use today.

Riga Opera House

The main stage of the opera house with its old world elegance.

Today is Dick’s birthday and he was serenaded with an operatic version of Happy Birthday. Very cool.

 

After Dick’s serenade we got our own performance and it was magnificent!

The next morning we were off again, this time to the Art Nouveau District of Riga. It was explained that after the stark severity of the forced Stalinist housing, this was Latvia’s celebration of independence. What we found was one gorgeous building after another. Being the architecture lover that I am, I was in heaven!

This is one of my favorites.

A closer look at the artistry in this building.

 

 

Art Nouveau architectural style – I love it!

Art Nouveau – a beautiful flaunting of independence.

Across from our hotel.

These buildings all have rooftop vegetable gardens for the residents. How cool is that.

 

Then it was off to the Riga Market. Boring, you might think, but it was absolutely not! During the Nazi occupation of Latvia, there was a Zeppelin Exhibition – a really big deal. To house this display five huge hangers were built. When the Nazi’s left, the display hangers were turned into a huge marketplace.

Zeppelin Hangers from the Nazi era.

Old Zeppelin display hangers now hold the huge Riga Market.

One whole hanger, referred to as the smelly building, was a huge fish market with every type of fish you can imagine. There was another just for meats, one for fruits and vegetables, cheeses and dairy products and of course one for souvenirs.

The fruits and vegetables looked wonderful and so did everything else.

The flower shops were in tents outside and they were wonderful.

We were told that flowers are a tradition in Latvia. They are given for any special occasion and you never go to someone’s house without taking flowers and only in odd numbers – 1,3,5… for good luck.

Wow, what a place!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next on the agenda – keep in mind that this is still part of the morning events – was a walking tour of Old Town Riga. When you’ve been around since the 1300s, most of the town is an old town, but this is the really, really old town. Anyway, we walked the narrow, cobble stone streets and took in the sights. And –  just as in Madrid, Paris, Prague, and Lithuania – it is enchanting.

The House of the Blackheads’ Society. The buildings were cool, but I don’t remember what Olga said about the history, sorry.

St. Peter’s Cathedral

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Narrow cobbled streets and charming buildings.

Then we had some free time to explore on our own. And we found more charming shops with friendly shop keepers.

Lovely shops to explore.

Beautiful Rhododendrons

Outdoor cafes

A lovely yarn shop with beautiful wearable art.

A couple more pictures

The Freedom Monument stands proud in the center of Riga.

then on to Estonia.

Tallinn, Estonia

Onward and upward.

The country side on the way to Estonia was like what we had seen in route to the other countries – forests, flower laced fields, and farms here and there – a lovely drive. This was taken out of bus window so it’s a little blurry, but still it tells the story.

The most northern of the Baltic States is Estonia (population just over 1 million) and Tallinn is its capital.

Estonia – Old and New

 

 

As has become the norm, we visited Old Town Estonia first. However, Estonia’s Old Town is split into two sections – lower Old Town and upper Old Town. Needless to say, the lower part was not as classy as the upper part in those days, but both are resplendent with parks, narrow cobbled streets, and picturesque buildings.

Our lovely guide Evelyn – a wealth of information.

 

 

We entered through the gate into the old walled city.

The gate into Estonia’s Old Towne.

and began our walk just in time to here the bells of Nevski Cathedral  .

Nevski Cathedral

As in all the old towns of the Baltic States, the old city is charming.

This character is a gutter spout to drain rainwater out of the palace courtyard – too funny.

Narrow streets and busy people.

 

Quaint Shops

 

The tallest building in Europe – at least it was in the 13th century.

Costumed characters selling their wares.

This building has been a working pharmacy since 1422 – amazing!

Gorgeous parks give the area a calm, tranquil sense of wellbeing.

These beautiful old buildings now house part of the university.

 

Many of the large old buildings have been converted to classrooms for the university. We learned that Estonia is beginning to excel in science and technology. They, in fact, are the developers of Skype. So next time you Skype, think of tiny Estonia.

A very fun plaque on the front of the Conservatory of Music

The Government Building – We were told that Estonia is very proud of their “Lady President” who was just reelected for a second term in office.

Estonia’s Art Nouveau

 

 

We got a quick glimpse of the government buildings and some of the newer parts of Tallinn,

 

 

 

 

 

and then we were off on a high-speed ferry to Helsinki, Finland bidding farewell and good journey to the lovely Baltic States.

Farewell to Estonia

 

Helsinki Harbor

Finland had a much different feel than the Baltic States – newer, more modern – an interesting contrast.

We were in Helsinki for a very short time, but got to take in a few sights while we were there.

Our first stop was at the Rock Church. The church was designed by architects and brothers Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen. It was officially opened in 1969.

The Helsinki Rock Church

Very modern especially when compared to what we saw in the Baltic States.

The sanctuary in the Rock Church

Carved out of a granite cliff, the walls are beautiful.

The next attraction was to the Jean Sibelius Monument.

Monument to Finland Composer Jean Sibelius

The people who comissioned the monument were expecting a statue of the composer and were a bit upset by what they got. They demanded to have something with his face on it so this plaque was added.

 

 

 

The park around the monument was lovely.

 

We are in Helsinki because tomorrow we catch a train from here to….. RUSSIA!!!!!!!! OMG, I can’t wait!!!