July 22, 2013

July 22, 2013

Today is another travel day.  We are continuing our journey north investigating more of the former Soviet Baltic republics.  We spend the morning travelling across Lithuania past more open fields and thick forests and the occasional stork nest.  I am surprised with all the trees.  I always thought Europeans were short of agricultural land and would have chopped all the trees down to make more farmland by now.
 

At noon we arrive in Siauliai, Lithuania and make a stop at its famous Hill of Crosses.  I was expecting to see three crosses on a little hill and was shocked at how many we saw. Our guide estimated 200,000. In my mind there are at least a million crosses massed here, of all sizes, from tiny to giant. Crosses were first put here as a silent protest against the Czar in the time of Napoleon.  It gained its size and fame under Soviet repression.  Moscow tried bulldozing it but new crosses reappeared every night.  The site became an icon of Baltic independence and is now a major pilgrimage site. And apparently a tourist attraction too. While here numerous tour buses come and go. I didn't know the Baltics was such a hot place to visit.

On the road again, we soon crossed into Latvia.  Another country, another language, and new words to learn.   The languages we are encountering are not just different dialects of the same language but from totally different subgroups.  Polish and Russian are Slavic, Latvian and Lithuanian are Baltic, Estonian (along with Hungarian) is in a totally different Uralic family.  German was also common before WWII.  The diverse languages spoken here in such a tiny area is testament to the nationalities that fought so hard to conquer this territory.

In the evening we arrive in the capitol city of Riga.  After we checked into our hotel we set out to explore before dark. As we walked toward the city center, we passed a narrow park that encircles the center.  This is the location of the old city defensive walls.  In the medieval times every town had to have them to survive, but they became obsolete and were eventually torn down.  Riga saved theirs as parkland.

On Riga's east end is the Central Market housed in a bunch of old German Zeppelin Hangars.  It is supposed to the be the largest bazaar in Europe.  It definitely is huge.  They sell everything.  Most of the counters seem to be right out of the Communist Era. Nearby are the ruins of the Great Choral Synagogue which is rumored to have burned to the ground in 1941 with 300 Jews inside.

We then walked to the other end of Old Town admiring the old churches on the way.  We went in one. Although it is old, it is unimpressive reflecting the minimalist philosophy of the Lutheran faith. We finished at the very uninteresting Riga Castle where we then had dinner at a medieval restaurant next door.  I had a pint of the local ale and a bowl of rye porridge that was surprisingly tasty.  

Back at the hotel, we went to the SkyBar on the 26th floor.  Since our high-rise hotel towers over Riga, we enjoyed great views of the city.  Aimee had a grand time and reminded me we need to slow down more often and soak up the ambiance.