Tag: Lithuania

Kaunas, Lithuania to Ełk, Poland

There were only two buses available today to take us to Ełk today, one at 7am and one at 7pm. Our choice was to take the one at 7pm. So we spent the day in Kaunas. We went for a walk.

The pedestrian bridge to the stadium.
We found a park bench
We had coffee
Church of St Michael the Archangel

About four o’clock we had an early dinner, walked to the bus station and caught our bus to Ełk. We crossed into Poland, the time went back an hour, and now we are at our hotel. We will only be here about 10 hours because this is where we can catch the train to Gdańsk our next stop.

The bus station

Kaunas day 2

Today we explored Kaunas. We walked about a mile west towards Kaunas castle which is right at the confluence of the Niemen and Neris Rivers. Along the way we stopped to check out interesting stuff. Many of the main streets in Kaunas are pedestrian only. That makes walking so nice.

Starting our walk outside our hotel
I checked out a yarn store
Inside the Cathedral Basilica of St Peter and St Paul
Duke with the organ in the background
City Hall
Kaunas Castle.

Most of Kaunas Castle has been destroyed and washed away by the river over the years. We were able to climb up to a lookout at the top of what’s left of the wall. The town festival was going on outside the castle. Inside on the grass were a series of signs celebrating NATO.

The view from the viewpoint at the high point of the castle.
Another view from the top of the castle.
One of the NATO signs

On our way back from the castle we stopped for coffee.

Coffee and a snack

Later after we got back to the area around our hotel we had beers and spent an hour people watching.

Sitting overlooking the main street

For dinner we went to Uoksas, a Michelin restaurant quite near our hotel. We preordered the three course tasting menu and had the wine pairings to go with it.

Our main course, steak with a tasty sauce, potatoes and a gelled tomato salad
Duke with his desert. The wine was a Lithuanian sparkling rhubarb wine that was quite good.

Riga, Latvia to Kaunas, Lithuania

I don’t know why traveling by bus is surprisingly tiring but it is. This morning we walked to the bus station and then took a five hour bus ride to Kaunas, Lithuania.

Our bus in Riga

In Kaunas it felt good to walk so although we were tired we enjoyed our 30 minute walk to our hotel.

In Kaunas walking to our hotel

Later when we went out to explore a bit, the sky was threatening but the weather seemed pleasant. When we were almost back to our hotel the skies opened up and we were caught in a torrential downpour!

Downpour

We had a lovely dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant, Piccola Italia.

Duke at dinner.