Citytrip Vilnius

Jamaica Hostel Vilnius

With my fingers crossed and twenty prayers later I arrived in the Jamaica hostel in Vilnius. The friendly receptionist was already a good sign… Many of my fellow backpackers didn’t seem to like snow, I think, because there was hardly anyone in the hostel. Good for me because I could check in immediately.

When I got up I saw that it was fortunately a huge improvement compared to the previous hostel!

The spacious room was wonderfully warm, modern, and there was only one other backpacker in my room. I couldn’t contain myself and burst out in laughter. What a difference from my previous hostel!

A hostel may not be fancy, but a bit of atmosphere, nice fellow travelers and some warmth is really the least I think!

The mattress was comfortable, there was a large kitchen with lots of pots and pans and the toilets and showers were very tidy. Moreover, the Internet was very fast and therefore I could easily search what I wanted to go and visit today… Because now it really was time for me to explore the capital of Lithuania!

Vilnius city trip: exploring the city!

It was already afternoon and I still hadn’t seen anything. So it was time to take a look at the small capital of Lithuania.

During my search for sights and attractions I already noticed that there were many churches among the recommendations. No surprise, really, since all of them looked lovely. But once I got into the city center there was literally not one moment where I couldn’t see a church or religious building in my point of view.

Some have fittingly nicknamed Vilnius as the city of churches.

Orthodox churches, Catholic churches, Christian churches, Protestant churches … I think there’s a place of prayer for everyone here!

The interior of the St. Casimir church is beautiful. From outside the church looks alright, but certainly not spectacular. Inside, however, the building is decorated lavishly. In the middle of the church there is a glass box in which you will see three pairs of legs with their feet covered in stately slippers. The rest of the body is covered with a cloth. I was wondering if they were dolls or real bodies… Scary!

The altar is exceptionally beautiful. A bright green, decorated with a lot of gold, silver and bronze objects also adorns the church in a unique way.

While I’m heading to my next church of interest -the church of St. Anne’s-, I head into an alley where class is given to elementary school. When I see a nun being the teacher I was surprised for a second. I never thought that Lithuania was still such a deeply religious country! With so many churches this of course makes sense…

A little further there is a small street where the pastel-colored walls are decorated with various small pieces of art. The paintings and mosaics come from artists from al over the world. So I guess you could say that Vilnius is a sort of metropolis after all!

A little further -with a lot of churches in between- you can see St. Anne’s Church. More like a cathedral than a church in my eyes. The beautiful towers are decorated with a lot of frills and I personally think it’s quite gorgeous. Unfortunately, the church is closed today and I can not visit it from the inside…

Gediminas tower and three crosses

The most time exploring the small town I spent around Gedinimas tower. The only tower that remains of the former Gedinimas fort that once majestically towered over Vilnius.

The tower itself is perhaps not spectacular, but certainly worth a visit. From this height you get a very nice view over Vilnius. And with the snow-covered roofs the city seems even more beautiful than without!

From here you can also admire the three crosses (Trys kryziai). Three large, white crosses stand on the other side of the tower. On the opposite hill.

After I got off the snowy hill (read: slid down) I plodded through the freshly fallen snow towards the Vilnius Cathedral. A giant church (I think the biggest in Wilna) standing in front of the tower. Nice to see, but I have to be honest that my attention quite quickly shifted to the right. There was a very large Christmas tree which was surrounded by a cute Christmas market.

The sweet, delicious smells coming from these little wooden huts were too good to ignore and soon I gobbled some yummy pancakes to quench my hunger for sweets.

It’s still quite some weeks until Christmas, but with all that snow I definitely got the christmas vibe already!

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