Arriving in Vilnius, we strolled down toward the activity in the main plaza and were delighted to discover that it was a Lithuanian cultural weekend. What a treat to see the native costumes and dancing and hear folk songs and instruments! We gawked until our jaws were sore, then returned to the hotel for the dreaded meet and greet introductions of our group members. More on group travel later.
The next morning we took a walking tour of the city and after lunch we went to a "wooden house" village where we learned about old Lithuanian customs and living. Our guide was a sweet woman who interjected Lithuanian folk songs into her delivery. Lovely!
Yesterday began with a lecture by an adviser to the Lithuanian President. (The current President is a single woman in her early 40s, the Minister of Defense is a woman, and there are many other women in high political posts.)
Some Lithuanian factoids: The notion of "Baltic States" is a current controversy, since the 3 nations--Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia--have different languages, different currencies, different prejudices. The population of Lithuania is dwindling due to emigration (few good jobs available here and low salaries), and low birth rate. During WWII and subsequent to it, many, many Lithuanians were either exterminated or deported to Siberia, over 100,000 in all. Many Lithuanian Mafia types have landed in Chicago, shaking down illegal Lithuanians for protection money to the extent that Chicago cops are learning to speak Lithuanian.
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