On Anxiety and the Unknown
Why preparing for Lithuania feels scarier than the rest of the trip...
We leave for the last big travel push of our trip on Friday: three days in Graz, one night in Vienna, and then seven days in Vilnius, Lithuania.
To be honest, I’m anxious for the first time this trip because, until now, we’ve been traveling to places where we know people and at least one of us (Dominik) is a native speaker of the language.
We don’t know anyone in Lithuania, and neither of us speaks the language. After two months abroad, I’ll admit I’m also a little travel weary. Things are still going great, and there have been moments in which the book I’m working on seems to write itself, so there isn’t anything at all that’s going wrong. But some of that “nothing has gone wrong” is that our family and friends have been hugely helpful. We have no family and friends where we are going next.
I’ve booked a tour of Jewish Vilnius, but after booking it I noticed that it starts at 1:30am (surely that’s a typo and it should be 1:30pm, but we’ve written to ask) and, maybe more worryingly, it but the tour’s write-up is also a little worrisome… we begin with “horned Abrahama” doesn’t seem a good sign?
L’Chaim!
Meet your new local friend by Vilnius Cathedral and get introduced to the first Abraham and discover intriguing first bright secrets of Judaism.
Come to greet “Shalom!” horned Moses and other Jews, Litvaks and other citizens of Vilnius.
Later we move further to see bears eating chocolate and find out why they are doing so.
Stopping by the Presidential Palace to hear an incredible story of Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, the Sheriff of London and his adventures in Vilnius.
Advancing to the Jewish Quarter in Vilnius Old Town, listening to the walls that remember and talk about Jewish traditions and daily life in the past.
After a cup of coffee we will pass by place where Great Synagogue of Vilna used to stand, listen about its extraordinary history and sneak into museum of Gaon of Vilna to experience something unique.
Strolling along beautiful streets of Vilnius Old Town we will approach Jewish info center to unveil more secrets.
Slightly shaken we’ll step out to get fresh air and meet Zemach Shabad – city’s beloved legendary doctor, who worked in various medical fields, charity and social activities who became a hero to Vilnius town dwellers.
If we will get lucky we will visit Choral Synagogue.
Walking on the border of Old and New Towns and enjoying each other's company we will finish our adventure with the light lunch at the one of most beloved bagel shops in Vilna.
Although I’m pretty excited that there will be bagels, and I hope we do get lucky and can visit the Choral Synagogue. It was, however, the only tour of Jewish Vilnius we could find that was actually running during our weeklong trip and with the limited information we have, so we are hoping for the best.
I’ve also moved us from an AirBnB to a Radisson hotel, hoping that English-speaking staff can play a bit of the roll friends and family have played. It’s pricier, but I expect in the end that it will also be worth it.
I’ve been trying, and failing, to figure out exactly how to get by bus from Vilnius to Linkuva; it’s clearly possible, but when I dig down into the details, I run into schedules that don’t translate from Lithuanian to English. (Anyone reading this with any advice, we’d be glad to hear it!) Hopefully, that’s something the hotel can help with, as well as just general advice for getting around.
If you’ve been to Lithuania and have advice, or if you just want to tell me to relax, it’ll be fine, I’m happy to hear from you! And if you’re one of those family members and friends who have been helping us out so far, I’ve always been grateful, but I’m even more keenly aware of how much your support has meant to the success of this trip just now. THANK YOU!
An update: thanks to a few friends and family members who reached out with recommendations, we've found a local guide for two of the three things we wanted to be sure to see while we're in Vilnius (a less sketchy walking tour of Jewish Vilnius and a tour of Paneriai Memorial Park and the surrounding area). We have a lead on someone who might take us to Linkuva as well. Once again, you guys came to the rescue and came through! Thank you for joining us on this journey!
I do wonder why the bears were eating chocolate in that sketchy tour!