It didn’t start that way. We had a rough start. People turned their heads, reluctant and reserved toward someone who didn’t speak their language. I really had to put the work in to bridge that barrier.
But once I found my footing and started to understand this new place, it welcomed me with open arms. One warm, albeit crooked, hello opened so many doors – opened hearts.
I still remember the woman who showed me the traditional weaving technique and even let me try it. Or the woman who asked for a cigarette and was adamant that I take the 2 euros, because she didn’t want to inconvenience me. The whole pack was 3 euros. It was a new pack.
Or the lady whose shop was opposite my building, who invited my friends and me inside because we wanted to pet the cutest little orange cat that was always sleeping on the windowsill there. His name was Chestnut, and he was adorable.
Or my friend bringing the Christmas wafer to the square where the three of us met, to split it in good wishes, as is custom for Lithuanian Kūčios.
I don’t have a place I can pinpoint as home yet, but Vilnius took me in for a time and said to me: Make yourself at home.
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Sounds like a wonderful place! What did you study in Vilnius?
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It was! I’ll praise that city to eternity! It was magical! I did a semester abroad there, and I was in the English department at Faculty of Philology. I tried posting about my time there, but I ended up with very few posts because I was so immersed in my life there that I didn’t even have the time 😅
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Oh wow philology sounds so interesting! I had to google it but it sounds like an anthropological study through languages. I suppose living in the moment is necessary to make observations through that lens.
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Philology is my greatest love! It’s essentially a study in how humans express themselves through language and literature, but obviously, both areas are very multifaceted, and soooo interesting!
That’s very true!
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Lovely!
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😄😄
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There are always people who live a nomadic life. They don’t have permanent homes. I think a place you call home is not for everyone, too.
Love that photo. Have you stood atop there?
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You’re right! And home is an entirely subjective concept, wouldn’t even say a place.
Thanks! Yes, it’s called Gediminas tower, and you can climb it. The sunsets from there are gorgeous!
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For sure and if you’ve taken a sunset photo, you should post it here for me to see.🙏
European towers always look great to me. Looks like always in Disney movies.
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I’ll find some and post in one of my upcoming posts!
Well, a lot of the Disney places were inspired by real places in Europe, like France or Germany, so it’s actually the other way around 😄 but yes, besides that actual history and legends of Gediminas tower, it’s definitely a place to let your mind wander and imagine your own tale 🥰
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I think some European castles there are featured on Disney movies. You’re rich in that.
Every time I’m on top, my mind wanders. I love the altitude.
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Yes, they are featured, and a lot of people go visit to live out the fantasy! Not my Balkans, tho, even though we have beautiful places, castles, towers, fortresses and the like.
We share that, and I guess it’s because you see everything in front of you that is so much bigger than you. Sort of like when you have to step away from the map to be able to find what you’re looking for, the same is with going somewhere higher. You can finally put things into perspective, and even if your mind wanders, it’s with calm.
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The woman insisting you take two euros for a cigarette out of a three-euro pack is the detail I’ll remember from this. That kind of stubborn fairness tells you more about a place than any guidebook. And Chestnut the windowsill cat getting you invited inside a shop — that’s how doors actually open abroad. Vilnius sounds like it earned you slowly, which usually means it sticks.
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Yes, the stubborn fairness, Chestnut’s adorable invite, and many beautiful instances made Vilnius my loving temporary home, and in turn, Vilnius made home in my heart forever!
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I really connected with this. Sometimes we don’t feel at home in a new place because of the place itself, but because of the little kindnesses we experience there. 🤍That story of Chestnut and the Christmas wafer especially stayed with me. 🦋✨
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I’m glad you connected to this! I said it so many times: Vilnius is a beautiful city, but it’s the people and experiences there that made me love it so. 🤍
Glad you liked these stories, they’re some of my most fond memories ✨
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Wow. You met some wonderful people. Is it the small towns or is it just how people are? Meeting such people reminds us that humans are kind and generous. The world is not as bleak after all.
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