Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 (edited) Had a few days free next week, so on a complete whim, decided to book a long weekend away. I decided to take the cheapest tickets to the first country I'd not visited, and fate (or Skyscanner) has decided I should go to Palanga, in Lithuania. Hopefully nobody will turn up at the airport with a box of Maltesers now that I've given away my travel plans. From reading a bit about, there's not a great deal to do there except lie on a beach. Not being a bronzed Adonis, I'll be looking for other things to do. Anyone know that neck of the woods? I'm going to hire a motor, so I fancy a wee trip north to Latvia. Russia (or to be more precise Kalininograd) is not too far, but sadly you need to have pre-booked a visa a while ago, so that's probably off the cards unless I can bribe a border patrol chap. Belarus is probably a bit far, and I might have problems taking the car out the EU. So any ideas guys? Edited April 21, 2017 by Cardinal Richelieu 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Jo Jo Junior Shabadoo Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 You can't get Maltesers in Lithuania. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 21, 2017 Author Share Posted April 21, 2017 Just now, Joey Jo Jo Junior Shabadoo said: You can't get Maltesers in Lithuania. Ha! You're wrong. http://www.annalindhfoundation.org/members/malteser-lithuania-order-malta-relief-organisation-lithuania But I meant I hope nobody turns up at Glasgow Airport with a box of Maltesers for me. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunning1874 Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 If you're hiring a car anyway, Vilnius is a three hour drive and is great. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virtual Insanity Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 South to Klaipeda is not bad, it's a bit more isolated and less likely to be full of tourists than Palanga, plus you can go a walk along the Curonian spit which is a pretty interesting (if repetitive) slice of sand, and go and have a look over the barbed wire into Russia. There's not that much to do in Klaipeda itself, but it's nice enough. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 21, 2017 Author Share Posted April 21, 2017 Cheers Dunning. Would definitely like to see Vilnius although I'm having 2nd thoughts about the motor since the other stuff I want to see is pretty close by. But I'd definitely like to go to Vilnius at some point - would probably be quicker getting a flight from Glasgow though! And cheers also VI - I definitely want to see the Curonian spit - as it's within spitting distance of Palanga (sorry, terrible joke). Tbh, I might just do the whole thing on bike instead of hiring a car. Don't think that tourists will be too much of an issue as the temperature isn't the balmy summer weather I was expecting from a beach resort - the current weather is 7C and not likely to be much warmer next week. Whenever I head to these types of places during summer / autumn, I'm usually strutting about in a t-shirt and shorts, while everyone else is wrapped up in their winter coats - which does elicit a few strange looks (even more so than normal). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 21, 2017 Author Share Posted April 21, 2017 Sadly, I won't be able to visit the "Dancing Forest", as it's on the Russian side of the spit. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 Go on a train ride. Doesn't really matter where, they're massive great Russian things, it's like Doctor Zhivago, especially in the snow, might still be some. And I'm pretty sure a local tour company will sort out the visa for a day trip to Kaliningrad, they did from Gdansk from the other side anyway. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doulikefish Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 Klaipeda is great town for nightlife 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alert Mongoose Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 South to Klaipeda is not bad, it's a bit more isolated and less likely to be full of tourists than Palanga, plus you can go a walk along the Curonian spit which is a pretty interesting (if repetitive) slice of sand, and go and have a look over the barbed wire into Russia. There's not that much to do in Klaipeda itself, but it's nice enough. Stopped off there on my honeymoon. Interesting place with some scary locals. The statue park thing was pretty bizarre. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 13 hours ago, welshbairn said: Go on a train ride. Doesn't really matter where, they're massive great Russian things, it's like Doctor Zhivago, especially in the snow, might still be some. And I'm pretty sure a local tour company will sort out the visa for a day trip to Kaliningrad, they did from Gdansk from the other side anyway. Cheers guys. Been on trains in Czech Republic and Poland so I know what to expect. Tbf, I love that sort of thing. The toilet on the train to Auschwitz a few months back was a hole in the bottom of the train. Re: temporary visa to Russia. I would love that to happen, although from my understanding, they're more lenient to folk coming from the Polish side. But I'll smuggle over a bottle of Grant's vodka just in case I can persuade a border control guy into committing what is probably an act of treason. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 25, 2017 Author Share Posted April 25, 2017 On 4/21/2017 at 21:19, Alert Mongoose said: Stopped off there on my honeymoon. Interesting place with some scary locals. The statue park thing was pretty bizarre. Forgot to ask btw, scary in what way? Scary as in knock you out and steal your kidneys, or scary as in just give them a wide berth?! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alert Mongoose Posted April 25, 2017 Share Posted April 25, 2017 Forgot to ask btw, scary in what way? Scary as in knock you out and steal your kidneys, or scary as in just give them a wide berth?! [emoji4] Just quite a lot of street sleepers a bit worse for wear on the cheap drink. One came right up to us and shouted something in our faces but my Lithuanian is a bit sketchy. It was nice but struck me as a very 'either loaded or living on the streets' type city. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 25, 2017 Author Share Posted April 25, 2017 Ah, that's okay! Actually, from looking at it, Klaipeda seems like a much better place to stay than Palanga. And I've redecided to hire a car... it's cheap as chips and probably easier than hiring a bike and locking it up all the time. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceblink Posted April 28, 2017 Share Posted April 28, 2017 The old Soviet missile base here is worth a visit http://coldwarsites.net/country/lithuania/plokstine-missile-base-museum-of-cold-war if you hire a car 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted May 1, 2017 Author Share Posted May 1, 2017 (edited) On 4/29/2017 at 00:50, iceblink said: The old Soviet missile base here is worth a visit http://coldwarsites.net/country/lithuania/plokstine-missile-base-museum-of-cold-war if you hire a car Cheers lad. Sadly, I didn't see your message until I got back. I would have definitely liked to see that. Anyway, had a cracking time. Hiring the car was a bit of a waste of money, as I drove less than 200km and could have done it all with public transport. Visited Nida and the Curonian Spit (didn't walk over the dunes to the border as there were signs everywhere imploring you not to). Went to the Sculpture Park which I found quite eerie. Also entered a poker tournament in the local casino on the Friday night. First couple of hours nobody said a word to me. Then, emboldened by the local beer (which they were giving away free), I started talking to a guy about Tony Guoga (ex-poker pro, now Lithuanian Euro MP). Next thing you know, the whole table is chatting away to me as if we've been mates for years. Throughout the weekend, I found that Lithuanian folk are very friendly, but at the same time, quite reserved. Also got chatting to a Lithuanian lassie on Tinder. Met her for a coffee on the Saturday and then she offered to show me bits of Klaipeda that I hadn't seen. Next thing you know, I'm sitting in her car getting driven out into the woods in the middle of fecking nowhere, and I wondered whether I'd end up as a headline in the Daily Record ("Fears are mounting for a naive Scottish tourist..."). Thankfully, her intentions were noble, and she showed me some picturesque beaches and old WWII bunkers. Lovely lassie, although her English was somewhat limited, so I'd no idea what she was saying half the time. The weather was a bit cold while I was there, but during the summer months, I think it would be a great holiday destination. Even the airport, although tiny, was great. Cheap food, drink, accommodation etc, everyone very friendly. Smashing place. Edited May 1, 2017 by Cardinal Richelieu 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted May 1, 2017 Share Posted May 1, 2017 27 minutes ago, Cardinal Richelieu said: Also got chatting to a Lithuanian lassie on Tinder. Met her for a coffee on the Saturday and then she offered to show me bits of Klaipeda that I hadn't seen. Next thing you know, I'm sitting in her car getting driven out into the woods in the middle of fecking nowhere, and I wondered whether I'd end up as a headline in the Daily Record ("Fears are mounting for a naive Scottish tourist..."). Thankfully, her intentions were noble, and she showed me some picturesque beaches and old WWII bunkers. Lovely lassie, although her English was somewhat limited, so I'd no idea what she was saying half the time. You know the score. Pics... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted May 1, 2017 Author Share Posted May 1, 2017 (edited) 10 minutes ago, welshbairn said: You know the score. Pics... Heh. I am fully aware of convention here, although since she was talking about a holiday in Glasgow (I think - she might have been talking about the price of potatoes for all I know) I'm going to demure edit: currently trying to explain to her about "taps oan" / "taps aff" ... it is slow progress. Edited May 1, 2017 by Cardinal Richelieu 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted August 29, 2019 Author Share Posted August 29, 2019 15 hours ago, geeraas said: For anyone wondering what city to visit this autumn I really recommend going to Vilnius. By autumn the weather here in Vilnius gets very nice (mostly warm or slightly chilly). Best time to discover city attractions and natural parks, plus there is tons of free events and concerts on autumn here. On "link removed" you can find lists of must see things and also awesome premade walking routes of the city that I found very helpful Do you aye? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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