|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Harinder Singh Bedi recounts his visit to Vilnius where the old jostles with the new
Nestled on top of Poland and Belarus and below Latvia and sandwiched between two parts of Russia—on the East being Russia proper and to the West being the Kalingrad region of Russia—is the lovely state of Lithuania. Vilnius, it’s capital, is now a Unesco World Heritage site. It is a fascinating mix of old and new, a pagan heritage and Christian traditions. A bustling city with fabulous hotels and business centres, sports and entertainment complexes all intricately woven into a network of forests, churches and russet-tiled rooftops. With a population of 5,40,000, one of the oldest cities stretches along both banks of the fast-flowing Neris, though it is named after river Vilnia. Dotted with many buildings in the late Gothic and Renaissance style built in the 16th century, it has more than 40 churches. There is a story about the founding of Vilnius. Gediminas, Duke of Lithuania, had a dream about an iron wolf howling on top of a hill. The high priest advised the Duke to build a castle on the hill and a grand city around it so that the ‘iron wolf like sound about this great city would spread around the world’. The Vilnius coat of arms is of St. Christopher wading in the water carrying the infant Jesus on his shoulders—this picture is quite similar to that of that of baby Krishna being carried by Vasudev across the Yamuna! The old town, the historical centre of Vilnius is one of the largest in Europe covering an area of 3.6 sq km. A number of most valuable historic and cultural sites are concentrated here.
The main tourist sites are Gediminas castle and the Cathedral Square— symbols of the capital. They are the gateway to the historic centre of the capital. The first church was built in the cathedral square on the site of a pagan temple (Perkunas Temple with the eternal fire) in the 13th century. The entrance to the cathedral is crowned by three imposing statues which were destroyed by the Soviets and subsequently recreated in 1996. The Cathedral Square is the most popular landmark and the place to meet in Vilnius. The huge compound is almost never empty. Vilnius is a city of countless spires, domes and crosses. The Church of the Holy Spirit has the miraculously preserved bodies of Saint Anthony, Ivan and Eustachius who died for their faith in 1347 and can still be seen underneath their shrouds. The belfry of the Church of St John is the tallest building in the Old Town at 63 metres. A beautiful and moving painting The Compassion of Christ with a novel depiction of two shining rays diffusing through Jesus’ heart is displayed in the Dominican Church, but is being demanded back by the original church, the Church of Christ’s Compassion which was recently restored and is located just a few metres away on the same street. We paid our respect at The Gates of Dawn with the gold and silver Virgin Mary is a Mecca for Eastern European Catholics for its reported ability to cure and perform miracles. The Vilnius University is a breathtaking campus which houses 21,000 students. It is crammed with beautiful historic buildings, libraries, ceremonial doors, classrooms and yards (named after famous local poets, artists, authors and architects) and, of course, churches. Our visit to the local state Russian built hospitals was quite an eye-opener. Though the buildings are very drab from outside, but equipment wise they are second to none. The spanking clean corridors would put any five-star hotel to shame. Medical care is up to the mark. A number of International restaurants with excellent cuisine are available. They range from Mexican to Chinese to Japanese sushi to Middle Eastern to Italian – and yes there is a fine Indian joint named Sue’s Indian Raja owned by retired Wing Commander Rajinder Chaudhary. The local cuisine is also very adventurous and varied. It has been said that Luthiana has more recipes for forest mushrooms than the number of its inhabitants. The ways of preparing potatoes has come down to a fine art, intricate and time- consuming and, yes, delicious. We tasted the national dish, cepelinai, or potato pancakes smothered in homemade cream—it is devilishly exquisite— and sure to give heart disease. The local bread is probably the finest in the world. Every block has numerous pastry shops with poppy milk, cranberries and delicious tarts. A busy nightlife beckons the visitor with bars, casinos and nightclubs abounding. In Vilnius there’s no ‘could have danced all night’. The Lithuanians do! All of Lithuania, especially Vilnius, is a haven for dance and song. This is only to be expected in a country famous for its folk songs and singing festivals, a country with the first-ever monument to the talented musician Frank Zappa. It was the ‘Singing Revolution’ on August 23, 1989 when 200,000 people joined hands in a human chain from Tallinn to Vilnius – and they were singing! This nation of music and rhythm continues to savour its deep tradition. In any given week you can swing to jazz or take in some of the finest classical music in Europe. Vilnius has symphony orchestras , an opera and ballet company and an impressive array of chamber music and contemporary composers. The Philharmonic is one of the major venues for concerts. For the Gen Next swinging all-night bars add glamour and pizzazz. Twentyeight kilometers from Vilnius is the fairytale lake castle of Trakai where we spent an enchanting evening. It has been the locale for various films, including The New Adventures of Robin Hood. The castle was the
residence of the Grand Duke. It is built on an island in Lake Galve
and is connected to land by a 500-metre wooden bridge. It has six
watchtowers with a breathtaking view from each. |
||||
|
|
||||
