Today we visited Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. We don’t usually do cities, but we were passing nearby and I’d heard good things. We came in the back way, avoiding the main roads, and found parking for just 1 euro an hour which is not bad for a capital city.

Our first stop was the castle, which involved a steep hike up but was totally worth it for the sweeping 360-degree views over the city. Vilnius is more spread out than I expected, with lots of green patches and red roofs. It didn’t feel overly built up or hectic, just a bit offbeat in a good way.

On our way to the old town, a quirky little vegan cafe caught my eye. I ordered a cake that I have no idea what was in it, but it was rich, gooey, and absolutely delicious.

We wandered into the old town next, which felt refreshingly low-key compared to other European cities. Fewer tourists, more quirks. 

One of the coolest things we came across was this high-tech portal in the square. It’s a real-time video link to other cities around the world. We stood there waving to strangers in Ireland and France, who waved back. It was neat.

After that, we just wandered, soaking in the quiet charm of the buildings and backstreets.

Leaving Vilnius was a different experience from arriving. It was rush hour and so much traffic and I think if we had come in this way, we would have aborted!

We spent the rest of the afternoon getting out of Vilnius and looking for a camping spot. We drove down some rutted dirt roads looking at places in the forest, but wasn’t feeling the vibe. So we ended up in a beautiful spot overlooking a lake.