We normally do not combine days and only report on travel days if there was anything significant. Day 1 bled into Day 2, so we can barely delineate between the two. Oh yeah, that and it was significant in that we were nearly to the point that we weren’t sure we would be making the journey!
Oh yea, one other unique difference in this trip… it’s not just us, but 3 of our cousins are going with us as well, for a five person trip.
The day started off with a nice breakfast provided by Sondra & Blake. Our driver arrived on time, loaded the bags, and we made our way to the airport.
Upon attempting to self-check in, the machine couldn’t find our reservation. So we proceeded to an in-person agent. After she tried to check us in, she said she couldn’t either so she called for technical help to do so.
And we waited. And waited. (the woman sheepishly admitted that during her first call she thought she was on hold but after 10 minutes realized that they’d hung up on her. We would be mad about it, but it was funny and she saved the day later!)
After her long call, she explained that she couldn’t check us in because we booked through Brussels Air, and her computer system had no control over the booking due to that. With the slight change in schedule, and her unable to touch the reservation, that we had to contact Brussels Air for help. (The short explanation is that we booked through Brussels as it was cheaper than United. As they are a code share partner of United, we didn’t expect any issues when United changed the flight time by a few minutes months ago.)
Jay called Brussels Air for help, and they kept telling her to call United to fix whatever the problem is since it’s a United flight. For a good bit of the 21 minute phone call, the person kept repeating two things – United needed to fix the problem, and that we needed to hurry up and check in because the flight time was getting closer.
Neither of those were helpful, especially hearing it over and over. Finally, customer service said everything was fixed and that we should check-in. But we couldn’t because there were still issues. And we tried checking in about 10 times and each attempt failed. A transfer to a supervisor (who started out with the same answers) and the patience and determination of our new friend at the United counter, we were finally able to check in.
We’re TSA pre-checked and there were no lines so we should have breezed through security right? It wasn’t quite a breeze as we now know that gummy bears appear strange on xrays. Funny as the guy in front of us had a bag searched for the same reason!
After the drama/stress of getting to the gate, we crossed our fingers that we were done with the drama and that we were on our way to Europe. And thankfully we were!! We had a quick stop in Dulles and then a somewhat short layover in Brussels.
Getting off the plane, Tim said “you know, the last time I was here I bought bread from a man in Brussels”. *crickets* “and as I recall he was six-foot-four and full of muscle”. *still crickets* For those of you who are fans of 80’s music, you get it and you thought it was funny. If you aren’t fans of 80’s music…..we don’t know what to say, you must be reading this at work… and knowing how men at work are… well, just go back to work.
With the 8-hour time difference and the timing of our flights, we truly don’t know when one day ended and the next started. What we do know is that it was a long day (or two) with only about 2 hours or so of sleep on the plane, after which we were ready to get to the hotel.
Buuuuut….we had an excursion booked to start about 2 hours after our plane landed. Why not hit the ground running, right???
So after about an hour and a half to rest up, we took off on the 9/10ths of a mile walk to the excursion, which was the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights, also known as the KGB Museum. To understand this, we’ll give a quick history lesson.
Lithuania has been ‘occupied’ for centuries, meaning they have been under control by another country, mainly Russia, Germany, and Poland. The most recent Russian occupation lasted 51 years until the fall of the USSR, which is also when Lithuania ‘gained their freedom’ as it currently exists. When a country was occupied by the Soviets, bad things happened. There was little to no regard for people.
The KGB Museum in Vilnius is interesting because it was not only the KGB headquarters where KGB crimes were planned, but also an interim/pre-trial prison. The holding cells are in the basement and are small, dank rooms. We later saw the execution room where over 1,000 prisoners were executed, with a large portion whose crime was resisting the Soviet occupation.
We’ve seen Soviet/KGB museums in previous travels, and it will never cease to humble us when we consider the freedom we have and the terrible oppression other countries have overcome. One sobering moment was looking at an exhibit called “Faces”, showing pictures of Lithuanians who are either currently in prison in Russia (the length of their sentence was included on their photo) or who are facing imprisonment in Russia (the length of their potential sentence was included).
As we were looking at the exhibit, we saw a quote that caught our eye because it referenced the release of several prisoners in August 2024. Despite having declared independence a little over 30 years ago, citizens are still subject to prosecution by the Russians. Unfathomable.
A memorial outside of the museum also seemed to receive current attention, with fresh flowers.
We met our guide Tomas in the hotel lobby for an overview of our trip as well as our driver to the next excursion. One of the first questions he asked was why we chose Lithuanian….did our family have roots here? Apparently this isn’t considered a destination unless your family was in Lithuania at any time.
Our evening excursion was to the Vilnius Television Tower. This is a great example of a country being able to capitalize on something from the USSR days as the TV Tower has been converted into a tourist attraction. It is one of the tallest structures in Europe and, at 326.5 meters/1071 feet, is taller than the Eiffel Tower.
The memorials shown above is because there was an altercation between the Russians and the locals at one point, and 14 people were killed here at the TV tower.
The 67th floor now houses a restaurant, a bistro bar, and a 360 degree observation deck. Depending on the season, one can opt to ‘walk the edge’ as well. This consists of wearing a bunch of safety gear, being tethered to the tower, and then literally walking to the edge of the observation level. We didn’t do that, but we did have a small meal at the bistro bar and then made a quick loop around the external observation deck.
We ran into a young couple on the observation deck who asked where we were from. As soon as we said “US” they said “oh, did you have family here”? When we said no they looked a bit perplexed. So maybe this really isn’t a normal destination?? Anyway, it was a bit chilly with the strong wind, but a beautiful panoramic view of the city!
After this long day… or two days…. we were extremely happy to get back to the hotel and rest.
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