Travels With Clo

Desperate for some real snow and a new Christmas Market, we booked a last minute weekend away to Vilnius, Lithuania.

The flight time is only 3 hours, and from the moment the plane came into land it felt like we were in a different world. The night before we were due to fly, the heavy snow had begun and transformed the Capital into a winter wonderland. I have never seen snow like it.

We stayed at the Hotel Panorama, next to the bus station and it was very comfortable and clean for the price. It had only cost us £50 for the two nights we were staying. We had a lovely view of some snowy trees and there were huge icicles hanging from the gutter. It was magical.

Once we had dumped our bags we headed off to sightsee. Walking through the snow was hard, and the snow was getting heavier. One of the highlights of that day was me accident my opening my front camera and seeing my eyelashes frozen!

We arrived in Uzupis, the independent art district in the middle of the city, separated by the river. They have their own constitution and there’s a gift shop where you can even get your passport stamped if you want to.

Frozen from the elements, we stumbled upon Cafe 84, an independent coffee shop where we had the best white chocolate Mochas we have ever tried. In fact, I’d say my top 3 favourite drinks ever came from this trip.

We also stopped at Gediminis Castle, the Gates of Dawn, the Palace of the Grand Dukes and the old town.

For dinner that evening, we went to Lokys, the oldest restaurant in Vilnius. The atmosphere was so cozy, and the beaver stew was incredible.

Day 2

The next morning, we tried Tinglys for breakfast at a local cafe, before catching the bus to Trakai.

Overnight the snow had kept falling, making the approximately 1.2km walk from the bus station to the castle feel like a marathon. The streets were beautiful though, all painted so colourful with huge icicles hanging from the gutters. It was unreal.

We also had a quick visit to the Chocolate Sculptures Museum, which consisted of 4 rooms decorated with life-size exhibits made entirely of chocolate.

When we finally made it to the castle, unsurprisingly the inside was closed due to the deep snow, but we got a great view of the outside and we were all alone, an Instagram we’d dream if I wasn’t so exhausted from the hike!

Trakai Castle is an island castle located in Lake Galvė. It’s famous for its gothic architecture and is only reachable by the wooden bridge stretching over the (now frozen) lake. The castle was built in the 14^th century and served as a residence for the Grand Dukes of Lithuania. However, the structure fell into disarray in the 17^thcentury and was only rebuilt in 1951. In 1962, the castle became a part of the Trakai History Museum

As it was off season, most businesses were closed. There was a man handing out discount leaflets for his family restaurant, Karališkas Sodas, so that is where we went for our lunch to try some more traditional dishes of Lithuania. We had Cepalini, a meat stuffed dumpling served with sour cream, and Kepta duona, deep fried garlic bread fingers with a cheesy coleslaw. On the way back to the bus station, we also stopped off at a local supermarket for some energy drinks and a chocolate Tree Cake.

That evening, we headed for the Christmas market and to see the famous Christmas tree. Every year, the tree in the main square of Vilnius has a theme, and this year it was a huge cake to celebrate the city’s birthday. The tree was surrounded by stalls selling chocolate covered chillis, pancakes, trinkets and white hot chocolate that tasted just pink drinking a melted Cadbury bar.

Vilnius is definitely an underrated European destinations for Christmas. Although the market isn’t very big, the shop fronts go all-out with decorations and it’s the perfect place for a quick and cheap getaway.