A Journey through Lithuania 4
Our time in Kaunas has finished. The shopping was great! Our bags are full of things we bought in Mega and Akropolis, so now it was time to head West towards the seaside. But before that I had planned to take my British friend to the Live Archeological Days Festival in Varnupiai in order for her to have some idea how the first Lithuanian tribes lived long before Christianity. Lithuanians have retained lots of elements of their pagan religion along with Christianity and it is nice to have a good idea about these if one wants to understand Lithuanians better.
There is no motorway to Varnupiai. The narrow road goes straight through the picturesque countryside. Have a look at what we saw on our way!
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We started off early the next day on our journey. We travelled through open countryside and wooded areas. This was a real experience for my British friend as she had never seen a ‘proper’ wood before. She was surprised that Lithuanian woods differ from the British ones. As the road goes directly through the wood you may notice a sign warning to beware of wild animals. |
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We passed plenty of crosses on the way. Lithuanians are known for their cross-making. Lithuanian crosses are very specific as they combine Christian and pagan motives. Before Christianity such ‘crosses’ were found in every steading and were called the ‘tree of the world’, a sort of cosmic link connecting heaven and earth. Here you can see St. George and the dragon. |
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This one is of the Pagan God Perkūnas (Thunder) with a yellow arrow of lightning and the SUN – above him. |
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This is the closest to Christianity as one can see ‘Jesus’. Lithuanians call him Rūpintojėlis, which means ‘guardian’, ‘the one that worries’. |
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A stone used in pagan times. It has a horseshoe print on it and archeologists guess it was used for sacrificing. |
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You may be surprised to find a monument to the Lithuanian freedom fighters in the woods, in the middle of nowhere. Well, in fact, it commemorates local people, miško broliai, (brothers of the wood) who hid in the forest to fight the Russian forces. |
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A beautiful artefact of Lithuanian woodcraft: an arrow indicating direction towards Iglė lake. |
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Another characteristic feature of Suvalkija’s steadings is this mill. These are for decorative purposes only and can be found made of stones, bricks or wood. |
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Figures of wooden men like this are found everywhere. We particularly liked this one, smoking and holding a pot of flowers. He reminded us of the tinman in the ‘Wizard of Oz’. |
