Helsinki & the Baltics

One thing about the Baltics is that the usual wx is changing. The predicted precipitation every day is usually close to zero. Yet just about every day we get some rain; sometimes sprinkles, sometimes a cloudburst, and occasionally much more. The locals say that it is not supposed to rain much, if at all. Hmm.
We spent the morning walking the Old Town with a local guide (she used to lead tours for Elder Hostel but stays close to home). We were able to tick off the likely top 10, at least from the outside: Sts Peter & Paul Church, the Cathedral & Bell Tower, the Presidential Palace, Vilnius Univ, Site of the Ghetto (long since gone), the corner of St Anne's/St Francis/St Michael's (former), the Republic of Uzupis, and lastly, the Gate of Dawn.
On the street that led to St Anne's, the paving was brick and there were almost no windows on the street. Turns out that the mayor instituted a "window tax" to pay for some municipal improvement and the smart folks bricked in the external windows and opened windows on the interior courtyard.
We did see the interior of Peter & Paul ("One of the top ten most beautiful interiorson the world") which like most baroque churches is chock-a-block with stuff. The churches only saving grace is that it is not gilded or even painted. Kind of Puritan Baroque.
According to our guide, the ship carrying the reredos for the main altar sank in a storm, so the builder hired an artist to quickly paint a huge canvas to hang in its stead. The subject was the apocryphal meeting of reconciliation in Rome before they headed off to their separate executions in Rome ca. 64 C.E.
Yesterday, I alluded to Gediminas and the Wolf. According to tradition, ca. 1320, Grand Duke Gediminas (a Pagan) was traveling and stopped for the night. He had a dream that a Wolf appeared on a nearby hill in armor and howled like 100 wolves. In the morning he asked Seer what the dream meant. The answer was that Thor wished him to build a castle on the hill big enough so that anyone within the sound of 100 wolves could see it. G did, and it still stands today as the impetus for the city of Vilnius. Unlike most capitals, it is neither a seaport nor on a navigable river, but who's going to say no to Thor?
In the afternoon, we went out to a goat farm to meet the owner, Dalia Emuzyte, sample some of her organic cheese from her 500 goats and meet the girls.
Dalia has an interesting story. After the Russkies left in 1993, anyone who could demonstrate land ownership pre-1940 could either get it back or receive like compensation from the State. She couldn't get the original land but she & her two siblings received a land grant on which she started a goat farm (no prior goat experience). She has been tremendously successful over 30 years, even received a medal from the Lithuanian Government.
We tried 15 cheeses in various presentations and some homemade Vodka (called "Samagon"). All delicious. Regrettably, we met only one of the girls due to organic farming restrictions.Читать далее