Lithuania: Road Trip - Lithuania, Day 4: Vilnius and Paragliding
The name Lithuania was mentioned for the first time in the Annals of Quedlinburg in 1009. By the end of the 14th century, Lithuania was the largest country in Europe. The Kingdom of Lithuania was formed by numerous tribes living in the area at that moment. Today Lithuania has a population of about 2.8 million people, and the land area of 65300 square kilometres.
In the morning I went on a short walk around the city. I also visited the The Republic of Užupis, a district in Vilnius, that on April 1, 1997 declared itself an independent republic. Before noon, we all visited the expositions in the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania and then we drove to Birštonas. It was time for winch paragliding. We all experienced it for the first time and we liked it. Ana and Maja did a tandem flights, while Rok, Tadej and me did a two solo flights. We finished the day with dinner in Birštonas and beers in Vilnius.
The first point of the Užupis Constitution says: "Everyone has the right to live by the River Vilnelė, and the River Vilnelė has the right to flow by everyone", so I decided to cross the Vilnia river and check it. You can also see a glimpse of it on a video below.
Uzupis: The world's smallest republic in the middle of Vilnius.
Literatų street is a short narrow street mostly known for public display of decorative and artistic plaques dedicated to writers who have lived and worked in Vilnius or otherwise have shared a connection with Vilnius and Lithuania. The artwork was first added in 2009 when Vilnius was designated as the European Capital of Culture and has grown to some 200 plaques.
After the breakfast we visited the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, where we were able to see the history, archaeology, architecture, weaponry, everyday life and some other exhibitions. Luckily for us, all free of charge.
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| We drove to a field near Birštonas, where we decided to do some winch paragliding. |
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| The winch guys arrived and Rok was ready to break the ice. |
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| The rope pulled him and he managed to take off like a pro. |
Rok soon vanished in the clouds.
Rytis draw us a map of the road and explained us the tactics, when the car was driving through curves. Meanwhile Rok enjoyed in his flight.
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| Tadej was 2nd in line for a tow. As first few meters are the most surprising ones, he did manage to say a few interesting word during the take off. |
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| Flying between the clouds and above the flat Lithuanian surface. |
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| Rytis and Ana during take off. |
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| Preparing my Tenor. |
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| Before the screaming. |
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| The machine with the winch. |
My turn.
While I was landing, Maja took off.
Maja in her comfort mood. But not for long, as Rytis did some nice manoeuvres in the air. Ask Maja for screaming videos.
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| Rok's 2nd flight. |
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| Drone also decided to join us in the air. |
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| The last flight of the day. |
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| The grass between the strings managed to made my wing unsymmetrical. |
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| Above the meanders of Neman river. |
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| Paragliding in Lithuania - ticked. |
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| After the paragliding, we visited Birštonas. |
Local park and neo-gothic style church dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua.
We deserved it.
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| Happy people. |
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| Road Trip - Lithuania, Day 4. |
- The Narrowest Street in Vilnius, Virtual, GC89150
- The Užupis Art Incubator, Virtual, GC891XH
- Literatai Street - BYOP, Virtual, GC8920R
- Sv.Jonu baznycia/Church of Sts Johns, GC3QEMX
- Birštono Šv. Antano Paduviečio bažnyčia, GC5WDNH
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