VILNIUS - In Your Pocket

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10 history 1991 January 13 Soviet forces try unsuccessfully to storm the parliamentary building in Vilnius. A large crowd ensures the delegates are safe inside. However, during the Soviet bid to reclaim the media by storming the Television Tower, 14 people are killed. February 12 Iceland becomes the first country to recognise an independent Lithuania. July 31 Seven border guards and policemen are killed at the Medininkai border checkpoint by Soviet Special Forces. August 21The Moscow putsch collapses. Soviet troops leave the buildings they’ve occupied since January. Lenin’s statue is removed from Vilnius’ Lukiškių Aikštė (Lukiškės Square). A photograph of the event appears on the cover of Issue N°1 ofVilnius In Your Pocket, published on May 1, 1992.August 29 Sweden becomes the first Western country to open an embassy in Vilnius. September 2 The USA recognises Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. September 17 All three Baltic countries are re-admitted into the UN. 1992 February 8 Lithuanians participate under their own flag at the Winter Olympics for the first time since 1928. 1993 June 25 Lithuania’s pre-war currency, the litas, is re-introduced. August 31 The last Russian soldier leaves Lithuania. September 4-8 Pope John Paul II visits. 1994 December Vilnius’ Old Town joins the list of Unesco World Heritage sites. 1998 January 4 Valdas Adamkus is elected president. Adamkus, who fled Lithuania in 1944, was a senior official at the Environmental Protection Agency in Chicago before returning to Lithuania to run for president. December 21 Seimas abolishes the death penalty in response to international pressure from the EU. 21st century 2001 June 23-27 The Dalai Lama visits Lithuania, visiting various sites in Vilnius and Kaunas. 2002 February 2 The litas switches pegging from the US dollar to the euro in readiness for EU accession, into which the country is invited to join on October 9. November 22 Lithuania is invited to become a member of Nato. George Bush visits Vilnius the following day, becoming the first US president to visit the city. 2003 In the January 5 run-off election, president Valdas Adamkus is voted out of office by the 46-year-old right wing underdog Rolandas Paksas. May 10-11 A staggering 91% of the 64% of the population who turned out to vote give a resounding Yes to EU membership. 2004 Jan-April Impeachment hearings take place as president Rolandas Paksas is found guilty of violating the Lithuanian constitution and his oath as president in his dealings with unsavoury Russian business partners. April 2 Lithuania becomes a fully-fledged member of Nato and the EU on May 1. June 27 A 77-year-old Valdas Adamkus is re-elected president. July Virgilijus Alekna, whose day job is protecting the president, wins a gold medal at the Athens Olympics in the discus. December 31 The Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant says farewell to the first of its two RBMK reactors. 2007 December 21 Lithuania joins the Schengen zone, allowing borderless travel to and from other Schengen countries. December 22 The Lithuanian Television and Radio Commission bans broadcasting of the Voice of Russia radio station. Historical names The national poem of Poland Pan Tadeusz (Lithuanian, Ponas Tadas) by the 19th-century Romantic poet Adam Mickiewicz (Lithuanian, Adomas Mickevičius, pictured) opens somewhat confusingly with the words ‘Oh Lithuania, my fatherland!’ The fact that the Polish Mickiewicz referred to Lithuania as his fatherland serves as a good example as to just how linguistically — and ethnically — complicated and bewildering things are in this corner of the world. Consequently it should therefore come as no great surprise to learn that the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was ruled by somebody known as both Vytautas (Lithuanian) and Witold (Polish) whose capital was known as Trakai (Lithuanian), Troki (Polish) and Trok (Yiddish) and who spoke… Ruthenian. Vytautas/Witold quite possibly had kugel (Yiddish) and kugelis (Lithuanian) for lunch occasionally, and when he died was he buried in Vilnius (Lithuanian) and Wilno (Polish). A cause for much heated debate in Lithuania, not least among its more patriotic citizens, Vilnius In Your Pocket apologises for any bad feeling caused by what some may consider a misuse of some of the words used in this guide. There’s not a lot we can do about it. Adam Mickiewicz incidentally was born in what’s now Belarus. 2008 June Lithuania outlaws the public display of Nazi and Soviet symbols. August While most public attention is on basketball, Edvinas Krungolcas and Andrejus Zadneprovskis win silver and bronze respectively in the modern pentathlon at the Beijing Olympics. The Lithuanian basketball team reach the semi-finals but eventually come home empty handed. 2009 Lithuania celebrates 1,000 years since its name was first mentioned in written texts. January 17 With 90Lt million of mounting debts, the national airline, flyLAL, suspends all services. Dalia Grybauskaitė, the so-called Iron Lady, is inaugurated as Lithuania’s first female president on July 12. December 31 Vilnius bows out of a disastrous year as European Capital of Culture on the same day as the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant closes for good. 2010 Lithuania celebrates 20 years of independence from the Soviet Union on March 11. In a sinister U-turn, on May 19 a court in Klaipėda approves the public display of swastikas arguing that they represent Lithuania’s historical heritage, not Nazi Germany. On June 26, at the age of 77, Lithuania’s final First Secretary under the Communists and its first post-independence president dies after a short battle with cancer. Lithuania take bronze medal in the World Basketball Championship in Turkey after defeating Serbia 99-88 on September 12. 2011 Lithuania commemorates the centenary of the death of the painter and composer Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis. The country hosts the EuroBasket 2011 competition in cities nationwide between August 31 and September 18. Lithuania is defeated 67-65 by FYR Macedonia in the quarter finals in Kaunas on September 15. 2012 The Lithuania Under-21 basketball team become the European champions on July 22, narrowly beating France 50-49 in Ljubljana. Vilnius In Your Pocket vilnius.inyourpocket.com
Until August 25 Kinas Po Žvaigždėmis Translating as Cinema Under the Stars and organised by the city’s Pasaka cinema, this summer-long event shows a range of classic and art house films made over the last half century. Screenings take place on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings after 21:00 in the courtyard of the Contemporary Arts Centre (see p.13). See www.kinopasaka. lt for information on particular screenings. Until September 9 Christopher Summer Festival 2012 Artistic Director Donatas Katkus is responsible for the now well established annual Christopher Summer Festival, a veritable feast of music featuring everything from orchestral and organ works to the more obscure and unknown ends of the musical spectrum such as Gypsy swing and Senegalese drumming. Events take place in several locations around the city. Full repetoire online at www.vilniusfestivals.lt. August 1 - 30 Pasaulio Muzika Gyvai ‘12 A month-long celebration of world music including Jamaica’s Raymond Wright, OqueStrada from Portugal, Hungary’s exotic Romengo and US saxophonist Sax Gordon among others. The people who organise this and other world music events in Lithuania are doing a great job at bringing a diversity of cultures and sounds to Lithuania. The only problem is their website (www.gmgyvai. lt), which somewhat ironically if not entirely typically is, with the exception of a tiny amount of not particularly useful information in English, in Lithuanian only. Try and get a local to help. August 3 - 4 Galapagai Roko Naktys 2012 The annual Rock Nights festival comes around again, taking place on a fabulous island lake setting in the small town of Zarasai close to the Latvian border some 150km north of Vilnius. Expect a huge line-up of rock bands and performers from all over Europe and further afield, plus a raft of other associated frolics. Find out more on the festival website at www.galapagai.lt. vilnius.inyourpocket.com Galapagai Roko Naktys Sirenos’12 September 27 - October 7 This annual and at times highly recommended festival of contemporary theatre is well worth checking out. All of the necessary information in English for anyone interested in attending any of this year’s events is available on the festival website at www. sirenos.lt. events Rodrigo Garcia play Death and Reincarnation as a Cowboy, photo by Christian Berthelot August 4 - 29 Piano.lt Summer Festival A short series of concerts at the excellent Piano.lt featuring several works favouring the pianoforte as well as other related events. See www.piano.lt for more information. August 24 - 26 Mėnuo Juodaragis Another festival in Zarasai (see above), this one over two days and celebrating contemporary folk and pagan music from around 50 performers. The event will be joined by a simultaneous hot-air balloon competition taking place in the skies above. Read more at www.mjr.lt. August 25 Velomarathon Vilnius 2012 Taking the idea of the traditional marathon and transplanting it onto peddle-powered wheels, the third Velomarathon aids to promote healthy living, family values, road safety and other issues with the help of a number of bicycle-related events including a few races throughout the day. The website at www.velomaratonas.lt had basic information in English at the time of going to press and promises to publish a full schedule soon. September Vilnius City Fiesta A completely free open-air event taking place in several venues around the city, Vilnius City Fiesta features a huge variety of live music events, plus film screenings, fashion shows and much more besides. Exact dates are yet to be confirmed. Keep an eye on www.vilniusfestivals.lt for further information. August - November 2012 11
Page 1: Hotels Restaurants Cafés Nightlife
Page 4: 4 Foreword As we go to press at the
Page 7 and 8: Crime & Safety Crime is rampant in
Page 9: The Lithuanian state arose and stre
Page 13 and 14: Not surprisingly for a capital city
Page 15 and 16: Culture Opera & Ballet Opera & Ball
Page 17 and 18: Best Western Vilnius H-2, Konstituc
Page 19 and 20: Long term rental Barbacan Apartment
Page 21 and 22: Corner Hotel G-5, T. Ševčenkos 16
Page 23 and 24: stonework alongside modern convenie
Page 25 and 26: out of the kitchen. An interesting
Page 27 and 28: Argentinean El Gaucho Sano C-3, Pil
Page 29 and 30: Stikliai C-3, Gaono 7 (Stikliai Hot
Page 31 and 32: Indian Indian Maharaja B-3, Trakų
Page 33 and 34: Kalvarijų 1 H-3, Kalvarijų 1, tel
Page 35 and 36: NEW Rib Room H-3, Šeimyniškių 1
Page 37 and 38: St. Valentino B-3, Vilniaus 47/18,
Page 39 and 40: Kebabs Baku-Ceyhan C-2, Pilies 16,
Page 41 and 42: Pizza Charlie Pizza C-4, Vokiečių
Page 43 and 44: NEW Uzbekistanas A-1, Vienuolio 4,
Page 45: NEW Leičiai C-4, Stiklių 4, tel.
Page 48 and 49: 48 nightliFe Seacret C-4, Vokieči
Page 52 and 53: 52 nightliFe LGBT Soho G-4, Švitri
Page 56 and 57: 56 what to see Museums & Galleries
Page 58 and 59: 58 what to see Vilnius Picture Gall
Page 60 and 61:
60 what to see being almost complet
Page 62 and 63:
62 what to see Europos Parkas Europ
Page 64 and 65:
64 what to see Trakai First mention
Page 66 and 67:
66 what to see Sightseeing tours As
Page 68 and 69:
68 getting around Public transport
Page 70 and 71:
70 getting around Train schedule Ai
Page 72 and 73:
72 getting around Flight schedule c
Page 74 and 75:
74 shoPPing Unless you’re Latvian
Page 76 and 77:
76 shoPPing Halės Market (Halės T
Page 80 and 81:
80 shoPPing Humanitas B-3, Dominiko
Page 82 and 83:
82 shoPPing Užupio Krautuvė I-4,
Page 84 and 85:
84 liFestyle direCtory Barbers & Be
Page 86 and 87:
86 liFestyle direCtory Jaunimo Pers
Page 88 and 89:
88 health All you need to know abou
Page 90 and 91:
90 sPort & leisure Active leisure F
Page 92:
92 Business direCtory Banks SEB Ban
Page 98:
98 index AAA Mano Liza 18 Academy 1
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