Had enough of the Klaipeda, I thought, as I was ready to embrace the coming adventures. The bus station was nearby where I live, and after checking a few emails from the hostel, I head off to the bus station and board the next bus for Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. The road between Klaipeda and Vilnius is a four-lane freeway, and after passing through Kaunas, I finally arrived at Vilnius in the late afternoon.
My first impression of Vilnius was that, it was huge. Much bigger than the other two Baltic capitals, Riga and Tallinn. After dropping off my luggage at a hostel nearby the downtown area, I head off for some fun. Within a short walk north is the Gediminas castle, and by going up the hill I can see the whole view of Vilnius, quite a pretty view indeed.
Before I reached up there, I bumped into a bunch of American high-school kids who are there on a mission trip and was singing gospel song. Arousing my curiosity, I bumped into them and they started talking to me.
"Where are you from?" I asked.
"From the US." A girl answered. "We are on a mission trip here."
"Oh I see." I replied.
"So do you live in Vilnius? What do you do here?" She replied.
"No, I am a tourist, I just arrived, and I am from Hong Kong." I answered. "You know, I am a Christian as well."
"Oh that's good." She replied. "Our next destination is Minsk, Belarus."
"Oh, that should be fun." I said. "However, to get there you need a visa, and I think it is way too much hassle."
"Yes, we already have a visa." She replied.
Good for you. I thought. I really hope to visit Belarus, but fear of border hassle, I just forget about it. Plus, being Chinese looking really doesn't help, and I hate borders. It just isn't fun when a bunch of border guards try to torn out my luggage with a suspicious eyes looking at me, fear that I am an illegal immigrant trying to smuggle into their country using a fake British passport. To be honest, who want to smuggle into such a poor country like Belarus? I thought.
Anyway, after a few songs from them, I continued the walk up the castle. The scenery from there was absolutely gorgeous, as one can see the skyline of Vilnius from nearly every direction. It was amazing to overlook the skyline of Vilnius, as red-roofed houses appears over your horizon.
Walking back down the castle, I headed for more sightseeing across Vilnius. Surprisingly, in Vilnius there is a catholic church in nearly every corner of the road, the most beautiful scene is when three different churches merges together that form an absolutely beautiful picture. The best way to take such a nice picture is to find a good corner, where the three churches emerges perfectly.
Vilnius old center is big, much bigger than that of Riga and Tallinn, and nearly all buildings are baroque style, colourful and gothic. But yet, Vilnius is just as capitalistic as the other capital. The Chili Kaimas restaurant has several branches, and I ate at their restaurant for dinner.
After returning to the 
hostel, guess who I saw? That Italian men I met at the bus from Tallinn to Riga. "Hey, remember who I am?" He asked.
hostel, guess who I saw? That Italian men I met at the bus from Tallinn to Riga. "Hey, remember who I am?" He asked."Em... I think I have met you somewhere..." I replied... but realised that I did met him before.
"Remember, that bus from Tallinn to Riga?" He replied.
"Oh yes, I do. So, how long have you stayed in this hostel?"
"For a few days already." He replied.
"You come straight here from Riga?" I asked.
"Yes." He replied.
"For me, I travelled to many places before heading here, including Sigulda in Latvia, Klaipeda in Lithuania, the Hill of Crosses, etc..." I replied. "There are simply so many things to see, especially Lithuania."
As I headed up to my bed, I was like dead tired. I met a few more friends in the hostel, including a British guy, some German women and also a girl from Japan. Hostel life should be fun.
(Pic Caption: 1. Three churches with many crosses, Vilnius. 2. A street in old town Vilnius. 3. The Gediminas castle, Vilnius.)
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