Vilnius is the center to explore Europe

Hi there!

My name is David Moses and I am from two beautiful islands of India named Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

This blog is dedicated to my feelings, experiences and stories about life along with my studies and my travels in Europe. I’d love for you to join me on this journey and explore local cultures, cuisines, history and mythology.

As I was born in an island I was surrounded with many beautiful places like cool beach to chill out, natural forest to hike or explore, lonely roads to take a ride, and natural parks to get fresh air. So, from my childhood I was eager to go to new places and fully explore it.

I adapted this habit from my Dad, he is a business man. So he have travelled almost all places in India. During our every summer vacations we planed to see some states in India and we travel and explore it. Because every part of my country have different kind of culture, food, language, totally different in everything. So I begun my travel experiences in this way.

Lithuania

Later, for my higher studies I choose Europe as my destination, that too in Lithuania. I think I have chosen correctly, other than good quality of studies in an affordable fees and cheap living cost comparing to western European countries, it have lots of historical places in Old Town in the capital of the country (Vilnius):

• Cathedral and its square,
• Gediminas Castle,
• University campus,
• Pilies street with the 16-18th century historical and architectural monuments,
• Gothic corner of Vilnius with The Church of St. Anne and The Church of St Francis and St Bernardino (Bernardine Church),
• former Town Hall square,
• the The Gates of Dawn with miraculous icon of Virgin Mary,
• spectacular Baroque of The Church of St Peter and St Paul.

You can enjoy the city with some traditional foods also like - Cepelinai - the most famous national dish of Lithuania, traditional dark rye bread, traditional smoked sausage, Baroque tree cake (šakotis).

Not only Vilnius is the place to see in Lithuania. Kaunas is the 2nd biggest city in this country and it was the capital of Lithuania until the Second World War.

You can visit there The Old Town of Kaunas with its St George's church, castle ruins, Theological seminary, the Town Hall Square, the Jesuit church, the Cathedral, the Church of Vytautas and the Perkunas House. Visit Ciurlionis Art Museum.

During spring in 2016 on certain day we planned to go to Trakai, it was almost unplanned trip. Weather in Lithuania is not stable – it sounds weird right? But it is like that. If you plan something according to weather forecast, most of the time you will end-up in sad, weather won’t support you most of the time.

So I and my friends visited the 15th century Insular Trakai Castle housing an exhibition on prehistoric findings and the 17-18th century applied art, the way of life of the Lithuanian Grand Dukes, and the Karaites, brought to Lithuania from the Crimea. And sailed in boat to see around the castle fully from backside also. Lunch at the restaurant with charming Castle view. We ate Kibinai & Šaltibarščiai – most popular national dish of Karaite cuisine.

After spending almost one year in Lithuania I and my close friend Andrew planned to see and enjoy something new in other parts of Europe during summer vacation. But we had limited money in our account, sometimes we forget that we are still students and our parents are sourcing us. We decided to visit all the countries in South-east Europe of Schengen area.

Poland

We planned a budget trip and a booked a tickets of buses and hostels according to plan. I still remember the first trip in the Europe that I took with my friend. Year ago, my friend and I went to Warsaw, Poland to begin our tour and enjoy our vacation. We had been planning this trip for two weeks. During these two weeks we made hotel reservations and bought food and beverages, very necessary things to travel (torch, first aid kid, etc. ) for the trip. Finally, one Friday we left at 6 p. m. to Warsaw and arrived around 6 a. m. next morning. As soon as we arrived to the bus station, we started to find the way to city centre to get fresh and exchange our currency. Before start our trip we have googled and come to know that there was a student’s discount on public transports, so any how we managed to get into the city.

Walking around the Old Town – especially Castle Square – is a fascinating experience because almost all of what you see is new even if it looks authentic. Most of the city was razed to the ground during the Second World War, and that makes for a rather surreal visit. We are not much interested in history so we didn’t liked to visit museum and waste out time. Much to the chagrin of locals the one building that really dominates the skyline here in Warszawa it is the Palace of Culture and Science. It is very near to central railway station and new city. Around 11:30 a. m. we were little bit tired and hungry too, so we found one Turkish Kebab shop near the Palace of Culture and Science, I appreciate that person, he was very helpful and so kind to us. Just a short walk from Castle Square you’ll find the Presidential Palace, an elegant classicist building that has been rebuilt and remodelled several times once serving as private property for several aristocratic families.

After eating kebab we gained some energy and stated our steps towards Lazienki Park, it is the largest park in Warsaw and the name means baths thanks to the bathing pavilion that was located on these very grounds. The park is also part of the Royal Route, which was a communication route that ran southward from the Old Town back in the days when snail mail was the only way to get urgent messages across. We spend lot of time in this park, because it’s amazing and you won’t even think of coming out of it. But we had a bus to Krakow by 5 p. m. so we reached the station back and took a bus to Krakow.

Around night 11:30 we reached Krakow bus station, we were little bit afraid because it’s very late and we didn’t know anything about the state. Upon this, we have to find our host from couchsurfing. Yes, we didn’t book hostel in Krakow we tried couch surfing. But not simply I am saying it was our best experience, our host was from Iran and his girlfriend is local, they were really friendly and amazing, no one will do these much to someone who meets for first time. We never felt like we are outside the home or in a tour.

On next day morning we took our walk to old town. Krakow was a clear favourite of many and given these high praises I wondered how it would all hold up in person. There is certainly more to Poland than just the city of Krakow and the country deserves more time of a traveler to experience its diversity. Yet I’m going to admit it - I utterly fell in love with Krakow. It’s a must-visit on any Poland itinerary, and if I were to formally draw up a top 10 of Europe list, Krakow would make the cut.

Exploring cities on foot is my favorite way to get familiar with a city. Krakow is no different and it’s an easily manageable city to walk everywhere. Here are some of the things I saw on my strolls: Rynek Główny. It seems like a natural starting point. It’s the centre of Krakow and is huge - the largest medieval square in Europe. From this angle we’re looking at St. Mary’s Basilica. But here’s the thing - in most European cities, these would create the boundaries of the main square. But on the other side of that building (called the Sukiennice, meaning the cloth hall) is the other half of the square! The Sukiennice is worth visiting for its museum. If you want to get away from the main tourist area, cross the river to get to the cool Kazimierz district. I headed this way to see the Plac Bohaterów Getta (translates to Ghetto Heroes Square and pictured on the right, below). During WWII, the Jews were forced out of Kazimierz into the Podgórze ghetto which was here. This square was also where Jews were rounded up and sent out to death camps.

Till these it was evening so we went back to our host`s flat, they did everything for us, we had a dinner together. I cooked Indian food for them, altogether we are about 15 people had dinner together and had a very good talk with different types of people from different countries.

Great travel experiences aren’t necessarily great fun. Second day in Krakow we went to Auschwitz: you don’t exactly enjoy walking through the corridors and scrubby wastes of the former concentration camp, but it will certainly make a lasting impression. The horror still echoes around the walls; the cabinets full of used toothbrushes, Zyklon B canisters and human hair send shivers down the spine.

Czech Republic

Than next day morning we moved to Prague, Czech Republic. Prague has been nicknamed the "city of a thousand spires". As you glance over its 1, 100-year-old skyline you'll be rewarded with countless splendid views of lovely domed churches and soaring old towers that combine to make Prague one of Europe's architectural gems. Everywhere you look, fine examples of Gothic, Baroque, Renaissance, and Art Nouveau styles dot the city, providing a dramatic contrast to the medieval Prague Castle.

In Prague we had some bad experience more than our enjoyment, some or other bad news should be there in a good events, than only it means you are going in a good way, because it was our first foreign country tour. For example, we lost our camera in the old city, and we forgot to book our next bus to Bratislava, and we booked our hostel but it was very far from the city.

Anyhow, we took rest whole day and woke up next morning and went to old city to forget our bad time and enjoy the trip again. We begin with the Prague Castle, within the castle walls are a number of Prague's most popular tourist sites, including St. Vitus Cathedral, St. George's Basilica, the Powder Tower, the Old Royal Palace, and the Golden Lane.

Then, we went to one of the most recognizable old bridges in Europe, magnificent Charles Bridge (Karlův Most) boasts 32 unique points of interest along its 520-meter span. The Clementinum (Klementinum), one of the largest collections of historic buildings in Europe, is home to the National Library of the Czech Republic. The historic center of Prague, the Old Town (Staré Město), is where you'll find the splendid Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí), one of the best places to begin exploring the city.

Prague's Jewish Quarter was originally located in the Castle District but by the 1200s had spread to the Josefov area and was for centuries regarded as a slum. A highlight of Prague's New Town (Nové Město) district - an area that grew out of the city's need to expand as it prospered - is the wonderful Wenceslas Square (Václavské náměstí), home to the National Museum and numerous other architectural treasures.

Slovakia

Again, we moved to Bratislava, Slovakia. Till these we were totally exhausted, we drained almost our energy. Because we have to walk everywhere and not much time to take a rest. Than we motivated our self like it is usual in traveling, somewhat it will be uneasy now, but our memories will be great like that.

Now in Bratislava we planned to do camping near river side, again problem rises here, it was raining little bit and it was windy too. We didn't think of these before while planning our trip. But we managed to spend out our night.

Bratislava is an affordable, fun, and easy day out. Old abuts new in this vibrant city, where 18th-century buildings line the streets of the old town and Soviet era architecture sits not far beyond. Started our tour from the pedestrian-only 18th-century old town, where we found the old town hall, home to Bratislava City Museum, and Michael's Gate from the original medieval fortifications, as well as many restaurants and sidewalk cafes. Another top attraction is Grassalkovich Palace, where the president of Slovakia resides, and if you feel like getting back to nature, hiking trails lace the surrounding Little Carpathian Mountains, close to the city.

And it’s also a city of lots of funny statues, everywhere in the city you can find it. You can’t imagine there will be something, so if you are going please be very careful or else you will miss many things.

Hungary

Finally, we reached our final destination of our tour, Hungary, Budapest. First look should be always be the best look. Budapest have proved it. Once we step down from the bus in international bus terminal, it was like airport. It was amazing, and we found the place where we booked our hostel to stay, it was in city centre.

Budapest is affectionately known as the "Paris of the East". It sits in a beautiful location astride the Danube River and is one of the most picturesque cities in all of Europe. Although this was a long day trip, it's worth it for the wealth of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. You'll find there breathetaking architecture spanning styles from Baroque to Neoclassical and Art Nouveau. You will have the chance to soak in the city's famous therapeutic springs.

Top attractions here include World Heritage-listed Castle Hill, home to the 18th-century Buda Castle, the late-19th-century Fisherman's Bastion, and Matthias Church. The magnificent Parliament buildings, Heroes' Square, and City Woodland Park, home to an impressive line-up of museums as well as the stunning Vajdahunyad Castle. You could spend days here exploring all the cultural jewels.

And we saw many of the city's most famous landmarks. Vajdahunyad Castle, the Parliament Buildings, Heroes' Square, and the Opera House are just some of the highlights. Nightlife in Budapest was amazing, you can buy anything in cheap rate comparing to other countries. Main thing is most their food culture – Gulyás which was my favourite.

We end-up our tour in very happy way but only thing which I cannot explain and if I explain also you cannot understand, that much tired we were, continues walk and restless enjoyment.

The next day, afternoon, we returned to Vilnius.

This was my unforgettable trip with my friend.