The Hill of Crosses, Lithuania
Zagan the motorhome is in the official car and bus parking 100m or so from the Hill of Crosses, Kryzių Kalnas in Lithuanian (N56.01450, E23.40861). It costs €2.90 for a motorhome to stay for 24 hours, and Ju’s checked that includes allowing us to sleep in here. If you just want to come and see the crosses but not pay, come after 6pm, as the barriers in and out go up then and don’t got back down until 8am (or later).
Zagan’s kipping spot at the Hill of Crosses
Imagine you voted in the upcoming EU referendum, and voted for the losing side, unlucky. Then imagine being woken up in the night some months later by armed men, told to pack your stuff and get on a cattle train with your family, off to Siberia as a slave labourer. You of course might find this very unreasonable indeed, and might make an attempt to leg it, at which point you’re shot. Us folks born in freedom can’t imagine this stuff. But the Hill behind me is testament to the fact Lithuanians don’t need to imagine, it all happened to them a few decades back.
These guys were caught between the hammer and the anvil last century, one border facing fascist, capitalist Germany, the other facing a Stalinist socialist Russian Empire. For this, being in the wrong geographic location, they were made to suffer. If I believed in a god, I would thank them for the English Channel each morning before breakfast.
The Hill of Crosses, Lithuania
The Hill of Crosses is a small grassy hillock, half covered in nettles, in a plain of farmland. There’s nothing else around for miles. Stuck in it like a pin cushion are around 200,000 crosses. Most of them wooden. Some huge, hand-carved, impressive renditions of Christ, but many are simpler, smaller affairs. The shops at the end of the car park sell a range of sizes for a few Euros apiece, some with a small plaque so you can pen a message to your deity.
Hill of Crosses
The crosses are here in defiance. Well, that’s how they started out. Few aspects of history, or of life today for that matter, are simple, but it seems the oppression by the Russians and the Soviets were simple enough. Believing their system to be correct, infallible, they used whatever means at their disposal to bully entire countries to submit to it. As in other countries under the same cosh, a minority would oppose the dictators, and would be hunted and killed or deported. They’d disappear, leaving mourning families with no body to bury. Some of them came here instead, planting a cross in the hill in remembrance, and later on to send a message to the atheist Soviets: you’re not wanted.
Nice to see a Star of David represented at the Catholic Hill of Crosses
In return the Soviets would chuck the dummy, and bulldoze the place. Even under guard with a ditch dug around it and threat of arrest (with the expected unpleasant consequences), more crosses came. And they’d bulldoze it again. And so on and so forth until little Lithuania forced the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, then the number of crosses went through the roof. Why the boom in size of the cross-forest? Joy, I imagine. Joy at freedom and hope for a new future. Joy at the ability to express oneself. Joy at the release from the past. And then, I again imagine from the broad provenance of crosses, a gradual change into a place of pilgrimage. It’s a unique place, a kind of crowd-sourced monument to the past and to the future.
There are enormous numbers of crosses here, in varying styles and states
Also in the Team Zagan news today:
- We spotted the monument to the Baltic Way as we left Vilnius. Then accidentally took the turn towards it, so popped over to have a look. It’s beautiful, shame it’s not found a home in the Old Town where more would see and touch it (Ju later pointed out it’s likely on the path the actual line of people stood along).
- In preparation for the Jan 2017 Marrakesh half marathon, we’ve bought some new trainers. From a Sports Direct store in a state-of-the-art shopping centre outside Vilnius. Everyone spoke English. English music played. They cost as much as they would in England. It was very much like being in England.
- It got so hot during the three hour drive here, we jointly approved use of Zagan’s cab air con. We can confirm it works, this being the first time we’ve released the fist enough to use it. The cool air was simply beautiful.
- Ju’s worked out where we can get Charlie worm-treated in Estonia as an entry requirement to get into Finland.
- We can confirm Lithuania’s roads, at least the main ones we used to get north, are in good enough condition to drive at the speed limit. Not that we did. Apart from the stretch with a lorry slip-streaming us from about 3m away. Grrrrr.
- We can also confirm that the bugs here are big. Walnut big. And they don’t bounce from our vertical, bug-painted windscreen, the poor things…
Tomorrow, we’re off to Latvia, where again we may not have the Internet for a while, depending on whether we find a supermarket to get a SIM from. Bear with us guys. More photos from today:
Various air forces are represented here. EU member states take turns to patrol the Baltic air space
An interested but sadly abandoned building in a village where we pulled in for a spot of lunch
Motorway in Lithuania – in great condition. Oddly there were bus stops along it, and U-turn spots with the distance back to Vilnius signed
The crosses are well off the hill now, spreading out along the pathways
After the bright Western new town of Vilnius, the motorway starts in among ageing tower blocks before bursting out into countryside
Zagan and the memorial to the Baltic chain
Wood carving skills must be in strong demand in this part of Lithuania!
Cheers, Jay
Cool post!
Shame, I didn’t know about the Hill of Crosses when we were in Lithuania last year (backpacking, not in our motor home). Will have to return. If you feel like reading posts on Lithuania https://imageearthtravel.com/category/europe/lithuania/ and Latvia https://imageearthtravel.com/category/europe/latvia/
Really interesting post..again. Sadly we had to leave Croatia suddenly 10 days ago as our dear friend and neighbour had a stroke. She is okish, but glad we had the flexibility to return. Unfortunately the day we left, Larry hurt his back, so it was a stressful, painful journey back. He is recovering well now, but Bruce had another slight stroke 2 days ago and we spent a distressing tuesday night coming to terms with having him put to sleep. We went to the vets yesterday , but he was already improving and our lovely vet felt it wasn’t time yet, but we discussed the process, our wishes etc. I spent the whole visit in tears. We came away loaded with medications again and started him on them straight away……this morning, he is like a new (but very old) dog! We know it will happen at some point, but I think that now the anticipation is much worse than the event will be. Oh well, we will enjoy him while he is here. The vet assured us that he isn’t suffering.
We will certainly return to Croatia (off season), we loved the place and the people. We are planning another few weeks away this month, but staying in France…just in case. Visitors expected here at Sauvagnac during July, then a month in the UK.
Pleased that you have rediscovered your love of travelling….Lithuania sounds rally interesting and looks quite empty. Bon voyage!!
Hey guys. Hmmmm, tough times, our hearts go out to you. As you say, you have the flexibility to react to situations as they occur, which is something we’re striving to achieve too. Bruce is clearly a trooper, he’d probably be given ‘honorary Baltic’ status up here, where they are touch old folks too! Sad to hear about your neighbour, but if it turns out there is a heaven, you guys will surely end up there for how good you are to her.
Made it to Latvia today, up the coast from Riga so would probably be heaving at the weekend but lovely and quiet today. The beach awaits, our first sniff of the sea since the Adriatic, woo hoo, crossed the continent! Had a nice coffee (ground stuff for a change) and off to check out the beach with Charlie. Excited we are! We’re moving across the Baltics faster than they deserve I think, but Norway is dragging us along, we can’t wait to get up there. Must live more in the moment!
Hugs from here, keep pushing on, beach time for us, love Jay and Ju
What you described at the top (woken & taken to Siberia) also happened in Poland/Ukraine – my mother-in-law’s family were ‘removed’ after her father and uncles were shot! They lived in Nawoz, Poland (1939) now Naviz in Ukraine. Ended up in UK.
Thanks for sharing your story Ann, much appreciated, makes the whole unreal thing a little more real. Jay