I just got an early birthday present from Arunas - he had a shirt made that says 'almost true Lithuanian' on the front with 'and proud of it!' on the back. I love it! I just had to share because it's awesome and I'm sure I'll wear it at home.Plus, it has that charming 'is that correct grammar?' Lithuanian flair ;)
Friday, February 16 was a holiday celebrating Lithuania's Independence from Russia in 1918. There is another holiday in March which will fall over Spring Break, celebrating Lithuania's Independence from Russia...again...in 1991. Lithuanian flags were on the corners of every building - something nice to see for once, as flags are rarely flown here and my American eyes are used to seeing national emblems slapped on everything, everywhere. A bikini with the United States' flag on it? No problem. A bikini with the Lithuanian flag on it? No way. Anyway...They were taken down at dusk, so now the city is back to being itself - minus some color.
The holiday lent a day off to everyone and the weather was beautiful! Crisp, clear and no wind to speak of. It was impossible not to go enjoy it, so Regis and I took a trip to the Curonian Spit and strolled around taking photos. We found a homeless cat sunning itself on the concrete masses that make up the waterbreak for the harbor, forgotten changing stations for summer tourists, ice floes and a beautiful sunset from the same waterbreak that juts into the sea. I uploaded some photos to my Yahoo album, if you care to see. The lighting was perfect for taking pictures, and I've still got to steal some from Regis, so I'll post more when I get them.Some of my favorite moments are taking more than a moment to really look at something ordinary and see more to it. Whether it's the rundown building I pass on my way to the bu
s stop every morning or the war bunkers used by the Nazis still looming over the beach or the forgotten concrete relics on the Spit shore - everything has a story and is amazing when it's given a chance to speak. The fact that there is a pile of huge concrete wall fragments and other miscellaneous constructed giants just laying on the shore of the Spit in full view of the harbor may be no big deal, but when you look at them for more than a second - you wonder who put them there, when and for what purpose? What did they used to keep in or out? They certainly are no playground, with rusted rebar and holes to fall into, but they have a certain charm because they are so isolated and completely lacking anymore human interference.I watched the movie 'Everything is Illuminated' tonight, and was touched by some similarities of the Ukrainian backdrop to the story and my own experiences here. It's about Elijah Wood going to Ukraine to find out more about his Jewish Ukrainian grandfather, with the help of a young man and his own grandfather leading the way. When Elijah looks at a huge Soviet-style apartment building that has been left to decay and asks 'what is it?' - the Ukrainian young man looks at the same building and replies 'Soviets.' Elijah continues, 'what happened?' and the Ukrainian young man pauses and says 'independence.' I sometimes see the same feeling or idea in some of the landscapes that I see everyday. I intend to try to go some more places in Lithuania before I leave, to soak up as much of the scenery as I can before I leave my beloved Lietuva for a long time. Hopefully over spring break I can maybe venture to Kaunas or some other unexplored part of the country...
I've just seen something I've never seen before. Mel called me up to her office to look out her window at a parked bus across the street, where the bus driver was holding a burning stick near the tire under the bus. He then walked around to the other side and did the same to the other tire. Had something frozen and needed thawing? Was there a mechanical issue that needed a spot of flame to fix? He was not using a blowtorch, but a long branch with one end on fire. After he decided it was properly 'burninated' (a Strong Bad reference, for all you non-Homestar nerds) he calmly discarded the branch into the half-snow covered grass next to the road. I don't know whether to be glad he's trying to fix whatever is wrong, or to think about the method of repair the next time I climb aboard a bus...
I have so much to do at work! I am majorly looking forward to saturday morning when I have nothing else on the agenda and sleep, sleep, sleep is scheduled. It is snowing again outside, after a day of rain - melting the snow somewhat and turning every surface into a slippery ice hazard. I
t took me twice as long to get to the bus stop today because I had to walk in baby steps.
I have a hole in my sock, which I am debating about fixing, as it surprisingly lets in a tiny cold draft and I like the socks. The problems with that idea include the fact that the hole is big enough to let my toe through, the other sock is in danger of soon having the same problem and they're polyester, so they're smelly. I think these babies are goners. Shame too, because they're so fun. Oh well! Looks like I'll have to replace them with some Lithuanian socks!
Other than that - It's February! Everyone knows what that means! Valentine's Day is in 13 days...which then means my birthday is in 23 days! And I'll be 23! Old! Weird! Oh, and for those wishing to send me large, expensive gifts (like socks?) in honor of the occasion, feel free to contact me and I'll send you my address :)
Thank you Lithuanian pagan god of snow! He finally saw my snow dances, laughed and took pity on me. There is snow on the ground! My balcony is covered in beautiful, white, perfectly powdery snow...and it was baby blizzarding all night so everything was perfectly smooth until morning when it was trudged and driven through. No worries though, as more is on the way! I even have a fire going in my fireplace because it's pretty cold out now, a drastic 15 degree drop (C) from last week.My dinner party was a hit! Every morsel of food was gone, and someone even did the dishes for me! Preparing everything was so fun, and I had some help from those who came early. I combined two recipes for chili and it turned out great, and the lasagna was perfect as always. Custard pie is a snap to make, so I'm sure I'll be making it more often for 'events' and I would like to plan these dinner things more often. It went so smoothly - those who wanted to play poker could do so in one room, while those who wanted to watch a movie could do so in another and those who wanted to do neither could do so in the other other room. Photos will be posted soon!In other news...I 'taught' my first class today to a man who wants to improve his English. We'll meet every week day for an hour after work at LCC, and I found a great resource online with worksheets and lesson plans, so I will be more prepared tomorrow. I am also working on my own Lithuanian, but I've hit exceptions to grammar rules, plurals and all kinds of fun stuff...so it's not flying by as I had hoped. I will prevail though! Viva Lietuva!
In other other news...I worked out for the first time yesterday in...several years maybe? I almost died on the eliptical machine, but I pushed myself to hit 15 minutes so I wouldn't be such a wuss to my work out buddy who was just plugging away without a care in the world for another 15 minutes after I crawled off the machine. I'm supposed to go again tomorrow, so my days are just getting more packed and packed with English tutoring and shaping up! Here's to slim, buff Chelsea who teaches English in her spare time while volunteering at a Christian university in Lithuania!
Snow is coming! The weather forcast predicts flurries and cold 
weather - finally! Stepping outside is no longer as bearable as it used to be with the windchill factor and an official hurricane that occured last week - but if it means I get to throw snowballs and wear bundley clothing...then hooray for croquet! Anyway, enough about the weather!I am having a dinner party/poker night/goodbye to a friend event tomorrow night and I am so excited! I just took a custard pie out of the oven, and popped in two chocolate cakes to make a black forest cake. Tomorrow I'll be making lasagna and chili and some other side dishes for my 10 guests. I am so appreciating my oven at the moment and I just love to cook! I'm sure I will write a full report of the event after tomorrow :)
Ah, routine. Back to work, back to seeing friends who are refreshingly not so bogged down by homework (yet), back to Biskvitas lunches, back to...rain! 
Though, it has been devilishly windy here - while walking to the bus stop this morning against the wind, I was actually slowed down by the force of it. I've even had to resort to wearing my 'Mom, I can't put my arms down' coat because my precious pea-coat isn't up to par on cutting out the cold. Function wins over fashion for the moment...mew. And still no snow on the horizon, which I am hoping doesn't mean that for the first time in Lithuanian history (probably) a winter will pass without snow. Last year's winter was horrendous I hear, with temperatures dropping to 30 below (C, not F). Thankfully it has hovered right around 7-9 C, so not unbearable.Last night I watched a scary movie that capitalized on doors opening when you know you closed them, hearing footsteps when nobody's around and other creepola things instead of thrusting guts at your face which isn't scary, but just gross. Needless to say I was a fraidy cat, with the wind shaking the windows and my creaky wooden floors, and had to sleep with a light on. I'm 22 years old and I have to check my closets and sleep with a night light? Come on! Of course, this has always been the case, unless I had my sister or Ronan or someone to be there with me in case something spooky happened. And of course I won't stop watching such movies, because for some reason, it is almost fun to be scared...Oooogey boooogey!I received a package today from my mother full of 'essentials' like Kleenex tissues, Scalloped potato mixes, brown sugar, foundation and 3M wall hooks. Weeeeeee! Thanks, Mom!That's all - just felt like updating a bit!
What a way to spend the New Year - in Helsinki, Finland! It was my first New Year not in California in or around Lompoc, so it was a unique experience for that fact alone...but by being in Finland, it made it all the more awesome.
Christmas, too was wonderful - spending it with a friend's family made it special and again, it was one of my first holidays not in California (or WI) with my own family. Language skills were put to the test, and my belly was constantly full of delicious home made dishes - I'm sure I've gained a few pounds. Everyone was warm and kind and made me feel right at home. I baked chocolate chip cookies, which were a hit and gone within minutes. Presents were opened after dinner on Christmas eve in a free-for-all frenzy, so I got to see what everyone received the next morning when everyone was re-examining their gifts. I received generous presents from everyone, which was unexpected and lovely. Christmas dinner consisted of a specific set of 12 dishes which included lots of herring (delicious!), stuffed carp, potatoes, salads and other stuff i don't remember. Basically, there was plenty of food for leftovers the next morning to snack on. I got to see small villages in the countryside, a funny house covered in pots and bowls (pictured), old cemeteries, and rye fields everywhere.So, on to Helsinki - I was in four countries in one day! That's 4 stamps in my passport, baby! Latvia made us nervous because the lines to get in were unbelievable and the border guards were taking their sweet time checking people...talking, smoking, changing shifts, standing around...ugh! It took us almost an hour to get through into Latvia and 30 seconds to get into Estonia...our hypothesis was that it was because women were working the Estonian border. The same story goes for the drive back across both borders - 30 seconds and no line because women were working! Girl power!
Anyway - we took a three hour ferry into Helsinki, hopped on a trolley straight to our hotel - which was amazing. Our rooms were upgraded to superior class which entitled us to the use of an executive lounge with free internet and snackies, which were more than welcome in a country on the Euro with food prices much higher than our broke Lithuanian wallets wanted to handle. There was a sauna and pool, and an amazingly huge breakfast that we filled up on so we didn't have to spen
d money on said expensive food. We even brought our own stuff to make sandwiches. The weather was gloomy, but picture worthy and everything was still decked out for Christmas. Beautiful architecture was all over the city, and many parks with joggers - not a usual sight in Lithuania. There were churches everywhere - and we met the New Year in Senate Square in front of the big cathedral pictured. There was a speech by the Lord Mayor, performances by fire artists and musical groups and lots and lots of fireworks. Hooray for 2007! Photos are up in the Lithuania 2006 folder, and I will start a new folder called Lithuania 2007 for the remainder of my stay here so it's easier to distinguish when things happened and keep me more organized.
Merry Christmas to all! I know, one day late, but it's the thought that counts ;)I will be in Helsinki, Finland and Tallinn, Estonia for New Years with some friends, and I am so excited. It was a last minute plan, but it has worked out so that our hotels are confirmed and we have tickets for the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki! I have been and am going to take tons of pictures, so I will post them when I get back next week.
Unbelievable. The weather forcast for the next 10 days is "mild and clear" or "mostly sunny, perhaps light showers in the evening" - what kind of white Christmas is that? All the Lithuanians credit my wishes for snow for the good weather, but I do hope I can do a little snow dance and appeal to the pagan Lithuanian gods of winter for a baby blizzard on Christmas ;)Other than that, I've been doing work as usual, catching friends in between exams to say hello and wish them luck and sleep, as most of them look like zombies at this point. The exam week started on Saturday and continues until Wednesday, so there was no weekend in between to help relax everyone...Also, I've started handing out Christmas presents much to my delight, as they've been sitting on my dresser all wrapped and pretty for a while now and it has been killing me not to give them away. I received a big box of chocolates from my 'secret friend' today, along with cards from my mother and grandparents, so today was a lucky present day :)I've also been hitting the books (book, really...) with my Lithuanian studying...I've got to get better at saying things outloud and get over the 'oh but I'll surely make a mistake and sound dumb' mentality, as I won't ever get any better if I don't speak up. So there...if you talk to me, bug me about speaking in Lithuanian, as it will keep me accountable!I feel so lame for not posting any relatively new photos, but I just haven't taken any lately and Chad didn't send me any from the Christmas program. I promise, I'll get some more from my family's visit up soon! I've got to take a few more around here before all the study abroads ship off, so those will go up too! Last night a few of us went out with some study abroads for one last El Dorado pizza, which was fun and weird, because now I know how the LCC students feel when study abroad students come and go so soon. It feels like they should be coming back next semester. That they're only going home for Christmas and then showing up for classes again in January. But they're not. New Amerikans (and Kanadians) will be coming...
LCC's annual Christmas pageant was this weekend, and I was helping the director with various tasks and then stayed to watch the program both nights. It was about an hour and a half and very well done, with a bell choir, brass instruments, a choir, dancers, actors and a big straw horse that Mary rode in on. I have several pictures coming vicariously from other people that I will post as soon as I get them :)Also this week was the end of the Angel Tree project which included a food drive for the first time this year. Three LCC student life departments worked together to get presents for eighty needy children in Klaipeda, and food for their respective forty-five households. We split into three groups and went out to deliver the gifts and food yesterday, and I was touched by the genuine gratefullness of the families as they received the unexpected presents - hopefully it was a small light of surprise happiness on an otherwise ordinary day. This year went so smoothly, I hope the volunteer program (SEEDS) can continue this tradition in years to come to give the families something to share as a group rather than just the children have something to enjoy.The academic finals week is coming up...so my student friends are busy busy busy with final papers and studying for the exams. I so look forward to Christmas...and handing out everyone's gifts!! I'm such a nerd :)
Amazing. It's almost going to be a week without the fam here, and it feels weird. Routine is routine again, and yet I still expect to be able to walk over to the hotel where my parents were staying and see them, or wake up and have Sara be there. Not for another few months, I'm afraid! It's okay though, the visit was great and I now have something to look forward to next year.
Speaking of next year...that must mean Christmas is coming! I am so looking forward to taking a long break and having a true Lithuanian Christmas holiday! I've been wrapping presents and making a list of what I still need to get for whom. The guys are the hardest to buy for, because what do they want/need? Underwear? I would totally get some as a gag/practical gift for the guys I know...but apparently it's as scandalous as a guy getting a girl who's not his girlfriend lingerie here...so I'm going to pass on the underwear idea ;)
The break begins December 20...so essentially very, very soon! I have no idea what I'm doing for New Year's yet...perhaps Riga? Somewhere other than Klaipeda, hopefully...
Not a lot to report...the Christmas program at LCC is coming together nicely. I helped out with the practice of it today, and will be assisting the director of the pageant as much as I can during the actual performances this weekend. The lights are lit in Klaipeda, including a huge blue and white decked Christmas tree downtown. It's gorgeous! Alas, no snow yet though...which is very odd and I better get a white Christmas in Lithuania!! mew!
I know, I know...I've been slacking in the posting department. Well, the family is here! I have been having so much fun with them - we've gone to Trakai castle and Vilnius and walked around Klaipeda and eaten out at wonderful places. Robert and Sara have been enjoying themselves...mostly when my friends are around and they have someone other than their siblings to talk to. Robert has enjoyed the drinking age and the local beer and the local ladies, but all in moderation of course. Sara has enjoyed the shoes and yet she's only bought one pair, and I have acquired two darling pair of boots. I will surely take pictures and post them at a later date ;)
Robert's Oakland A's hat is read as 'Ass' here and so he's getting looks from everyone cause he's wearing one of the only words some people know in English on his forehead. So funny. My family loves the food here, and we've had some amazing dishes so far. Surprisingly enough, the hotel my parents are staying at is just a 20 second walk from my front door, and it has an excellent kitchen...and it's always dead, so my friends and I will have to eat there sometimes.We've enjoyed good weather for the most part, with only a day or two of rain...the sun is slowly coming out as I'm writing this, before we head out to Nida - a small fishing village on the Spit, where we will take a ferry to and drive up 60 km to reach. The fam leaves in two days, and it's weird to think they've been here and seen so much and spent so much time with me after not seeing them for several months, which makes me think of when I'll see them next...sometime next year...which is also weird. Mom has said that she is coming in the Spring if she can, which would be great if she can make it over here with Sara or whoever...I'm stealing all of their pictures so I can properly add to my photo album so everyone may partake of the pictage :)Off for now - I'll write more later!!
Well folks, the Autumn Break is over. My days of sleeping in until forever and doing absolutely nothing productive are through. I've been reading my books and knitting and drinking lots of 3-in-1 coffee drinks...I am okay with the end though, as I am looking forward to getting back into the routine at work and interacting with people again! So many people went home, so I look forward to their return and hearing how they spent their week off.
The weather has taken a drastic turn for the 'different' and now snow is on-again-off-again the ground and in the air. It's pretty, and just cold enough to be brisk and lovely, not blustery and annoying...but those days are coming!
My family comes in less than two weeks...and I am so looking forward to it!! I have been talking about them non-stop to anyone who will listen! Also, I'm finally sending out postcards...so for those who have been wondering 'I wonder where my postcard is?' will finally get one. For those that want to send ME a postcard, I'd truly appreciate some snail mail - so write me a note (on here, email, etc) and I'll send you my address!!
Sninga!! (It's snowing!) Not amazingly hard as of yet, but it's definitely coming down as snowflakes and not sleet. It's 2.38 am as I write this, and as I am unsure if it will stick in the morning, I took a picture of the snow stuck to the cars on
my street. I kept hearing from everyone that the snow would not come until much later, but what a both pleasant and unpleasant surprise. As a creature from California, I'm unsure how my positive outlook on the cold and the snow will hold up as both things prevail for the months ahead. For now though, I'm thinking one thing: snow fight!!
Note: It did stick and it is still snowing this evening...it's beautiful and cold and makes me long for Christmas!! The picture is the current snowfall, with more photos of the snow added to my photo album on Yahoo.
This evening, after driving around for almost an hour to find an alternate route to the cemetery because the main road was blocked, 
I was able to see the Klaipeda cemetery alight with candles in honor of All Saint's Day. It was beautiful - the headstones had candles and flowers in front of them, and the moonlight was just soft enough to make it eerie to walk among the graves. It was also very, very cold - a whopping -12° C (11° F) with some snow predicted later tonight. For this reason, we were only there for a few minutes - long enough for me to snap some photos and enjoy the scenery before hopping back in the car and heading to El Dorado for pizza and
coffee.
The week off is going well. I've spent time with friends and have been enjoying the Hallmark channel on television - quality English language entertainment ;) Also, my family comes to visit me in two weeks, which is going to be so very exciting. I can't wait to show my siblings Klaipeda and have them meet my dearest friends. Also, I finally get to show my parents what I do for LCC and have them see the school and take them to the new places I've discovered, etc. A good time will be had by all, I hope. I so look forward to it!
I feel the need to write an update, even though not a lot is going on. Fall break begins tomorrow, which is exciting because I'm looking forward to a week of sleep and relaxation :) Tons of people are leaving Lithuania to go exciting places like Spain, Ukraine, the States, Latvia, Germany, etc...whilst I will be in my little flat allll by my lonesome. Chad will be around, so I've promised to help him study Lithuanian so we're both awesome in class the following week. I'm so proud of my progress with the language. As lame as it truly is in the big scheme of things, I was so proud that I was able to translate a paragraph for a student email announcement from Lithuanian into English. And, when I see movies in the theatre, I pay attention to the subtitles and am so pleased with myself as to how much I can recognize! My friends may address me in Lithuanian and I am able to understand them, though most of the time I have to answer in English because my confidence in speaking is not as high. I just have to get over it and start spouting off in Lithuanian, or I won't learn as quickly as I potentially could be...The heat is going on today! I have a radiator in every room, so I'm hoping that the heat won't cost me a fortune, but if it means not walking around my house with a blanket on my shoulders like a cape, I'm looking forward to it! My bed is amazingly warm and comfortable, so there is no problem at night, as it's waking up that is so hard to do when I know that outside the world under my covers is cold :(I need to go shopping this week as well, as I have only a handful of sweaters, and it's getting colder. Thrift store!! Also, my precious jeans I bought here last year are worn out, so I need new ones. Oh! A side not about that...Levi's is pronounced "Lehv-is' by Lithuanians, not 'Leev-eyes' like we say. The migration office lady last week giggled when she read my last name, as there are no 'w's in Lithuanian, and so they convert them to 'v's, so my name was Miss Levis and she laughed and said to her co-worker "Pavarde Levis!" and pronounced it like the jeans brand, which apparently was hilarious...
So yesterday I went to Liepaja, Latvia. I got a call from Regis and Ruta asking 'want to go to Latvia? bring your passport, we'll be there in 3 minutes' - so naturally I jumped up, grabbed my passport and threw on a coat. How could I pass up two more stamps on the pages of my passport? It took about a little over an hour to get there, we passed through customs and into Latvia...and I learned so much more about the difference between a study abroad's experience on a tour bus going to pre-determined places with money and what not and going with spontaneous Lithuanians in a car to a smaller city...After we started driving in Liepaja, we thought we'd stop for tea at a pub somewhere...then we thought 'wait, we're in a different country, how are we going to pay for stuff?' - then we th
ought 'wait, chelsea has credit cards, perfect!' - so we stopped at kind of a rip-off of Hard Rock Cafe, where we had to pay .10 Latvian cents to use the restroom (that's $0.17) and extra for ketchup for our french fries, which took forever to come. All was well though, as the fries were good. We walked around a square with a church in it for a bit taking some pictures, and got back into the car cause it was freezing.It was funny to read the signs, because some of it is familiar to me because of the similarity to Lithuanian words and so I was able to make some of them out. When we started driving home we discovered Latvians like their roads to turn right, and right only. I got to learn the meanings of the area's road signs though, so it was semi-helpful because they are different than the States' signs in visual appearance, but mean the same things. Overall, the trip was really fun because of the randomness and good company :)
Another relaxing weekend in Lithuania...but I must remark that talking to friends back home or here even, I am still confronted with "are you homesick yet?" and "why did you come back?" and I often have to think about how I feel about answering. I am not homesick because I talk to my friends and family almost every day online or via Skype, and I have friends here to make it easier to adjust. I wake up every morning and have to remember that I will not hear English when I step outside my door. On my way to the bus stop, I walk past signs in Lithuanian and people on their separate paths to work or wherever their day will take them.
I am in Lithuania...in Eastern Europe, across the Atlantic Ocean from my home country, in a distinct culture interacting with people from different countries every day. I love it here, for all the reasons I just mentioned. I have always yearned to live in Europe for some time, and my semester here last year was just not enough. If anything, it made me fall in love with the place and people I met and only made me want to come back more. It's only October, and I have lots of time left here, but I'm making sure to reflect on the time spent with friends and here in general.
On a side note, Ieva taught me how to make sushi and they turned out great! Smoked salmon, crab sticks, avacado & cucumber with sticky rice and seaweed...Mmm!
Finally! I have adorable sheets and pillows that now adorn my bed, making it more my own! The general feel of the apartment is browns/yellows/blues, so I went with a brown/cream color combo and oh do I feel so much better about looking at my bedroom. I got some other things like throw pillows and a fuzzy blanket and more candle holders and a lamp...so now the whole place is a tad more Chelsea :)I'm so pleased and feel like my apartment is more mine than ever.
Friday, February 16 was a holiday celebrating Lithuania's Independence from Russia in 1918. There is another holiday in March which will fall over Spring Break, celebrating Lithuania's Independence from Russia...again...in 1991. Lithuanian flags were on the corners of every building - something nice to see for once, as flags are rarely flown here and my American eyes are used to seeing national emblems slapped on everything, everywhere. A bikini with the United States' flag on it? No problem. A bikini with the Lithuanian flag on it? No way. Anyway...They were taken down at dusk, so now the city is back to being itself - minus some color.
s stop every morning or the war bunkers used by the Nazis still looming over the beach or the forgotten concrete relics on the Spit shore - everything has a story and is amazing when it's given a chance to speak. The fact that there is a pile of huge concrete wall fragments and other miscellaneous constructed giants just laying on the shore of the Spit in full view of the harbor may be no big deal, but when you look at them for more than a second - you wonder who put them there, when and for what purpose? What did they used to keep in or out? They certainly are no playground, with rusted rebar and holes to fall into, but they have a certain charm because they are so isolated and completely lacking anymore human interference.
t took me twice as long to get to the bus stop today because I had to walk in baby steps.
weather - finally! Stepping outside is no longer as bearable as it used to be with the windchill factor and an official hurricane that occured last week - but if it means I get to throw snowballs and wear bundley clothing...then hooray for croquet! Anyway, enough about the weather!
Though, it has been devilishly windy here - while walking to the bus stop this morning against the wind, I was actually slowed down by the force of it. I've even had to resort to wearing my 'Mom, I can't put my arms down' coat because my precious pea-coat isn't up to par on cutting out the cold. Function wins over fashion for the moment...mew. And still no snow on the horizon, which I am hoping doesn't mean that for the first time in Lithuanian history (probably) a winter will pass without snow. Last year's winter was horrendous I hear, with temperatures dropping to 30 below (C, not F). Thankfully it has hovered right around 7-9 C, so not unbearable.
d money on said expensive food. We even brought our own stuff to make sandwiches. The weather was gloomy, but picture worthy and everything was still decked out for Christmas. Beautiful architecture was all over the city, and many parks with joggers - not a usual sight in Lithuania. There were churches everywhere - and we met the New Year in Senate Square in front of the big cathedral pictured. There was a speech by the Lord Mayor, performances by fire artists and musical groups and lots and lots of fireworks. Hooray for 2007! Photos are up in the Lithuania 2006 folder, and I will start a new folder called Lithuania 2007 for the remainder of my stay here so it's easier to distinguish when things happened and keep me more organized.
Well folks, the Autumn Break is over. My days of sleeping in until forever and doing absolutely nothing productive are through. I've been reading my books and knitting and drinking lots of 3-in-1 coffee drinks...I am okay with the end though, as I am looking forward to getting back into the routine at work and interacting with people again! So many people went home, so I look forward to their return and hearing how they spent their week off.
my street. I kept hearing from everyone that the snow would not come until much later, but what a both pleasant and unpleasant surprise. As a creature from California, I'm unsure how my positive outlook on the cold and the snow will hold up as both things prevail for the months ahead. For now though, I'm thinking one thing: snow fight!!
I was able to see the Klaipeda cemetery alight with candles in honor of All Saint's Day. It was beautiful - the headstones had candles and flowers in front of them, and the moonlight was just soft enough to make it eerie to walk among the graves. It was also very, very cold - a whopping -12° C (11° F) with some snow predicted later tonight. For this reason, we were only there for a few minutes - long enough for me to snap some photos and enjoy the scenery before hopping back in the car and heading to El Dorado for pizza and
coffee.
ought 'wait, chelsea has credit cards, perfect!' - so we stopped at kind of a rip-off of Hard Rock Cafe, where we had to pay .10 Latvian cents to use the restroom (that's $0.17) and extra for ketchup for our french fries, which took forever to come. All was well though, as the fries were good. We walked around a square with a church in it for a bit taking some pictures, and got back into the car cause it was freezing.
Finally! I have adorable sheets and pillows that now adorn my bed, making it more my own! The general feel of the apartment is browns/yellows/blues, so I went with a brown/cream color combo and oh do I feel so much better about looking at my bedroom. I got some other things like throw pillows and a fuzzy blanket and more candle holders and a lamp...so now the whole place is a tad more Chelsea :)
