Day 33 - Klaipeda and Palanga

We woke up at 6am and set about packing pretty much all of our belongings to go to Palanga. We were only going away for 5 days but with Georgia getting extras and us taking beach, summer, and rain clothing it meant pretty much her entire wardrobe and most of ours. We drew the line at potty though. Georgia woke up around 6 as well and followed us around to make sure we would not leave her.

The ride was pretty good. Georgia fell asleep right away and we were entertained on the way to Kaunas by the many billboards on the way. And from Kaunas, where there is the only official highway in the country, we went at 140km/h, which made the rest of the way a breeze. Halfway through the trip Vitalik called us and said they just started their ride.

We walked around the old town. Most of Klaipeda was destroyed during the war so it is hard to tell whether what we were looking at was a new, restored, or fake. Plus the streets were perfectly parallel and that was kind of boring. We checked out a few galleries. The fine art is better, more plentiful, and cheaper than in that Vilnius and Kaunas.

The one thing that really impressed us was the used book store called something like Retro books. They had enormous collection of old Russian books on a wide range of topics. The science fiction section was to die for. They were also very very cheap. It was sad to look these shelves loaded with books, which used to be a part of someone’s collection and life. We did a little to reduce the burden but it was really necessary to spend a lot of time there and we did not have it.
Vitalik called and said they are already near. We went out to the restaurant on the main square for lunch. Like 4 years ago, it was still very good.

Then we drove to Palanga. Having seen Druskeninkai I really did not have very high expectations. However it is really a great place. It was quiet and unassuming. Not too many people on the streets. Not really sure what was so nice about it maybe the company.

The hotel was good too. It looked like a big glass cube and was teeming with young families with children. There must have been 5 strollers left downstairs. The rooms were smallish but sufficient.

We changed and went to the beach. The water was a bit warmer than the air. The beach was not too full and some people were swimming. The water was not as salty as in the ocean. The waves were pretty gentle. Georgia had a great time and played in the water until she froze. Then we went to the sand dune and warmed up. It was Ilyusha’s first trip to the sea, he really liked it. He played with Vitalik while Dina was taking pictures of them.

In the evening we went on the main pedestrian street Basanavichaus. It is like Wildwood meet … I have not seen so many kinds of eye candy in my life. In addition to the standard fares like the cotton candy, carousels, and arcades, there was a scary enormous blown up dinosaur with a scary trip of its insides, a bunch of girls from a strip club were walking next to a bicycle cart and offering rides to their place of work, accompanied by the dances along the way. There were also multiple restaurants, little food carts, smoked fish kiosks.

We stopped by the Ukrainian restaurant and spent a good few hours there. In addition to having some of the best tasting food we ever had in the region, they also have a pool and a large playground. And they have a very funny menu. I stole one so I could take pictures of it in peace. The English version is nothing special but Russian one is the best. And there is no Ukrainian - possibly it cannot convey this kind of poetry.

To end the evening we walked down the pier – the main activity in Palanga. There were a bunch of elderly sitting on the benches on the dune to watch the sunset. Lots of families and couples were walking around, and there were full activities on the beach.

Back at the hotel, as we were watching cartoons, Georgia asked me whether I will wash her panties. I said, “Of course.” She continued, “Then, will it be OK if I pee in them?” This on the account of her being too lazy to get up and walk two meters to the bathroom. Made her get up and use the bathroom. But it was funny.

When we put the kids to sleep we went on the balcony – ours are separated by the grill because we live in the neighboring rooms and had some beers. Other hotel parents were out too.

Tomorrow will be all Palanga and trying to beat the food experiences of today.