Through a glass darkly – 163

David very kindly took us to the airport in Edinburgh. Where we benefitted from passenger assistance. One of the pushers told us about his hip replacement experience in Kirkcaldy. The flight was uneventful. We arrived here in the dark, I moved my watch forward two hours to Eastern European time, and we were met at the airport and were brought to the hotel. We are in Kaunas, in Lithuania. Where the Hotel Kaunas is going to be our home for the next ten days. Susie is booked for hip replacement at the Nord Orthopaedics clinic tomorrow. I am here [don’t laugh] as her support and prime carer.

The hotel is on Freedom Boulevard [Laisves aléja] a two kilometre, tree-lined, traffic-free street that cuts through the New Town. Our room is on the 5th floor. Breakfast is served downstairs in the basement. A generous buffet is laid out the length of a long wall. There is enough scrambled egg and bacon and sausage [three kinds – avoid the half-sized orange ones] to satisfy the dreams of a Scandinavian truck driver. Lots of fruit and pastries. And good coffee.

Kaunas is the second city of Lithuania. It is situated at the confluence of the Nemunas and Neris rivers. Between the two wars Kaunas was the capital of Lithuania when Poland annexed Vilnius. It was named European Capital of Culture in 2022, and is known for its innovations in the art and design fields. Kaunas is also known as the home of basketball. The driver who collected Susie this morning for her pre-op at the Clinic was unusually tall. The city is divided into two parts: the Old Town, with a medieval castle, some handsome churches, cobbled streets, and a plethora of restaurants and coffee shops; and the New Town, which features most of the city’s museums and a number of attractive art-deco buildings. Many of the numerous restaurants and coffee shops are decorated with impressive piles of orange pumpkins. 

All this remains to be discovered. Today was essentially transitional.  I limped as far as the cobbled square of the Old Town. In a heavy drizzle. My omniscient I-phone tells me that it will rain for much of the next few days. Which is disappointing. I would much prefer it to be cold and dry. Meanwhile I hope to learn a few more words of Lithuanian. And if all else fails I brought some books with me to read.

October 2025