How the places and objects of ancient Lithuania have changed from ancient times to the present day: the routes prepared by the Lithuanians will allow you to see for yourself

“The places I travel to and the objects I visit no longer seem like another point that I have to visit because it is signposted along the route. I already know him, I read about him and now I’m going to see how he looks back in my day. It is one thing to read the information booth when you arrive at the tourist objects, but to read what you managed to find before the trip is a completely different pleasure when traveling ”, is convinced D. Greičiūnas.

Man in your place GoWild.lt provides descriptions of routes through Lithuania, collected from old books and magazines. According to Donato, the older they are, the more interesting. The routes are plotted on maps, they mark the tourist attractions mentioned in the description and provide travel routes for travel enthusiasts who want to observe the changes in the places and objects mentioned in the description from then until today. The purpose of this is to encourage not only to travel through our country, but also to be interested in the names, objects, places mentioned in the descriptions of the routes, to cultivate love for the homeland, says the interlocutor.

– Tell us, how did your passion for travel arise in your life? Where did it all start and how were those trips?

– Each of us has our favorite activities, in which we escape from everyday worries, relax and gain energy. For a long time my activity was fishing, I was fascinated not so much by the process itself, but by being in nature, those images, sounds that surround me from all sides and allow me to experience the feeling of “here and now”.

A friend called once and on the weekend he offered a walk through the Neris Regional Park, part of the tourist route on the left bank of the Neris. The length of the route is 18 km, so we do not dare to walk all the way. Well, we march. I liked. The following weekend we hiked the Dūkštas stream cognitive trail, the next weekend – Asveja Regional Park, literally love at first sight. This is how it started: as soon as the weather and the holidays improved, we went on a hike, and almost every weekend.

The fishing gear was covered with a thick layer of dust.

– What trips give you the most pleasure?

– For me, traveling through my country, no matter the way I travel, is like meeting a country: every time I meet, it is different, and I know it more and more. And I fall in love more and more. Walking, slow, is the most common date that you still think about when you get home. I am not one of those who tries to go as far as possible “accumulating” kilometers. The optimal route is 20-25 kilometers.

However, there are not many trails of this length with us so when I plan a route for the weekend I just put it in the phone app. I choose a regional or national park or forest and just head there. The route in the phone application and it is not always saved, it happens that I wander in places where there is simply no connection, then I discover paper maps. After a while, I will draw the routes on paper and orient myself the old-fashioned way, with a large map in my hands.

Such route planning led me to become interested in what I had not yet discovered might be hidden in Lithuania, I started looking for information in old tourism books and newspapers. I believe. I found such routes, the descriptions of which I just read. Strangely, in those days, walking hundreds of miles didn’t surprise anyone, and now it sounds like a romance to me. I would love to go on such trips, I do not rule out the possibility that you will allow me when I have more opportunities to do so, and so far I will travel on such trips to satisfy my curiosity.

– Share helpful tips for nature travelers. How long have you been collecting this experience yourself and what setbacks or mistakes have you learned the most?

– I am very fascinated by this ancient way of traveling, when trains, buses, even boats were used to get to the starting point of the route. The trips were made with huge backpacks on their shoulders, with personal and group inventory, and those trips took weeks or months. Everyone was responsible for something and shared responsibilities. These trips also require experiences that I share GoWild.lt website.

In the current trips in which I embark, I do not need so much experience, it is enough to know the basic rules of behavior in nature, understand where the north is, where the east is, know a little about clothes, the contents of a backpack and everything.

However, I have no doubt that we will be able to gather a group of like-minded people with whom we will allow long trips with all the tourist attributes: accommodation in a tent, food made over a campfire, challenges and adventures, perhaps even writing a journal of trip. Then the experience I share will be golden.

The main mistake I have made, and probably not only for me, but for all tourists, is the wrong clothes and shoes. If you make a mistake in this place, the whole trip can go on the dog’s tail, and at first sometimes “reject” any desire to travel.

– The blog you created GoWild.lt called the Wildlife Club. Why do you call me wild? Are you trying to bring together like-minded people who are tired of material life and all-inclusive travel?

– A wild person, to my understanding, appreciates activities in nature, be it traveling, hiking, fishing, mushroom picking, camping, whatever activity you enjoy while in nature. So wild. And it is precisely those people who spend part of their lives in the shelter of nature who are not tired because their lives are harmonious, balanced. So it would be more accurate to say: bring together like-minded people with a similar approach, who would share their experiences with wildlife, spread their own, and contribute to other ideas.

– You started a new project called “Travel Archeology”: you collect routes through Lithuania from old books and magazines, and then you overcome and describe them. How was the idea of ​​reviving old routes born?

– As I mentioned before, I was looking in old books and magazines for ideas on where to travel. However, when I find descriptions of one or the other route, I am faced with a problem: many of the objects described there are called differently these days or no longer exist at all. So, in order to travel, but not get lost in the routes of antiquity, I have to be additionally interested in the objects and areas mentioned in the descriptions, and in my interest I also discover many objects not mentioned. So I thought this was the format, probably Travel Archeology – when you discover something ancient and long forgotten, you need to do some work and relive it.

I think this activity could also interest more travelers. Before embarking on a chosen trip, everyone can compile a list of places of interest to them, located on the sides of the route, and choose to visit only what interests them.

– What is the purpose of this project?

– With this project, I intend to encourage people not only to travel around their country, but also to be interested in the history of places and objects that occur along the chosen route.

Most of us know the key moments in the history of the country, but our country, every corner of it is special in its history, stories, myths and stories, just take some time and look for it. This not only creates interest, but also increases love for one’s country.

– What are the benefits of these routes and what can we learn from trying to overcome them?

– In addition to being an extremely enjoyable way to spend free time, traveling in the format I suggest, based on an in-depth study of the chosen route, collects as much information as possible about the areas to visit, the objects to visit and the route itself. Regardless, the human horizon expands, full of the baggage of knowledge about the country itself. It is a matter of prestige to have as much knowledge as possible about the country in which you live.

I agree with me that breathing fresh, clean forest air while hiking, say, the Raigard Valley surroundings is one, but another level doing the same thing knowing that according to legend, you can hear the bell of a broken city in any moment. The city, which was devastated by thunder, was destroyed and drowned on the ground. Without that information, you won’t hear the chime, and even if you do, you won’t really understand what it is. Well, you understand what I mean.

– What homework should be done before traveling the old marked routes?

– First of all, choose the route you want to take and gather as much information as possible from all available sources. Then plan your trip as well as possible so that there is enough time for everything and you don’t have to rush. Here, of course, it is difficult to do without technology, but these resources are available to everyone and, moreover, free of charge.

When I choose a travel route, I find the objects of interest on that route on the map (many of them are marked on the maps). I make a list of them in my travel notebook and embark on a point-to-point journey.

It becomes more complicated when the trip lasts several days and you need to find where to stay in unknown places. So if you have not found out in advance any campsite or campsite where you can spend the night in a tent, later the search for accommodation can take a long time, which will have to be robbed of the time invested in the trip itself.