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The couple not only seem to have new hobbies in town, but they also started sharing their daily lives and challenges on the Instagram social network, and then joined the community I want to live in. This unites the townspeople who have already left or are still preparing to leave the city and move to live in the town.
We spoke with Margarita y Valdas about the pros and cons, the challenges and difficulties of living in the country. We discussed where to live cheaper, in the country or in the city, and the stereotypes that couples still face. Villagers have no idea how the couple could have traded the capital for a single farm.
What was your life like in the city and how did you come to move to town?
Daisy flower There was no specific event that led us to move to live in town. Perhaps we grew up in the city because our way of life was sedentary and slow while living in the city. We also have two dogs, so we often went with them to the forest or the field. We spend our free time outside the city, where there are fewer people.
Valdas The idea of moving to the village had been around for a long time, we just didn’t think about what we wanted to do there. I wanted our occupation and work to be related to the people. We thought about business, but in the end we decided to buy a farm in the village and then think about what we will do there, how we will win.
And where did you grow up, in the city or in the country? Where did you spend your childhood summers? Did those memories affect you when you moved to the village?
Valdas I was a city boy, I grew up in Radviliškis, but I spent summers with my grandmother in Joniškis district. So I feel towards the people.
Daisy flower: I am a true Vilnius resident, I was born and raised on asphalt, my parents didn’t even have a garden. I spent the summer in the city. But now I’m tired of it, Vilnius is expanding rapidly, the bustle is growing. And for me, living in the city is no longer as fun as in childhood and adolescence.
Based on what criteria were you looking for a house in the village? How long did your search take? Was it important that the farm was close to Vilnius?
Valdas When we started looking for a farm, our criteria kept changing. However, the short distance to Vilnius was not the most important criterion. Finding a beautiful place was more important to us, but we had a limited budget, and in Lithuania, a house in a beautiful place costs a lot of money. Especially if you are near a lake or other body of water. So we finally decided to find a house in fairly good condition for us in a beautiful location at an affordable price. We paid 12 thousand for the individual farm where we live. euros
Daisy flower However, I wanted the farm to be closer to Vilnius, because there are our family, friends and my workplace.
Although it was important to me that we lived on a single farm. While living in the apartment, we were angry at our neighbors for our dogs barking, so we wanted a place where our pets would no longer cause problems for anyone. For me, this criterion was probably the most important.
Also, buying a home was not a spontaneous action. We searched for it for 1.5 years, and after buying it, we lived in Vilnius for another year, saved money and cleaned the house on weekends.
Margarita Maliarenko and Valdas Stonys. Personal photo from the album
What jobs did you have in Vilnius? Did you have to change them after moving to the village?
Daisy flower I am a social worker and I am still working at the same workplace in Vilnius where I worked before moving to the village. I really like my job and when we moved I checked with employers. I was lucky that comfortable conditions were created for living in the countryside and working in Vilnius. I go to the capital not every day, but several times a week.
Valdas And I have radically changed the scope of my work. In Vilnius, I worked as a financial analyst for an international company, when we bought a house in a village, I quit my job and made repairs on the house, which lasted 9 months.
Later, I planned to find an administrative job and work it remotely. But over time, I realized that I wanted a job that would benefit people. After learning that a social taxi service is being started in the Ukmergė district, I got a job there.
How much effort and money did you have to put in to repair the farm?
Valdas Farm repair is not yet complete. We do most of the work ourselves, so it costs less to handle. But as much money as we paid it, we’ve already spent on repairs.
As I mentioned, after quitting my job, I repaired the farm for 9 months until we moved permanently.
Daisy flower It is also important to mention that our home repair solutions are not traditional. We strive to live in a more ecological and sustainable way. For example, we don’t have a regular bathroom for everyone, it’s composting with us. We have a natural ventilation system instead of air conditioning. Thanks to such solutions, our repair costs have been reduced.
Valdas However, we combine non-traditional solutions with traditional solutions. For example, a shower with us, like many other people with the usual sewer. However, the ventilation system is already different, it works very simply. The earth does not heat, nor the air, at a depth of 1.5 meters, the temperature reaches about 10 degrees in both summer and winter. Leaving pipe lines at this depth will cool the air.
And the principle of a compostable toilet is that it uses sawdust infusion instead of water. Every time after using the toilet, it is not necessary to flush the water, but to fill the sawdust, where the composting process takes place later.
How did your family and friends react when they reported that they were moving to the village? What was your reaction?
Valdas Friends said that it was our business where we wanted, that we could live there and that they would still visit us. Parents also reacted very positively. They were born in the fields themselves and it is very gratifying for them to return to live closer to nature.
Daisy flower We receive the greatest support from Valdas’ parents. For them, the land and the house are of great value.
But my parents, although they were citizens, were not against this wish of ours. It was only important to them that we have something to live for.
Have you imagined such a village life? Maybe you miss something?
Valdas The only thing I miss, oddly enough, is cycling. In the city, the bicycle was a vehicle for me, I took it to work. And in the town there is no place to walk, there is already a good way to the city, I do not bike so fast.
And when it comes to entertainment or events, everything is accessible and relatively close. After all, it is possible to go to Ukmergė or Vilnius. In Lithuania the distances are certainly not long.
Daisy flower And I work in Vilnius, I don’t feel disconnected from the city, although I only go there for work.
But it may sound strange, but I miss the free finds in the trash cans. There is still a practice in Vilnius to leave unnecessary things there. Many of those things that are no longer necessary for someone now work perfectly in our home. I like to use things a second time.
How did you come up with the idea of creating an account on the social network Instagram, the Lyduokių newspaper, where you share daily life and repair tips?
Daisy flower That was my idea. I thought we could share information that we had a hard time finding, especially about repairing an old house. We wanted to share what difficulties and challenges we had to face, which solutions worked and which did not.
Margarita Maliarenko and Valdas Stonys. Photo from personal album
And how did the idea of joining the “I want to live in the country” initiative come about, which unites citizens who have already moved or who simply plan to move to the village?
Daisy flower This initiative is not our idea, we have been invited to join by other members, but we have actively participated in their activities.
The idea of the initiative is to create a community of rural settlers, since they have many questions when it comes to installing and repairing their homes. So we want people in the community to share experiences.
Just before quarantine we organized an event, we wanted to bring together everyone who lives or wants to live in the village. However, the start of the quarantine forced to postpone the event for some time. Now we have resumed organizing work, the event is likely to take place in the fall and it will be bigger.
Valdas We plan that during the event, your speakers will share experiences and knowledge about non-traditional construction, gardening, and field work opportunities.
And socially, the section that gets the most attention and comment is where people share their personal stories about why they moved to live in the village, what they do there.
Do you think it is necessary to raise animals, grow your own vegetables, berries and fruits while living in town?
Valdas We only have dogs. I don’t think it is necessary to raise animals and cultivate gardens while living in the country. Although everything depends on the needs of each person. If he likes to work on the farm and those jobs are pleasant to the person, I don’t see anything wrong with him doing it.
However, it is certainly not true that the villagers cultivate everything themselves. They also go to stores, just like the townspeople.
Daisy flower Stereotypes still exist. When we say that we live in a village, there are people imagining cows, pigs, goats and chickens grazing in our yard. However, that’s not true.
I myself resisted even the garden for a long time. It seemed to take a lot of time and effort. However, during quarantine, when I was not working, a garden still appeared with us. It’s fun growing vegetables yourself.
However, we decided to move to the village not for animals or gardens, but to live closer to nature.
As for the standard of living, is it true that less money is needed to live in the country?
Valdas We did not spend much while living in the city. Therefore, it also depends on the lifestyle and needs of each person.
In urban and rural areas, we live in our own homes. But utility bills, I think, are higher in the city.
Daisy flower: In town to buy your own cheaper home. The state also helps youth with subsidies. For example, our house in the village costs 12 thousand. euros A new apartment in Vilnius, in a good area, can cost 10 times more.
And our costs in town are a little bit higher due to repairs. However, it is difficult for us to draw conclusions, we have to live longer in the village, wait until all the repairs are completed, and then we can say if we spend less in the village.
What do you like to do in your free time? Hasn’t it changed since you moved to the village?
Valdas Leisure in the city and in the country is different. We also spend a lot of time in nature with dogs in the city. In the countryside, walks in the woods or fields have increased. And a new hobby in town is reading books. I find more time for them here.
Daisy flower We also live a pretty boring life in the eyes of others in the city, we didn’t like nightclubs or bars. We weren’t those traditional people who go to bars every Friday.
It seems to me that our leisure and routine in the city and the countryside are similar. We go to bed early and get up early, we like to read books. But I also discovered a new hobby: I started sewing. But I do that in the cold season. In the summer, I spend more time outdoors, new jobs appear there, mowing the lawn or tending the garden.
Why do you like living in the country? Don’t you feel sorry for moving here?
Valdas I like it because we live close to nature in the village, but I can go for a walk in the woods or fields at any time.
There was much less hurry in town, he still had to fly somewhere in the city. Although he was not a very busy person in the city and did not have many activities, he still felt that rush. Now I feel calmer in town.
We also like that we do not have neighbors, we do not disturb anyone and we can handle ourselves the way we want. In Vilnius, we try to clean around the apartment building where we lived, but we do not receive help from our neighbors, but mockery.
Daisy flower I like that in the village we belong to a small community. Here we meet the people who live nearby. It is not in the city, we only know the closest neighbors there, and when we go to the nearest store, we see completely different people.
And in town, people say hello, ask how we live, if we like it here. This feeling is very pleasant. And it is still strange for the villagers, but it is good that we have changed the capital to the town of Lyduokiai.
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