Every traveller knows that a well-though out route is already half the success of the trip. And if you’d look into the history of the famous objects, you will make the best not only of your own time but of your fellow travellers as well. It is way easier for the independent travellers to plan their trip to the famous places of Lithuania now – all you have to do is visit the website www.lietuvosgamta.lt.
Dzūkija – Lithuanian least populated region with the most forests, inviting the travellers to get away from the bustle of cities to the centenarian woods, mysterious marshes, and ethnographic villages which preserved the archaic spirit. The nature of Dzūkija will open up a great number of curiosities to the most curious travellers: bubbling Eye of Ūla, endless Devil Spit, impressive cliffs, cursed lakes and remains of the sites of ancient castles. The region of Dzūkija is covered in legends and stories – look into them and your journey will get some mystical spice and will definitely wake your imagination.
The spring water in ancient times used to be considered as sacred, it was believed to have healing properties, and girls would become prettier after washing up with it. Even nowadays locals enjoy drinking certain spring water and really value it.
Long ago the parks of the Lithuanian manors were only open to sirs, counts and other nobles, but today they greet each and every one wishing to escape the city bustle and listen to rich stories. The oldest parks of Lithuanian manors were established in XVII century and some are taken care of until today and preserved just fine.
The culture of the manor parks has enriched the landscape and diversity of flora of Lithuania. Masters of this craft were invited from abroad to Lithuania to form the parks and plants that have been seen before were brought here as well. The gentry, wanting to show off to each other, spared no expense for the primping and decorating of their parks.
Lithuanian coastal dunes, constantly being re-formed by the wind, show us how fragile and constantly changing is the beauty created by nature. According to the historical sources, dunes of our seaside used to be a lot higher once and used to remind of huge sand mountains, and the sound of the sand slide plunging into the water used to be heard from tens of kilometres away. Currently the dunes are quite diminished, though they still have preserved their incredible beauty, unique flora, and calming and romantic atmosphere.
Lithuania isn‘t a rocky country, so the unusually large stones looming in the flat fields and forests have been playing with the people‘s imagination from early on. How did a lonely boulder weighing a few hundred tons appear in the plains? Maybe the dropped it out of its sack while running? Or maybe the pixies hid their treasure underneath and marked it this way?
Ancient Baltic peoples, modern Lithuanians among them, have never been endowed by nature with great defensive conditions. Lithuanian plains were neither good for hiding, nor for fighting back. Therefore, our ancestors used to dig and pour fortifications for their settlements with their own hands. The majority of these structures dug thousands of years ago have remained up until today, and they are called mounds.
Most of us now and then probably think how nice it would be to hide away from worries and works in a desert island. But did you know that you don’t need to fly to the other end of the earth to do this? The lakes of Lithuania are abundant in amazing inhabitable and uninhabitable islands, islets and peninsulas.
Little does anyone know that in Lithuania, you can find caves, mysterious endless pits and stone rocks washed away by the waters thousands of years ago. These interesting objects of nature are rare in Lithuania, therefore, since the old ages they have been shrouded in legends explaining their mysterious nature. And even scientist can’t explain the origins of some of them.
Seemingly, only plains and forests, but when taking a closer look, the landscape of Lithuania is hiding many wonders.
The glaciers, which moved over Lithuania thousands of years ago, crammed hills, ridges and cliffs. The Balts living in those areas in the ancient times built their castles, altars for the gods and planted the ceremonial oaks in those higher places. The hills were worshipped, songs were sung and legends created. In our days, not only folklore about the hills and ridges remained, but rituals, remembered and repeated by the Lithuanians as a joke or not, as well. For example, bringing a stone together, symbolising a sacrifice to the pagan gods, when visiting a hill.
What images appear in your mind when you hear the word “exposure”? Often these are just plain slopes, strange rocks, meaningless at first sight. However, when speaking about exposures, we should forget the words “meaningless”. When really, this heritage of nature is like an encyclopaedia, telling us about the Earth, seas and forests, climate or even the far away cosmos. It is hardly surprising that exposures are abundant in the naturally rewarded Lithuania, so everyone wishing to immerse in the secrets of the Earth, have the opportunity to visit them.
