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J199 - Monday, May 3: Grendavé – Jadvygiskès

74.16km  – 10H25’
Altitude : 150m
The weather: There is beautiful sunshine, then the wind comes up and it becomes gray and there are a few drops of rain as we cross Vilnius, then it clears at the end of the stage.  The warmest it gets is 20°C.

Serge, who puts up with a head wind on the National A16 for 16km, enters the Lithuanian capital at km 45.  The city extends for about 10km to the south west before one reaches the historic center of the city.  Traffic is dense but it keeps moving and there is quite a contrast between the quiet of the countryside and the activity of the city. There are numerous woods and parks in proximity to the historic center, which is crossed by two rivers, the Neris and the Vilnia.  The historic center became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994.  Ten years later the Republic of Lithuania became a member of the European Union.  The country has not yet adopted the Euro and we use litas (1€ = 3.3 litas).

It must be very pleasant to stroll around the old city.  The suburbs are mixed:  housing developments, new residential neighborhoods, small old buildings are grouped together and there are also some ultra modern buildings which house offices and a gigantic shopping center: Akropolis.  There is great diversity in the city.  A multitude of churches show the importance of the Catholic religion in the country.  Oddly enough, at the end of the 19th century Vilnius had about 100 synagogues and 40% of the population was Jewish.  World War II, and in particular Hitler and his army, exterminated 95% of the Jews living in the city!  Vilnius is an eclectic city, with monuments of many different styles and cultural influences and it gives the city its own style.  It is difficult to say that this city resembles another; it has its own charm which you can’t compare to other European capitals.  Until this trip, I had not been aware of something that I have learned from conversations in the different countries:  how important it is for people to feel proud of their capital, which represents the country itself.  As for Serge, who is more of a country mouse than a town mouse, he prefers running in the country to running in cities or capitals, but he forms a pedestrian’s opinion of each capital.  Are the streets and boulevards wide and airy?, how much room is allotted to cyclists and pedestrians?, the beauty of the buildings, the atmosphere in the streets, the way the locals drive.  In any case, we were able to see lots of joggers and pretty girls in the city.  I’m going to ask him if he noticed.
This evening Serge is happy when he comes in.  Darius came to run with him at the end of the stage.  Darius speaks perfect English and could talk with Serge about his country and its connection with the Scandinavian countries.  By the way he may even be able to meet us in Finland!  He is an excellent runner who did the marathon in 2H29’…
Serge noticed yesterday, once Jacek had left, that his speed had decreased and this evening he saw that while he was talking with Darius his rhythm accelerated.  We are going to have to glue a shadow to him so that he will keep a good rhythm because sometimes he thinks he’s dragging!!!
Lithuania, the largest of the 3 Baltic countries, is small because in Vilnius I saw Serge wave at a car he had seen yesterday in a small village, when the driver offered to give him a lift, surely feeling sorry to see a poor devil running alone on the road.  It was a coincidence that their paths should cross leaving Vilnius.

In response to the question: did Serge notice the pretty girls in Vilnius?  The reply is yes.  Tired but still alert, the bird!!!!

Town : Jadvygiskès

GPS : N 54.49’48.7° E 025.16’33.4°