The Curonian Spit

I have always been fascinated with maps, and one geographical curiosity has always stood out to me - the narrow strip of land known as the Curonian Spit shared by Russia and Lithuania. Today, I took my bike and left at around 8:00. I stopped at the supermarket and got something to eat and a snack. I managed to catch the 9:00 ferry across the harbour to the spit. I was wearing shorts and I was frigid when I got to the spit, but was hopeful that it would be as warm as yesterday. I began biking on a woody path that transected the spit. On the side nearest to Klaipeda, there is no beach, but on the side facing the Baltic Sea, there are long sandy beaches. Since it was so early in the morning, I did not see anyone. There wasa bike path alongside the beach which I decided to take. My goal was to bike nearly halfway down the spit (the Lithuanian side) to the town of Juodkrante. In the town there is a hill that has a whole bunch of traditional wood sculptures. I would've liked to bike to the Russian border but the distance (50 km) one way, was too long. I biked for about an hour and a half, with several stops to enjoy the scenery before I finally got to the town. The spit (which is a world heritage site), is very beautiful, but disturbingly, whole sections of its interior have had its trees chopped down. I'm not sure why. It was about 11:00 when I got to the town, so I decided to head up the Witch's hill for the sculptures and then get lunch. Since I was hungry, I took a bit of my last remaining goody given to me by Irena. It was a chocolate bar with fruit bits. Unfortunately, it was only after swallowing the first piece that I noticed it was infested with maggots! I quickly tossed away the rest of the bar and enjoyed the wood sculptures. By this time I was starving, and so I stopped and got a meal a very small restaurant that was very cheap. Still, it was quite good! I then began the long ride back, but this time took the main road back to see the lagoon-side of the spit. It didn't take me as long to get back, only about an hour. I saw lots of mushroom pickers while riding back, as this is apparently mushroom season. By this time it was quite hot, and I ended up just wearing my t-shirt. I got back at around 2:00, and still having some time before my bike was due back, went to the beach to read my book. There were several old men nude bathing there. I am extremely tired now, and will surely have to go to bed early, if that is indeed possible in a hostel.

After spending an hour on the internet at the tourist office and enjoying the squaks the African Gray Parrot they have there, I went to dinner. I decided to return to the place where we had drinks yesterday, as it had a nice menu in English. When something intrigues me on a menu, I usually get it (as long as it is not too expensive). In this case, beer cocktails seemed intriguing, and were not that pricey, so I ordered one. It was terrible. After tequila, definitely one of the worst alcoholic beverages I have ever had. I also ordered Pike soup, which was good, and potato blintzes, which are Lithuania's national dish (apparently), and were delicious. Basically they are deep-fried potato dumplings laid over a piece of ham with a cream sauce on top. Fatty but delicious. When my meal was done, I headed to the supermarket to get some food for tomorrow morning, as I have an early bus. I was also hoping to get a sandwich, but the woman there claimed I had to eat it in the store. This is bullshit of course, as I got a sandwich this morning at the same store and ate it on the spit. Oh well, I guess I'll have a late lunch in Riga. I then got my bus ticket and returned to the hostel to find it deserted. Apparently me and one other guy are the only ones staying here tonight! Hopefully I can get to bed early, as I'm completely knackered from my bike ride.