Reminiscences 2025
Somewhere, I missed a few days on this trip, which included a stop in what are now the Baltic Republics–Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. I’ve documented elsewhere going back with this tour.
I remember that we got off at Klapeida (which was Memel) and bussed to the capitals of the small republics. At this distance in time, I don’t recollect specific details, but here’s what I think I remember.
The small populations startled me. The 3 countries have probably no more than 10-12 million people. The languages (and religions) and histories were different. Lithuania, for example, was at one time part of a Kingdom of Lithuania and Poland, or Grand Duchy of Poland and Lithuania, that stretched over much of Eastern Europe. Crusaders made Estonia Lutheran. Vilnius at one time was the next Jerusalem because of its large Jewish population.
They had in common a respect and sometimes fear (rightly) of their large next door neighbor. They shook off Russian rule in the interwar period, though Vilnius was part of Poland, the rest of Lithuania was not, and the other two were independent countries. Before the Great Patriotic War began in 1941, all three countries were sucked back into the Russian orbit. When the Soviet Union imploded, they became independent again.
One of the shipmates was a retired Dole marketing executive. When I asked him about how to market to such small populations, his reply was concise: “frugally.”
The trip through Lithuania reminded me of Wisconsin–farms, emphasizing the importance of agriculture, albeit in a short growing season. Vilnius, where we stayed, is a city of about 600,000, with beautiful Baroque churches marking its identity as a predominantly Catholic country. There was information, as well
, about the collaboration of Lithuania
ns with the Nazis. A small synagogue remains, a testimony to the once flourishing Jewish community. Over 300,000 Jews and large 
numbers of other Lithuanians were erased during the Nazi years.
From Vilnius, we drove to Riga, a different country with a different history. Riga, like much of the Baltic Region, was settled by Germans, who brought Christianity to the pagans in the area. By the 18th century, it was in the Russian orbit, where it remained until World War I. Independent between the wars, it was ceded to Russia by the Ribbentrop-Molotov treaty 
that divided Eastern Europe between the Russians and Germans. In 1941, the Nazis invaded, and Latvia was restored to Russian rule after World War II. In 1990, it became
independent again. Thanks to the wars, it has a square near the main church that is surrounded by bistros, and made a pleasant 
evening of people watching. Riga is known for its Art Deco buildings, and some older sites that have made it a UNESCO world heritage city. We had a good tour of the city, but as I recall, we had 15 minutes of “free time” to “explore on your own.” That’s when I decided I’d have to come back and wander.
We reboarded the boat and resumed our cruise till we came to Tallinn, known in its earlier days as Reval, the capital of Estonia. The tourist sites 
come in two parts–the city was once two hostile cities–the lower old town and the 
upper fortress. Speaking a language akin to Finnish (not a Romance language), the country has its own history (similar to the other Baltic republics, fighting the Teutonic Knights, the Swedes, the Russians, each other. The upper walled fortress has 36 towers. The lower has a square with a Town Hall and the 
oldest pharmacy in Europe, dating to 1422. It still dispenses. It’s compact enough to walk around in, with great views from the upper city. An early 20th Century Orthodox Church was part of an effort to Russify Estonia. It did not work, but it left the Alexander Nevsky Church for posterity.
On to mother Russ!