I always wanted to go to the Baltics, a region consisting of countries such as Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Part of it was the allure of the area. During the time it was part of the Soviet Union, not much was known about the area. But inside the Soviet Union it was known as one of the most productive areas of the country. The Baltics are different. Unlike the Slavic languages such as Russian, Ukrainian or Belorussian , the languages spoken in the Baltics do not come from the same language family.
Lithuanian and Latvian are related but not mutually incomprehensible. On the other hand, Estonian is closely related to Finish. Lithuania, along with Latvia and Estonia , is one of the three Baltic nations perched in the Northeast of Europe near the border with Russia. Lithuania is a relatively small country with a population of only 2. The capital and the biggest city is Vilnius, with a population of only about , inhabitants or so.
I spent about two years living in Vilnius. I also traveled around the country quite a bit, so I feel I have a good grasp on the mentality of the people. In that period of time, I dated several Lithuanian women and had one serious girlfriend with whom I spent a good portion of time living. Lithuania has a turbulent history. This meant that, for most of its history, the bigger powers used the small nation as a buffer to either preempt attacks or a staging ground for an offensive campaign.
At one point, Poland absorbed Lithuania into its empire. Then it was the Soviets again. Finally, in , Lithuania became independent. And, in , it joined the European Union.
While one may argue that Lithuania is now fully independent, as a member of the EU, it still needs to answer to another bossโthe bureaucrats residing in Brussels.
