Lithuania's Hill of Crosses (Happy Easter!)
I've done a fair bit of traveling through the Baltics but had never heard anything about this fantastic cross-covered hill in Lithuania. It wasn't until I was surfing through EnglishRussia.com last night that I learned about this place. Alas, one of the great tragedies of travel is learning about something you missed while abroad. Damn!
The Hill of Crosses (Kryžiu Kalnas) is located in North Lithuania near the town of Šiauliai--the fourth largest city in the country. No one knows why the custom started, but for whatever reason, the crosses began appearing in the 14th century. Over the years, devout pilgrims journeyed here to place their own cross on the hill--supposedly an act that would bring good luck.
The hill fell on bad times during the Soviet occupation and was actually bulldozed a number of times, and yet the crosses would spring back under the cover of darkness until eventually the godless commies gave up.
Today there are at least 50,000 crosses crammed onto this little hill and more are placed there every day. Wow. I will be sure to detour here on my next visit to Lithuania. In the meantime, join me in living vicariously through the photos on EnglishRussia.com.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Apr 8th 2007 @ 4:51PM
Adrienne said...
What an awesome pic! I think I'd be willing to travel to Lithuania just to check this out.
Very cool and Happy Easter to all!
A
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May 28th 2007 @ 9:52PM
Jeff said...
I lived in Lithuania for almost a year, and it is one of the most beautiful countries I have been in, after visiting and living in almost 45 countries. When I heard about the hill of crosses I had to see it. Even if you are not a religious person it is overwhelming! Anyone traveling to Lithuania should pick up a little book called In Your Pocket www.inyourpocket.com They have one for Vilnius and several cities, and it was invaluable. Shows restaurants, clubs, bars, sights of interest, a total guide for everything and is in several languages. It helped me learn a lot about the country. Hope you enjoy the visit, I go regularly now.
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Aug 25th 2007 @ 9:58AM
Rimas Bildusas said...
This is a place of calm and beauty. My parents are from Lithuania and told us and showed us pictures of this wonderful place when we were growing up in Chicago. The Pope visited the Hill Of Crosses several years ago. It is a peacfully place I will never forget when I visited while stationed at the US Embassy in Vilnius. I know the hill was a place of devote prayers during the commie rule. Never forget it...
Rimas
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