first, before i forget, i'm going to enlist help if anybody who reads this can help me. i'm looking to stay in Stockholm, Sweden on the nights of August 25th and 26th but it seems any hostels i can locate on the internet are booked solid. so, if anybody has anybody has any friends in Stockholm who might be willing to put me up for those two nights, please let me know ASAP! i'll owe you something big. otherwise, i'm sleeping in a bus shelter.
anyway, onto my small update for today. i got on the bus in Warsaw at 9:30 this morning, heading for Vilnius, Lithuania. there was nothing really remarkable about the bus ride except the difference in infrastructure between Poland and Lithuania. Poland's infrastructure is behind the Czech Republic simply due to its size, i think. in both Krakow and Warsaw, i was told not to drink the tap water. it's fine in Praha. (and, i've since learned it's not-so-fine in Vilnius.) but the difference between Lithuania and Poland is apparent enough, just in the road system.
before i talk about the roads, i thought i'd also address the issue of passport stamps. i have roughly 20 stamps from my meanderings in and out of the Czech Republic. the difference you'd notice is that after the CR joined the EU in May 2004, they adopted a similar patterned stamp as that of the other (western) EU countries. it's a black, rectangular stamp with the EU star motif (see also "circle of stars") in the top left corner and the countries initials inside the stars. i didn't get a stamp upon entering Poland, unfortunately, but upon entering Lithuania (which joined the EU at the same time as the CR), i did get a stamp. but it's still in the pre-EU style of longer, thinner rectangle in blotchy blue or red ink. i don't know how interesting that info will be for ya'll, but i find it interesting enough..
anyway, the roads in Lithuania are thinner and less developed than Poland. as you drive through the countryside, you also notice that the houses look older and more worn down than Poland. the country is poorer, just by the nature of being smaller than Poland (significantly smaller - Warsaw, i think, is probably as big as the entire country of Lithuania).
however, you can tell that things are beginning to happen here and Vilnius in particular. Vilnius is kinda messy right now. the Old Town is undergoing major reconstruction, which is being done to improve the infrastructure. and you can feel things changing. (i'm saying this and i've only been here 4 hours...) the new money flowing in, whether it's from new foreign investments on the business side or the tourist side or from the EU, is contributing to major refurbishing projects. side-by-side, you might see a really dilapidated old building and a newly refurbished building. but it's a trend that's going around. the construction companies here must be raking it in.
on a different note, it's an increasingly popular place to go for tourists. i showed up with no hostel renovation and it's costing me, because all hostels here are booked solid tonight. i've already reserved a spot in a hostel here for the next two nights, but tonight i'm staying in a not-so-cheap hotel.
now, if i can just book a hostel in Stockholm and Copenhagen... heh heh...
Posted by iain at August 14, 2005 09:33 PM