Dotnuva Travel Guide

 matcrazy1 Says:  This wooden cross, on my picture (or better to say its upper part), was put behind the wall surrounded the parish church. Enlarge and notice a small chapel - a statue of a saint with a gable roof above. There are many holy crosses - chapels in Lithuania, esp. in the... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  The parish church in Dotnuva was impressive as for such tiny village. It was put in central point of the village or maybe better to say that the village grew up around the church in the past. Its upper part (towers) was built in Baroque style: rather simple Lithuanian or... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I continued driving my car towards Siaulai by this highway (#144), on my picture. Village of Dotnuva was located along this highway with houses hidden behind wild trees on its both sides. All houses were 1-floor, many were wooden with gable roofs. 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Imagine that the village started at that place from where I took this picture. A village? Yes. It consisted of tiny houses (many wooden ones) mostly hidden behind green (in June) trees which were put along the Lithuanian highway # 144 Kedainai - Siaulai which were mostly... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  BY TRAINDotnuva was located on a railway track from Vilnius via Siaulai to Klaipeda on the Baltic sea coast. There were a few trains daily from nearby Kedainiai (9-14 min.). Just in case, check European Train TimetableKeep in mind that trains were mostly slooow in Lithuania.... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I got to Dotnuva by my car. Dotnuva was located along secondary Lithuanian highway 144, on my way from Kedainiai to Siaulai, only 13 km (8 mi) northwest of Kedainiai, 82 km (51 mi) southeast of Siaulai and 57 km (35 mi) north of Kaunas. Highway 144 was of good but not the... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  There was large and empty asphalted area with no lines marked opposite to the parish church. The area and a few grey buildings around looked like in the Soviet Union 20 years before. This structure on my picture was put there. It was typical post-Soviet, neglected, huge,... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I always look for pretty small things driving and walking around in each country I visit. I found such chapels, like this one on my picture, exclusively in Lithuania. Well, there were similar in style roofed chapels in Romania as well, but somewhat different in style and... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Lower part of the parish church in Dotnuva was built of small, red bricks mixed with stones. I found houses with similar walls (usually with more stones) in both Dotnuva and other Lithuanian villages, especially in central and northern part of Lithuania and in southern... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  As I noticed, windows of the old Dotnuva were usually divided by muntins for at least 9 parts with 9 panes. This one, on my picture, looked like quite new window and had... 96 panes. It was located on the facade of the parish church. The same windows were put on both sides... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I saw a few newly built houses in Dotnuva. They were usually two-floor and were built of white, small bricks. They had different roofs, often covered by iron sheets instead of typical in, say, Poland, red ceramic tiles. Well, I liked more older, wooden houses... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  The parish church in Dotnuva was renovated recently, like most churches in Lithuania after the Soviet occupation when most churches were closed, devastated, robbed and/or changed to stores, galleries etc. or so called Museum of Atheims. I got to Dotnuva in the afternoon on... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Dotnuva looked completely empty when I was there on Saturday's afternoon in June. There were no people walking, no people in a supermarket or a cafe... Finally, I noticed a few people waiting for a public bus, on my picture - off the beaten path. Well, they looked for my...