Skemiai Travel Guide

 matcrazy1 Says:  Skemiai is a village located along Lithuanian secondary highway 144, 35 km (22 mi) north of Kedainiai, 81 km (50 mi) north of Kaunas and 55 km (34 mi) southeast of Siaulai. I stopped there on a shoulder for a while to take a few pictures for you :-). Well, I didn't notice... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I drove highway 144 in June 2004. First I drove from Kaunas northwards A1 (E67), the main international north-south highway of the Baltic states. It was called Via Baltica and run from Poland northwards, via Kaunas, Lithuania, Riga, Latvia to Tallin, Estonia (ferry to... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Grazing lands along highway 144 were never fenced. Instead, each cow was chained to the ground with longer or shorter, metal chain. Do European Union with its numerous so called "animal's right activists" tolarate such situation of poor cows? Isn't there any law about how... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Most of Lithuanian cows along highway 144 were black and white. In contrast to, say, Texas cows, they were grazing in small groups. Sometimes I could see even single individuals. Didn't they like any company? Well, some poor farmers used to breed just one cow for milk, I... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Besides cows, I saw horses grazing on meadows along highway 144. They were fewer than cows and I didn't see any horsemen or horsewomen (riders) there. Instead I saw a cart full of hay drawn by single, poor horse driven by Lithuanian old horseman. 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I saw a few times in Lithuania cows which were milked with hands by local older women. The Lithuanian cowgirls were often dressed with colorful, local headscarfs. Was it a sign of ecological or poor agriculture? It was very refreshing scene not so easy to find in Europe, at... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  Each cow, I saw in Lithuania, had yellow, quite large plaque with a number fixed to an ear. Well, why were they fixed to both ears of each cow?Since Lithuania joined European Union on May 1, 2004, all cows must be registered. It's no way to sell any beef or cow's milk... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  There were never ending green (in June) meadows along highway 144 close to Skamiai. It was flat and agricultural area of Lithuania. There were small groups of cows and... horses grazing. No traffic, no noice, no air pollution, no people but blue sky, green grass, field... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I met this cart full of hay on the beaten path, driving highway 144, close to Kedainiai. But it was off the beaten path in Europe and in Lithuania as well, in the 21th century (2004). Driving like crazy here and there around Lithuania I met them only a few times on secondary... 

 matcrazy1 Says:  I saw this white, huge mountain, on my picture, on the left side of highway 144 on the way from Kaunas towards Sialuai close to Kedainiai. It looked like natural mountain covered by snow. But in real it was mankind structure made by chemical plant. I didn't go to discover...