E phatlaladitšwe: 01.07.2020
Today we got up relatively early. However, it takes quite a bit of time to organize everything in camper life. Brushing teeth, preparing breakfast, having breakfast, clearing up, washing up, putting everything away and storing it safely, and in no time 2 hours have passed. But we stuck to our planned program. Starting from the Vitrūna campsite, we headed north. After 51 km and 1:09 hours of driving, we arrived near Prienai at the Skevoniy pazintinis takas nature trail. According to the travel guide, it's 1.7 km along the Nemunas River, with many special plants and butterflies. We could hardly see any difference between the plants here and our native plants, and unfortunately, we didn't see any butterflies. All in all, a nice walk through the forest along the Nemunas River bank, but nothing special.
After a small snack in the camper, we continued west to Rumšiškės, one of the largest open-air museums in Europe. For €6 per person plus €2 for parking for 3 hours, you really get your money's worth here. There are complete villages, mills, individual farmsteads, grain mills, blacksmiths, and much more to see. Many of the buildings are original and can be visited. The circular route is 7 km long, and it's up to you whether you want to walk, cycle, or go on a guided tour. We were on foot because that's actually the best way to see everything and enter the houses and grounds. Inside the buildings, there are always staff members who tell the history in English, sometimes even in German.
Originally, we wanted to set up our overnight accommodation on a nearby parking lot along the Nemunas River, but after a quick snack there, we decided to drive to the Baltic Sea today. And because it was only 18 km to Latvia, we spontaneously decided to continue and spend our first night in Latvia right behind the lighthouse :)