AMBER, AMBER EVERYWHERE

Antique bottles in Svyturys Brewery

Klaipeda, Lithuania’s oldest city, is an attractive Baltic seaport which dates back to the 13^th Century.

We began our Klaipeda exploration in the remains of the Castle.  Now a museum, the various displays do a good job of chronicling local history dating back to the Castle’s construction by the Livonian Order of Teutonic Knights in 1252. 

More recently the Castle’s deep tunnels were used as air raid shelters from Allied bombing during World War Two and German occupation. Then came Soviet occupation until Lithuania finally declared independence in 1990.

Assessing the Amber Nectar

The narrow streets of Klaipeda’s old town are mostly cobbled, although the cobbles are enormous and it is critical to keep one eye on the ground and the other on what is ahead.

Theatre Square is the heart of the old town and is surrounded by attractive buildings housing shops, cafes and restaurants.  Svyturys, the local beer seemed to be available on practically every street corner.

One of Klaipeda's timber buildings

The Svyturys brewery is Lithuania’s oldest brewery and boasts an impressive showcase of awards. 

Housed in a depressing Soviet-style building with winding stairwells and long, poorly lit corridors the reward for the long walk to observe the brewing process was the tasting.  

The amber nectar turned out to be extremely good.

Unusual statue near the wooden swing bridge

Walking along the waterway, small sailing craft moored in tidy rows glistened in the sunlight.  

We noticed an interesting wooden swing bridge operated every thirty minutes or so by two fellows who simply used their manpower to turn a crank in the middle of the bridge thereby providing access for boating to and from the harbour.

There is a plentiful supply of colourful amber in the Baltic - not the beer - the fossilized tree resin some with inclusions of insects and plant fragments.  Known as “Baltic Gold”,  Doug felt compelled to buy me a small piece provided we returned to a little more tasting of the other amber. 

A fair swap!