Kaunas is the second biggest city in Lithuania.
Understand
Kaunas is Lithuania's second city but is in no way a poor relation. For a time it acted as temporary capital and as such benfited from investment and the status.
We visited in February 2007 - not everyone's idea of peak holiday season but I think it added to the city's appeal. Yes it was -15 degrees C outside, and yes there was snow and ice and it took 10 minutes to dress before venturing out and another 10 to undress when you went back inside but when else do most of us get to experience that ? It's not like England where one snowflake brings the transport network to a halt. Don't forget the people of Kaunas are used to it and life goes on with great efficiency. Museums have cloakrooms, everywhere is well heated and draft proofed, supermarkets have lockers to leave your coats, hats, scarves, gloves, sledges and so on and nobody minds you sipping vodka from a 200 ml bottle to keep your insides warm. As well as the usual attractions this time of year allows you to go sledging (sledges from 3 LTL in supermarkets) or across the bridge to the park on an island in the river to build snowmen, have snowball fights and drag huge chunks of ice up to the bridge to send crashing onto the frozen river below. Incidentally we noticed that some couples had attached padlocks to the bridge with their names scratched or painted on - a custom we first observed in Riga. I'm not sure of the exact significance but the gist is pretty clear and the bridge to the park is an ideal location to continue this eastern european (?) custom. There is a locksmith who sells padlocks in a courtyard off the northern side of Laisves Aleja towards the eastern end - reasonably priced too. Go for the ones with the longest hasp (loop) as the bars of the bridge are really thick. Failing that attach yours to one that is already there - we did ! See if you can find it (Mike and Theresa 2007).
Get in
By planeKaunas can be reached with the low cost airline Ryanair to the
Kaunas airport which is located ~15 minutes drive from the downtown. From the airport bus #29 - found right outside - takes you into the centre of kaunas (tickets 1 LTL from the driver).
Vilnius airport is just 100 km away from Kaunas.
By roadThere is 100 km motorway from Vilnius (capital city) to Kaunas. Buses serve this route every 30 to 60 min.
The international road Via Baltica (connecting Warsaw to Tallinn) crosses Kaunas just after about 100 km from the Lithuanian-Poland border.
Get around
Buses and trolleybuses tickets can be bought at press kiosques and in the transport. Price for one journey is 0.9 LTL (0.26 EUR) or 1.0 LTL (0.29 EUR) if ticket is bought in the bus or trolleybus. You must validate your ticket on entry in one of the machines. The
Kaunas Public Transport site offers useful information and a downloadable
map of the bus and trolleybus routes.
Shuttle (microbuses) service charges 1.5 LTL (0.43 EUR) per journey.
Taxi prices varies from 1 LTL (0.29 EUR) to 2.5 LTL (0.72 EUR) per kilometer.
See
Pažaislis monastery and church form the largest monastery complex in Lithuania, and one of the most magnificent examples of Italian baroque architecture in Eastern Europe. Kaunas castle is now reopened for the visitors.Laisvės Alėja - Kaunas' most famous walking street is fully pedestrianised and runs from the Old Town for a distance of alomost 2 km to the Church of St. Michael the Archangel. Two lines of Linden trees, seating and flower beds run the length of the avenue. There is a good assortment of shops, banks, supermarkets, restaurants, a cinema, casinos, night clubs, museums, tourist information office, places to stay and a post office. It would be possible to spend your entire stay on Laisves Aleja and not get bored. It is kept clean and snow free (in the winter) with great efficiency and is a great place to spend time. In the late morning and afternoon various stalls selling foods, souvenirs hats etc. appear and are worth a look.Unique Devil's museum contains the A. Zmuidzinavicius collection of sculptures and carvings of devils, and a collection of devils from the whole world. Putvinskio 64 Tel: 22 15 87 Open Tue-Sun 11.00-18.00Vytautas the Great War Museum (K. Donelaicio gatve). A history of Kaunas from prehistoric times to the present day. It houses an immense collection of weapons through the ages. The highlight is the complete, but tragic, remains of the plane Lituanica in which S. Darius and S. Girenas crossed the atlantic in 1933 (see the 10 Lita note). Open Tue - Sun 11:00 - 5:30. Admission - adult 2 LTL, child 1 LTL. When you finish Ciau Pizza is on the corner ahead and to your right. Tasty and welcoming but don't expect lightning fast service - a relaxed pace and a chance to watch the world go by while your food is cooked.The Lithuanian Zoo parkCatacombs - enter the Church of St. Michael the Archangel (the beautiful domed building at the eastern end of Laisves Aleja) sand the entrance to the catacombs (katakombos) is on your right. Ask at the sacristy (right of the main altar) and they will let you in for free. You descend a spiral staircase into total darkness then begin a journey using your remaining senses which takes you through an undergound assault course. When you make it through you ascend a similar spiral staircase on the opposite side of the church entrance. Not for the fainthearted, small children or anyone with difficulty moving around. They appreciate a donation to the church afterwards in one of the boxes scattered around.Funicular railways. The Žaliakalnis Funicular Railway (V. Putvinskio gatve) is an electrically operated funicular railway. The oldest funicular in Lithuania and one of the oldest in Europe. It was constructed by AEG and began operating on 5 August 1931. The funicular has wood panelled coachwork and is serviced by an English speaking operator in uniform. It climbs the 75 m up from behind the Vytautas the Great War Museum to the Church of the Resurrection for some of the best views in Kaunas. The ticket costs 0.5 LTL.Zoological museum - the Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum at Laisves Aleja 106 - houses a collection of thousands of stuffed and preserved animals. In winter make use of the cloakroom to the left of the main hall on the ground floor as the museum is well heated. Arranged over several floors the collection ranges from full grown giraffes to butterflies and is well worth an hour or two of your time. 11:00-19:00 except: Mon: Closed.Church of the Resurrection - follow V. Putvinskio gatvě from the Devil Museum or walk up behind the War Museum and turn right to find the Žaliakalnis Funicular Railway. This takes you up to the Church of the Resurrection. The door on the right hand side of the church (as you face it) takes you in and from 12:00 you can climb the satirs (3 LTL) or take the lift (5 LTL) to the terrace at the top. Spectacular views of Kaunas and beyond. The church itself is also open to visitors. If you arrive too early and the terrace is not open then carry on north-west along Žemaičiu gatvě and at the junction you'll find an IKI supermarket that has a coffee bar/restaurant upstairs.The Park - Nemunos salos parkas - accessed across a footbridge at the southern end of S.Daukanto gatvě. A huge open space minutes from the bustle of Laisvės Alėja. A great place to sledge when there is snow and of course the place to leave your padlocks.Buy
Supermarkets - Maxxima, IKI, Rimi
Vodka (Degtiné) - a whole range of flavoured vodkas starting at 5 LTL for 200 ml. We can recommend cherry, cranberry, lemon, blackcurrant, raspberry and of course classic. The pepper was an acquired taste - but got easier the more you drank.Eat
Arena Pizza (Laisves 57 and Savanoriu 363) offers a huge range of pizzas and side dishes at good prices and is very centrally located.Bernelių Užeiga offers tasty traditional Lithuanian dishes, soup in bowls made of bread and home brewed beer. Cosy and atmospheric and very convenient if yo are in the Old Town as it is just a minute from the tourist info. centre. Valančiaus 9Ciau - closest eating place to the Vytautas the Great War Museum (see above) - tasty, warm, good value but a little slow.Cili Pica- one at Laisves Aleja 76 - good value, tasty and comfortable. Also at Mega shopping centre (see below).Cili Kaima - at Mega shopping centre - traditional Lithuanian food in a country themed surroundings icluding live chickens in glass cabinets - great for kids.Pizza Jazz (Laisves Aleja 68, Laisves Aleja 106 and others)offers great pizzas and other dishes and good beer in very comfortable surroundings. Zalias Ratas - Laisvės 36b (behind tourist info. centre) - a taditional country inn recreated in the city. Roaring fire, costumed waitresses, and tasty traditional Lithunanian food make this a great place to visit. Highly recommended.Drink
Beer (Alus) - Utenos, Švyturys and Horn are to be recommended - expect to pay around 5 LTL per 0.5l in tourist bars and restaurants (Around 2 LTL in local bars e.g. Geru Alu Gerti Gera - has a red awning outisde and is situated on Birštono gatve. Worth a vist just to see the wild boar skin and wild boar head on the walls).Apparently
Avilys is a great place to get a beer - all home brewed - but do not seem to allow children in as we found out the hard way.
Sleep
Solo B&B Dysnos 10, tel.+370687 54443; +37037 743839 info@solohotel.lt is newly built, in 2006, annex in the private territory, which provides excellent lodging facilities. Currently we offer 2 homelike and modernly designed (27sq.m.) rooms with the separate entrances and outside terraces that lead to the spacious private garden.Kaunas Apartments offer a range of reasonably priced, centrally located apartments through their website. They also offer airport collection (20 Euros per group) to save you waiting for the #29 bus.Kaunas Hotel stands directly on Laisves avenue. It offers comfortable rooms with views directly onto the avenue, has an elevator and provides a sumptuous breakfast in its cellar restaurant for the more discerning traveller.Get out
Mega- a huge shopping complex just outside the city centre with shops, multiscreen cinema, restaurants and a spectacular aquarium in the main entrance stocked with tropical fish including sharks. Stairs and an escalator take you up beside it for a better view. You can even watch them feed the fish (twice a day in the week, once at weekends). Served by bus #38 and #21 from the city centre (journey time about 20 minutes). .
Kaunas (, approximate English transcription , ; known also by several alternative names) is the second largest city in Lithuania and a former temporary capital. It is served by the freeways Via Baltica (E67) and Vilnius—Klaipėda (A1). Kaunas is located at the confluence of the two largest Lithuanian rivers, the Nemunas and the Neris, and near the Kaunas Lagoon, the largest body of water in Lithuania.
Names
Before Lithuania's independence, the city was generally known in English as
Kovno, the traditional Slavic form of its name; the Polish name is
Kowno. The traditional Russian name is Ковно, although Каунас has been used since 1940. The Yiddish name is
Kovne (קאָװנע), while its names in German include
Kowno and
Kauen.
Coat of arms
In June 30, 1993 the historical Coat of Arms of Kaunas city was established by a special presidential decree. The coat of arms features a white aurochs with a golden cross between his horns, set against a deep red background. The aurochs is the original heraldic symbol of the city since 1400. The current emblem was the result of much study and discussion on the part of the Lithuanian Heraldry Commission, and realized by the artist Raimondas Miknevičius. An aurochs has replaced a wisent, depicted in the Soviet era emblem, used since 1969.
History
Grand Duchy of LithuaniaAt the location of the current Kaunas old town, at the confluence of two large rivers, a settlement had been established by the tenth century AD. According to legend, the town was founded in 1030, but it is first mentioned in written sources in 1361. In the thirteenth century, a stone wall was built as protection from constant raids by the Teutonic Knights. In 1362, the town was captured by the Teutonic Knights, who destroyed the Kaunas Castle.
In 1408 the town was granted Magdeburg Rights by Vytautas the Great a became a center of Kaunas Powiat in Trakai Voivodeship in 1413. The castle was rebuilt at the beginning of the 15th century. Kaunas then began to gain prominence, since it was at an intersection of trade routes and a river port. In 1441 Kaunas joined the Hanseatic League, and Hansa merchant offices were opened. By the 16th century, Kaunas had a public school, a hospital, and a drugstore, and was one of the best-formed towns in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
The 17th and 18th centuries were unfortunate for Kaunas. In 1665, the Russian army attacked the city several times, and in 1701 the city was occupied by the Swedish army. The Black Death struck the area in 1657 and 1708, and fires destroyed parts of the city in 1731 and 1732.
Russian EmpireAfter the final partition of the Polish-Lithuanian state in 1795, the city was occupied by the Russian Empire and became a part of Vilna Governorate. During the French invasion of Russia in 1812, the Grand Army of Napoleon passed through Kaunas twice, devastating the city both times.
After the Partitions, Kaunas was one of the centres of the November Uprising (1830-1831) and the January Uprising (1863-1864). To discourage the local population, the Russian authorities placed a huge military garrison in the town. The Russian military fortifications from that time still survive throughout the town.
Kovno Governorate with a center in Kovno (Kaunas) was formed in 1843. In 1862 a railway connecting the Russian Empire and Germany was constructed, making Kaunas a significant railway hub. In 1898 the first power plant started operating. After Vilnius was occupied by Russian bolsheviks in 1919, the government of the Republic of Lithuania established its main offices here. Later, when Vilnius was seized by Poland, Kaunas became the interim capital of the Lithuanian government, a position it held until 1939, when Poland was partitioned between Nazi Germany and the USSR. Stalin returned Vilnius to Lithuania, and the process of moving the capital was initiated. Before it was complete, however, the whole country was occupied by the Soviet Union.
Interbellum LithuaniaBetween the World Wars industry prospered in Kaunas; it was at the time the largest city in Lithuania. Under direction of mayor Jonas Vileišis (1921-1931) Kaunas grew rapidly and became a truly modern city. A water and wastewater system, costing over 15 million Lithuanian Litas, was put in place; the city expanded from 18 square kilometers to 40; more than 2,500 buildings were built, including three modern bridges over the Neris and Nemunas rivers. All the city streets were paved, horse-drawn transportation was replaced with modern bus lines, new suburbs were planned and built(especially noted Žaliakalnis neighborhood), and new parks and squares were established. The foundations for a social security system were laid, three new schools were built, and new public libraries, including the Vincas Kudirka library, were established. Vileišis maintained many contacts in other European cities, and as a result Kaunas was an active participant in European urban life.
In 1940 it was annexed by the Soviet Union as part of the Lithuanian SSR. A short-lived Lithuanian independence of 1941 was proclaimed in Kaunas on June 23,1941.
Modern timesAfter World War II Kaunas became the main industrial city of Lithuania - it produced about a quarter of Lithuania's industrial output.
After the proclamation of Lithuanian independence in 1991, Soviet attempts to suppress the rebellion focused on the television and radio transmitters in Sitkūnai, which were a critical part of the remaining free media. They were defended by the citizenry of Kaunas.
Demography
Historical population Ethnic compositionWith almost 93 percent of its citizens being ethnic Lithuanians, Kaunas is one of the most Lithuanian cities in the country. Kaunas has a higher proportion of ethnic Lithuanians than Vilnius, and more ethnic Lithuanians than Riga has ethnic Latvians or Tallinn has ethnic Estonians.
Ethnic composition in 2001:
#Lithuanians 92.9%
#Russians 4.4%
#Ukrainians 0.5%
#Poles 0.4%
#Others 1.8%
Ethnic composition in 1919 :
#Poles 42%
#Jews 31%
#Lithuanians 16%
#Russians 1.5%
#Others 1%
(Note: A lot of Lithuanians were counted as "Poles" by the Czarist authorities)
Geography
Administrative divisionsKaunas is divided into 11 Elderates
AleksotasCentras Dainava (Kaunas) EiguliaiGričiupisPanemunė
| PetrašiūnaiŠančiai Šilainiai Vilijampolė Žaliakalnis
|
NeighborhoodsCityscape
Points of interest Central Kaunas is defined by two pedestrian streets: the 2-km-long Laisvės alėja (Liberty Avenue), a central street of the city, lined by linden trees, and its continuation, Vilnius Street, leading to the oldest part of Kaunas. Some of the most prominent features in Kaunas include:
the Kaunas Castle, a 14th century fortification;the Vytautas' Church, one of the oldest churches in Lithuania and the oldest in Kaunas;the Kaunas Cathedral Basilica, the largest Gothic building in Lithuania, with a late Baroque interior;the St. George's Church, which was rumoured to have been turned into a dance studio during the Soviet Occupation;the Pažaislis abbey, an impressive complex in Baroque style;the massive Neo-Byzantine church of St. Michael the Archangel;the Christ’s Resurrection Church with an unfolding panoramic view of the city;Kaunas Zoo, the only state-operated zoo in Lithuania;Kaunas Fortress, a 19-20th century military fortress, which includes a Holocaust site of the Ninth Fort;Kaunas Botanical Garden;Napoleon`s Hill;House of Perkūnas;Town Hall and the square;Interbellum functionalism architecture complexes;The Žaliakalnis Funicular Railway.Valley of Girstupis River named after Adam Mickiewicz Museums Kaunas is often called a city of museums, because of the abundance and variety of them. The museums in Kaunas include:
the War Museum of Vytautas the Great;the M. K. Čiurlionis State Art Museum, commemorating the work of the early 20th century avant-garde artist who sought to combine painting and music into a single artistic medium;a gallery of works collected by Mykolas Žilinskas at the Kaunas Art Gallery;the Žmuidzinavičius Museum (best known as the Devils' Museum), which houses a collection of more than two thousand sculptures and carvings of devils from all over the world, most of them of folk provenance. Of particular interest are the Hitler and Stalin devils, together doing the dance of death over a playground littered with human bones;Aviation Museum;Ceramics Museum in the Town Hall of Kaunas;Communications History Museum;Kaunas Picture Gallery;Lithuanian Sports Museum;Medicine and Pharmacy Museum;Historical Presidential Palace, displaying exhibits from the interwar periodMuseum For The Blind;Museum of Exiles & Political Prisoners;Museum of Folk Music & Instruments;Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum. Theatres Kaunas State Drama TheatreKaunas Musical TheatrePublic artA great deal of sculptuary is on display in the public areas of Kaunas.
image:unknown_sculpture_1.jpg|Vienybė Square
Image:Lithuania Kaunas monuments 2.jpg|Vienybė Square
Image:Kaunas Vytautas.jpg|Vytautas the Great
Image:Lithuania Kaunas monument 2.jpg|Near Žilinsko galerija
Transportation
Kaunas has 16 trolleybus routes, 34 bus routes (
Map), a wide shared taxi carrier network - see
Kaunas Public Transport-, and it is also one of the major river ports in the Baltic States. The city is located in the centre of Lithuania, making it highly significant from a logistical point of view. Kaunas International Airport (KUN) is capable of handling 300,000 passengers and 100,000 tonnes of cargo per year. There is also the smaller S. Darius and S. Girėnas Airport south of town.
Sports
Kaunas is home to the Žalgiris basketball club, one of Europe's strongest. The city is also the birthplace or childhood home of many of the country's top basketball stars, among them Arvydas Sabonis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Žydrūnas Ilgauskas, Linas Kleiza and Šarūnas Jasikevičius. The main stadium of the city is S.Dariaus ir S.Girėno Sporto Centras (total capacity 9,000), which is also the the Lithuanian soccer club FBK Kaunas's home stadium.
Education
Kaunas is often called a city of students; there are about 50,000 students enrolled in its universities.
ISM University of Management and EconomicsVytautas Magnus UniversityKaunas Business CollegeKaunas CollegeKaunas University of MedicineKaunas University of TechnologyLithuanian Academy Of Physical EducationLithuanian University of AgricultureLithuanian Veterinary AcademyVilnius University Kaunas Faculty of HumanitiesKaunas Art InstituteAnnual events
Kaziukas Fair Kaunas fork (beginning of March).International open-air "Kaunas Jazz Festival" (April-May).International dance competition "Amber Couple" (beginning of May).Day of Kaunas city (middle of May).International poetry festival "Spring of poetry" (end of May).Pažaislis music festival (June-August).Traditional folk music competition "Play, Jurgelis" (November).Christmas tree lighting (end of November).Kaunas Textile Art Biennial (next from November 2007 until March 2008)Notable residents
Valdas AdamkusDonatas BanionisAharon BarakEmma GoldmanJuozas GrušasŠarūnas JasikevičiusRomas KalantaHermann MinkowskiOscar MinkowskiJonas VileišisArvydas SabonisŠarūnas MarčiulionisAbraham MapuŽydrūnas IlgauskasL. L. ZamenhofAdam MickiewiczMarija GimbutasMichał Pius RömerTadas IvanauskasAntanas BaranauskasMaironisMykolas SleževičiusTrivia
Two of the country's three funiculars are located in Kaunas.The main pedestrian street in the city, Laisvės alėja (Liberty Avenue), is one of the longest pedestrian streets in Europe.National hero Romas Kalanta committed self-immolation in Kaunas in protest against the Soviet occupation of Lithuania.Emma Goldman, the celebrated proponent of anarchism, was born in Kaunas.It is a sister city of Los Angeles.Sugihara Street commemorates the Japanese consul who issued thousands of exit visas to Lithuanian and Polish Jews during his World War II service in Kaunas. His home in Kaunas is now a museum.Is the hometown of fictional serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter.See also
Temporary capital of LithuaniaKaunas GhettoExternal links
Website of Kaunas cityKaunas Web Page By Jose GutsteinKaunas tour overviewKaunas In Your Pocket City Guide (also a downloadable PDF guide)The city of KaunasA short description of KaunasHistoric images of KaunasKaunas International AirportKovno site and Kovno stories links by Eilat Gordin LevitanMuseums in KaunasThe Kaunas Jazz festivalKaunas Textile Art BiennialPublic transportation in Kaunas (omnibuses, trolleybuses)Tourist Information Centre of Kaunas regionSatellite picture by Google MapsKaunas Travel Guide (tips about Kaunas) 
