Day 9

An 06:30 start to the day but I was a bit groggy and took quite a time to get my act together. With my sugar level at 8.5 I injected 10 and 20 units before heading out to see Roy off at 07:45 from the main reception.

At 08:05 I met up with the remains of the group for breakfast; today’s breakfast fish was herring supplemented by coffee, pineapple peach creme fraiche and some flat cheese and vegetables.

John was nowhere to be seen but he had had a rough day yesterday so I wasn't altogether surprised. Michael, Hazel, Mark and Kelli joined in the banter with Mark looking a lot better than he had the day before.

 

My first appointment of the day was Polarised light treatment at 09:00 and so I did not go back to my room between breakfast and the polarised treatment and the 3 minutes on the ground floor allowed me sufficient time to get to the nurses station on floor 2 for my bandage change at 09:20.

Back to room 219 for a bit of a rest and some ice pack as I thought I had till the 11:00 appointment clear, however Greta had other ideas she had changed the physiotherapy session timing to 10:40 for today and tomorrow. Straight off to Physiotherapy and she was complaining that she could not reach Mark and so the session was just for me.

As on the day before I was guided by Greta straight from Physiotherapy to Cryotherapy and after the 3 minutes under the cryotherapy air duct it was back to room 219.

 


Catharine called and we were having a nice chat when I realised that I was about 4 minutes late getting to Massage. Not too bad and once again it was a really good session with Robertas; once again, and he even admitted it to have been quite brutal, but oh did it feel good afterwards.!

Well all that packed into the morning left me with a full afternoon to plan after lunch. At lunch John had reappeared and said that he had just been too tired and fallen asleep, so I informed him that he was in serious trouble with the wonderful Greta and that in her playful mood she had told me I was not to talk to him over lunch! Lunchtime fish was carp today and this was eaten with salad and cooked, cold vegetables in oil dressing.






During the afternoon there was some more significant snow and so I was not keen on attempting any external exercise. I meandered around the various floors of the building and then back to my room for some elevated rest before dinner. Tonight’s fish was turbot [The turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) is a relatively large species of flatfish in the family Scophthalmidae. It is a demersal fish native to marine or brackish waters of the Northeast Atlantic, Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.]

After dinner I had a long video call with Catharine telling me all about her day and how similar our conversations were between us and the cohort out here.

At dinner we had arranged to go to the level 1 restaurant for a drink together but only Kelli, John and I turned up but tonight’s discussion centred on energy supplies, heating systems and what the Canadian government was doing about investment in carbon neutrality in power generation. The restaurant was empty apart from us and the couple from Cuxhaven, with all the weekenders having signed out and gone home, soon we had the bar to ourselves and chatted freely becoming aware, as the bar staff were cleaning the floor, that we had outstayed our welcome at just after 21:00. Back to room 219 and preparations for more Safe on Netflix! 

Day 8

A beer before sleep does have its consequences and I had to get up 3 times overnight, however I slept well and woke up at around 07:15 giving me plenty of time to prepare for breakfast. Not much change in the bruising in my leg overnight but I have no doubt that it will change colour over the next few days.

Today I remembered to check my calendar for appointments before going to breakfast and noted the Cryo appointment at 09:30. Back to my room after breakfast and at last a bowel movement!

Feeling in good form following the cryogenic treatment I was looking forward to my massage and it was superb, in what felt like quite a long session he worked on my shoulders and back and I left room 340 feeling very relaxed. Shoulders do seem to suffer from the stresses of crutch usage and we discussed whether the crutches were the right length. Unfortunately they do not adjust sufficiently to be ‘on the spot’ so they stayed the same; I just make sure I remain more vertical.

This whole recuperation business is pretty tiring and it didn’t take long for me to drop back off to sleep once back in room 219. Back at the restaurant, with my cohort of English speakers, today’s fish offering was carp and it was very tasty with various bits of salad and couscous. Mark and Kelli wre planning to go for a walk outside in the sunshine after lunch.



John asked me to call on him at his room on the way to the 14:20 group physiotherapy appointment to accompany him to see Greta. So before leaving my room I set up my computer to view my old school friend, Martin Binks’ funeral, which was being streamed over the internet so that I could watch it when I got back from physiotherapy.

John and I rambled down to room 112 and had a good session with Greta after which we parted company as he had a cryogenic appointment but mine had been in the morning. I returned to my room to watch the funeral which was beautifully done and I made a donation to Martin's appeal for a memorial fund at Nottingham University.

The beautiful weather here this morning has given way to a still but grey late afternoon and I am hoping that it will improve again tomorrow allowing me to follow Mark and Kelli’s example of a walk round the block. Having just checked this seems unlikely as the forecast is for snow and cloudy weather until Thursday.

For dinner this evening, back to the restaurant. Having checked blood sugars, pleasantly down to 6.5, I injected 10 units recognising that I was going to eat and then go to the send off evening for the guys from Scotland. Dinner, again a different fish, cod, was available so I backed that up with rice and vegetables and then a second plate with salad. By 19:00 John and Roy had decided to go down to the ground floor restaurant and bar but Mark, Kelli and I stayed for a cup of tea, green in my case, and by the time we were ready to go down the others were still sitting in the main reception area as the restaurant was still quite busy. The three of us went back to our respective rooms and messed about for half an hour before going down to party!

Kelli and I indulged in a glass of red wine whilst the others were mainly on the beers and we had a good time chatting about the differences between UK and Canadian health care systems and their fees etc.. After a considerable wait the transport arrived to take the Scots back to Vilnius for their flight to Edinburgh and we gave them a round of applause and a bit of a singsong as they left.

Now back in my room to write up my blog and talk to Catharine before a bit of a netflix session, Safe, prior to sleep. Not sure how long that will last as I am very tired.

Day 7

Friday 28th. I have had to write that down as I had lost track of where in the week I am. Wonderful sleep with just a single wake up at around 05:00 with pain developing; I took a single paracetamol - codeine pill and then slept through till 08:25. All a bit of a rush then to get ready for breakfast. The english speaking group make up was changing; at breakfast there was no sign of Mark and Kelli. I hope that Mark is OK. My blood sugar was recorded at 9.5, nearly normal for my mornings.

For breakfast I tried the odd looking long thin sausage, scrambled egg with the dark bread and pineapple with creme fraiché, before my first appointment which was with the doctor at 09:20. He was a little concerned about the swelling and told me to spend more time with the leg elevated and to tap my leg to entice the circulation to work harder.

Michael and Hazel were waiting to see the doctor as I left. Having forgotten to check what my schedule was I went back to my room but quickly realised I should have gone straight to massage for 09:30 and so I was a little late, a great shame as the massage is so relaxing and here I was all tensed up due to being late.

Back in my room elevating now at 10:30 with nothing planned till lunch at 13:00 and then Physiotherapy at 15:30. I have been working on a backlog of emails etc. this morning with a mobilisation break at 12:00. Now as it approaches 13:00, lunch calls, and I am off to the restaurant. Blood sugars high again at 9.5 so will not go for the funny long sausages again.

Over lunch I met with the latest UK patient to arrive from the Nord Clinic, John, along with Mark and Kelli, Michael and Hazel. Again interesting conversations, John works in the private care industry with brain damaged patients etc..He recounted some of the interesting issues over working through the Covid Pandemic period.

I returned to my room to rest until the physiotherapy session at 15:30. I was a bit early arriving on the ground floor, consequently I sat in the main reception area with my leg elevated watching all the comings and goings. So today’s physiotherapist was the same one as I had seen in 2018, Greta. The session was very good and she kept warning me not to do too much. She wanted me to lift my big toes but leave the other toes on the floor; I cannot, no matter how much I try, do that. The exercises she made me do were as follows:

Lying down:

• Calf supported on big yellow sausage, push down and squeeze the buttocks
• Pull leg toward me to stretch the knee joint a little, then push forward and stretch the foot out
• Lift hips off the bed and back down slowly

Standing

• Swing left leg to left side then repeat for the other leg
• Scrunch toes up and release

Sitting on the bed

• Push hands against the outside of the thighs to hold against pressure
• Repeat but inner thighs

After all that I was struggling so I didn’t do the next bit; against the wall bars, saving that for tomorrow. After being released from Physiotherapy Greta told me to check with Cryo treatment as I should be able to go straight away rather than wait and have to come back later. That worked well and I was back in my room for just after 16:00

I rested for an hour and a half, during which time I fell fast asleep, waking at 17:25, good timing for getting up and starting to prepare for dinner. Blood sugars were higher than anticipated at 9.5 so injected 11 units and ‘strode off’ to the restaurant.

The usual culprits were arriving at the restaurant along with newby John and we had a very social time where we were able to advise John of lots of key issues for his stay. The food was really good again, more fish!

Following a full hour of chatting it was proposed that we went to the ground floor restaurant for a social drink.



Some of our Scottish companions are leaving later tomorrow so this was their sendoff.


Leaving the party I returned to my room and caught up with today’s batch of emails and then enjoyed a long video chat with Catharine and Jazz. Eventually I became a bit sore in the right thigh and decided it was time to move around so leaving Catharine to take Jazz for an evening walk I prepared to go to sleep.

The right thigh is now showing some bruising above the knee:

OK so good night, catch up tomorrow... 

Day 6

A reasonable night but I overheated and had to take some more painkillers at around 05:00. The knee and ankle are now showing signs of swelling, all to be expected, but as yet no bruising.

I am now in polarised light treatment on the ground floor, over here that is level 1, having been through a fabulous breakfast, where yet again I overindulged, adding herring to my normal flat cheese and salami, then cremé fraiche and fruit (apricot this morning).

Initially at breakfast I chatted with Mark and Kelli again but when they left Michael and Hazel invited me over to their table for more chatting. All very friendly here and we all seem to have similar thoughts on society and that subject, politics, which is so disturbing at this time, especially in the UK!

Between breakfast and this polarised light treatment was a very relaxing back massage session, what more could you ask for?

Next up is a new dressing, physiotherapy, then lunch and finally, to round off the sessions mid afternoon, back to Cryo treatment. As the Cryo session was during the lunch period I had a first sitting before and then snuck back in for a second sitting! Probably didn’t do my sugars any good! On returning to my room I was very tired and used the bed adjustments to raise my legs above my hips as recommended by the Physio.

Woke up around 16:00 and mobilised, then fixed all the remaining sessions in my google calendar before mobilising again and resting before dinner at 18:00. Such a busy schedule!

Now it's getting dark at just after 17:00 and I had another session of movement and relaxing before dinner. More fish! By choice I might add and very tasty. This evening Mark wasn’t feeling so good so I sat with Kelli and chatted about working in voluntary organisations, very interesting similarities in her experience.

So how is my recovery going?

My right leg is now noticeably swollen around the thigh, knee and ankle. Stiffness is slightly less at the front of the thigh above the knee and I am able to walk with one crutch and when collecting food I have been walking without crutches at all.

The biggest problem is lifting the right leg up onto the bed. To achieve this without too much pain I put my left foot under my right ankle and lift, otherwise the pain in the front of my thigh above the knee is just unbearable.

Day 5 travel to UPA 2022-01-26

A good night of sleeping with the benefit of a sleeping pill and I woke at around 07:00 ready to get organised as the driver collecting the two Marks from Nord Clinic to take us to UPA was due at 10:00.

The usual regime of blood pressure, blood sugar in preparation for breakfast at 08:00. My blood sugar reading was better at 9.1 so I injected 8 units Novorapid and 20 of Lantus. As I started to re pack and get ready the nurse informed me that the driver was going to be early so I needed to get a move on.

Getting long trousers on without bending my knee too much was a challenge, but eventually I made it and then it was the sock on the right foot! All done I repacked the suitcase and my other hand bag. The driver, the same one we had getting us to the clinic on Monday, dealt with my bags as I walked into the external glass lift to go to the ground floor.

The walkway was covered in melted and refrozen ice so I was particularly careful with my crutch technique. Safely in his Toyota minivan I was in the front seat while Mark and his wife Kelli were in the back. Bending the knee sufficiently to get into the front seat was a challenge but I managed it without too much discomfort as we then set off to Druskininkai. It was a dull and cloudy weather pattern as we drove down the AI or E85 towards Vilnius before turning off at the 129 junction.



Quite a difference from the last time I was here in July 2018 with snow everywhere but the bird nests on their pylons are still there! We stopped at a service station to allow both patients to mobilise a bit and then proceeded on our way noticing the LPG storage here as a lot of cars on the continent use LPG.

As we approached Druskininkai I remembered that there was a bit of a welcome setup on the roundabout, so I prepared to take a photo.



Now I'm in Druskininkai and there have been a few changes with a new café on level 2; ideal for those of us recuperating, with our rooms on level 2. Having successfully been admitted to UPA I went up to level 2 in the lift and walked round to my room 219 with its view over the forest.

 


I didn’t go out onto my balcony!

Having unpacked a few bits and bobs I checked through the paperwork I had been given and put today and tomorrow’s appointments into Google Calendar, sharing them with Catharine so she knows what I am up to.

My first appointment labelled “General Internist Consultation” was with the delightful doctor, Giedrė, whom I recognised from my previous visit in 2018. She reviewed all the paperwork and hand wrote, in a fountain pen, with tremendous style, to complete the notes for my stay here in UPA. Then she looked at the bandaging. I told her that it was feeling rather tight and she removed the blue fabric strapping which gave me great comfort. This appointment had been scheduled for 13:40 but I was called in early which was good as I was then able to go for lunch at the new restaurant before going back to my room. In the restaurant there were not only my Canadian friends, Mark and Kelli but also more English speaking guests wielding crutches. After lunch I caught up with a couple from Wrexham and will catch up with them again tomorrow.

The afternoon sessions were Topical Cryotherapy, which is great for lessening the pain and swelling and then Occupational Therapy which was a kind of review of what I was expecting to get out of my stay here.

Following the Cryotherapy I then returned to my room and took some Paracetamolis/Kodeneino pain killers as I had forgotten to take them after lunch, but next the dressing fell off. I called the nurse who came straight round and changed the dressing. 

That allowed me then to fall asleep for around an hour before I got organised to go back to the restaurant for my dinner. The food here is superb and once again I had fish backed up with cooked peppers, a mixed salad and coleslaw.

Over dinner, I chatted with Mark and Kelli, then returned to my room to write up today’s entertainment and talk to Catharine over the web. I will be off to sleep again shortly when it is time to take the next set of painkillers.

Summary of progreses:

Pain levels: Lifting my right leg to gert onto the bed is a problem and I now get my left foot under my right ankle to lift the leg. Otherwise, as long as I remember to take the pain killers, I am doing OK

Stiffness: The area above the right knee is stiff and I feel tension as I lift the right leg to move it forward as I walk. I find it difficult at the moment to flex the knee more than around 10°. I am continuing with the simple exercises given by the physio in Nord Clinic and making sure that I move eevery hour. 

 

Day 4 recovery at Nord Clinic

Even with mystical spotify music I didn't get much sleep, maybe an hour at around 05:30, before Laurā came to take my blood pressure reading at 06:30. She then removed the dressing and cleaned the area again before rebandaging it, unfortunately when I got up to go to the toilet the new bandage leaked and I deposited blood down my leg and all over the floor where I was walking. I called the staff with the button and they were wonderfully calm about it and stripped and redressed the area for a second time.

Breakfast, the next excitement at 08:00 was a little disappointing as they had not taken note of my gluten intolerance.

As I had anticipated from the dinner last night I thought my blood sugars would be high again, not too bad at 15 and I was concerned that I may have injected too much. 18 Lantus 20 Novo rapid but as both the breakfast yoghurt and the jam were over sweetened may be this was a good move.

The new nurse, Monika, replaced the normal bread with gluten free bread but it was very crunchy and I can’t say I enjoyed it.

Monika who looked very similar to Laurā, same haircut and colour hiding behind her face mask had me very confused! Straight after breakfast she took me in a wheelchair to have my next set of post op X-Rays and then brought me back in time for Physiotherapist, Justė Balevičiūté, to arrive and talk me through the exercise routines. Next she took me on a walk to the stairs on a new set of crutches, then down one flight and back up to check that I had remembered how to do this. I passed with flying colours and so it was back to my room for more exercises as shown on the sheet she left; then ice treatment giving me 30 minutes of relaxation in an ice jacket from an electrical ice maker pump.

Next she took me down to the physiotherapy room for an intriguing bit of kit that gently mobilised my new knee without me having to put any effort into the process. 

At 11:14 my time on this machine had just finished and I was put back in the wheelchair and taken back to my room for more rest and a recap of what I am supposed to do; I asked her for my surgeon's first name, Šarūnas (pronounced Sharoonas). Justė was another of the team here who really was just so helpful.

That was a very busy morning and on return to my bed I had a short sleep before pills, blood sugar test and insulin jab before lunch. My blood sugars had shot up to 19 before lunch; as a result of the breakfast. The big jab this morning was thoroughly justified! Lunch arrived at around 13:15 and I had barely finished it before Šarūnas called in to check in with me and inform me that he is very happy with his review of the X-Rays in that the left knee was still in the correct position since 2018 and the new right knee was perfectly aligned, he explained that this was a newer type of knee that the left one and should be even better! We had a nice chat and he tried to tell me his surname. I wasn't even going to try to pronounce it or he'd have been there all day trying to get me to remember it! I have just copied it from their Website: Šarūnas Tarasevičius. I thanked him for the revision and look forward to a virtual consultation check up in three months. He confirmed that the clips would be taken out at UPA as I am staying longer this time and that the rehab period should be 6 weeks even though this was a much bigger operation. The partial prosthetic had not been cemented in so this surgery was easier than it could have been so there was no need for the more expensive prosthetic.

Rugilá, one of the receptionists, just brought my receipt as the payment has now finally been received along with a letter for me to sign to claim back the excess as the more expensive implant was not required; I am due a rebate of €890.

This afternoon I caught up with some outstanding emails and things before catching up on a bit of sleep, though I managed to get up and exercise every hour. Thee new nursing staff arrived after lunch the one who has been looking after me is Loretta, again another member of staff with a lovely temperament.

After my exercise at 18:00 it was dinner time and I had elected for the same one as last night, the haddock salad, at least I knew what I was getting. When I tested my blood sugars they were off the chart again at 19.7 so I injected 20 units in the hope that this would calm things down. With unknown food and no real burn off energy it is so difficult to work out what is required. 

Catharine, having arrived home from Star, called just as I received my dinner so she went to take Jazz out for a walk and I will speak to her in a bit when she gets back. After the call and my next exercise session I will get everything ready to take in the morning so there are no hold ups with the transport to UPA. 

This evening I saw Mark, from Canada, who had a hip replacement yesterday and was exercising, he too is going to UPA with me tomorrow. Looking forward to it!

Day 3 - operation day

Got up at 06:30 and made myself ready for the pickup by logistics department transport to the clinic. In the taxi was a Canadian gentleman also called Mark so we were able to chat easily on the way and in the reception, but the same name caused chaos in the reception! He is also here for knee surgery and will be at UPA for rehab with me later this week. 

This time the clinic is in a newer building and beautifully set up. The old clinic is in the next block down the street but about a year ago they apparently combined their various clinics into this one building to be more efficient. 

Straight away I was taken for blood tests, height and weight measurement then returned to reception.

After filling in lots of forms I attempted to pay with my new starling euro bank account. This was problematic as the card hadn't arrived before I left and although I can swipe using the app there is a limit way below what I need to pay. I therefore had to revert to paying a business via the app and this once again proved difficult as the bank think this is a suspicious transaction, even though I completed all their additional questions. So I have had to sign a document to guarantee I will pay if the transfer does not arrive in the 1-3 days they promise.

After that I was interviewed by the clinic's media person to film me explaining who I was and why I am here. A very interesting conversation with Katania, she is a native of Lithuania, who has been in America for many years and then in the UK to go to leicest uni. Now she is back in Kaunas and excited about Kaunas being the European Capital of Culture this year.

Next I was taken to my hospital room for the start of my treatment. The nurse showed me round the room and explained how to reset the safe. This is located on the lowest shelf so I found it difficult and called for assistance using the little call button.

The anesthesiologist came to explain the process, then the surgeon to check everything. 

Next I was wheeled into the operating theatre and that is all I can remember with a team of very active people sorting out all kinds of stuff

Immediately following the surgery I was woken as the team were removing the material from round the operating area and cleaning my leg. Then I was wheeled back in my room. It is a very odd feeling to have no control over anything below my hips! I tried to concentrate on getting some response but nothing for a while. 

At 15:20 I was able to get some response and asked for my phone so that I could let friends and family know I was doing OK.

I am connected to a drip, blood pressure test on my arm and heart rate sensor on my finger.

On the next nurses visit I asked for some water as I was feeling quite dry in the mouth.

16:10 I have full movement in my legs with just a bit of pins and needles in the toes. Great recovery so far! Really very little pain at the moment, just an ache just above the knee on the inside of the thigh.

17:00 noticed bleeding from the operation area so called for assistance. Not considered a problem in fact good to release blood from the wound. 

This nurse Laurā was very cross with UK as she wanted to go to the UK to work in health care.

I checked with her about pronouncing some Lithuanian words and she is so helpful but my memory cells are not working too well at the moment.

Neumownas phonotactic for nemans river name

Pain now increasing slightly and move to the outside of and above the knee. Drip now changed to paracetamol. 17:55 Removed paracetamol drip instructed to sit upright for 10 min the flat for 10 min then sit upright for 10 min. Then flat for 5 and call Laurā to go for a walk!

Post evening meal. 19:33

Laurā came back after I had finished my various elevation states and ran through all the checks before allowing me to use the walker. 

This allowed me to walk around 15m and back via the ensuite bathroom. After turning to flush the toilet I felt a little unsteady so Laurā helped me back onto the bed and elevated my legs for around 10 minutes while she organised my dinner.

Haddock and salad, strawberry ricotta with a sauce I daren't consider, as it looked very sweet.

The issue was then how much insulin to inject. I had been advised not to inject the lantus, long acting insulin that I normally take in the morning, so trying to decide on the dose wasn't easy.

As you can see even without eating anything since last night the sugar levels have risen; I decided on an injection of 10 units. Now I could tuck in. 

20:10 just called the nurse to ask for another cappuccino, the whole meal was really tasty. The little bed table was very convenient to use too so full marks so far.

Lithuania Day 2

 2022-01-23

This morning at breakfast I indulged in various different offerings from the display including sausage, bacon and fried egg; slightly out of my normal boundaries. A final fling before my fasting from this evening. 

I can’t decide what to do now as today will be my last opportunity to walk anywhere for a few days; it is a beautiful morning with clear skies and snow on the ground. I walked around 2.6km and that is the final wear test on my right knee before it is removed! This walk took me to the confluence of the Neman and Neris rivers where the difference in the ice floating down the two rivers was really interesting. The Neris, flowing faster than the Neman, had way more floating ice and as a consequence most of the waterfowl were in the Neman. There were lots of locals out enjoying the sunshine and their young children sledging. Just like in the UK most people in urban situations seem to avoid eye contact when passing on paths etc. for a country bumpkin that always seems strange to me.

As you can see I took a slightly odd route initially as Google Maps was finding it difficult to locate me within the tall buildings and relatively narrow streets. I went back to using my normal navigational skills looking at the angle of the sun and walking in what I knew to be a northwesterly direction until I hit the park, then I just followed the footpath even though it was covered in snow but it had been used sufficiently to show the general direction. Along the way were a number of children's play areas and some park training equipment. 

Link to the google album for DAY 2 2022-01-23

Kauno Santakos (Kaunas Confluence Park) is where the Kaunas Castle is located, a Defensive mediaeval castle, and in the grounds is a status of Vyčio paminklas "Laisvės Karys" which is a representation of the Lithuianian Coat of Arms. 

This photo shows the Kaunas Castle in the background. 

On the return to the hotel I followed the bank of the Neman River with its various bridges. 

Vytautas the Great Bridge 

Vytautas the Great Bridge, also known as Aleksotas Bridge before 1930 and from 1940 until 23 February 2008, crosses the Nemunas River to connect Aleksotas and Old Town in Kaunas, Lithuania. Its length exceeds 256 metres, and its width is of 16 metres. The means of payment for the building of the bridge was arranged back in 1927. After several stages of competition, Copenhagen-based engineers obtained the rights to build the bridge. Finally, on January 11, 1930, the bridge was completed, being named after Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas the Great.

Pontoon bridge in 1873

During World War II the bridge was blasted away. Due to the strategic relevance of the city Kaunas, the bridge was rebuilt in 1948. In 2005 the bridge underwent a major reconstruction.

I was fascinated to see the movement of ice at a point where I assume a culvert drained into the river from the Kaunas builtup area. 

Nemunas Island

This island which I walked onto yesterday is now being developed under an EU scheme worth some €25M as National Science Island. Apparently Kaunas ‘Consistently ranked as Lithuania’s best student city, Kaunas’ lively atmosphere derives from the thousands of young people who are seeking higher education at its eight eminent universities.’ From the document linked below ‘...Lithuania, the largest of the Baltic States, has one of the fastest growing economies in Europe.’ as can be seen by the amount of new builds going on around the area. 

https://competitions.malcolmreading.com/scienceisland/assets/downloads/160627_Science-Island_CompetitionConditions.pdf

With the new bridge toward the western end of the island being built as part of this latest project. For me as an old construction engineer it was a fascinating sculptural design with curved concrete faces from the retaining walls to the buttresses. This bridge is so new that google street view doesn’t have any photos showing the bridge.  

Because I hadn’t taken photos of this bridge on my way back as there were too many people wandering around, I walked back this afternoon to take some photos. 

One of the cool things about pedestrian crossings here is that EVERY one stops if you are waiting at a no traffic light pedestrian crossing; and the traffic lights have a countdown to show how long before it goes green for pedestrians and cyclists. There are also good audio signals for blind people.

This shows 17 seconds to go to the change to the green man. So after two walks today I am now resting the soon to be removed knee before I go down to the restaurant for dinner. After dinner I will pack everything and settle the hotel extras such as items from the fridge. Then an early night as the logistics department’s driver is collecting me at 07:15 tomorrow.

The restaurant was not open this evening so I had to suffice with another Bolt delivery 

Not the greatest of evening meals I have ever had but it will suffice to keep me going until I am through the operation tomorrow. 

I doubt I will be in a fit state to publish anything tomorrow but hopefully I will be back editing this blog by later on Tuesday. Fingers Crossed. 

Lithuania Day 1

 2022-01-22 at Kaunas Hotel

I had set my alarm for 07:15 and I awoke from a deep sleep, struggling to get up to turn off the alarm on my phone, which I had deliberately left on the table, to force me out of bed knowing that I would fall asleep again if I didn’t move!

After ablutions I went down in the lift from the fourth to the ground floor, over here labelled 1.

 

From there, following the signs for the restaurant takes you down into the cellar where there is a manikin next to a barrel to welcome you; passing this stage setting the layout for breakfast was exemplary and I had my normal kind of breakfast, flat cheese and cold meats with a portion of fruit salad; with of course a coffee or two.

As I started my second coffee I had a phone call from the Logistics Department of Nord Clinic, i.e. the chauffeur who was already outside, just a little earlier than expected. I rushed back up to my room to collect my passport and coat and back down to get into the taxi. About a 7 minute drive took us to a small ground floor clinic where I was required to fill in a form for my Covid test; then straight into a cubical and the test was done. Now I am back in the hotel and going to study my language skills in Lithuanian. So next I will go and find some more coffee!

Back with coffee to my room to consider the rest of the day. I am keen to go and see the river and get a feel of the city. So I plan to go to explore the locality, down to the Neman River, after my next linguistics session.

The plan was to walk from the hotel to the eastern tip of the island, however due to major construction works (all EU funded by the look of things) it was not possible. My route then was changed to suit getting to the western end of the island. Again that was not possible due to further construction works. 

Google map link 

Simonas Daukantas bridge

Simonas Daukantas bridge is a suspension type pedestrian bridge across Nemunas river, which connects S. Daukantas street with Nemunas island.

The length of the bridge is 151 metres. It was built in 1988, representing the main tendencies of a late modernism - the luxury and monumentalism. The supporting arch with the Columns of Gediminas is one of the most important details. This symbol of statehood was incorporated during the building of the bridge and became public while still a couple of years ahead of the Independence of Lithuania in 1990, therefore, could be considered a peaceful resistance.

The view northwest from the second bridge

 Kids Sledging in the park

View from the West end of the island

The Statue of Vytautas the Great

Just across the boulevard from the Kaunas Hotel is the statue of Vytautas the Great who was the Grand Duke of Lithuania c. 1350 – 27 October, 1430. Apparently it was a very troubled time with civil wars and wars against the Teutonic Order. The statue was originally built for the people of Kaunas in 1932, within the territory of the Lithuanian Military Academy. It is said that the monument had to "prepare and harden Lithuanians for an important march – the liberation of Vilnius", since at the time the capital belonged to Poland. The sculpture was destroyed during World War II, however its exact copy was made and erected in Laisvės avenue in 1990 under the initiative of the then civil movement "Aukuras", since it was not possible to restore the monument in its original place due to the construction of new buildings in that area.

This is interesting as my great grandfather came from a jewish family in Vilnius and at the time, I understand, was a rabbi in Vilnius when it was still part of Poland back in the 1880s. Very difficult to find much information on this but my great grandfather became a Christian priest and founded the Mission to the Jews in the East End of London and was the Parish Priest at St. Marks in Whitechapel.

The final leg of my walk looking down the boulevard to Kaunas Hotel

Getting dark here now at 16:30 local time so back on language studies, which I have avoided so far this afternoon.

20:00 I am eating in the hotel restaurant. I have  a starter of salmon and a spicy vegetable dressing topped with pea shoots. As a side to this are 2 halves of lightly toasted bread topped with grated cheese. Very tasty but perhaps a little too sweet. 

At 20:20 a pianist has just started to entertain us from a grand piano; she was accompanied by a lady who was not quite as tuneful as I had anticipated but as I was unable to tell what she was saying/singing I cannot comment too much. There also appeared to be quite an audience outside the restaurant window on the boulevard.

The main course consisted of battered halibut on a bed of black tiny pea like objects with a custard consistency cheese sauce, carrots, courgette and tiny tomato like objects with a pointed top and very strong flavour. I asked Catharine what the black pea-like things were and she suggested ‘Black Lentils’. They are hiding under the netting. I finished off with an espresso coffee while I filmed the pianist. It was a really enjoyable meal and I am glad I had this tonight as tomorrow I will have to be fasting before the operation on Monday morning.

To pay for this entertainment I used my new Starling Euro account through Google Pay on my phone. So I have now used this both online for the lunchtime pizza, which incidentally sent my blood sugars crazy, and this evening to tap on the card machine. I am now really happy that I set this up to avoid too many excessive charges for converting from Sterling to Euros.

Travel to Kaunas

 2022-01-20

Due to the early flight from Liverpool airport Catharine and I had arranged to drive to Liverpool, stay overnight at Travelodge just by the airport. As normal we took Jazz out for a walk early catching the sunrise over the village as we traversed the beach back home. 

After coffee I completed the Passenger Locator form for Lithuania and complete some of the still outstanding tasks from my to do list.  

We planned to set off from home in the late afternoon but after hearing that Britannia Bridge had been closed due to an RTA, shortly after midnight, with a fatality and remained closed all morning. As a result we were concerned about getting off the island especially as we then heard that a lorry had got stuck in one of the arches on Menai Bridge. Consequently there were huge queues in both directions with a lot of people being unable to get to work and the supply chain totally interrupted. We changed our plans and decided to set off after an early lunch. We went via Brynsiencyn to deliver Jazz for ‘holibobs’ with Hywel and Kat’s dogs so that Catharine could come with me to the hotel and then drive back after dropping me off at JLA for the early requirement of 06:50. 

We were lucky as at the time we got to Britannia Bridge from LlanfairPG as the traffic going east had cleared and we were able to get straight onto the A55. However further down the A55 there were more hold ups as there was contraflow at the tunnels after Llanfairfechan.

The rest of the drive was uneventful and we arrived just before 16:00. Travelodge was a bit disappointing as the double room only had one chair, the sound from the TV was poor and the state of repair was not the best with a very worn carpet and the internals of the bathroom in a bit of a state. 

After checking in we went for a walk to the National Trust Speke House estate. However the notice at the gate said that it shuts at 16:00 so we didn’t go in very far then turned around and walked back to the hotel. The state of littering around this area before getting into the estate was awful; it is upsetting that our communities are so poor at maintaining acceptable standards with rubbish, fly tipping and general waste!

Having arrived back at the hotel we had coffee and checked out the food menu, which looked acceptable, so we decided to eat at the hotel, what a mistake that turned out to be! Having ordered the food at around 18:00 we waited and waited until eventually the poor young lad admitted that due to staff shortages the stock levels of food were insufficient and so we had to change our menu choices. When the food finally arrived it was awful and not at all as described on the menu! Still we got a free half of lager each for our disappointment. 

An interesting discussion with a fellow hotel guest who also felt that the service and standards left a lot to be desired. 

2022-01-21

After a reasonable night’s rest we had set the alarm for 05:30 and got ourselves organised so that Catharine could take everything I didn’t need back home and she went down from the 5th floor where our room was to the ground floor to get me a cappuccino, to have with my breakfast. As she doesn’t like lifts and enclosed spaced she came back via the stairs and was surprised at how much effort that took!

So here I am in the airport having cleared Security and having coffee in The Kissing Gate on the way to the boarding gate. The gate announcement didn’t happen until around 08:20 and with my priority boarding pass I was cleared quickly to my window seat 15a just in front of the wing, well actually opposite the engine!

The flight was fine with the two seats next to me clear but the number of people wearing face masks below their noses or taking them off was pretty upsetting!

Apart from when I was drinking my coffee my face mask was on correctly all the time. Incidentally the coffee was so hot that I could hardly hold the cup and I was not able to drink it until we had almost landed at Dublin airport! 

There was a long walk from the plane to the Immigration control and the signs for connecting flights disappeared part way along so I got a little confused. Eventually I made it through the security and walked for ages back to the departures to check in again. All well now as I am sitting in the lounge area writing this latest part of the blog, although the guy at the gate had to let me in as you are only supposed to be in the departure lounge for a maximum of 5 hours. 

Now at just coming up to 12:00 the flight list shows flights as far ahead as 18:20. My flight is not yet listed… When  I was having lunch at the Marqette, a varied and pleasant salad mix with a glass of wine to keep me calm, the gate 113 was showing for the flight to Kaunas. 

It was good to see that Irish yachting got some advertising:

 

It is now just after 16:00 and I have ventured to gate 113 to see where it was, it is right at the end of the building! I have found another charging point to top up charge on the computer and phone. Dublin is a huge airport and seems very efficiently run. Just could have done with a shorter wait to get my connection. 

Shortly I will walk back to the Marqette for a bit to eat before boarding. 

Following another salad I am now on board my flight with an expected duration of 3hrs 5mins so with the 2 hr time difference in Lithuania this means our arrival is at 23:50 local time according to the boarding pass. Take off was on time and once again I have the two seats next to me on my row vacant. 

Feeling quite tired now so I will try and get a bit of shut eye and see how things are in a while. 

UK time is now 20:17 so Lithuanian time is 22:17 and I am getting a bit uncomfortable from sitting for this length of time but not long to go now. The seats on RyanAir aeroplanes are a bit closer than other more expensive airlines with no bags for things on the back of the seat in front so it is a bit difficult to organise things and there is not enough room to open my laptop and use the keyboard easily. 

As we landed there was a round of applause for the flight staff and most passengers where well behaved as they exited the plan. Once outside I realised that my footwear choice of boat shoes was probably not the best as there was a layer of snow which was quite slippery on the way into the customs gate. 

There were no issues clearing customs and the Nord Clinic taxi was waiting for me with my name displayed on an iPad. The drive to the Hotel took around 25 minutes so I was checking in at around 01:00 with a very helpful assistant with details of my room and arrangements for breakfast starting at 08:00. 

Off to bed:

Things to remember before flying

• Download music

• Download books or films. 

• Make sure your euro card is on google pay!