Two Days in Kraków: from historic squares to riverside conversations with locals

Day 1

After a few days in Lithuania, I arrived in Kraków – the last stop of my trip.

I started by exploring the historic centre. I walked around Rynek Główny, Kraków’s famous Main Market Square, passed the Sukiennice and St. Mary’s Basilica and eventually made my way towards Wawel Castle, one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks.

But, as with the rest of my trip, I wasn’t only interested in seeing the famous sights. I also wanted to find out where I could meet some younger locals and get a glimpse of everyday life in Kraków. So I stopped by the tourist information centre and asked if they could recommend places where I might meet young people who actually live in the city. And, of course, I had another very important question: where could I find the best ice cream in Kraków? They recommended Good Lood, so naturally I had to give it a try.

The weather was absolutely perfect. After spending so many days wearing sweaters and long trousers, it felt amazing to finally put on a dress and enjoy one of the last truly sunny days of the summer.

In the evening, I walked towards the Vistula River. The beautiful weather had brought everyone outside, and there were people everywhere – sitting by the water, talking with friends or simply enjoying the evening. I had already spotted a group of young people sitting on the grass near Wawel, playing cards, so I decided to approach them and ask if they would be willing to talk to me. Now, I decided to do the same by the Vistula.

It was such a nice way to spend the evening 🌅

Day 2

The next day, I started by exploring Kazimierz, Kraków’s historic Jewish quarter. I spent some time walking around the neighbourhood and taking in its atmosphere before heading to meet Natalia Zachwieja, who works with at the City Architect’s Office of Kraków.

We talked about how the city is developing and how Kraków tries to balance preserving its historic character with the needs of the people who live there. We also discussed some of the challenges the city faces, including graffiti in the Jewish quarter and Nowa Huta, a district I had first heard about from the young people I met the evening before. It was interesting to hear more about Kraków from a new perspective.

After our conversation, I continued exploring the city. I walked around Wawel and along the Vistula, and of course, I also had to try some traditional pierogi. In the afternoon, I took a train back home to the Czech Republic.

Three Days in Neringa: flying over the Curonian Spit, shifting sands and a fox after sunset

September 5, 2026

After the busy days in Vilnius, it was time to slow things down a little. My next stop was Neringa, in the north of Lithuania, on the Curonian Spit. It´s a completely different side of Lithuania with water, dunes, forests and small seaside settlements everywhere around me.

Day 1

After Vilnius, my next stop was Neringa. I took a bus, and the journey took around five hours. Getting to the Curonian Spit was quite an experience in itself – the bus simply drove onto a ferry, we crossed the lagoon in about five minutes, and then continued our journey on the other side.

A French traveller was sitting next to me, so we started chatting. At one point, we got talking about how he had even discovered that Neringa existed in the first place. And honestly, it made me think – Neringa is not exactly the kind of place you accidentally end up in.

Neringa is a municipality on the Lithuanian part of the Curonian Spit, a long, narrow peninsula between the Curonian Lagoon and the Baltic Sea. It consists of four main settlements: Nida, Preila, Pervalka and Juodkrantė. Nida is the largest and the administrative centre, so this was my base for the next few days.

After arriving in Nida, I checked into my guesthouse, which was in a beautiful spot right next to the harbour and promenade. I went for a walk and immediately fell into the seaside atmosphere. Birds everywhere, boats in the harbour, fresh air – and a completely different pace of life from Vilnius.

Later, I did some work on my blog and took a little break. In the evening, I walked across the peninsula to the Beach of Nida to watch the sunset. And just when I thought the day was ending perfectly, I spotted a fox after sunset.

My first day in Nida ended with a sunset and an unexpected encouter with wildlife ☺️

Day 2

The second day started with some more exploring and lunch before things got a lot more interesting.

I met Vita Blažiūnienė, a heritage conservation specialist at the Neringa Municipality, and Angelina Ivanova, Deputy Director of the Nida Culture and Tourism Information Centre “Agila”. Angelina showed me the kind of tour they offer to visitors and explained how they approach tourism in Neringa. We talked about the constant balancing act between tourism and protecting the Curonian Spit National Park, why the area is recognised by UNESCO, what a cultural landscape actually means, and even the challenges of housing in such a protected place.

And then things got a little more adventurous.

Vita took me to Nida Airfield, where I got to fly over Neringa – and even sit in the pilot’s seat. Nida has a long aviation tradition, including a gliding school established here in 1933.

Seeing the Curonian Spit from the air was incredible. Angelina had just been telling me about the shifting sands and how the dunes have shaped and continue to change the landscape, and suddenly I could see exactly what she meant. The narrow peninsula, the dunes, the lagoon on one side and the sea on the other looked completely different from above. I even spotted cormorants flying around us.

The atmosphere at the airfield was incredibly relaxed, and I am so grateful to the pilot and everyone who made this experience possible. I felt a little sick afterwards. But honestly, I would do it all over again.

After that, I finally slowed down and got some rest. In the evening, I walked around the harbour, watched the local life and chatted with some fishermen and a local 🐟

Day 3

My third day in Nida was a rainy one, so I decided to embrace the weather and spend the morning indoors. I visited the Thomas Mann Museum, located in the summer house where the writer spent several summers with his family, and the Curonian Spit History Museum, which looks at the history and cultural heritage of the peninsula.

After the museums, I had one last lunch in Nida before heading back to Vilnius. From there, I caught my flight to Krakow – and just like that, my Baltic adventure came to an end 🧭

Vilnius: Where Old Meets New

September 5, 2026

After a few days in Riga, I continued my journey to Vilnius by bus. The ride took only around four hours and was surprisingly comfortable, which makes travelling between Baltic cities by bus really easy. When I arrived, there was a huge storm and strong wind, so I spent the evening having some cepelinai, the traditional Lithuanian dish, and working on my blog. The storm was apparently quite a topic in Vilnius too, as locals kept mentioning it over the next few days.

Day 1

My first day in Vilnius started right in the historic centre, right in the middle of the St Bartholomew’s Fair. Suddenly, the old town felt less like a UNESCO site and more like a medieval town that had somehow forgotten to move on. There were craftsmen in period costumes, blacksmiths, potters, traditional textile techniques, music, dancing and plenty of street performances. The crafts were not just there to look at. They were actually being made, and visitors could try some of the techniques themselves.

I was also pleasantly surprised by how much modern technology Vilnius uses in tourism. At the tourist information centre, artificial intelligence is already helping visitors find their way around the city, while interactive elements can also be found at some historic sites. It is a nice combination – old stones, new technology, and no need to choose between the two.

In the evening, I wanted to go up to the Hill of Three Crosses for the view. Unfortunately, it started rating, so the hill will have to watt for my next visit. I guess I need to leave something for next time.

Day 2

The second day started with a meeting with Jurate Raugaliene, an architect and heritage conservation specialist from the Vilnius Old Town Renewal Agency. We mainly talked about tourism in Vilnius, especially seasonality and how the city deals with the ups and downs of visitor numbers throughout the year. It was interesting to hear how the city looks at tourism not only in terms of attracting more visitors, but also in terms of creating a better balance throughout the year.

After our meeting, we went on a city tour. One of the stops was the Great Synagogue of Vilna. There is no synagogue anymore, but you can still see what has been found underneath the ground. Archaeologists are still working on the site and discovering more about what was once one of the most important places of Jewish life in Vilnius. Another stop was the Auskim weaving studio, where I met Vladas Daškevičius, a third-generation weaver. The studio has been weaving since 1963, and Vladas learned the craft from his mother and grandmother. Today, he continues the family tradition, creating woven bands, rugs and other textiles using traditional Lithuanian techniques, but with a more contemporary look.

What caught my attention was the 100-year-old loom he was working on. The principle is quite simple – threads are lifted in different combinations and the weft is passed through them to create the pattern – but the process itself is much more complicated than it looks. Watching Vladas work made me realise just how much patience and precision goes into something that can look so effortless when it is finished.

Then I went to Užupis, the artistic neighbourhood on the other side of the Vilnelė River. I had heard quite a lot about it, so I was curious to see it for myself. I spent some time just walking around and also talked to two locals about what ITL acually to live there. We talked about how Užupis has changed over the years and how they percieve the growing number of tourists.

It was a good way to end the day – with a lot of new things to think about and, of course, still a few places left on my list for next time ❤️

Day 3

On my third day in Vilnius, I continued exploring the historic centre. I visited several of the city’s churches, walked along Literatų Street, and stopped at the colourful Basilian Gate. Literatų Street was one of my favourite discoveries – its walls are covered with more than 200 small artworks dedicated to writers and poets, so it is basically an open-air literary gallery. I also went up to Gediminas’ Tower.

I also stopped at Galerija 16, right next to St Anne’s Church, where I bought a little ring. After hearing from Jurate about the guild connecting local craftspeople in Vilnius and how the city supports traditional crafts, I wanted to support local makers myself. So the ring became my little souvenir with a purpose.

At 5 p.m., I joined the Meet the Local project and met Natalja, who is 37 and lives in Vilnius. She asked me where I had been so far, and I proudly listed pretty much every place I had managed to see in the historic centre. When I finished, she simply asked: “And have you been across the river?” No. I hadn’t. Apparently, I had been exploring only half of Vilnius. So Natalja decided to fix that.

She took me to Šnipiškės, first through the modern part of the neighbourhood, with skyscrapers and a completely different city skyline. She even took me up to a viewpoint, so I could see the city from above. But then we walked a little further and suddenly the whole atmosphere changed. Among the skyscrapers were tiny wooden houses, gardens and narrow streets, and people were sitting outside, enjoying the summer and getting ready for a barbecue. It felt less like being in the middle of a capital city and more like I had somehow ended up in a little summer cottage area. The wooden houses are part of the historic Šnipiškės settlement, with many dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They survived as the modern city grew around them, which is why today you can literally walk from a skyline of glass towers into an area that feels like a completely different world.

Natalja also took me to a Japanese garden, which was another unexpected stop. We talked about the neighbourhood, how it has changed. I was really impressed by how much she knew about Vilnius and how much she could tell me about the places we were seeing.

Having a local like Natalja with me was simply great – it made the whole afternoon so much more interesting and gave me a completely different perspective on the city 🤩

Finding my way through Riga

August 27, 2026

Finding my way through Riga

Day 1

I arrived in Riga at night, so my first real encounter with the city came the following morning. I set off on foot towards the Old Town and gradually let myself get carried away by its atmosphere.

Right in front of the House of the Blackheads, I started talking to a girl from Switzerland. We chatted about why she had come to Riga, what she wanted to see, and what she thought of the city so far. These kinds of spontaneous encounters are one of my favorite parts of traveling – you set out on your own and suddenly, you are not really alone anymore.

I continued exploring the city and even went to a concert at the Anglican Church. Music quickly became something I associated with the atmosphere of Latvia as a whole. I had heard that Latvians have a particularly close relationship with music – from choral singing to major cultural events such as the Latvian Song and Dance Festival.

After that, I stopped for lunch, where I met a lovely Latvian woman and ended up having a really nice conversation with her. I never really know where these conversations will take me, which is probably half the fun. Somehow, lunch turned into another little window into everyday life in Latvia.

After that, I headed to the Art Nouveau district and visited the museum Aigars had recommended to me. I then spent some time wandering through the city’s parks. Riga is surprisingly green for a capital city, and I loved how easily the greenery blends into the city itself. The city canal, winding through the centre and surrounded by trees, paths and little bridges, makes it especially pleasant to walk around. It almost feels like nature is constantly sneaking its way into the city.

Later, I headed back into the centre and explored Riga again in the evening.

Day 2

The second day started with a meeting with Aigars Kušķis, an urban architect who knows Riga incredibly well. And I quickly realized that spending the day with him was going to be very different from simply walking around the city with a guidebook.

We started walking towards through the historic centre towards St. Stephen´s Church and went up the tower. As we walked, Aigars would point things out and explain the buildings we passed — why they looked the way they did, what they had been used for in the past, and how different parts of the city had developed over time.

Then, we continued walking through the historic centre. As we went, he told me about the old warehouses, what used to be stored there, how the area had functioned in the past, and why certain buildings and spaces are where they are today. I loved that he didn’t just tell me what I was looking at, but also why it was there.

We then headed to the Central Market, which was another completely different side of Riga. Aigars told me all sorts of things about the food, local products and everyday life there. I learned about some of the local fish and traditional foods, and of course we had to stop for lunch.

After lunch, we continued towards the Daugava River. We spent some more time there before slowly making our way back.

We finished in the afternoon, and I went back to rest and work on my blog for a while.

Then, at 7 p.m., I met Aigars again, this time with three young people he had arranged for me to meet. We talked about how they see and experience Riga, and the meeting had such a nice, relaxed atmosphere. I also learned lots of little things about Latvian culture and everyday life. It was a really valuable way to end the day.

It was the perfect way to end the day. I went back feeling like I hadn’t just visited Riga – I had actually started to understand it.

Day 3

On my third day in Riga, I wanted to explore a slightly different side of the city. I started with the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia, which gave me a deeper look into the country’s complicated and painful history. After the previous days filled with architecture and conversations, it was a much heavier part of the trip, but an important one.

After the museum, I decided to explore the other side of the river, based on a recommendation I had received. I crossed the Daugava and started wandering around without much of a plan. I discovered a lovely park and a beautiful library, and then, while walking around, I ended up talking to some locals there.

They recommended that I visit Kalnciema Quarter Market to find more locals, so I followed their advice. And I found not only locals but also an amazing market in big wooden building with small stalls, local food and handmade products. It felt like a place where locals actually come to spend their time, rather than somewhere designed just for tourists. And of course, I found there some.

I also tried Vecrīga there, a traditional Latvian dessert made from choux pastry filled with sweet cream. Definitely worth trying.

In the evening, I found a place with live music and discovered an Amy Winehouse tribute concert, which was part of the celebrations marking Riga’s anniversary. After three days of exploring, talking to people and constantly following one recommendation after another, sitting down with live music felt like the perfect way to end my time in Riga.

Three Days in Visby: former prison, one trip to hospital and some local stories

August 21, 2026

Day 1

After weeks of planning and looking forward to it, I’m finally sitting at
Prague Airport, flying towards Stockholm – and then on to Gotland, specifically
Visby, the first stop of my OWHC Young Travelling Scholarship project.

Getting to Gotland is a little logistical challenge in itself. You can fly
or take the ferry, but this time I chose the faster option. The moment I step
off the plane, I’m greeted by the typical Gotland wind. Visby immediately feels like my kind of place. It’s the main town of Gotland, with around 25,000 inhabitants, and its historic centre has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1995. Yet despite its history and popularity, it still feels like a small town where everything is close.

And then I arrive at my accommodation. A former prison.

STF Visby Hamn Hostel is located in a building that was used as a prison
until 1998. Today, the former cells are rooms for travellers. So yes, my first
night on Gotland is spent in prison. I noticed a little problem – my leg started to swell. But I wasn’t going to let that ruin my first evening in Visby. So I headed out anyway. I walked through the historic centre, wandered around the harbour and enjoyed the evening atmosphere. Visby in the evening was simply too beautiful to stay inside. At sunset, I came across an ice cream shop with around a hundred different flavours. Naturally, I had to try one: Coca-Cola. Later, I found out that this ice cream shop is actually a pretty popular spot in Visby. Apparently, I had accidentally stumbled upon one of the local favourites.

But about that swelling. I thought it would go away. It didn’t. It actually reminded me of a similar problem I had last summer. By the evening, my leg was about twice its normal size, so I decided to visit the hospital. It turned out I needed antibiotics and allergy medication. Luckily, the staff were incredibly kind and the treatment worked.

But before that, though, I did get to enjoy my first evening in Visby. So maybe my first day didn’t exactly go according to plan.

But honestly? A little chaos, a night in a former prison, Coca-Cola
ice cream and an unexpected hospital trip sounds like a pretty good start to an
adventure.

Day 2

After a long night, I start the day with breakfast at Babka and a walk
through the almost empty morning streets of Visby. The narrow streets, historic
houses and stone walls remind me a little of my beloved Kutná Hora.

Later, I visited Gotlands Museum, which gives me a completely different
perspective on the city. Behind the beautiful medieval walls is a place shaped
by centuries of trade and connections across the Baltic Sea. But my main goal isn’t only to learn about Visby’s history. I want to meet the people who actually live here. And that turns out to be harder than expected.

After the museum, I start approaching locals for the first time. And this is where I discover that finding young residents of Visby is going to be much harder than I expected. Almost every time I approach someone, I end up talking to a tourist – and surprisingly often, they’re from Stockholm.

But the conversations with people from Stockholm aren’t pointless at all. Quite the opposite. Most of them came to Visby specifically to get away from life in a big city. During the conversations, we keep coming back to the same topic – the pace of life. We agree that the world simply feels slower here. People aren’t as stressed, they don’t rush as much, and during the summer the whole island has an almost Mediterranean atmosphere. The sea, cafés, long summer evenings, and life outdoors create the feeling that everyday worries are temporarily a little further away.

Eventually, I manage to find several locals between the ages of 19 and 27. I’m particularly interested in what life on the island is like from the perspective of a young person and whether they can imagine staying here in the future.

Their answers have one thing in common – summer and winter are almost two completely different worlds on Gotland.

In summer, Visby is incredibly lively. Tourists arrive from all over Sweden and abroad, restaurants, cafés, and other businesses open, and young people have plenty of opportunities to find seasonal work. Summer offers a lot of jobs, but it’s also the time when people meet much more often. Because Visby is relatively small, people know each other well, and according to the locals, it’s not unusual for their social circles to constantly overlap. “Everyone knows everyone” isn’t just a saying here.

But when winter arrives, everything changes. The tourists leave, some businesses close, and the town becomes much quieter. While in summer it can be difficult to find a moment of peace, in winter it can be difficult to find enough people – and enough job opportunities. Work is one of the biggest issues mentioned by the young locals I speak to.

For someone who has graduated from university and is looking for a job in their field, finding the right opportunity on the island isn’t always easy. The job market is limited compared with larger Swedish cities, and many young people leave the island after university to look for work on the mainland. Some come back later. Others stay in Stockholm or another larger city.

This is probably the most interesting thing I discover that day. At first glance, Visby seems like the perfect place to live – a beautiful historic town, the sea, peace and quiet, nature, and an incredibly lively atmosphere during the summer. But for a young person thinking about their career and future, life on the island also has another side.

And maybe that is exactly what makes Visby so unique. In summer, the whole island seems to come alive. People spend time outside, work, meet each other, and the town is full of energy. In winter, everything slows down and life becomes much more private. Two completely different rhythms of life that alternate every year.

After a full day, I start looking at Visby differently. It is no longer just a beautiful medieval town with walls and picturesque streets. I’m gradually discovering what life on the island is actually like – not only for tourists, but for the people who call it home.

Day 3

On my third day, I continue looking for locals and trying to understand
where people who actually live in Visby spend their time.

In the afternoon, I had the privilege of getting a walking tour of Visby’s historic centre from Louise Hoffman, World Heritage Coordinator and Site Manager in Visby. She showed me some of the most important places in the city, including the incredibly well-preserved old city wall and several impressive ruins. She also took me to the Burmeister House, one of the oldest surviving merchant houses in Visby, built in the mid-17th century. I really enjoyed seeing these places with someone who knows the city and its heritage so well.

After three days, Visby is no longer just a beautiful medieval town by the
Baltic Sea. It’s a place that comes alive in summer and slows down in winter, a
place with a strong sense of community but also real challenges for young
people.

Sometimes the most interesting part of travelling is what you can’t see at first glance.