{"id":12397,"date":"2026-10-18T05:00:50","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T01:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gowatkinsgo.com\/?p=12397"},"modified":"2026-10-10T16:26:54","modified_gmt":"2026-10-10T12:26:54","slug":"vilnius-lithuania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gowatkinsgo.com\/?p=12397","title":{"rendered":"Vilnius, Lithuania"},"content":{"rendered":"

After Poland, we made our way to Lithuania for another quick stop \u2014 this time in Vilnius. We only had two days, and unfortunately, the weather wasn\u2019t exactly cooperating. It was cold, rainy, and definitely felt more like fall than early September!<\/p>\n

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Our first stop was the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights, often called the KGB Museum. The museum is housed in the building where Soviet security and repressive institutions operated from 1940 until 1991, and the basement still contains the former prison and interrogation cells. Once again, we found ourselves learning about some incredibly heavy history. Lithuania was occupied first by the Soviet Union, then Nazi Germany, and then again by the Soviet Union. The museum focuses heavily on the Soviet occupation, the resistance, deportations, political prisoners, and the people who fought for Lithuanian independence.<\/p>\n