A Visit with the Grandchild

Klaipeda, Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, August 20, 1960. A friend of my paternal Grandmother sent this photo. I focus on two things: the Soviet-style doll and the armchair.

Post-Soviet-Era Tourism

"Lithuania is one of the few places where Soviet history could be explored with all the modern amenities and freedoms. A rich array of Soviet-related locations includes the ordinary and extra-ordinary: apartment blocks, nuclear launch site, propaganda art, locations of the freedom struggle and memorials for those who perished."

CATcerto

This performance by the Klaipeda Chamber Orchestra is from 2009, but the story is new.

"Black Ghost"

Klaipeda statue is one of "25 of the most creative sculptures and statues from around the world."

"When I was a boy, all the best meat went to Moscow. … We used to say that Lithuania had exploding pigs. After the explosion, only the ears, tail and feet were left."

A guide explains Soviet-era life to a tourist bicycling through the "Baltic backwater."

 

Mom remembers how the Soviets exported Lithuanian products—butter, pork, and geese—to Russia. In turn, trucks labeled "Food for Starving Lithuania" arrived from the Soviet Union. The trucks were filled with watermelons.

There are ethnic Russians living in Lithuania, too.

Anonymous petition asks residents of Klaipėda "to approve the region's accession to the Russian Federation."

ADDED: Here's a map showing the distribution of ethnic Russians in the Baltic States.

"I've been going online looking for places for us in Klaipeda. Klaipeda?!"

A bank releases a Lithuanian commercial featuring George Clooney: "Some people get lucky. Everyone else should save. Start now."

(It originally ran as a Norwegian ad promoting a Norwegian bank.)

"Kai Klaipėda memeliu vadinos ..."

"When Klaipeda was called Memel" is a lovely collection of historical photos from the Lithuanian region that bordered East Prussia/Germany.