It's Lithuania Week ...

... all week at the University Club in Madison. We enjoyed our meals there last year, and we'll be there tonight for a Madison Vilnius Sister Cities, Inc. dinner.

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Madison, Wisconsin, March 2015. Don't miss the Cepelinai (the star of the show).

At the Opera

Kaunas, Lithuania, March 22, 1927. The American Consul to Lithuania attends the opera. The Consul wrote:

This evening we heard Carmen at the opera with Kovno's best singer, Petrauskas. At one time, he sang with the St. Petersburg opera, but somehow drifted to Kovno after the war [see here and here]. He is an excellent singer and actor. ... The orchestra did well considering its small size. ... The scenery was good, it having been painted by a Kovno artist who went to Spain to find appropriate scenes. We were in the diplomatic box with Mr. and Mrs. Balodis (the Latvian minister), Mr. Oiderman (the Estonian representative, and Mr. Balutis, who is about to be appointed Under Secretary in the Foreign Office which will give him almost the rank of a cabinet minister. ... President and Mrs. Smetona were in the box next to us. ... The theater was completely filled and the audience was most enthusiastic, calling Petrauskas and others before the curtain many times after each act.

Thanks to the Consul's Granddaughter for making this photo available to us.

Handcrafts

Schweinfurt, Germany, 1946. One of the organizers of the cultural exhibit admires the "women's handwork" table.

The Doll Table

Schweinfurt, Germany, 1946. This is one of the women with whom my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, collaborated for the Displaced Persons camp's cultural exhibit.

Sold Out

Madison-Vilnius Sister Cities this week celebrated Lithuania's Restoration Day. The organization sponsored a banquet at The University Club; guests dined on Šaltibarščiai, Cepelinai, and Honey Torte. The food was authentic and delicious.

The University Club offered a Lithuanian menu this week. Mom and I popped in for lunch today. Misery! The Cepelinai we craved were sold out. So we had the Cabbage Rolls instead. The Cabbage Rolls were good, but Cabbage Rolls are something we easily make at home. Cepelinai are a production, and we rarely cook them. As a result, we didn't have what we had sought. We did start out, however, with the Šaltibarščiai. I thought the soup was excellent; Mom claimed my recipe is better. *Blushes.*

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(I asked the server to show me the machine the cook had used to grate the potatoes.)

Restoration Day

Today is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the day Lithuania declared its independence from the Soviet Union.

Toronto, Ontario, Canada, about 2005. Toronto Al crafted this stained-glass Vytis.

(Here in Madison, the University Club is commemorating the anniversary with a special menu.)

ADDED: Here is a collection of clips Jonas Mekas filmed as he watched his television set that day.

Independence Day

Bulger Park, Veterans Park District, Melrose Park, Illinois, February 1965. The older girls sing during an Independence-Day minejimas. (The younger children waited in the audience until it was our turn to take the stage.)

That's my friend Ron at the piano. My friend Kris stands second from left. The braided trim on Kris's folkdress and mine were identical because our Mom's worked together to sew the blouses and aprons.

Thank you for a lovely performance!

Bulger Park, Veterans Park District, Melrose Park, Illinois, February 1966. The pianist accepts the applause at the annual Independence-Day minejimas.

Our Christmas Cards: First Editions

Two years ago I posted the photo cards my Dad had sent as holiday greetings. Mr. Irene and I maintained this tradition for nearly all the years we've been married. Unlike Dad's cards, our greetings usually featured an image of our pets. I'll be posting our cards, in reverse chronological order, in the next few weeks.

During our first holiday season, Mr. Irene and I had card-writing fatigue because we had just finished penning our wedding-gift-thank-you notes. We therefore chose templates that featured little space for lengthy notes. We were ambitious in one way, however: we ordered three cards and selected the images based on the recipient's relationship to us and tastes.

Madison, Wisconsin, December 1989. We chose this snapshot for our Lithuanian friends. This Vytis guards the entry to the Lithuanian chapel housed in St. Peter's basilica.

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Madison, Wisconsin, December 1989. Dog lovers and close family friends received this image of Meškė and Žulė. Yes, it took several takes to get the pose.

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Madison, Wisconsin, December 1989. Most recipients got this snapshot from Lodi, Wisconsin.

Slicing the Cake

Marquette Park, Chicago, Illinois, January 1958. Mr. Irene's Parents cut the wedding cake. The woman on the right is Mr. Irene's maternal Aunt Martha.

A New Honorary Consulate

On Monday, October 13, 2014, Lithuania opened an Honorary Consulate in Wisconsin. Mr. Irene and I attended the ceremony at the Wisconsin State Capitol.

The ceremony took place in the Senate Chamber. A Lithuanian flag stood with the Wisconsin and United States flags.

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The Lithuanian Consulate brought its insignia.

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The Lithuanian coat of arms, the Vytis, also draped the Speaker's podium.

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His Excellency Žygimantas Pavilionis, Lithuania's Ambassador to the United States, inadvertently photobombed this shot of the Senate Chamber murals.

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Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Lithuania's Minister of Foreign Affairs Linas Linkevičius, and Honorary Consul Leslie Liautaud prepared for the ceremony.

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Governor Walker opened the event.

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Foreign Minister Linkevičius offered some thoughts before the investiture.

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Honorary Consul Liautaud received a Lithuanian flag during the ceremony.

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Ambassador Pavilionis addressed Wisconsin's ties to Lithuania.

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Honorary Consul Liautaud spoke for a few minutes.

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Everyone enjoyed the speeches.

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Well done!

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Lithuania's Honorary Consuls from other states arrived for the investiture ceremony.

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Although members of the media recorded the event, the ceremony got little attention in the news.

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After the ceremony, guests moved to the Senate Parlor for refreshments.

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Lunch.

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Guests enjoyed catching up with old friends.

Presidential Palace

Vilnius, Lithuania, August 2011. Today's post about Steven Tyler's visit to Vilnius reminded me of the image of the Presidential Palace my Toronto Cousin took when she visited Lithuania.

Thanks to my Toronto Cousin for making this photo available to us.

The Updated Room

Suburban Chicago, January 1963. Mom appreciates the bookcases in the newly decorated Rec Room. Ha! My squirrel bank is on the lower shelf.

It's okay to use a script if you're not reciting poetry.

Bulger Park Hall, Melrose Park, Illinois, February 1969. I serve as co-emcee of the Independence Day minejimas. 1969 was the awkward year during which I wore an improvised folkdress. Here, we're introducing the "talent show" portion of the show.

I earlier posted another image from the 1969 minejimas here.

Ilgiausių Metų!

Mr. Irene's Parents today celebrate their fifty-sixth wedding anniversary.



Marquette Park, Chicago, Illinois, January 1958. Everyone toasts the newlyweds by singing Ilgiausių Metų, or "Many Long Years." That's the song Lithuanians use for weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, and on New Year's Eve. At weddings, everyone giggles when the song reaches the "many fruitful years" verse.

(Hey! It looks like the Vytis fell from the wall.) 

The glasses are ready.

Suburban Chicago, December 31, 1969. My Mom's best friend, Donna, and another woman chat with my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana.

Traveling Companion

Door County, Wisconsin, December 1976. Mom and Dad have spent a winter weekend at the cottage, and it's time to head home in Dad's Buick Skylark.

Symbols

Probably Lübeck, Germany, about 1946. Lithuanian Displaced Persons showcase their cultural ties by creating the coat of arms, the "Vytis," at the entrance to the DP camp.

Remembrance

 

Commenter Di—who lives in Seligenstadt—has sent some photos of how the area around the Displaced Persons camp looks today. Here is a photo of a plaque erected at the camp in memory of the Displaced Persons who lived there. Both my Mom and Mr. Irene's Dad stayed at the Seligenstadt Camp between 1945 and 1949.

 

Commenter Di translates: "1945-1949. 1200 Lithuanians lived in the Seligenstadt Camp. Almighty God, we beseech you to bless and protect us throughout all the vicissitudes of our exiled existence, far from our home country. In this location Lithuanians were gathered together who loved God and their native land above everything. In Remembrance 7. January 1993." Di does not know who erected the plaque. The plaque features the Lithuanian coat of arms, the Vytis.

 

Thanks to Commenter Di for making this photo available to us. (I'll post more of Commenter Di's photos soon.) 

An Awkward Stage

Bulger Park Hall, Melrose Park, Illinois, February 1969. Until I looked at photos from this minejimas, I had forgotten that there was a stage when my Lithuanian-school classmates and I wore improvised folkdresses. We had grown out of the children's costumes our Moms had sewn, but the teachers determined we still were too young to wear the preteen models. As a result, we sported pleated, plaid skirts for this independence-day performance. Those of us who still had heads small enough to fit our crowns wore those, too.