People walking in snow in the forest. Foto: Oriana Pfister

Study visit in Plateliai, Lithuania - February 2018

The 13th and 14th February 2018 project partners and associated partners met for a two-days study visit in Plateliai, in the Žemaitija National Park, Lithuania. Culture, nature and food was revealed to be a perfect mix.

Snow and Shrove Tuesday celebration in Plateliai welcomed us. Masked children and adults celebrated with music and dances in order to drive away the rigors of winter and welcome the warmth of spring. We had the honour to be part of this celebration and hidden behind our masks enjoyed the atmosphere and danced to say goodbye to winter.

During the celebration we visited the museum dedicated to the Carnival where we could admire more than 250 masks used from ancient times until today. We listened about the struggle between Lašininis (representing winter) and Kanapinis (representing spring) and have been reassured that spring always win.

We visited the workrooms where wooden masks are manufactured and beautiful tradition dresses created, we tested how to make candles in the traditional way.

According to tradition on Shrove Tuesday we ate several times to prepare for the next period of Lent and tasted soups, dishes based on pork and desserts. We were also out in nature of course, and visited the pilot area where forest is managed to help broadleaves trees to survive.

We had a meeting to learn more about Žemaitija National Park and discuss the past, present and future of the project. And finally, we visited the Cold War Museum to not forget history and hopefully learn from it.

We experienced two intensive and overwhelming days to prove that off-season tourism has very much to offer. Thanks Lithuania!

  • Last Updated: 1/9/2024