Soundtrack: Bob Dylan “The Times They Are A-Changin’”, “Saved”, “Shot of Love”, “Street Legal”, Singing teacher’s feedback (better), 2nd Test commentary from England versus the West Indies
So here I am in Lithuania. Country number 36 that I’ve visited, out of a possible 193, depending on what counts and what doesn’t (look up CGP Grey’s YouTube video “How Many Countries Are There” for reference, and no I can’t be bothered linking). First impressions of Kaunas weren’t that great care of a fairly ordinary hotel with a room that wasn’t too far away from belonging in a youth hostel, complete with shitty internet to boot. Thought I might stay here two nights, but my wife insisted that I go on to Vilnius, and the internet clinched it for me. Ain’t got no time for that shit, although I’m struggling with it right this very moment. Went for a lengthy walk and stopped for a beer later on and got a better feeling for the place, but I do hope that Vilnius might be a little more interesting.
It was a long journey today, through lots of small towns on B roads again. In and of itself that’s fine - I loved it yesterday - but after awhile I was keen to just kinda get there. It seemed like all the way up to the Lithuanian border my journey was flanked by a motorway being built beside the road I was on. Large scale, tearing out big corridors of countryside type stuff. Poland is obviously on a big economic push (or was - we’ll see what happens with Covid) and is trying to make itself more accessible for freight and trade.
I’m moving through all the Dylan albums. Somehow I haven’t managed to include “Blood on the Tracks” which is a major, major oversight, but I still have 25 others to listen to. The evangelical period is actually quite listenable, and good for a journey. A common thread or theme when you’re contemplating your innermost being and have a target in mind (the destination) means that the persuasive, Gospel-esque language works quite well. Dylan does a good rock song, too. Shot of Love (the song), Solid Rock and The Groom’s Still Waiting At the Altar are all good tunes, and there others like them. Street Legal, on the other hand, is rubbish. There are maybe two good tunes in there in The Changing of the Guard, and Señor (Tales of Yankee Power). The rest are very forgettable, if not downright annoying.
Felt a bit lonely today, particularly after I arrived. I guess that’s the idea, though. I’m not doing this to be entertained. Going for the walk helped - there’s a very long strip in Kaunas with what looks like an Orthodox Church at the end of it. I had my beer near there at the end of my walk.
I’m not going to come out of this transformed or anything. It would be fanciful to expect that. I think it’s sort of a bit Zen Buddhist, somehow - I’m emptying my head of distractions and seeing if what I find is fertile ground for moving forwards. When I think of short and medium term plans for when I get back home, they don’t seem bad, though. I think that’s a good sign. I have needed this time, though.
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