THE SIGN HUNTERS

LITHUANIA: Kaunas and the Devil's Museum

Written by Laszlo, 13 February 2018

I am trying to be productive and as you can see I am cracking now as this is my second post within a few days. But, I have got a lot of exciting materials and it would be a shame not to share them with you.

Last time, I posted some of my favourite shots of Vilnius, the charming capital city of Lithuania, this time, I will drop you off in Kaunas which is the second largest city in this particular Baltic country. Once you arrive in Kaunas, you can clearly feel and tell the difference compared to Vilnius which is just exactly what you want, because you want diversity. You do not want to travel from country to country, from place to place just to see the same things and to feel the same vibes. You will definitely get things different in Kaunas which is certainly a positive thing.

When we arrived in Kaunas, first, of course, we carried out the sign project which made us walk across the city - across the areas where tourists do not normally walk, but hey: we are not tourists, we are the sign hunters! So, in a few lines later, you will see my pictures and the first couple of shots were taken on that particular walk. After those pictures, you will see photos of fancy-looking old buildings and then yes, you know for sure that you are in the old town which is just as charming as the one in Vilnius.

The second half of my photos then represent a completely different category. We discovered a very original and unique museum where the entire building is dedicated to the Devil itself. I reckon this is the only one of the kind in the world. It is officially called as Žmuidzinavičius Museum which is named after its founding artist and artwork collector Antanas Žmuidzinavičius (1876–1966). The museum has about 3000 devil sculptures and carvings from all around the world and the items mostly represent folk myths while some others express modern political ideas. It is a three-story building, so when you plan your visit, make sure you have plenty of time to get engaged this very interesting experience.