Lithuania

Of the three Baltic capitals, Vilnius is my favourite. It is a mysterious medieval and baroque city, with a rich history and strong Jewish and Catholic traditions. The walls of the Ostra Brama chapel, where to this day a holy image of the Madonna is venerated, are covered with silver hearts laced with inscriptions, reminiscent of the gingerbread cakes on sale in the streets down below. The Jewish influence also remains clearly perceptible; the street known as German Street, once the centre of Jewish life and trade in Vilnius, still stands out among the narrow cobbled streets around it by its air of established prosperity. The most famous Jewish fish dish, gefillte fish, is said to have originated in Lithuania, although it is widespread in all the Baltic Republics as well as at Moscow. Hence my choice of a very simple Lithuanian version of it.