"What does Lithuania mean to you?": Behind the scenes with Nikolajus

It is the 6th of July 2014, the anniversary of the Coronation Day of King Mindaugas. The weather is perfect, serene and sunny, and I’m in a festive mood. 

However, as I set off to the Old Town to ask passersby their opinion of Lithuania for our ongoing survey, I am suddenly plagued by doubt. Will we get desirable answers? Or any answers at all?

I hope that on such a special day, Pilies Street will be crowded with foreigners, since I don’t expect native Lithuanians to participate in our survey. I assume that most of my compatriots are quiet and unlikely to participate in this kind of project, where we ask respondents to draw an answer to the question “What does Lithuania mean to you?” and pose for a photograph with their response.

We arrive and set up at the bottom of Pilies Street. As a team, assistant Aiste, photographer Vidmantas, and I agree to focus on unique-looking people and foreigners to get maximum participation. Our task – take at least 30 pictures in two hours.

The first attempt is our first success! A heavily-pierced skateboarder we think might be Indian agrees to our request and we get our first drawing! But our greatest surprise comes when he learn his name is Zygimantas and he’s from Lithuania!

We’re picking up momentum! Our second attempt also meets success – Sergey from Kazakhstan praises Lithuanian food!

“Take a look, that’s definitely a foreigner over there,” I whisper to Aiste pointing to a sharply-dressed middle-aged man. “Excuse me, do you have one minute? Do you speak English? German? Russian?” A polite nod and an astonishing response. “You can speak Lithuanian to me. My name is Stasys.”

Two Lithuanian surprises! I begin to wonder if Lithuanians have taken back Old Town for the holiday, but am quickly set straight. Guests from Italy, the United States, Latvia, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Mexico, Great Britain, Belarus, Romania wander the street and chat with us. We receive a lot of attention from locals, too— they account for about half of our responses!

I notice that foreign guests emphasize nature, architectural sights, the beauty of local girls and the food, whereas the Lithuanians focus on emotions – love, the warmth of relatives, family, and the comforts of home. I remember the response of our youngest respondent. For little Vakaris, Lithuania is the most beautiful flower!

I got a chance to communicate in English, Lithuanian, Russian, and German during the survey. “I don’t understand,” asks our America-born assistant, Aiste. “Why do you speak to some citizens of Vilnius in Russian?” I have difficulty explaining that the Vilnius I was born and raised in was a multicultural place where it was normal to communicate in three languages.

We collect 29 responses and our mission is almost complete! We’re strategizing about the search for our last respondent when I hear a voice behind me. ”Hi, Nikolaj, what are you doing here?” I look back and see the smiling face of my cousin’s wife. She is Armenian, but was born in Georgia and has spent 24 years of her life in Lithuania. I explain a bit about the Ethnic Kitchen documentary, which tells the stories of women who have moved to Lithuania from other countries. “The movie is about me!,” Lily happily enthuses. “Do not forget to invite me to the premiere!”

The team and I start to pack up to go home but we stop when we see a group of diverse young women. It turns out the girls are in Lithuania for an international conference and hail from Norway, Armenia, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and Morocco. They all take our survey!

Finally, I head for home. I feel happy. I am happy that in the two hours we canvassed, only two people refused to participate in our survey. I am happy that my assumptions about an insular Lithuanian society were completely disproved. I am happy that we live in a multicultural Lithuania, a happy, welcoming place for guests and locals alike!

More pictures at https://www.facebook.com/pasauliovirtuve?fref=tsp