Lost: The European Union's Political Animal

[Skomand]

The following is from a German blogger on Lithuania. He has a Lithuanian wife and has visited Lithuania once or twice a year in the past.
At the end he says it is in the stars when he will visit Lithuania again: it is going down the drain.


Nach ein paar negativen Erlebnissen im Winterurlaub in Litauen… haben wir nun im Sommer die Fortsetzung in verschiedenen Bereichen des täglichen Lebens erleben müssen. Vielleicht liegt es auch daran, dass ich im Winter-Urlaub damit begonnen habe, gewisse Dinge mal mit anderen Augen zu sehen…

Da heisst es immer „Service-Wüste Deutschland“… dann möchte ich mal wissen, auf welchem Platz hier Litauen landet…!? Egal ob Restaurant, Ferienwohnung, Taxi, Technik-Reparatur oder Krankenhaus! Am liebsten die Hände in den Taschen lassen, aber die große Rechnung präsentieren wollen. Freundlichkeit ist ebenfalls ein Fremdwort geworden… und die Preisentwicklung lässt einen wundern, wie Einheimische hier das Leben meistern können.

Ich habe noch nie so viele Leute in den Mülltonnen wühlen sehen, wie in d...iesem Jahr… und umso schöner fand ich es zu sehen, dass bessergestellte Leute Ihre „schlechten“ Lebensmittel AUF die Tonnen stellen, damit es die Bedürftigen gleich sehen.

Natürlich gibt es auch immer wieder positive Ausnahmen, nur leider immer seltener! Ich kann diejenigen sehr gut verstehen, welche Ihren Wohnsitz in Litauen hatten und aus Litauen wieder nach Deutschland rückgewandert sind.
Für mich persönlich hat Litauen viel an Charme und Reiz verloren, dieses Land schafft sich selber ab und wenn sich nicht einiges zum positiven ändert, werden sicherlich irgendwann auch die Touristen wieder weniger werden…

Einige hier, werden mich vielleicht nicht verstehen da diese in Litauen vielleicht mehr auf dem Land unterwegs und überwiegend mit Bekannten, Familie und Freunden zusammen sind...!? Wer aber mal 14 Tage nur in der Stadt das tägliche Leben verfolgen kann, der wird meine Erfahrungen vielleicht teilen können...

Das einzigste was mich in Zukunft noch hinziehen wird, wäre Familie, Freunde und die Landschaft… aber wann das nächste mal sein wird, steht noch in den Sternen!

Google translation:

After a few negative experiences during the winter holidays in Lithuania ... we have now in the summer to experience the continuation in various areas of everyday life. Maybe it's because I've started in the winter-holiday times to see certain things with different eyes ...

As it always means "service desert Germany" ... then I'd like to know which place here Lithuanian lands ...? Whether restaurant, apartments, taxi, Repair of equipment or hospital! Prefer to keep their hands in their pockets, but want to present the big bill. Friendliness has also become a foreign word ... and the price development can be a wonder how locals can cope with life here.

I've never seen rummaging in the garbage as many people as in this year ... and even nicer to see it, I found that better-off people your "bad" foods provide the ON tons, so it will see the same need .

Of course there is also always positive exceptions, but unfortunately increasingly rare! I can very well understand those who lived in Lithuania, and are moved back from Lithuania to Germany.
For me personally, Lithuania has lost much of its charm and appeal, this country creates itself from itself and if not for some positive changes, sometime even the tourists will certainly be back less ...

Some here, I might not understand because they are in Lithuania, perhaps more on the country road and mostly with friends, family, and friends together ...? Who but times 14 days is only in the city can follow the daily life will perhaps be able to share my experiences ...

The only thing that will drag me in the future, would be family, friends and the scenery ... but when the next time will be even written in the stars.

[Hercus Monte]

^ first. what does that have to do with the documentary?

^ second. I don't know who that guy is but I can say that I've never experienced anything of what he is writing about. Sure, we have some problems but we're not Africa, homeless people are not something you see on every corner. and I've never seen anyone leaving leftovers for the homeless.

he's right about the smiling bit, we're not particularly keen on smiling but he's dead wrong about tourism, since tourism is growing, not declining.

[Skomand]

He doesn't say that tourist numbers are declining now, but he predicts a decline if things continue the way he sees them. It's not lacking smiles he is complaining about. It's the attitude of Lithuanians in towns in general: high prices for poor services.
In the past he was very excited about the country and maintains a site: http://www.litauen-urlauber.de/. So he should know what he is talking about.

[Hercus Monte]

He doesn't say that tourist numbers are declining now, but he predicts a decline if things continue the way he sees them. It's not lacking smiles he is complaining about. It's the attitude of Lithuanians in towns in general: high prices for poor services.
In the past he was very excited about the country and maintains a site: http://www.litauen-urlauber.de/. So he should know what he is talking about.

again, I can only say that this doesn't reflect my impression of of lithuanians. I think our attitude is getting better...also, I've yet to have any problem with customer service.

[lI]

In the video granny at 18:40 made me remember something that one of the Independence activists has once said:

- Blogas vokietis yra tiesiog blogas vokietis, o blogas lietuvis - ne lietuvis (A bad German is just a bad German. A bad Lithuanian is not a Lithuanian)

[Hercus Monte]

In the video granny at 18:40 made me remember something that one of the Independence activist has once said:

- Blogas vokietis yra tiesiog blogas vokietis, o blogas lietuvis - ne lietuvis (A bad German is just a bad German. A bad Lithuanian is not a Lithuanian)

reminds me of the 'true lithuanians', Panka and Cekulis

[lI]

I haven't heard of Cekulis. Panka should lose some weight - I guess, he's a bad Lithuanian... lol


______________________________________

The part about the railway track was just absurd. :/

There was a normal road connecting those people to the city too - but it was 5km longer than just going straight through the railway, so the inhabitants just preferred to "cut the corner".

[Hercus Monte]

I haven't heard of Cekulis. Panka should lose some weight - I guess, he's a bad Lithuanian... lol

Cekutis is one of Pankas' ''compatriots''. he did an interview with Rasa tapiniene and Viktoras Diawara... silly people.

[Temujin]

Has Lithuanian society adopted the European norms or hasn't been able to break with the Soviet past? This shocking documentary intensively explores the soul of Lithuanian society. Lithuania "imports" all the best policy practices from the EU, but transforms them and uses them as weapons in the theater of political fights for the influence. Lithuania looks like European country from outside, but hides the mentality of the slaves.

Lithuania was never in the sphere of western European influence to the same extent as central or western European countries. One shouldn't expect a magical transformation of the society in the period of 10-15 years after entering the European Union.

The documentary may present an accurate story on Lithuanian society but it looks one-sided to me.
A similar documentary can prepared on any country discussing different kinds of social problems. I can relate to many social issues discussed in the documentary. Besides, Lithuanians are critical and judgemental of their society and country which is not unique to them. It's the same in many former countries.

After a few negative experiences during the winter holidays in Lithuania ... we have now in the summer to experience the continuation in various areas of everyday life. Maybe it's because I've started in the winter-holiday times to see certain things with different eyes ...

As it always means "service desert Germany" ... then I'd like to know which place here Lithuanian lands ...? Whether restaurant, apartments, taxi, Repair of equipment or hospital! Prefer to keep their hands in their pockets, but want to present the big bill. Friendliness has also become a foreign word ... and the price development can be a wonder how locals can cope with life here.

I've never seen rummaging in the garbage as many people as in this year ... and even nicer to see it, I found that better-off people your "bad" foods provide the ON tons, so it will see the same need .

Of course there is also always positive exceptions, but unfortunately increasingly rare! I can very well understand those who lived in Lithuania, and are moved back from Lithuania to Germany.
For me personally, Lithuania has lost much of its charm and appeal, this country creates itself from itself and if not for some positive changes, sometime even the tourists will certainly be back less ...

Some here, I might not understand because they are in Lithuania, perhaps more on the country road and mostly with friends, family, and friends together ...? Who but times 14 days is only in the city can follow the daily life will perhaps be able to share my experiences ...

The only thing that will drag me in the future, would be family, friends and the scenery ... but when the next time will be even written in the stars.

Lithuania lost its charm in comparison to which time? To the mid 90s when people treated all foreigners well because the country was closed for a long time and foreigners were unknown to the them?

The author of the text could be one of those people thinking he or she could come to a country in which the cost of living is lower enjoying the services and hospitality for penny worth. Migrants or tourists complaining about the countries in which they settle is not uncommon.

[Hercus Monte]

Lithuania was never in the sphere of western European influence to the same extent as central or western European countries. One shouldn't expect a magical transformation of the society in the period of 10-15 years after entering the European Union.

I would dare say that Lithuania hasn't been under western influence since 1795....
of course the cultural differences between east and west only depended after the occupation, since soviet union went to a completely different direction compared to the west.

The documentary may present an accurate story on Lithuanian society but it looks one-sided to me.
A similar documentary can prepared on any country discussing different kinds of social problems. I can relate to many social issues discussed in the documentary. Besides, Lithuanians are critical and judgemental of their society and country which is not unique to them. It's the same in many former countries.

well that's really the point, there were a lot of great things happening in 2012 as well but 2012 was the year a couple of very important events took place (like the Venckiene paedophilia story).

Besides, Lithuanians are critical and judgemental of their society and country which is not unique to them. It's the same in many former countries.

sometimes, the judgemental and critical views stop all rationality, a slight problem some members of society tend to have, to be more precise, people residing in rural areas, with the lowest family income of up to 1,500 litas, the unemployed, people living off their pensions, blue collar workers, people of Polish descent and those favourable of the right-wing politics.
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