The amazing lands of the Curonian Spit – possibly quite easily mistaken for the shores of the Atlantic – are split between Lithuania and Russia.
The 98 kilometers long Curonian Spit reaching in the Baltic Sea is a less popular travel destination, even though it also gives home to the largest sand dune of Europe. The winds and waves buried all villages and settlements underneath them until they managed to stabilize the earth with plants in the 19th century.
Approximately half of the peninsula belongs to Lithuania and the other half to Russia. The former is represented by the Kaliningrad enclave on the mainland. The Lithuanian part is home to the Museum of the World Ocean, while the most important ornithology observation center in Europe is located in the Russian part.
The area’s magic partly comes from the fact that if we didn’t know where we were, it would be almost impossible to say. Based on the endless Baltic Sea, the sand dunes and the pine groves, we might just as well be on the Atlantic shore. Kaliningrad is infused with its medieval Prussian past and the Soviet architectural heritage of the seventies at the same time. Perhaps this is exactly what makes the peninsula the perfect place for escaping.
Source and images: Suitcase Magazine