Vilnius, Lithuania + St. John, US Virgin Islands
This week we are talking coins, luxury tacos, and morning voices as we visit St. John and Vilnius, Lithuania!
Stay tuned to our social media channels, as Alison will be joining Lulu in New York City for a few days, before they both head to Salt Lake City where they will be doing a live show as part of the Outlier Podcast Festival. So whether you are more into Instagram or Facebook, make sure you follow as as we'll be sharing all of our travel moments, good, bad, and great!
Back on the Keto train, Alison often needs something other than a soda, so she has found a new obsession in Bubly water. No, not bubbly water in general, but the brand Bubly. She may even like it better than La Croix...has anyone done a side-by-side taste testing? Regardless, she should do one. Lulu is obsessed with the rooftop of her building, which she just discovered after four months of living there. Complete with tables, chairs, and loungers, this spot offers a great view of the city. Perfect for a little wine, okay a lot of wine, on any given day!
This is a very doable wishlist, at only $20. Alison wants the UZ 38°C/99°F Lip Treatment. "It's not a balm. It's not a gloss. It's your lips' new best friend." Apparently if you put in on in the morning and night, your lips stay hydrated all the time. Lulu has it and uses it as lip gloss, not putting it on every day or twice daily, but loves the way it looks! Lulu is wishing for a gym membership. She misses going to the gym everyday, but New York gyms are so expensive! Any NYC gym want to gift her a membership? K, thanks!
Lulu found this city looking at a list of capitals of the world. She is staying at the Grand Hotel Kempinski Vilnius where she booked the Presidential suite with spa access. She gets complimentary soft drinks and complimentary cleaning of two shirts per day. While an en-suite is nice, this room also comes with an additional powder room, as well as an expansive open-concept living-dining-working area. With the suite price you also get one-way pick up from the airport in a BMW7. Also of note is the bulletproof windows, allowing them to claim this as their "most secure" room.
Grand Hotel Kempinski Vilnius - Exterior
Grand Hotel Kempinski Vilnius - Presidential Suite Bedroom
Grand Hotel Kempinski Vilnius - Presidential Suite Living Area
Lulu starts her day with the complimentary in-room breakfast, before heading out for a day of adventure and learning. It took awhile for us to figure out how to pronounce Viator, the great travel resource we use to find excursions, tours, and activities, but now we know (it's vy (like tie)-ah-tor). Lulu found this Winter Hot Air Balloon Ride through the site, and is excited for the breathtaking views, the adrenaline rush/fear of heights to set in, and the champagne by a fire waiting for her when it's over.
Lulu is very excited about the Bank of Lithuania’s money museum, because they have the largest Coin pyramid in the world. They used one million lita coins, the currency used prior to transitioning to the euro. It is nearly 10 feet tall, and took three weeks to assemble. Lulu was excited to make the rest of her day about building a coin pyramid to compete, with one million pennies. Which, get this, would cost $10,000. So doing a pyramid is out. However, inspired by all the money in this museum and with her competitive spirit amped up, she goes down a rabbit hole googling "world records for coins". She found this most coins stacked in 1 minute video that is six minutes long, so perhaps this was the rehearsal? As well as penny building videos, she also watched many coin snatching videos...like we said, down the rabbit hole.
Lulu takes a Winter Helicopter Ride through Viator
Lulu takes a Winter Helicopter Ride through Viator
Bank of Lithuania’s Money Museum’s One Million Cent Pyramid
Moving on from the coin fascination, Lulu heads to lunch at Amandus for what she calls their "very avant-garde" tasting menu. With chicken lollipops and mushroom iced tea as offerings, we'd say her description is spot on. Feeling like a bit of shopping, Lulu heads to look for something made of Amber, which is apparently the thing to buy in Lithuania. She buys this amber bead necklace from Amber Tale, which is a light yellow in color, unlike the dark orange/brown she was expecting when beginning her hunt for amber accessories. Next she heads to Sweet Root, a strictly local and vegetarian restaurant whose gastronomic MO is simpler, rooted-in-culture recipes, their "childhood on a plate". Lulu does their tasting menu and wine pairing, closing out her day with a low-key immersion into Lithuanian cuisine.
Amandus Restaurant in Vilnius, Lithuania
Amber Bead Necklace from Amber Tale
Sweet Root - a local, vegetarian restaurant in Vilnius, Lithuania
Scratch that, she is not finished. She is not even close to 10K, so Lulu nixes the necklace and air balloon ride, and will entertain herself with the books she has on her Scribd. She's scrapping her meals, and will just enjoy the Isagenix shakes she always has on her. For her lodging, she's going to a Vilnius Expats and Friendly locals MeetUp, and will hopefully be able to crash in a new friend's spare room. Now she has $10,000 to build her pyramid of pennies. Day well spent...or not spent, since technically coins will be utilized but not used as currency.
Alison decided to visit here after one of our Baes and former guest googler Jason Wetzel, posted on Facebook about his recent trip there. Alison found this two-acre, three-building complex that has everything you would need for a luxurious vacation for up to 12 guests! This Airbnb has 6 bedrooms. each with their own bathroom, a gym, a billiards room, and a media room. There is a stunning pool with panoramic views, a covered seating area with plush outdoor furniture, and an always-coveted outdoor kitchen. The kitchen has top-of-the-line appliances and there is plenty of dining space for all guests, plus any friends you make on the island! There's even a house concierge who can make dining and activity reservations and recommendations. This is luxury, folks.
Alison rents a 4 door Jeep Wrangler from Sunshine's Jeep Rental, she just loves to have that top down while driving, especially on an island. She drives over to Lime Out, drawn by their slogan "Eat More Tacos, On the Water". Throw in a couple of drinks and you have paradise right there. And you can get said drinks thrown in by getting their "East End" package, where for $70 you get 3 tacos, 2 drinks, and 1 hat. Alison also pops a bottle of champagne for $150 before paying her taco tab.
Alison rents a Jeep Wrangler from Sunshine’s Jeep Rental
Alison enjoys eating “more tacos, by the water” at Lime Out
Alison gets drinks at St. John’s Lime Out
Now, Alison really did her research, and discovered that mosquitos and sandflies are ubiquitous on St. John, and while the annoyance level is a big factor, so is the risk of Dengue and Chikungunya Fever. Alison goes a little overboard on her preparation when reacting to this news and buys a mosquito suit. We are not talking just head-to-toe, but complete coverage of all limbs and appendages. Like, this would protect you from giant sci-fi-esque mosquitoes. Better safe than sorry though? Along that vein she also buys this mosquito repelling UV lamp that at $549, should repel every mosquito on the island when she carries it around with her. It actually attracts the mosquitoes to the light, then cooks them dead. At this point it is safe to say Alison will return from St. John with nary an insect bite on her person. There is no power plant on St. John, rather their power comes through a cable from St. Thomas. However, power outages can be frequent, so ever the preparer, Alison buys this solar power bank with a built-in flashlight to keep her phone charged and her path lighted.
Looking for a way to spend some of her money and time, Alison stumbles upon the luxury life that is yacht charters. Shocked at the prices she first saw - $50,000 a week - she happens upon a yacht that she can charter for $2700 a day. She will be lounging on Obsession, an 85' Hatteras she found on CharterWorld.com. With enough room to sleep 10, spacious dining and salon areas, a 4-person jacuzzi, and an 18' dinghy with all the elements needed for any water sport you could name, this experience is going to make Alison feel like she has arrived. Especially while rocking mix-n-match swimsuits from Lascana.
CHECK OUT THE CHARITIES WE FOUND IN THE CITIES WE VISITED:
Vilnius Jewish Public Library Charity and Support Foundation
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