Vilnius, crisis from beginning to end
Does crisis come in twos? There’s always a definite serving of anger, often directed against ‘the others’. It might come in threes too, because apathy is never far behind, which in the darkest of cases can lead to the deliberative loss of one’s own life – why does Lithuania have the highest suicide rate in Europe? Less dramatically, it can force the fresher, younger ones to emigrate for brighter horizons. When six pan-European journalists spent a few days under the watchful eye of an Icelandic volcano in Vilnius in April, they encountered these different facets of the economic crisis (Image: ©Pablo Pecora – PnP!/ Flickr)
Polish people: 'united in diversity' in Vilnius
It wasn't the economic weakness of the crisis but the ideological one that harmed Europe most. Who wanted to be be part of the dominoes in the name of solidarity? Unfortunately, the dominoes of each member state provoked nationalist reactions. The region comprising the Lithuanian capital is one of the fewest cities where two nations claim to be at home
eucrisis on the ground, right wing extremism, identity, economical crisis, nationalism, cities, ethnic minorities, populism, lech kaczynski, youth, vilnius, society
University-educated flee and woo Lithuania: emigration and erasmus
An increasing number of students are asking professor Žilvinas Martinaitis at the University of Vilnius to let them take their exams at the end of May. This would allow them to go abroad - most popularly, to the UK, Ireland or Scandinavia - to work, and return with some extra money in October, a month after the official term start. Lithuanian and eramus students, professors and politicians explain the phenomenon
eucrisis on the ground, money, university, brain drain, labour, economical crisis, erasmus, education system, economy, investigation, cities, students, labour market, studies, youth, vilnius
Stalin, rock music and bad weather: story behind suicides in Lithuania
The River Neris splits Vilnius down the middle: to the North lies the university, the stadium and terraces with views; to the south is the heart of the capital: cobbled, colourful, and impeccable. But a sinister notice hangs from one of its bridges, followed by a telephone number
eucrisis on the ground, joseph stalin, rock, communism, cities, civil society, suicide, youth, vilnius, society, poverty
Volcano: travelling Vilnius to Paris by train
Once upon a time, in the space of six days, airline companies lost 1.7 millions euros - and they weren't alone. I don't know exactly how many million euros Iceland 'owes' to the world aviation sector. With little sleep and lots of beer, it certainly owes me two days of my life by train across 2, 000 km of Europe
eucrisis on the ground, money, travel, paris, berlin, warsaw, youth, vilnius
