Baroque church towers and a playful bohemian streak
Vilnius has one of the largest surviving old towns in Eastern Europe, a UNESCO-listed tangle of Baroque churches, courtyards and crooked streets. Walk from the cathedral and Gediminas Tower through Pilies Street to the Gate of Dawn, whose chapel holds a revered icon. Across a small river lies Užupis, a bohemian quarter that declared itself an independent republic and posts its humorous constitution on a wall. Try cepelinai, the hearty potato dumplings, and cold pink beetroot soup in summer.