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Lithuania: Make a promo video with us!:
No way - I do not want to be a "star" for this depressing country that cannot realize that it is becoming smaller and smaller because it cannot accept new people and do anything except beg for money.
Lithuania: If Lithuanian wants to grow and prosper:
If Lithuanian truly wants to grow and prosper, it really needs to realize and consider a few things. The first thing is language - nobody wants to learn Lithuanian unless they really, badly need to. Yes - it a proud, ancient language, but it is not very useful for business or communicating with the world outside of Lithuania. Lithuania's population is slowly decreasing every year, because some of its best people can find better employment and opportunities if they leave it. Almost every Western country migrant I have met seems to finally get sick of Lithuania and leaves after trying to live here for a few years - their complaints usually involve the poor level of opportunities, discrimination, and the overbearing level of bureaucracy and depression that they have to deal with here. Lithuania is a nice, beautiful country filled with priekabus people who make it difficult for newcomers. My solution would involve a massive effort for Lithuanians to learn at least English at a much higher level, provide attractive conditions for foreigners to come here and live without the gudrus attitudes towards preying upon them, and stop advertising and bragging about how great they are. Lithuania has a reputation as a country that is all "show" and no "go". If you can't slow the tide of your own people leaving, then try to attract the best from other countries to come here. This does not mean losing your own identity, it means evolving in a changing world.
Lithuania: life in Lithuania:
Don't even consider moving here - Why: 1. Finding good employment here is hard enuf for the locals - with limited language skills, forget it. 2. Thinking of relying on the Lithuanian Public Healthcare System? - It's terrible compared to the UK, and imagine trying to talk to clinic and hospital staff where few can speak at an intelligent level. - beyond tourist level.... 3. Bureaucracy - inefficient, constantly changing, and mean-spirited. 4. Culture shock - if you haven't traveled outside your local area, then it may at first seem charming - but over time, boring and oppressively depressing.
Lithuania: Lack of activity on this forum:
It is a bit sad that there is very little activity on this forum, but I understand. Like several Lithuanians have told me, the few foreigners that come here with hopes to live often get disgusted and leave. This is understandable. Lithuania has and still refuses to believe that their native language is an impediment to joining the rest of the world. Instead, they hang their hopes on begging for foreign investments and continue to make the lives of those that come here difficult and sad - just like their own people - one of the suicide kings of the world.
I teach English here, and it is sad to see what the regular Lithuanian schools do in this respect. Of course, as poorly paid and without much respect, they earn far below a normal wage and perform as such - just like the medical services provided ( can be better if you bribe them). All things considered, this small country should make more of an effort to stop begging, lying and cheating like other former Soviet states, and instead, focus on being kind and supportive, which it is does not do now. To Lithuania, I would say, Yeah, you are tiny country of less than 3 million people, but your country is beautiful and has some good resources - so use them or lose them.
And for God's sake - stop demanding that anyone who might want to live here pass language and history exams that the locals could not pass.
Lithuania: Work in Lith.:
Majority of WHAT people? There is little work, if much of anything for a person who cannot speak fluent Lithuanian to do here that the locals aren't already competing for. This is a slowly shrinking country with little to offer in way of hope for anything. You may try to teach English here, but there's so many people already trying to do that, that there's really very little money in it. Even if you could land a job, the money would be so low you'd barely be able to scrape by, and employers here treat their employees very poorly, for the most part...
Lithuania: Medical Healthcare in Lithuania:
This is a warning to any expats that may find themselves ill here in Lithuania:
If you live in Vilnius or Kaunas, the medical care may be better, because these 2 cities have the best hospitals, clinics and doctors. This has been my experience here in Klaipeda. When I first became ill, I was passed back and forth from one doctor to the next – with none of them recommending anything except multiple exams and medications – and the 7-8 doctors I saw all wrote different and conflicting diagnoses in my health booklet, but none considered it serious enough or cared to do anything more. Finally I collapsed one day, bleeding internally, and was taken to the hospital, where they did a sloppy colostomy surgery and left me to die in a re-animation room. My wife came to visit me every day, and one doctor asked her why she bothered, because he said I was going to die anyway - can you believe it? After 1 month in a coma, I woke to find that my legs had been allowed to atrophy and I was covered in bedsores. While I was transferred from department to department as I recovered, I found that no one ever appeared to know much about me, and the doctors that did "rounds" seemed incredibly unconcerned and inconsiderate - if they could speak any English at all – so much for “reading a patient’s chart” or caring, and the simple fact that forgot to take out my stitches on time – and when they did, missed and forgot to take out a couple stitches, is just one example of what sloppy ignorant care they are capable of. The absolute worst thing is that no one could speak much of any English – as I am an American, and my Lithuanian and Russian are very poor – especially in trying to indicate what was wrong with me. The highest level of English was very low, and this was from only a handful of doctors and nurses. After a while, my wife and I noticed that all the relatives and patients were constantly giving “gifts” to the nurses and doctors – everything from candy to straight cash. The level of care and attention I received improved a little as soon as I started giving the medical staff “gifts”. I have been able to re-learn to walk a little, but I am still very weak and will never be as healthy as I used to be. They left me with an colostomy that doesn’t work well, and I am in constant pain and discomfort from all the complications that occurred from the poor care and attention I received. The things that happened and the situations I experienced in the Hospitals are simply too ridiculous to believe. Some of the nurses and doctors should lose their jobs or be punished for what they have done. My experience has been unbelievable and horrible in many ways, and I am lucky to be alive! I could write several pages about the completely idiotic things that happened to me, but the most important thing to understand is that Lithuanian healthcare can be very risky and is not very good at all unless you are a well-known connected person or you can bribe your way through it. Everything is “all show and no go” at most of the medical hospitals and facilities. Beware!
Lithuania: English to Lithuanian translation:
Well explained dnyhan - The efforts of Lithuanians who have "mastered" English up to the Intermediate or Upper-Int level to use English creatively or try to sound erudite by using a few idioms or terms that they really don't understand at all is often sad and hilarious. I do understand the pathetic Lithuanian need to try to impress foreigners with how cosmopolitan or Western they have become in their world view or attitudes, but this really easy to see through most of the time - especially when their body language also communicates the same message. Like my sister said when she spent a few weeks here and had some dealings with local business people - "Chimps in nice suits". - I hope you don't think I've been too brash or cheeky in my estimation.
Lithuania: Native English speaking students in Lithuania ?:
Native English speaking students in Lithuania? The ones that MIGHT be here are going to leave fairly soon, because this place sucks for native-English speakers. Lithuania discourages native-English speakers from trying to live here. The migration department and the local nationalistic tendencies discourage people and discriminate against any foreigners who cannot speak fairly fluent Lithuanian. Most of the locals who can speak fairly good English leave, and as having lived here for many years, i can tell that that you don't have a clue as to why or what you should be doing. The locals will be friendly as long as you are perceived as a tourist or a possible source of income, but once you try to LIVE here, they will isolate you as fast as they isolate anyone who is not native Lithuanian. It's a small provincial country of les than 3 million people, and they really don't want to hear anything you have to say, unless it agrees with them.
Lithuania: What are the pitfalls to moving from US to LT?:
There is legislation passing through the Seimas now that will legalize dual citizenship in Lithuania - if it is passed and signed, your concern may go away.
Lithuania: Halloween Events for Expats in Lithuania:
Gosh Betsy, I live in Klaipeda, and there is very little recognition of Halloween here. There was an effort to make it a "western style holiday" here many years ago. The stores tried to offer small amounts of Halloween goods and pumpkins, but it pretty much fizzled out. After all, the Lithuanians already have a similar holiday called Ooshgavine (as pronouced in English), where costumes and pagan rituals abound, and kids used to go door to door knocking and asking for tea or snacks. What I have done here is to invite some of our Russian and Lithuanian friends to a party at our flat, where the spirit of Halloween still lives, complete with scary music and sounds being played. If you want a bit of the Halloween experience, why not make yourself a part of it? Don't expect many of the locals to celebrate or even be aware of this holiday. May the Frankenstein Force be with you!
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