Grigiškės is an exclusive part of Vilnius. It is a separate town belonging to Vilnius city municipality, although it has the rights of a municipality. This is the only case in Lithuania of such an administrative status of a town within another town.
As well as having its own flag, Grigiškės has a coat of arms (designed by K. Juodikatis) – a historical paper watermark depicting an auroch’s head with a cross, around which a grass snake is intertwined, symbolising eternity and longevity. Currently, the town has 11,000 inhabitants. In the pre-WWII period, the villages of Afindevičius, Salos, Kunigiškės and Kauno Vokė were here, while only the paper factory built in 1923 was called Grigiškės. As the company expanded, a settlement of factory workers also grew in the post-war period. At the end of the 20th century, it was planned that the settlements of Lentvaris (13,000) and Grigiškės (12,000), which significantly exceeded the size of the centre of Trakai county, would be connected to the capital and that at the beginning of the 21st century, multi-storey multi-apartment districts of Vilnius would be constructed in the fields between the two towns, where more than one hundred thousand residents would live. After the collapse of the planned economy, grandiose development plans of the capital were abandoned, but Grigiškės is gradually growing, gaining stature, and becoming more beautiful. The city boasts Grigiškės Culture Centre (Vilniaus g. 12, Grigiškės), as well as Grigiškės Art School. Grigiškės is more than a monochome industrial town; it is but also a colourful and interesting settlement – you will see for yourself when you follow this route.
What will you learn about / see on this route?
- How does it feel to set your feet on the cobblestones of the old road from Vilnius to Kaunas?
- What does the only aqueduct in Lithuania look like, or the dam of the power plant, or canals excavated in the 20th century?
- How do our four-legged furry friends live in the cattiest village in Vilnius, where boats used to reach the other side of the river until recently?
