Thirty Days in Lithuania in 1919

A Lithuanian‑American clergyman sets out after more than three decades abroad, driven by a yearning to see the land of his ancestors in the wake of the Great War. He recounts the tangled web of diplomatic red tape he had to navigate—visa refusals, a stubborn State Department, and a last‑minute intervention by a Massachusetts senator—to finally secure a passport that would let him cross Europe. The narrative captures the practical frustrations of a long‑distance journey in a time when borders were still being redrawn.

The voyage itself begins dramatically, with his transatlantic liner colliding with a Canadian fishing boat and the passengers rallying to rescue the crew. Once ashore in France, he follows the guidance of the Lithuanian legation, traveling through Belgium and Germany toward his first Lithuanian station. Along the way he notes the stark post‑war landscapes, the resilience of ordinary people, and the palpable sense of a nation striving to reclaim its identity.