stranger things

The underrated ‘Capital of Christmas’ has everything you could want for a festive break but there’s also plenty more than just Christmas – including Stranger Things locations

Nestled in the south of Lithuania, Vilnius, the second largest city in the Baltic states, is a place where Christmas is celebrated with gusto.

Every nook and cranny of the city sparkles with festive lights, baubles, gifts, and all sorts of decorations you can imagine. The streets are festooned with Christmas trees, buskers strumming carols on their guitars, and everyone indulging in warm wine, soaking up the holiday cheer.

The city has earned the title ‘Capital of Christmas’, and it’s not hard to see why – they pull out all the stops when it comes to decking the halls.

I had the pleasure of visiting this enchanting city and was swept away by the festive euphoria. There’s a magical aura that permeates the city, making the spirit of Christmas palpable.

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As I wandered around, snowflakes gently falling, fairy lights twinkling, and shop fronts adorned with such stunning decorations that you can’t help but stop for a closer look.

A short flight from London City airport (with return fares starting at £33) transported me within hours to this vibrant and mystical Baltic city, steeped in rich history and home to over 50 churches, subterranean spas, numerous museums, and an arts quarter. It’s also gained fame as a filming location for Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things, with parts of season four shot here, including scenes in a now-defunct 100 year old prison.

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Vilnius is famed for the architectural splendour of its Old Town, one of Europe’s largest and best-preserved historical centres, earning it a UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 1994. This heritage-rich area also hosts the city’s iconic Christmas market.

The European Parliament’s Christmas Cities Network crowned Vilnius as the Capital of Christmas, largely due to its internationally acclaimed Christmas trees. The Vilnius Christmas tree has topped the European Best Destinations list two years running.

For me, it was the picture-perfect Christmas markets that drew me to this city. The main Christmas market is nestled in the enchanting Cathedral Square, within the old town, and is renowned for its stunning, award-winning Christmas tree – a genuine 205-square-metre installation standing 20 metres tall.

The market is brimming with quaint wooden stalls offering sweet delicacies, mulled wine, and festive crafts.

You can enjoy a warming mulled wine or a hot chocolate for €7 each, but if you return your mug, you’ll receive a €2 refund, making these festive beverages a bargain at just €5 (roughly £4.60).

If all that wandering about works up an appetite for some authentic Lithuanian fare, you can sample regional specialities from the vendors, including traditional “kaladinis” chimney cakes, sweet curd doughnuts and plenty of pudding-style treats such as confectionery, gingerbread, doughnuts, hot chocolate and naturally mulled wine. The vendors also offer numerous handcrafted goods and locally-made products created specially for Christmas.

Adorned with fairy lights scattered throughout the market and featuring an enormous sparkling tree, the principal Christmas market is genuinely spectacular, but in typical Vilnius fashion, one market simply won’t suffice and the city plays host to ten different ones across the area. Once you’ve finished browsing the stalls, be sure to explore the stunning Jewish quarter within the Old Town district.

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Alternatively, if you’re seeking somewhere for supper, you might venture to Lokys, the city’s most established family-operated restaurant, which serves vibrant pink chilled beetroot soup with potatoes, alongside beaver casserole – genuine regional specialities of the area.

The Christmas market launched on 29th November and will remain in the square until 6th January, whilst you can discover the additional markets at the railway station, Hale Market and a rather unconventional market in Lukiški prison (yes, genuinely!).

The city adores Christmas so thoroughly that the national bank even introduced Vilnius’ own Christmas currency, enabling you to purchase goods from the Christmas markets using the festive tender which was revealed as red pine cones. Another yuletide attraction in the square is the two-storey Christmas carousel.

Standing at a towering 10 metres high, it’s been crafted by Italian artisans in a traditional style. Other jolly features to keep an eye out for in Vilnius include the ice rink in Town Hall Square and the Christmas train that whisks visitors on a 20-minute journey through the twinkling streets of Old Town Vilnius for a mere €1.80.

Book the trip

LOT Polish Airlines provides direct flights to Vilnius from London City airport. Ryanair and Wizz Air also offer non-stop flights from the UK.

Rooms at the Hotel Pacai start from €176 a night (approximately £153).

For more information about Vilnius, visit govilnius.lt.

Emma Groves, 35, from Belfast, was refused entry to Switzerland and detained at Zurich airport after making an easy mistake when packing

A woman was turned away from her holiday destination and held in custody after making one crucial error while travelling. Emma Groves, 35, from Belfast, made her way to Dublin Airport for a four-night break in Zurich, Switzerland on December 1 this year.

The pair dropped off their luggage and completed check-in before passing through security without any problems. Emma had reserved the Aer Lingus flight approximately three weeks earlier after spotting a hotel she fancied visiting on TikTok.

However, it wasn’t until the duo reached border control in Zurich that they discovered Emma had made a grave blunder which left her devastated. Following the loss of her passport several weeks beforehand, Emma had requested a replacement document, which arrived at her home.

Yet after discovering her original passport, she failed to destroy it and stored it in a drawer alongside her moisturisers and fake tan products.

Emma explained: “I had grabbed it [passport] the night before and give my passport to my boyfriend, he minds them because I do lose everything. Only the night before I thought ‘my goodness am I going to be able to travel, the gold has completely faded off’ this which is strange for it being a new passport. It was in a drawer with all my moisturisers and fake tans. So I did think it’s probably just rubbed off.”

Upon reaching the Swiss border, Emma discovered her passport had been flagged as cancelled. She recalled: “He just said ‘do you have another one’ and then it kind of clicked. The border police came and got me and my boyfriend.

“We went into this room and said we realised what had happened. I said I’ve got a new one but I’ve grabbed the old one so he said because it had been cancelled it was an invalid document.”

Emma was informed she would need to be flown back to Dublin before she could re-enter the country using her valid passport. Her boyfriend chose to remain in the country and await Emma’s return.

Emma found herself placed in a “weird” airport hotel, which she likened to a “mini prison”, containing roughly 20 beds separated by curtains.

She explained: “They put me in an airport hotel and I was in there for about three or four hours, but it was just like a room with a lot of beds in it separated by curtains. I just sat and watched Stranger Things get me through.

“It was scary enough in the hotel because there were a lot of people in there, and there kind of wasn’t really any security or even a locked door. It was a weird room.

“[In Dublin] we used a machine to drop off the luggage, but then we did have to go over to a desk to leave them, and she checked the passport and stuff. The passports were scanned so you’d think they would pick up if it was cancelled.

“Border security in Switzerland said I shouldn’t have been able to get that far. It wasn’t until like 6pm that they told me I’d be getting on the flight at 8pm.”

It’s understood that Aer Lingus verifies that a presented passport corresponds to the passenger’s identity and remains valid. In instances where a passport has been cancelled but remains in date, the discrepancy would be spotted upon entry to another country.

Emma was then accompanied around the airport by a chaperone before being boarded onto the aircraft first, as her passport had been seized. She was given a set of documents which stated she was denied entry and had her passport confiscated.

Upon her return to Dublin, her mother met her with her replacement passport, allowing her to purchase fresh flights to Zurich, which she described as an “expense she didn’t need”.

Emma explained: “When I flew over, I actually initially wasn’t going to bring the forms back, but my mum was like ‘just take them’, so I flew out fine but when I got to the Swiss border again the border control lady was like ‘oh this doesn’t make sense it says you’ve already been here but you haven’t left’.’I give her the forms and she was like ‘oh okay that kind of explains it’ and I got through.”

Emma was informed by border officials that she would face no future travel difficulties due to it being an honest mistake. A representative from Aer Lingus stated: “Passengers travelling with Aer Lingus are responsible for ensuring they have all relevant travel documentation and compliance with relevant laws and regulations of the countries they are flying to, from, or transiting through. Passports used for travel must be valid and in date. If a travel document is not valid for travel, passengers may be refused entry when they reach their planned destination, as was the case in this instance.”

Stranger Things fans have pinpointed a specific tragic moment in the season 5 volume 2 trailer.

Stranger Things fans are in a frenzy after Netflix released the official trailer for the second part of season five. The epic video shows Will Byers (played by Noah Schnapp) feeling deflated after the gang failed to save the children from Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower).

The teaser also shows Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) and Holly Wheeler (Nell Fisher) as they attempt to escape Vecna’s trap, while the rest of the gang discover something major about the Upside Down.

While many fans still believe Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) could be at risk in the final season, other viewers believe another major death has flown under the radar, until now. They took to YouTube to pinpoint a specific moment, just over half-way into the video, when one of the main characters is seen coming face to face with a Demogorgon.

Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke) is seen walking down a hospital corridor, flanked by two armed men, as a Demogorgon comes charging towards them. The camera then turns to face the Demogorgon as it lunges at its target. @Kaiiizerrrp said: “1:18 omg, did you see Robin behind the military? [crying emoji]” While @Obama_Plays added: “Omg Robin please runnn” and @Sham-d3y shared: “I am gonna cry so bad.”

More fans picked up on the hint, with @AviAuthorColorado adding: “I’M GONNA CRY BRO LIKE ACTUALLY,” and @Sham-d3y expressing: “FINALLY SOMEONE SAW IT. I AM 100% SURE THAT’S THE SAD DEATH WHICH THE DUFFERS WERE TALKING ABOUT, IT WAS ROBIN ALL ALONG.”

This could be the case as episode five is titled Shock Jock, which refers to a DJ on a radio show who expresses opinions in a deliberately offensive or provocative way. At the start of season five, viewers saw Robin hosting her own show for The Squawk, which serves as a decoy for them to relay information regarding military operations to the Upside Down and the rest of the gang.

This is not the first time fans have predicted Robin’s death, as they believe Netflix had teased her demise after the unveiling of some photos for the fifth and final outing. The official Netflix Instagram account posted multiple photos showing cast members staring at an unseen threat, but one person was left out.

Robin’s absence did not go unnoticed, with one fan writing: “UM HI I BEG YOUR FINEST PARDON WHERE IS MY GIRL ROBIN AT?” Another added: “Hahaha very funny, where the HELL is Robin.”

Robin’s role in season five was pivotal as she helped Will harness his powers by making him believe in himself and not fear his authenticity. She also helped validate Will’s feelings when it came to romance, as she opened up on her relationship with Vickie Dunne (Amybeth McNulty).

Fans took to Reddit to explain how they believed Robin’s emotional speech in volume one of the final season is “SO intensely ‘this character will die’ coded.” MedievZ said: “The Duffers most definitely are not killing off the main core cast. Steve is too obvious of a death.

“Robin is the perfect character to die and get the maximum emotional impact while fitting into the story nicely and being an unexpected gutpunch. We do not see much of Robin in the remaining trailer shots.”

Elsewhere in the season five, volume two trailer, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) was seen asking Kali (Linnea Berthelsen) to help her find and kill Venca, after the character’s epic return was unveiled in episode four. Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) and Steve were also seen making a pact as they said: “You die, I die.”

Regardless of whether she meets her demise in the final season, Robin is set to live on through the latest Stranger Things novel – One Way or Another. The book, by TV writer and novelist Caitlin Schneiderhan, focuses on Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer) and Robin as they solve an unexplained phenomenon.

The story is set following the events of Stranger Things season four – two months since Vecna’s earthquake tore through the town. Nancy and Robin are convinced they have discovered Vecna’s next victim – fellow student Joey Taft.

Stranger Things season 5 part 2 airs on Christmas Day in the US and Boxing Day in the UK

Stranger Things season 5 showed the return of Kali after she was last in the series back in the second outing

WARNING: This article contains major spoilers from Stranger Things season 5, volume 1

Stranger Things recently returned for its fifth and final outing. The season has been split into three volumes to make the story last a little bit longer as fans are eagerly champing at the bit for episode five and volume two to land with fans promised feature-length episodes, reports the Express.

Season five, volume one of Stranger Things featured a big reveal with Eight/Kali Prasad (Linnea Berthelsen) being held captive by the USA military and the nefarious Doctor Kay (Linda Hamilton), who was exploiting her powers. Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) was left shocked and fans will have to see what happens with Kali.

However, some fans have been wondering about one big plot point from season four, which showed the origins of One/Vecna/Henry Creel/Mr Whatsit (Jamie Campbell Bower) and Dr Martin Brenner’s (Matthew Modine) experiments. During the fourth series, One finally broke free of Brenner’s Soteria chip with the help of an unwitting Eleven and went on the rampage, killing almost everyone at Hawkins Lab in the process.

How did Kali survive the Hawkins Lab massacre?

During the massacre scene, it seemed that all of Dr Brenner’s child experiments fell victim to Vecna.

Graphic scenes depicted lifeless bodies left in Vecna’s aftermath, with the villain then turning his focus to Eleven for a showdown.

Eleven astonishingly overpowered Vecna and banished him to the Upside Down after inadvertently tearing a hole in time and space.

Interestingly, Eight/Kali wasn’t seen among the casualties of the Hawkins Massacre, but how could she have evaded Vecna’s onslaught?

This appears to create a bit of a plot hole, as the implication from the massacre was that Eleven was the sole survivor.

OPINION

Neela Debnath

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However, as viewers will recall, Eleven discovered her sister Kali following a row with Jim Hopper (David Harbour).

Kali and Eleven formed a bond whilst the younger girl spent time with her sister’s motley crew of companions.

Audiences witnessed how Kali possessed different abilities to Eleven, enabling her to conjure illusions that appeared incredibly realistic.

To Eleven’s dismay, Kali summoned a vision of Dr Brenner to torment her, and at one stage even manifested spiders to terrorise one of her mates.

This creates a massive plot hole that the programme’s writers will need to tackle eventually, and it appears peculiar to leave it hanging.

Kali reportedly escaped from the facility after she managed to develop her abilities and used them to break free.

Might Kali have fled Hawkins Laboratory before Vecna began manipulating Eleven?

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If that’s the case, this could explain her absence during his murderous rampage.

Numerous Stranger Things fans at the time flocked to X (formerly Twitter) to discuss this apparent continuity error, with user @_yoboistan writing: “I could not be the only one who expected Kali/Eight, the sister of Eleven from previous season, to appear on Season 4. It seems a major plot hole to me. #StrangerThings.”

While @ayoodole penned: “Expecting to see more of Kali in season 4 of stranger things. She can’t just go like that.”

Viewer @itsaaudraw tweeted: “Where is Kali, Netflix? Where are you hiding her? ? ! ? ! ? ! #strangerthings.”

Another audience member, @jespertalent, quipped: “remember Kali from stranger things season 2? neither do the writers.”

An irate fan, @calmheedattea_, posted: “stranger things s4 spoiler. WHY IS KALI NOT SEEN IN THESE SUPPOSED MEMORIES OF EL THIS IS P***ING ME OFF LIKE ARE WE JUST FORGETTING KALI EVER HAPPENED WHAT [sic].”

Another viewer, @legocereal, added: “#StrangerThings spoiler why was kali the only one with different abilities tho :/ the concept of all of the kids powers developing differently was so cool whyd they just completely ignore it this season [sic].”

Given that Kali featured in the crucial flashback scene when Terry Ives (Aimee Mullins) infiltrated the rainbow room in the lab and attempted to rescue her daughter, it seems a significant oversight if she has now been forgotten.

The writers are now likely to address this plot hole either in the second volume of season four or even in the fifth and final season when the story will be wrapping up.

Stranger Things season 5 volume 2 is released on Netflix UK & Ireland on December 26