INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
One hundred hot air balloons floated over Lithuania's second city of Kaunas on Saturday (AFP)Kaunas, Lithuania: One hundred hot air
balloons floated over Lithuania's second city of Kaunas on Saturday to mark 100 years of the Baltic state's independence."The first hot air
balloon festival was in 1988 during Soviet times when flying balloons was formally forbidden, but no one could keep us on the ground,"
organiser Gintaras Surkus, a pioneer of the activity in Lithuania, told AFP.One balloon flew a 100-metre-long national flag, while others
were in shapes including hearts and cats."Hot air balloons are associated with the idea of freedom," Lukas Mikelevic, a 23-year-old
psychology student who is also a balloon and aeroplane pilot, told AFP before launching."The first hot air balloon festival was in 1988
during Soviet times when flying balloons was formally forbidden, but no one could keep us on the ground," organiser Gintaras Surkus, a
pioneer of the activity in Lithuania, told AFP (AFP)"So many balloons taking off from the city centre -- it's unheard of," he added.Poles,
Latvians, Estonians and Chinese enthusiasts also came to fly their balloons in Kaunas.One hundred hot air balloons floated over Lithuania's
second city of Kaunas on Saturday to mark 100 years of the Baltic state's independence (AFP)Until World War I, Lithuania was a province of
the Russian empire, which sought to crush nationalism and even banned the Lithuanian alphabet.The Lithuanian council declared independence
on February 16, 1918, when the country was still under German occupation."Hot air balloons are associated with the idea of freedom," Lukas
Mikelevic, a 23-year-old psychology student who is also a balloon and aeroplane pilot, told AFP before launching (AFP)Brief wars with
Bolsheviks and Poles followed before Lithuania won international recognition in the following years.Modern Lithuania was an independent
nation between the two World Wars
Then the Soviet Union invaded in 1940, Nazi Germany invaded in 1941, and the Soviets returned in 1944.One balloon flew a 100-metre-long
national flag, while others were in shapes including hearts and cats (AFP)Democracy campaigners launched an independence drive in the 1980s
that eventually made it the first Soviet republic to declare independence in March 1990.Lithuania finally won recognition from Moscow after
the failed coup by hardliners in the Soviet capital in August 1991.Hot-air balloons prepare to fly over Kaunas, Lithuania during the
International 100 Hot Air Balloon Fiesta “Wind of Freedom” on July 7, 2018
The 'Wind of Freedom' event brings together 100 hot air balloons from across the globe to celebrate a century of Lithuanian independence
(AFP)In 2004, Lithuania's pro-Western drive culminated with EU and NATO membership
In 2015, the Baltic state of 2.9 million people adopted the euro.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by
TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
