Friday, August 07, 2009

Of the Curonian Spit: The Best Thing About the Curonian Spit


One of the primary reasons we chose our lovely hotel Juodkrante, Lithuania was not the historic weathervane museum nearby, or what Lonely Planet described as the "Super Duper Whirly Curly Water Slide," or the fact that it included a kitchenette that consisted of a mini-fridge and a bunch of mis-matched plates and glasses. It was that it was the only one that The Lovely Katherine called where they spoke English at the desk and had a room. But if it wasn't that, it would have been, without a doubt, it's close proximity to the Curonian Spit's finest mini-golf course.

Your correspondent and his out-of-town guest played two grueling rounds and a couple tie-breaker holes of putt-putt on the slickest painted concrete this side of Minsk. Except in places where the concrete was missing, and had been replaced by chunks of plywood. Or, as in the case of one hole, not replaced, and left for links-style mini-golf through the natural seaside sand. The ladies played briefly but could not handle the challenge, and spent most of their time lazing around on the manicured lawns near the course, a decision they would probably admit they regret now.

We were there for a couple days, and apparently Painted Concrete Mini Golf is only open in the evenings, where you pay a flat hourly fee for one ball and one putter. Additional balls or putters not/not available upon request. But it was all worth it because some of the holes featured devilish designs that took something approximating skill to complete. And others, as seen in the video below, did not.



Your correspondent, in all fairness, should admit that he lost to his visitor on a tie-breaker hole despite clearly playing the better shot. Such are the breaks involved. Nonetheless, Painted Concrete Mini Golf is in close competition with Robotukas as our favorite thing in Lithuania.

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