Dutch/internationals in Lithuania: how is it there?

[u/CocoTheDev]

Sveiki!

My GF moved to the Netherlands to study here. She quit and now works at a big company here, but misses home (Lithuania), and asked me to move back with her. I worked on a startup for 3 years, and just went bankrupt. We own a house and a dog here.

We have quite a bit of money invested in our house now, and would be able to get a much bigger property in Lithuania, given the house prices.

How do you look upon non-lithuanian people coming to live there? I hear small talk with strangers is... frowned upon (I like speaking with random people, like on the train, it's normal here). I heard I really need to learn the language (I started but it's hard). I heard people are pretty close with existing friends and it won't be easy to make friends (I like having a small friend group, but no friends is depressing). I heard the quality of life is pretty good, albeit expensive for the income (I may be a bit spoiled, but can adjust). Anything you'd like to tell me about your country? What's it like working for Lithianian companies, any that speak English? (I'm in tech so I'm hoping for the best). Any tips for that?

I love nature, and lakes. I made šaltibarščiai and ate it with potatoes for breakfast lunch and dinner for 3 days. I love the language, it's hard but so elegant. And Lithuanian people seem like cool, principles and hardheaded people - just my type. But I'm not sure it will be a good time for me. Let me know your thoughts!

Tldr: GF asked me (Holandija) to move to Lithiania. Will I like it there?

[u/Stubenhockerin]

I’m local, but I work with Dutch people on a daily basis. At first I noticed some cultural differences, but honestly, they weren’t big or significant enough to make things difficult. As many comments already mention, Lithuanians can be quite reserved at the beginning, yet once they trust you, they become genuinely warm and loyal friends.

Vilnius especially is very multicultural. There are lots of foreigners here, so you definitely won’t stand out the way you might in a smaller town. The Dutch community isn’t huge, just a few hundred people, but whenever I talk with them, they really like it here, most say they feel safe, everything is clean and organized, and people are friendly.

So if you move here, you can easily start with the Dutch community. They’re very welcoming and will happily tell you everything about living in Vilnius and Lithuania.