{"id":978,"date":"2025-08-10T17:02:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-10T15:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/?p=978"},"modified":"2025-08-10T17:01:47","modified_gmt":"2025-08-10T15:01:47","slug":"lives-in-the-darkest-hour-of-soviet-occupation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/2025\/08\/10\/lives-in-the-darkest-hour-of-soviet-occupation\/","title":{"rendered":"Lives in the darkest hour of Soviet occupation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A visit to <strong>the heart of darkness of Soviet occupation<\/strong> in Lithuania. The <strong>Dalia Grinkevi\u010di\u016bt\u0117 House Museum.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lt.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Laukuva\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Laukuva<\/a><\/strong>, a village in western Lithuania surrounded by rolling hills and a few lakes. In this village lies <strong>a house that embodies the history of a people: the Lithuanians<\/strong>. A people oppressed for decades, first by the Tsarist empire and then by the Soviet Union, which occupied Lithuania in 1940 and reclaimed it at the end of World War II. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/2021\/01\/14\/landsbergis-man-who-opposed-soviets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Only in March 1990<\/a><\/strong> did the Baltic country regain its independence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>WATCH THE VIDEO<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Lives in the darkest hour of Soviet occupation ITALIAN SUBTITLES\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aOeakd7xsdU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>In that house lived Dalia Grinkevi\u010di\u016bt\u0117<\/strong>, one of the hundreds of thousands of Lithuanians deported to Siberia by the Soviets. <strong>Their crime? Being Lithuanian<\/strong>. She was a teenager, just 13, when <strong>she was deported with her family to Trofimovsk<\/strong>. An uninhabited, inhospitable island, where permafrost reigns supreme. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/jonas-markaukas-nato-isola-trofimovsk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Dalia was a survivor<\/a><\/strong>. She managed to return to her homeland only in 1956 <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/dalia-grinkeviciute-la-sua-storia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">(see her story)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"684\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-979\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-640x427.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories.jpg 1417w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">THE HOUSE MUSEUM<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>That house now hosted a museum <\/strong>dedicated to her story and that of other residents of Laukuva. As <strong>Saulius Valius, who curated the project<\/strong>, explains: &#8220;This exhibition not only tells Dalia&#8217;s story, but an entire historical period.&#8221; <strong>The dark moments of the Soviet occupation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The documents, photos, and testimonies recount the persecution and oppression<\/strong> Lithuanians endured during the Soviet era. <strong>The hardships each Siberian survivor faced in their homeland<\/strong> after fifteen or twenty years of suffering in exile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"696\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x696.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-980\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x696.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-300x204.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-768x522.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-640x435.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories.jpg 1418w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Thanks to Loreta Kalnikait\u0117<\/strong>, who lives in Silal\u0117, a town a few kilometers from Laukuva, and who for years has promoted the Dalia Grinkevi\u010di\u016bt\u0117&#8217;s Museum project, <strong>we were able to visit the house in 2018<\/strong>, before it was restored and transformed into a museum. <strong>Dalia&#8217;s personal belongings<\/strong>, the small details scattered throughout the bare rooms, and the kitchen of the time, spoke of a life of hardship, despite Dalia being a doctor who had graduated with honors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A LIFE WITHOUT COMPROMISE<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Those rooms echoed the story of a person<\/strong>, of a people who never surrendered to the occupier and who fought. <strong>Even through the smallest everyday things, for freedom<\/strong>. Dalia never compromised with the Soviet government, never sparing a word in defending her rights and helping the struggling people living in that rural area of Lithuania.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, that house has become a museum with photos and documents from that time, along with videos that <strong>tell the story of Dalia and the people of Laukuva<\/strong>. A journey that encompasses history, but also feelings, emotions, and <strong>the harsh life under occupation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"662\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x662.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-981\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-1024x662.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-768x496.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories-640x414.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4-Dalia-Grinkeviciutes-Museum-LithuanianStories.jpg 1417w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">THE LOST EMPIRE<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Her story<\/strong>, like that of many others who lived through that period, <strong>should be known to everyone<\/strong>. Even more so today, <strong>with war returning to Europe<\/strong>. The same country responsible for the suffering of Dalia and her compatriots <strong>once again aspires to rebuild the lost empire, to occupy not only Ukraine<\/strong>, devastated by <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/2022\/03\/13\/march-11-lithuania-independence-day-for-ukraine-reportage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">a full-scale war unleashed by the Russian Federation on February 24, 2022<\/a><\/strong>, but even Baltic countries and other nations occupied during Soviet time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our suggestion is to <strong>visit Lithuania and not only to linger in the capital Vilnius<\/strong>, but to explore places like <strong>Laukuva, such as the museum dedicated to Dalia Grinkevi\u010di\u016bt\u0117<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>WATCH THE VIDEO<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Lives in the darkest hour of Soviet occupation ITALIAN SUBTITLES\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aOeakd7xsdU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A visit to the heart of darkness of Soviet occupation in Lithuania. The Dalia Grinkevi\u010di\u016bt\u0117 House Museum. Laukuva, a village in western Lithuania surrounded by rolling hills and a few lakes. In this village lies a house that embodies the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":982,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1,10],"tags":[213,31,214,13,26,183,215,118,41],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=978"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":983,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978\/revisions\/983"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lithuanianstories.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}