Our day started in the best possible way. We got a Facebook phone call from some of our grandkids. Greg was where he always is first thing in the morning - the bathroom, when our grandson Tom called him, Kerrie was still in bed. We chatted to Tom, Hayley, William, Stacey and Brett for about 20 minutes and the best thing is - it was all for free through Facebook Messenger. We could even show them around our room and the view from our hotel window - isn't technology great!

We continued our ride south today through Latvia. One of our priorities was to get the required Latvian sticker for the bike. That achieved at a small shopping centre we continued our ride. The border to Lithuania was only 78 km from our hotel but in that short distance we got a taste of what the rest of the day would bring.

The road continued to be single lane each way and the contribution of the EEU to these countries continued to be evident. We encountered roadworks on numerous ocassions and there was always a large sign to let us know that the funds for the work was coming from the EEU. With the single lanes, roadworks and the continual stream of traffic there was heaps for Greg to concentrate on. Kerrie sat very quietly on the back and snapped photos.

Our lunch stop today was a little cafe beside a hotel with pretty gardens. We both had a bowl of mushroom and potato soup with bread and the grand total was 2.5 Euro - about $3.95AUD, bargain!

Tonight we are in Marijampole in southern Lithuania. It is an industrial city not far from the border of Poland. It has a population of about 37,000. It is a clean and tidy city with modern shopping centres and plenty of places to eat. Several buildings feature artistic murals on the sides. Our Mercure hotel overlooks a large open community area where teenagers were playing soccer and skateboarding. We went for a walk around town, found a Lithuanian sticker for the bike and found a Chinese restaurant for dinner.