VILNIUS, Lithuania - According to Lithuanian legend, Grand Duke Gediminas went hunting early in the 14th century and killed a wild ox. Tired, he fell asleep at the foot of a hill, and he dreamed of an iron wolf that howled with the ferociousness of 100 wolves.
A priest interpreted the dream, telling Gediminas that the duke had been chosen to build a castle on that hill and to establish an unconquerable city, a city with the vigor of an iron wolf.
So in the 1320s, Gediminas had built the castle - on what is now Gediminas Hill. And at the foot of the hill he founded Vilnius, named after the Vilnia River that flows through its heart.
The castle now lies in partial ruins, and Lithuania lost its bid to be impregnable when it was occupied first by Germans and then by Russians for 50 years, before regaining independence in 1991. But Vilnius' old town maintains an architectural legacy that would likely make Gediminas proud.
Indeed, the 1,500-plus structures dating to the 16th and 17th centuries earned the area the honor of being named a UNESCO World Heritage site.
These buildings are a blend of architectural styles. On a daylong walk, a visitor is likely to be impressed by the designs of the numerous Catholic and Russian Orthodox churches, for example - Classical, Byzantine, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque designs.
Starting from my base at the City Park Hotel, in the city center, I crossed the street to Cathedral Square, where skateboarders and Frisbee aficionados congregate. Towering above them is Vilnius Cathedral.
Damage by storms, floods and fires since it was erected on the site of a pagan sanctuary about 600 years ago, the cathedral has been renovated, here and there, many times. The result is architectural schizophrenia.
The front and side facades are lined with huge, classically designed columns. Behind the columns, some sculptures show evidence of a baroque style reminiscent of ancient Roman and Greek works. Other sculptures, such as those depicting seven grand dukes, are fashioned in decorative rococo.
Four doric columns rise above the cathedral's high altar, while St. Casimir's Chapel (one of 11 interior chapels) boasts pink and white marble walls, silver-plated statues and white stucco relief work on the wooden pulpit and the frescoed cupola. The overstated ornamentation is a tribute to high baroque.
It's a short walk from the cathedral to Castle Street, main entrance to the ancient sector. The hub of cafe and restaurant life, this street (in Lithuanian, Pilies Gatve) is adorned with antique lanterns and flower-lined balconies that jut out handsomely above the winding cobblestone lane.
A Russian Orthodox sanctuary, the Church of St. Michael, is an example of renovations over the ages. Fire destroyed the Gothic church that originally stood on this site. It was rebuilt in the baroque style, but in 1865 the church was rebuilt again, in Russian Byzantine style. Still, the walls, facade and interior exhibit many gothic details.
A vision in soft pink baroque, the Church of St. Casimir is famous for its crown-shaped cupola, which can be seen from all across the city. As the Communist officials did elsewhere, they converted this church to a museum of atheism.
A few blocks away, the Church of St. Anne is perhaps Vilnius' most durable house of worship. Virtually unchanged since its unveiling at the turn of the 16th century, the ornate design is often referred to as "flamboyant gothic." The building flaunts pointed-arch windows, slender pinnacled towers and 33 varieties of decorative bricks.
The interior of the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul is a dream in baroque. It is graced with more than 2,000 white stucco statues and relief works. Biblical, mythical and historical figures leap from the walls: a resurrected Jesus Christ, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Peter, St. Paul, cherubs, demons, mythical animals and everyday people caught between pain and repose.
On the arched ceiling, delicate frescoes appear to be held in place by the outstretched hands of floating children. They in turn are surrounded by hundreds of protruding faces.
All of the city's architectural treasures are not of a religious nature, however. Vilnius University, the Presidential Palace, Town Hall and numerous estates and smaller homes are inspiring examples of endurance and design.
