Lina Černiauskienė preserves Dzūkija’s traditional buckwheat dish

Lina Černiauskienė moved from Kaunas to Marcinkonys village in the Varėna district 35 years ago and now leads educational activities while preparing a traditional Dzūkian dish, buckwheat babka, LRT.lt reports.

Černiauskienė was born in Daugai and spent part of her childhood in Dzūkija before her parents moved to Kaunas when she was 10. She later met her husband there. The couple decided to move to Dzūkija after he found work connected with forests.

“Marcinkonys has a national park, my husband got a job, and we stayed here. We have been here for 35 years,” Černiauskienė said.

She said local residents initially called newcomers užeiviai, or outsiders, but now consider her family locals. Building that acceptance took time and effort, she said.

“People in the village are very cautious. They accept you and everything is fine, but to become one of them, you have to put your heart into it and value people,” Černiauskienė said.

She advises newcomers not to try to teach village residents how to live, but to learn from them instead. She recalled that, after the family moved in, a neighbour advised them to put up a fence around their property as well as plant a hedge.

The couple initially saw no need for a fence. They changed their minds in spring, when neighbouring residents began taking their cows out to pasture. In the evening, the cows would return home through their own gates, but those that wandered into the Černiauskas family’s unfenced yard caused frustration for both the family and their neighbours.

Černiauskienė said village life requires building a sense of community with those around you. From the beginning, her neighbours welcomed the family, offered to look after their children and shared what they had.

At first, however, it was difficult to adjust to having small children and no shop nearby. The family also had to adapt to a slower pace of life and regularly travelled to Kaunas to visit her parents.

Over time, she said, the surrounding environment became home. She discovered different pleasures in village life, including the forest and nature, and gradually felt less need for the city.

Černiauskienė now welcomes visitors and introduces them to traditional Dzūkian food, including the buckwheat babka she prepares herself.