Divas naktis Rīgā, Latvijā [Two Nights in Riga, Latvia]
Saturday, 29th June - Monday, 1st July
Summary:
It's always lovely to return to the Baltic States and this year we had planned to make it a special visit in terms of where we went and how long we spent here. Unfortunately, thanks to Schengen shennangians the duration aspect could not be fulfilled. However, we still enjoyed two night and one fully packed day in the Latvian capital Riga. Leb was still feeling the brunt of her (as we thought at the time) sciatica and so couldn't enjoy it as much as I did. With the Euros approaching the "pointy end" I had a couple of nights in some old favourite pubs watching England and others progress.
The one full day was choc-a-bloc with stuff - a stroll along the Dauguva, a visit to the Melngalvju Nams ("Blackhead House" - a much more beautiful building than the name might suggest), the wonderful market, the freedom monument and a walk along the green belt park canalside. Vienkārši... jauki!
Back to the Baltic States (Saturday, 29th June.)
Day 113. Having pigged out on fish cakes and caught the tram to Bergen Airport we had a three hour flight over Scandinavia and the Baltic Sea to the coastal capital of Riga. This was my fourth visit and Leb's first.
Once we'd arrived in Riga, we caught a cab to the city center address we'd been given by Booking.com. It was perfectly located in the old town and, after a few anxious moments working out how to actually get into the building we made our way up to a very spacious room on the top floor.
Poor olf Leb was in some pain after sitting on the flight for three hours and was keen to lie down and relax so I set off to find a local shop to buy some provisions to keep us going.
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| Delicious Black Bread on Sale Here |
Upon returning and having some delicious black bread and ham and cheese, I then set off to watch a couple of matches in the Euros at a few pubs I'd remembered from last time.
First it was Germany v Denmark in the last 16. Germany won 2-0.Then, I headed back to a pub I went to a few times when i was last here in 2018 to watch Switzerland beat Italy 2-0.
Full Day in Riga [Very Full!] (Sunday, 30th June.)
Day 114 ~ We started our day pottering around by the Daugava, which was just down the road from where we were staying.
Then we went to see what was behind the beautiful facade of Melngalvju Nams.
Next was the wonderful Central market, perfectly placed next to both the railway and bus station. We popped into the later to buy our bus tickets to Tallinn the next day and then wandered around the market before stopping for a hearty meal from a Russian food kiosk and later a refreshing drink of Kvas before hitting the full strength beer, a local microbrewer.
We then wandered up to Brīvības piemineklis (the freedom monument) past a clock sponsored by Laima.
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| The Hotel I stayed in during my first visit to Riga in 1983. |
Next was Bastejkalna parks, where we met a bunch of England fans on a stag weekend. Bizarrely the guy getting married, his best man, and a random young lady who just happened to be walking by at that moment, were all from Perth!
After a walk back through the old town we did a bit of shopping with, fingers crossed, Leb feeling a little better today.
Then it was back to the pub to watch England play Sloveakia and Spain against the vallient Georgia. Leb came for a drink but then went back early as the seats were not very comfortable.
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| Black Balsam Liqueur - Avoid at all costs! |
Schengen Shennanigans
The next morning we were off to Tallinn, aftre just two nights, and only one full day, in Riga. This wasn't the plan originally. When the trip was first conceieved we were going to spend eight days in the Baltic States and at least five nights in Latvia.
I wanted to hire a car and explore places I'd never been to before. In Estonia, I wanted to finally catch a ferry to the island of Saaremaa. I planned to stick two fingers up at Russia across the bridge in the town of Narva and visit the university town of Tartu. In Latvia I hoped to visit some of the off the beaten track eastern towns and maybe, if time permitted, visit the coastal town of Ventspils.
| The Originally Planned Baltic States Tour |
This all looked like a beatutiful plan until a friend of ours called Sally told us about Schengen one night when she was over in Perth.
"Remind me. What's Schengen?" I asked.
It allows visa-free travel within participating countries - but only up to a maximum of 90 days. So, as soon as we set foot in Lisbon, after getting off from our transatlantic flight from New York, the clock started ticking. Seven weeks in the UK - a rare European country that is not in the Schengen zone - stopped the clock, but it restarted again once we arrived in Oslo.
Days spent in the Schengen zone are automatically reset after 180 days but once the reality of what Schengen meant had sunk in, I realised we had to change our plan. Effectively, I swapped time in the Baltic States for time in Romania and Bulgaria - not in Schengen at the time. (This would change though, as we'll see later.)
Bottom line: Only a few days in the Baltic States and only two nights in Latvia. Oh well. Next time.
Off to Tallinn (Monday, 1st July)
Day 115 ~ We woke up in our "Allure Rooms" appartment in Riga for the last time. We checked the place for damage, having been made more than a little concerned by a warning message in the room, quoting prices for damaged items. One can only wonder what sort of clientelle they usually get to justify this. I noted that the "Price list for Damage" was only in English and Russian, not Latvian. Make of that what you will.
It was a bit of a concern because one of the latches on the bedroom window had broken off. This wasn't an item on the list so I was wondering how much we might be charged for it. I texted the owners and they thanked me for the info and reassured me there'd be no charge.
So, it was "goodbye video" time again - x 2.
Once we left, we had the short walk back to the bus station where we waited for half an hour or so for a very swish and comfortable bus to take us north to Estonia's capital Tallinn.
At one point the route took us right by the coast of the Baltic Sea, which could be seen through a thin band of fir trees. And, soon enough, we crossed the seamless border and passed from Latvia into Estonia. Blink and you'd miss it. The EU. What a wonderful organisation. Who on earth would not want to be part of it?
So... Tātad, ardievas, Latvija. Tere Eesti !!
Latvian Financial Summary
Latvia was on the cheaper end of the spectrum of the countries visited so far. Our accomodation was well priced for a very central location and even factoring the flight from Oslo, the travel costs were not too high.
Latvian Mood Summary
This was, in reality, a day-trip and the one full day we had in Riga, the Sunday, was packed and elicited lots of positive moods. I reckon the overall mood score that day was a whopping 22-0. According to my records, it was the 8th best day so far. The book ends - the arrival in Riga, and the leaving, were relatively uneventful, but the way Germany scraped through against Denmark on the first night put me in a bit of a grumpy mood for a while, for sure.
Latvian Booze Summary
Again, just two nights spent in the Latvian capital is hardly a statistically significant sample size to go into my booze analysis, but I did my duty and hit the pubs anyway. I reached the "skinfull" threashold pretty easily on the first night, I guess as a backlash after a couple of nights off in Bergen. Watching Germany v Denmark certainly lubricated things. The second night was relatively quiet but an overall average of 91g is still, kind of, the expectation when in the Baltic States.
So much for quantity, how about quality? I have to admit to being a bit disappointed with the available beers in the pubs I went to in Riga but the micro brewer Labietis at the market was the stand out. When in Riga, never try the spiced rum, Balsamas - unless just to remind yourself how awful it is. Happily, Vanna Tallinn was just around the corner!
Holiday Update Summary
So, with approaching 42% of the trip completed, the tenth country visited in 114 days provided one of the best days of the holiday. It was sweet but too short. Hopefully, next time we won't let Schengen get in the way of a really good stay.
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