well well well well.
i find myself sitting at riga airport like a giant lemon, all tired out and wearing too many layers. see, its dang cold outside, but inside its el scorcho. very annoying. been another interesting day really, yesterday was insane. maybe not as insane as a man holding a gun to his head on a tram, but still, latvia is mad. so yes, recap.
woke up early yesterday as arta had school so was in the centre of riga by 9.30, which isnt that early, but it certainly felt it. arta went off to school and i went to the train station. riga's train station is a strange one, it must be said. as far as i can remember it was my first train station experience where there was no english whatsoever, which makes me sound like a right sheltered fool, but it was interesting. so i ended up going on every single platform until i felt like i knew where i was supposed to be going. ticket bought, and i was on my way to the seaside. bear in mind that the weather was windy and a little rainy, so i guess it wasnt really seaside weather. but still, away i went. latvia's trains are very entertaining as well, everytime they start they make a giant cranking sound, as if they are teenagers being coaxed out of bed. and the whole carriage jolts and people fall over, its very good fun.
on arta's advice (2nd stop after the 2nd bridge), i got out of the train and walked in the direction of the sea. ok, i didnt know it was the direction of the sea, but i used my nautical genius to go forth and beach it. and sure enough, i ended up there. ace! i quite like beaches in winter, mainly because they are quiet, and there is a quaint romanticism to it. very nice. so i walked around the sands for a while, took some classic north shropshire college depressing beach photos, go me. i asked a woman if i could take a photo of her and her kid playing in the sand, well, i actually said 'do you mind if i take a photo?'. too which she replied 'No'. And being the fool i am, i was confused by this. was she saying that i couldnt take a photo, or that she didnt mind? either way, i smiled and walked away, because im a prize git. good work.
turns out there isnt really that much to do at the seaside in winter when you are on your own, so i left bulduri and headed back to riga. i had an idea of what i wanted to do for the rest of the day, so i went to work that out. back to the station, got some food, did yesterdays blog, and then looked for my next train. the idea was to go and see the holocaust memorial at salaspils. i'd read that i need to get off at darzini station, and then walk through a forest. looking at the stations map, i counted that darzini was the 7th stop, after dole. so i got on the cranky train and headed off. sure enough, all the stops on the way where as expected, Dole being the 6th one. then, to my horror, the 7th stop came and it wasnt darzini. it was salaspils. in my effortless gorkery i got off, and hoped for the best. needless to say, wrong stop, and salaspils has nothing there. despite this, i walked around for a bit and fed some ducks. this was nice, i havent fed ducks since i was tiny, so it was strange doing it on the side of a main road in a country a long long way from home. i think the ducks enjoyed their feeding as well, which was nice. headed back to the station to wait for a train back to riga. and then crazy latvia turned its head.
there was a guy in the station, he was a bit loud and clearly a little drunk. feeling ever so slightly uncomfortable about this, i decided i would wait for the train outside, so i left. just as i got out the door, the door swings open behind me, and this drunk man kinda half falls onto me, and starts gibbering away in latvian. well, i think it was latvian, it might have been russian, but it sure as hell wasnt welsh. anyway, this guy rants and rants for at least 5minutes non stop, with me all the while saying 'i have no idea what you are saying'. he carried on, and he'd clearly understood by then that i wasnt latvian. every now and then he kept saying 'me lettish, you english'. made me chuckle that the only thing i understood him saying was something that was actually wrong. crazy drunks. anyway, i somehow managed to get rid of this crazy man, and crossed my fingers that he wouldnt return. all that drunk putting up with had made me need a wee, and luckily, salaspils train station has a public toilet on it.
unfortunately, this public toilet has no lights.
after that fun times, i headed back to riga to prepare for the evenings festivities. myself and my wife, the president of latvia Arta Metzale, were to attend the opera that evening in the centre. i'm gonna have to rush this as my flight is going soon, but needless to say the opera was hilarious, great fun, and i had an awesome evening. went back to arta's house, her brother was still up watching rubbish tv, so we all had a chat and went to sleep.
anyway, im off. i had a great time here, which was mainly down to arta and her family, all of whom are completely awesome. i'm definitely coming back in summer for a music festival, and possibly before for a play, so exciting times! back to the fun of liverpool though, and an essay about terrorism that needs to be done by friday. woo!
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