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January 21st 2013
21.01 I arrived to Riga by Ecolines at 10-30; the bus had wi-fi and power receptacles so I managed to use the computer for a while. I bought a bus ticket to Sigulda and, while driving there, saw most magnificent views of fir trees like brides clothed in luxurious fluffy snow-white wedding dresses, everything clear white, and the road looking like a long white tunnel. The weather was so excellent I looked forward to skiing – just imagine skiing among such beautiful firs and pines under a shining sun! As I walked to Livonija guest house I noticed the quiet filling the air, and only a rare car would break the silence or a still rarer person would pass me by. The population of Sigulda is about 10 thousand, if I remember it right. I hope ... read more
December 1st 2012
This entry includes a text about our short stay in Riga on June 14: "It is all too simple. We took an Ecolines bus from Berlin to Riga. The bus turned out to be very convenient and there was even an attendant and we could order meals and drinks; but there were only several persons on this route. The trip took the whole day and we passed several cities and towns like Suwalki, Marijampole etc. On arriving to Riga, I had a feeling that it seemed very much like our own Russia, something remaining from the Soviet era. There was a 4-hour wait till the bus to St. Petersburg. I bought a map and we left the luggage at the station; there was Russian speech everywhere. I wanted to have a short walk seeing the main ... read more
November 25th 2012
The Museum of Occupation contains Soviet era artifacts. Co 3 cuoc chiem dong cua ngoai bang vao nuoc Latvia. Dau tien cua nguoi Nga sau do cua quan doi Duc quoc Xa va cuoi cung la Soviet. Dan so o day co mot dieu ky thu la dan Nga so rat nhieu khoang 30% tong so 2.3 trieu dan. Birth rate o day thap nhat the gioi vi khong co chach sach tai tro ro rang nen dan chung khong muon sanh san. Dan o day khong duoc than thien, khong hieu khach nhu o Estonia. Mot dieu de hieu la dan Lien So o day rat dong va sau thoi chiem dong dan tinh o day cung theo do ma cuong theo chieu gio cua su lanh nhat cua dan Lien So. Neu ta da ... read more
Latvia and vintage shopping in Riga
Published: January 28th 2013Europe » Latvia » Latgale Region » Daugavpils
November 23rd 2012
Latvia - Riga I had been told many a bad reivew of Riga but I had decided to stay four days anyway. Unfortunately it began with bedbugs in my hostel bed...found crawling on me as I read my book. Ewww. Change of room....change of room again to a private attic....freezing cold but I value my alone time and security more. I walked town, discovered the sights, chilled out, read books, watched movies on my tablet and generally got some recovery sleep and mental health time back in order. I researched the vintage shops, and visited a cupcake shop reccomended in my airflight magazine...I did some damage to my coin purse in both places. I went to the markets, saw the last twilight film in the movies...so cheap 4€, and walked til my feet hurt. Having a ... read more
August 29th 2012
Six weeks of planes, trains and boatmobiles on the Iceland/Scandinavian/Baltic merry-go-round brought us to our full stop in the region, the little surprise packet of Riga. With Latvia's history sharing a raft of parallels with Estonia and geographically separated solely by that thin man made line we call a border, I'd imagined Latvia's capital Riga would be a carbon copy of sister Tallinn up north. Not so. For a start the language is completely different, not that I can tell. It's also not as dollied up. No period costumes in the streets here and the old town is a lick of paint short of Tallinn's slick veneer and clean lines. The facade also throws up more visions of its Soviet byways. The heart and soul of the younger populace is, however, Western European to the core ... read more
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Riga...Were Our Expectations too High?
Published: August 22nd 2012Europe » Latvia » Riga Region » Riga
August 13th 2012
Riga was a place denied to us in December 2010 when due to the snow fall in London Heathrow Airport went to shut down and we spent two nights sleeping in the airport and another week in Slough waiting for a flight. We vowed to see it next time we were in the area! Arriving in a city with high expectations is always a little dangerous as you are nearly always disappointed, like we were in Riga. In fact I think it is better to arrive without expectation and be surprised. We spent the first day walking around the old town area which to be honest was a little underwhelming (the overcast weather didn't help). We did have high expectations, but it came across extremely touristy (somewhat expected), restored to the point of looking shiny and ... read more
July 24th 2012
Hoy he estado desayunando con dos franceses que andan de viaje un anno, con la bici y con el perro. He tenido algo de resaca porque ayer tambien estuvimos bebiendo vino blanco de letonia, mejora un poco si le pones sirope de pinna... Al final he salido casi a las 12. Las primeras horas viento fuerte en contra, luego ha parado y ha hecho bastante calor. A eso de las 8 me he puesto a buscar un camping pero no he encontrado ninguno y he tenido que seguir hasta Riga. Lo típico cuando te acercas a una gran ciudad, que en los últimos km no hay donde parar y tienes que tirar hasta el centro. Ah, y he encontrado una tenda de bicis fantastica en Salacgriva, pequenna como un quiosco de prensa pero todo super bien ... read more
July 16th 2012
On my trip from Waeszawa to Vilnius I met a psychiatrist on her way to a conference with colleagues from all over the world in Lithuania. She had not travelled much in her life.No time for she had to bring up het 6 kids. I asked hobby or accident? No she just liked it. For her it was already an adventure to go by train from Germany to Vilnius. When we found out there was no connecting train she did not like the adventure so much anymore. Sunday I visited the old town of Vilnius. Lithuania was the last great pagan state in Eastern Europe to be converted to christianity in 1387.Vilnius, another unesco worldheritage site, has many churches but only one that goes really back to 1387. Beautifull old town with good renovations.The churches are ... read more
July 15th 2012
Friday I stayed in Warszawa city of Statues. All their old and new heroes but also Mr Reagon are to be seen all over the city.Did some sightseeing in the centre and the old town, an Unesco world heritage site ,and had a 2 hours panoramic tour by coach. Compared to three years ago not much difference only they keep building new offices, houses, stations but still an awful lot of old communist style buildings. In Waeszawa you ee like everywhere in Poland still lots of priests and nuns , young and old and churches are full/... read more
