I have always found Eastern European culture fascinating; the mentality, the lifestyles, the values, the food... So when the opportunity came up to spend a weekend in Latvia, a country that I have never been to, I jumped at it! Although it was just a weekend, and I really only got a tiny glimpse of this beautiful country, I wanted to jot down my impressions, as much for my own records and memories as anything else.
When I visit new places, I like to learn as much as I can about their history, and really get a feel for them. Latvia is a small country that has quite a dramatic history; it has almost consistently been ruled by another power and has not enjoyed much of it's own freedom. As you walk around and meet people you definitely get a feeling of humility - the people that I met were extremely friendly and helpful, I felt very welcome here - which perhaps stems from the country's past.
Riga is a real mix of old and new. The beautiful old town is wonderfully picturesque, but the rest of the city is becoming quite modernised - the library building, for example, is one of the most modern structures I have seen! If you plan to spend time in Riga, I would advise to be wary of the high tourist prices in the old town and check out the other parts of town for restaurants and bars. I also really recommend taking taxis as they are really cheap - a 10 minute drive cost about 3 euros! However parking in the city can be incredibly expensive and difficult to find so taking taxis is definitely the preferable option.
I discovered that there are many hidden gems around the city, in places you would never expect to find them. On our first night in the city we found a little brewery called Alus Darbnīca Labietis tucked away in a car park which, at first sight, does not look very promising. But when you enter the bar there is a wonderful atmosphere, people playing chess and enjoying themselves. The brewery serves a whole array of amazing craft beers made from ingredients such as heather, honeycomb and other herbs. We spent a great evening, sampling many of the beers, eating a bowl of spicy cheese and playing chess!
The brewery at first sight...
A closer look...
Inside - great people, beer and cheese!
One of my favourite places that we visited in the old part of Riga was a cafe and chocolaterie called Black Magic, and I highly recommend trying this place, if only for the experience. The cafe is extremely old, and the waitresses even wear a medieval Latvian costume. The interior of the cafe is designed like an old apothecary and they have all sorts of chocolate truffles and amazing goodies to try. They also boast their own delicious hot chocolate!
Black Magic
Amazing interior!
Enjoying some coffees and truffles
A trip to a new city wouldn't be complete for me without a visit to a bookshop! We found quite a special one in Riga called Robert's Books. Again, this is a hidden gem down an unlikely looking alleyway! The shop is half bookshop half cafe, which gives a wonderfully relaxed feeling as you can browse books while drinking a coffee or eating delicious cake. The books are a selection of second hand and new and are priced between 3 and 10 euros. I definitely recommend exploring this place!
On our third day in Latvia we decided to leave Riga and drive to the national park area of
Sigulda. Here they have obviously put a lot of time and money into creating a fantastic spot for tourists to visit, with some castles turned museums, beautiful caves and the Tarzan Adventure Park. I would say to see everything here would take an entire day, a car is pretty essential and this is something great for families to do as there are lots of activities for kids. I found the castles most interesting - the museums they have built inside are fascinating and tell you a lot about the history of Latvia - and I loved getting the spectacular views from the top towers (despite the miserable weather on the day we were there!).
Finally, I absolutely had to mention the incredible food that we ate while in Latvia. Each day brought more discoveries of delicious Latvian cakes and pastries, and I will never forget the meal that we had at
Milda - apparently one of the best restaurants in Riga, my trout and rye bread pudding were amazing!! I also tried Siberian dumplings which were soooo good and I'm hunting for a recipe to try and recreate them. I think that the best way of getting to know a new culture is through its food, so I am always willing to try pretty much anything, and I can say I definitely feel as though I know Latvia a lot better now!
Labels: Travel
