First Full Day in Cool Riga

I wish I had brought heavy gloves, for a cool wind was blowing when we began our walking tour with Christine.  It was a surprise after being inside the hotel for the 80 minutes with 80 slides presentation by a Dane who works for the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga. A lively presentation of the lives of Latvians compared with those of Estonia and Lithuania from many different angles was most enlightening. For example Latvia has more female executives than in any European country. 

We then donned our audio devices and ear plugs and began walking in the cool wind around Old Town. A statue of the Bremen Town Musicians stands in front of a church, a gift from their sister city. An interesting feature is that the four animals are about to burst through an iron gate/curtain rather than a window. We saw a star on the steeple of a non-Lutheran Protestant/Presbyterian church, a cross on the steeple of a Roman Catholic church, and a rooster on the steeple of a Lutheran church. The three adorn one square in Old Town and reflect the history of former occupiers.  Old Town is marked by cobblestone streets, and the bricks are frequently not close to one another making walking a challenge,  especially for the two persons with mobility challenges. 

At noon we attended a 20 organ recital in the Dom, the Lutheran cathedral. It was once the largest pipe organ other in Europe, I guessed closest to the 6500 pipes and "won" a small bottle p, 0.4L, of Riga Black Balsam original recipe; It is 45% alcohol and good for medicinal purposes, such as helping prevent colds and settling the stomach. I may share it here or bring it home unopened. Thoughts, opinions? The music was fabulous, and I wanted it to continue for at least another hour. I noted that the size of the cathedral created such an echo that the music sounded mushy rather than crisp, which I prefer. This was our experience in the Berliner Dom, too. Karin, do you remember?

We walked to our waiting bus and drove to the Art Nouveau district, former residences of the very wealthy and which were highly decorated with symbols of the residents and their values.  Walking around was like being "somewhere else".  A large number of these apartments were decorated by the crazy baker who designed these buildings as a hobby. Built between 1900 and 1914 there were height and entrance stands, and today the current owners earn reduced property taxes if they keep in the appearance of their buildings. Parked there were a couple of embassy vehicles, with red lettered license plates and a few all electric cars with blue lettered license plates. The city gives free parking to electric cars.

We met our bus and driver again and returned through heavy traffic to Old Town. There Christine suggested several places where we could buy lunch and reminded us of the way back to the hotel. A few of us followed her suggestion and ate at Ludo, a cafeteria. I had creamed vegetables, sauerkraut and roasted potatoes for EU 6,35. We ate outside at a picnic table, and Christine came by to give us the local events calendar to add to her extensive list of suggestions for planning tomorrow, a totally free day.

En route back to the hotel Lorns, Mary and I visited two bookstores and a souvenir shop and the local upscale mall. Small purchases and WI for shopping was fun. Back at the hotel we had a little time to rest and pack purchases and prepare for our group dinner, described by Christine as an experience. 

Well, we walked about 15 minutes over cobblestones to an elegant restaurant. It is described as new Latvian cuisine: white bean hummus with think sliced cucumbers, sesame seeds, finely cut to tomatoes and a few very thin crackers. The main course was slowly roasted turkey in a circular mold with broccoli rolled inside and roasted broccoli, cauliflower.  It was the sauce which made it very flavorful and tasty.  The dessert was a caramel cake, firm on the outside, soft on the inside with berries and a flavorful sauce.

We walked slowly back to the hotel, threading ourselves through many young adults gathered and eating and talking. Tomorrow, after more walking tour of Riga we have the rest of the day free. Hal of  our group plans to attend a performance of La Boheme at the opera house within walking distance.

So.....gute Nacht, Mom/Susan 

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