Flying into Riga I was excited to be returning to my Fatherland. My Dad was born in Riga in 1932, he has passed now, but I am always happy to go back to Latvia and explore more of this beautiful little baltic gem of a country. I am also so lucky I have a Latvian passport so I love to go back and flash my EU passport and glide straight on in!

I spent 4 nights in Riga and booked a pretty rowdy hostel right in the middle of the old town. Not on purpose, somehow the location was lost on me, but boy was I in for a treat! Booming loud party goers all through the night, lovely hot stuffy room, but completely made up for it with interesting new travellers to meet and friendly bunk mates. I travel in all sorts of different styles, and I don’t mind a cheap and cheerful backpackers. I prefer to save my money for day trips! 

On my first day I wandered happily around the old town taking photos and over to the markets for some food and drink. The berries are always delicious from the markets and they did not disappoint! I have been to Latvia at least three times now so this trip back to Riga was nice to just reacquaint myself with this beautiful little city. I loved wandering down by the river, and ended up relaxing on the grass with a drink or two watching the birds, passers-by, and admiring all the flowers blooming. The flowers were blossoming everywhere, and it was lovely to see. So relaxing. Taking my shoes off and feeling the soft cool grass, is a memory I can still recall fondly. 

One morning I went to the main Art gallery for a wander around. Such an opulent building, it is an exhibition in itself. Unfortunately I wasn’t that thrilled by the art this time, I like colour and vibrant art, and I found many of the pieces to be of little interest to me. Messy styles, abstract, or just not my thing. But that is okay. I did still see some beautiful pieces. In the afternoon I decided to venture out to the Botanic gardens and took a big wander around the gardens. A wonderful display of dahlias springs to mind the most, sprawling ponds, some large trees, and a good range of flowers. Not as good as Munich botanic gardens but still pretty good! It was also really hot, so its hard for these parks to look brilliant in those intense summer conditions. 

I took another day trip one day to Sigulda with a man who ran “Bearded tours” which was a fun day out. We ventured around old castles, parks and lakes. It was great to get out of the city for the day, be driven around and see some of the countryside. We went to an old cave site which was pretty cool too. I tried a really great fresh pear cider out there too which was delicious. I loved seeing all the ponds with lillies and quaint old timber buildings. I was impressed to see a quaint old castle and learn the White stripes had played there only recently, that would have been a cool experience!

One afternoon I enjoyed a spa and sauna session in the basement of the Welton Spa Hotel. This hotel is just across from the markets. I had the place to myself for 23 euro for 90 mins of spa, sauna and haman with mint fragrance heaven! It really was an incredible experience and a great way to relax. After the spa I went to the nearby Aussie Pub and met some new people which was fun. I met a lovely Mother and daughter from England who had been touring around the Baltics. We enjoyed a drink and chat together and then ended up going out for a meal together at the local Lido. Lido is a fabulous chain restaurant that sells really good Latvian food for a really good price. After that we walked across the river to a free concert that was going on in an inner city park. I would never have gone to this one by myself so it was great to join forces. They were also mad keen on my Latvian ring that I was wearing at the time, so I took them to the shop where I bought it and they each bought one too! So cool! I enjoy these random connections we make when travelling. Everyday is a joy and I am open to new experiences. 

After my time in Riga I was ready to venture out again to Liepaja to meet up with a friend I had made through my blog. She is a Latvian/New Zealander and decided to relocate to Latvia about 6 years ago. She bought up some properties and I think she is doing very well for herself! It was interesting to meet her, we are really very different people but we found many things to connect on. We spent some really nice time together, she showed me around the lovely little Liepaja, a neat town that is quaint, tidy and interesting. Many sprawling parks, an attractive coastline and lots of sports! Every little country town has something different to offer and it was nice to wander the streets, eat local food, and buy a few random things from the shops. 

My friend was vegan and I decided I would like to cook for her while I was there, I am a good house guest! I made some delicious pasta dishes with lemon and garlic and fresh ingredients that were so tasty. The most aromatic basil and the sweetest cherry tomatoes I have had in a long time. It was a pleasure to cook again, one thing I love to do, but when travelling can be a little challenge. 

Soon it was time to return back to Riga for my last night. I ended up booking a hotel for my last night, stark contrast to the backpackers, and it was a nice little treat to end my trip. This time I was on the other side of the city so saw some different buildings and took new walks. One thing I love about travelling is the amount of walking we do naturally everyday! I was racking up 25K a day, and now I am back to a piddly 10K. 

And then it was time to fly back to Rome for the last city stay before flying home to Perth. I will save that one for the next blog, as I jammed in quite a bit for the last 2 nights in Rome. 

I hope you are enjoying my mini travel series of blogs here! 

Thanks for reading, and I would love to read your comments!

Anita xx