From Riga to Stockholm – 2 June 2011

Today, we completed the final stage in our Baltic 'Cruise', by flying to Stockholm. The flight was not until 14.25, so we had a leisurely start to the day, and walked to the large Central Markets. These were colourful and sold everything you might need, except furniture.

The markets extended way past the original market buildings, and the area around contained just as many stalls. We were fascinated by the old women who seemed to have their own corner and stood there with arms covered in stockings. By the look of the stockings, they were designed to appeal to similarly aged women.

We did one final circuit of the old town, before returning to pack and check out. It seemed odd that our door card no longer worked, and at reception we were told we had exceeded our 12 noon check out time. It appeared we had spent two days in Riga, unaware that it is an hour later than Oslo. So our leisurely morning came to an abrupt end, and we jumped on the next bus to the airport, only to discover that our flight was late!

The airport Ryanair use is 80 minutes out of Stockholm, so we finally made it to our hotel five hours after racing out the Riga hotel. But with the long northern days, there was still plenty of time to explore Gamla Stan – the old town. It is largely pedestrianised, and we managed to find the smallest street, which is a whole block long, but only 1m wide. Gamla Stan is an island, in fact Stockholm is built on many islands, and the areas of the city that we could see across the water looked wonderful, there is clearly more to explore during our stay here.

Riga – 1 June 2011

Riga is a very relaxing place to have a short break. There are many interesting streets in the Old Town, all pedestrianised, and full of cafes and restaurants with al fresco dining.

To start the day, we walked north of the old town, to the other UNESCO area – the Art Nouveau precinct. Unlike similar cities in Germany, this area was not bombed in WWII, and has survived intact. The buildings in this area range from late 19th to early 20th centuries, showing the change in Art Nouveaux from ornate to severe stylised exteriors (but nowhere near as severe as the Soviet era architecture). It was great wandering around in the lovely sunshine, using a map supplied by the Tourist Office.

Before lunch in one of the many reasonably priced restaurants, we took a canal/river cruise in a lovely old varnished boat from 1915. We were the only customers in the front of the boat, and enjoyed the city from a 1915 classic.

After lunch, we visited the Museum of the Occupation, suitably housed in an depressing (presumably ex-Soviet) building. The stark exterior mimicked the stark facts of the comprehensive exhibition inside. The Latvian people had a very bad deal under the Soviets, with 1/3 of the population killed/relocated/lost in the early years. Then during the war, the Germans gave them an equally bad deal, until in 1946, the Soviets marched back in again and continued their earlier regime of repression. The Baltic countries seemed to come off worst after WWII.

Finally in 1991, the growing voice of the people had effect, and in the Prestroika era, Latvia was one of the many countries which finally gained their independence from the USSR. One fact that really registered, was a demonstration of 2 million people on 23 August 1989, who held hands from Tallinn to Riga and on to Vilnius. Having visited Tallinn in March, we can somewhat visualise the distance covered, it must have been amazing to take part, and just over a year later these people tasted freedom for the first time.

Leaving here to enjoy a drink in the lively square, seemed almost decadently Western. But times have changed, and this is what the move to democracy by the Latvian people 20 years ago was all about – freedom to live life without restrictions.

It was time to just wander again; exploring streets, alleyways, and many fascinating old buildings, before dinner. Given the Soviet theme so far, we went around the corner from the hotel to the Austrumu Robeza restaurant where our bourgeois and non-Aryan lifestyle was frowned upon by busts of Lenin, Stalin and Hitler. We enjoyed the irony of sitting in an ex-Eastern-bloc country enjoying a fabulous Russian three-course meal washed down by an excellent NZ Savignon Blanc delivered from Marlborough via a distributor in the US.

Off to Riga - 31 May 2011

It was great to swap Oslo at 10 deg and rain, for Riga at 27 deg and brilliant sunshine. Riga is the capital of Latvia, a UNESCO city centre, and as an ex Soviet Block country, much cheaper than the Scandinavian countries.

For half the price, we found a very comfortable boutique hotel, in the centre of Riga. It's great to step out the front door of a hotel, right into the old town. Riga has escaped modernisation, and some buildings which needed replacing (as a result of WWII), have been rebuilt exactly as they were. The House of the Blackheads was rebuilt in 2001 as an 800th birthday present to the city. The original building dated from 1344, and to see it crisp and new, but just the same, is amazing. It gives an idea of what these towns looked like in medieval times.

We decided to start our tour of Riga, by climbing the tower of St Peter's church. Unlike most towers, the climb came first, followed by a lift to the top. The views are great, and give an idea of how much there is to see.

For dinner, we were enticed by a photo of a meal called “The Key to Riga”. A giant tree shaped kebab holder was covered in large chunks of beef, pork and turkey. It was quite delicious and extremely filling. Unlike Oslo, food is cheap here, and as the old town is pedestrianised, all the squares and pavements were full of cafes, quite delightful to eat out in the warm summer evening. A walk after dinner was essential, so we walked along the river to see the Riga Castle.