Lovin' Latvia

“Latvia: the land that sings.” This was the first thing that I saw about Latvia when I got off of the airplane and arrived in Riga, the capital of Latvia. (I would later find out how Latvia got this name, it actually has a quite recent history) Next I saw huge life sized posters talking about the native cheeses (caraway) and rye bread. Again, a positive impression: health conscious and natural. As I walked through the gates, Arturs and his friend Elena (whose name I am going to make sure I have spelled right before I post this blog) were waiting for me. Arturs was still wearing his jogging clothes, as he had just finished running the half marathon. We took the bus from the airport to the downtown center, where Arturs had booked me a room for the night at the Backpackers’ hostel. As I was pretty tired from traveling from Prague (as I had a 19 hour layover without access to my luggage) it was nice for Arturs to offer to wait while I had a chance to take a shower (my first glimpse into the true relaxed and overly friendly and generous characteristics of Latvians, or the “real Latvian way” as Arturs would say. Our first stop was the mall to get me a phone card (as my Austrian number was not working) so that I could stay in contact with Arturs and his friends. We then made our way to Lido, a typical cafeteria-style traditional Latvian restaurant. I ordered way too much food (I ate as much as Arturs who ran the ½ marathon that day, but I did nothing except sit on a plane all day) but I justified this large amount of food consumption because I am traveling and sampling new foods (there is so much to try, I sware I it’s like giving candy to a baby when I am seeing everything new in a different culture. I don’t know what it is but there is something thrilling to seeing just one more piece of God’s gigantic puzzle that is the world. Latvia might be a small piece of the puzzle, but it is one rich (as in sweet, not rich) piece. It is one of those places that unless you know someone from there or from others, you are likely to avoid due to lack of knowledge, fear, or compete ignorance. For example, Riga was denoted “Europe Crime Capital” by Forbes magazine in 2008, but I felt just as safe walking around Riga as I would walking around the ghettos near Wichita State University and Arturs would agree with me on this one. The old town of Riga is similar to that of Prague except better. In my opinion (and I am sure many others would share this same opinion) it is less touristy and more colorful….there is a flavorful cultural flair that is hard to explain, but is very cool. After eating, we walked through one of Riga’s main parks before heading to the mall (as it was raining) with Arturs, Kaspers (Arturs’ brother), Kasper’s girlfriend, Elena, and I. After walking around and checking out products for a while, we went into the main grocery store (which has been the closest thing to Wal-Mart that I’ve seen in a long while, actually) to do a little shopping. I proceeded to buy sweet peach tea, some bread (a mixture of rye and wheat), and a “chocolate burger,” a bite-sized, chocolate covered delectable item that I am going to miss dearly. (I think it was true love for us, truly). Arturs said that when he came back from the US to Latvia he was eating these all the time. With full stomachs, Arturs escorted me back to the hostel where I left most of my things with him as I was only traveling to Estonia for the next two days and would only need a couple small bags. That night at the hostel I met a friendly gentleman from Italy. We got on the subject of comparisons between the US and Europe, which was quite interesting. He mentioned the difference between the cops in the US and in Italy. For example, in the US, each cop has to be identified by a number or something while in Italy, the cops can basically get away with anything (practically murder) because there is no way to identify a cop to single one individual out. We also talked about the differences in the separation of power between the two cultures. For example, in my classroom in the US, it is completely normal to freely ask the professor a question because there is not much power distance between the student and the professor. However, in Italy, the situation is much different (in Austria as well). The teacher is regarded on such a higher level that students are scared of the professors and are therefore afraid to ask questions. If a student does ask a question, he/she risks earning the reputation of being a “goody” attempting to earn extra brownie points from the professor. He recommended Geert Hofstede “Cultural Dimensions” which I will check out when I have the time. Overall, a great introduction to Latvia! Tomorrow off to Estonia!
Today I took a Eurolines bus from Riga to Tartu. I left at 8:30 AM and arrived in Tartu around 12:30 PM. The bus ride was nice, and the scenery was beautiful. I always think that I will get so much work done while traveling on a train or bus because I am stuck in one place, but then end up looking out the window the entire time. Latvia and Estonia are both lusciously green; there are trees and old wooden buildings everywhere. I changed money (the Estonians have the kroner as their form of currency instead of the lat in Latvia), found my hostel, and began to wander around after checking in. Estonia seems to be more similar to the Scandinavian countries than to Latvia. Take the currency for example. Sweden, Norway, Denmark an Estonia all have a kroner although it is worth different amounts in each place. The exchange rate for Estonian kroner to Euro was 10 kroner = 0.778 euros while the rate for the Swedish kroner to Euro was 10 kroner =1.02 euros. Estonia is quite cheap. For example, a coffee was around 25 kroners (2.5 euros) while the same coffee in Austria would cost at least 3 euros. Since Estonia is more developed than Latvia, it will probably adopt the euro currency pretty soon, maybe even within the next year. (Arturs said that Latvia would adopt the euro as its currency by 2014). I paid for a few things in euros (which the store clerk gladly accepted) but she did mention that local people were extremely worried about what the switch in currency could do to the economy.
Other than the similarity of the architecture of the old wooden buildings, Estonia and Latvia are two completely different places. The people act differently (Estonians are more quiet and reserved while the Latvians are more outgoing), the currency is different, the language is completely different (Arturs said that he cannot understand hardly any Estonian, as it is more similar to Finnish), and the government is completely different as well. During Russian occupation, the three countries of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania were grouped together as the Baltic states, so it is not as if there are any real similarities (other than geographical location) that connect the three countries. Upon my return, Arturs asked me if the Estonians were slow….I guess this is a stereotype that at least Latvians have of the Estonian people. What I saw of Estonia was beautiful. I went to the Taru Botanical Gardens, which was amazingly beautiful….I have gazillions of flower pictures to prove it. The gardens were fabulous except for getting hit in the head by a big black crow a couple of time. I swear that crazy bird came out of nowhere, whacked me on the back of the head, and kept on going (maybe it was because I was wearing a gray hoodie over my head, I don’t know….). The town of Tartu itself is really hip and modern. I guess it has to be, since it is a university town. There are cute little places to eat and adorable cafés on every corner. I took my laptop to one such café where a friend of Arturs, living and working in Tartu, met me. This is one thing that I love about the Latvian people: their openness. His friend had never met me before, but was willing to meet with me. She grew up with Arturs’ brother (as they were all from the same small town of Aluksne. She pointed out a couple of good restaurants, including one serving Georgian food. Unfortunately, I did not have time to try them all. I plan on asking a student from Georgia about the Georgian food when I get back to Austria though). The next day in Tartu was another gorgeous one. I visited inside the Tartu University, the pride and joy of the town. I went up into the attic to see the “lock up” where students could be locked up for all kinds of punishment, such as forgetting to return library books (could cost 2 days in the lock-up) as well as the banquet hall, a gorgeous concert hall with two Steinway pianos. I spent the remainder of the day wandering around a hilltop park, checking out all of the sites on my student-friendly handy dandy map. I went to the “kissing hill” a tiny little hill where locks with the names and anniversaries of couples line the railings. I am not sure what the significance of the hill is, but in Latvia bridges and the locks have some significance. The bridge is supposed to symbolize the unity and meeting place of two people (the bride is on one side, the groom on the other, and the “lock” of their hearts meet in the middle, on the bridge) Of course, the key to the lock is tossed into the river, meaning that the two people are locked together in union. I made it back to the bus station in the evening to catch another 4-hour bus back to Riga. My next hostel, the City Lounge hostel, is a gem in Riga. Opened in 2008, it used to be a 5 room, 25-person apartment with one bathroom for five families. In soviet times, this was common. The owner, who opened the hostel in 2008, completely renovated the place, knocked out walls, and installed 3 additional showers. My room, the Riga room, is very nice. The first night there was only one person in my room. I was so tired that I feel asleep while skyping….hopefully more luck the next day…
My third day here in Latvia has been very nice. Arturs came at 7:30 AM to drop off my backpack on his way to work. He stopped to look at pictures from my trip to Tartu and pointed out some places to check out on the map of Riga. I met a friendly Belgian guy named Till who shares a room with me) making a four-week tour of the Baltic states. He had a Lonely Planet guide, and told me that he was going to make a tour walking around the “quiet” district of Riga looking at Art Nouveau buildings, which apparently Riga has the most in the world of (over 800!) The buildings are all so incredibly intricate and ornate that it is hard to imagine the hours and hours of labor that must have gone into creating such works of art. Even Arturs said that as he is walking down the street, he will just look up and realize a nice building that he has never seen before. They are really everywhere, it is pretty amazing. As Lonely Planet described, the cookie-cutter picture-perfect buildings really are “eye candy.” Riga is truly a place of architectural diversity: from dilapidated wood buildings to high class Art Nouveau buildings on every corner, some of both on each. Some with complete different styles (such as classical, vertical, and romantic) stand right next to each other. On our three hour walking tour that began at noon, a free tour run on the concept of tips in the “yellow suitcase” that was actually funded by the European Union until recently, the guide took us outside of Riga to the more unexplored places that are not as easily explored as the main center of the town (which is easily accessible by foot). In fact, the entire tour consisted of seven (including myself) who were all staying at the same hostel. Till and five Spanish guys (on erasmus in Krakow and making a week-long car trip around the Baltic states) traveled around to a couple huge markets, selling everything under the sun that one’s heart could ever desire. There was a huge fish market, and I was just imaging myself bying these raw cuts of meet and attempting to prepare them. No wonder many Latvians stay at home often and rarely go out to dinner….the variety available to them is unreal. The guide took us to a couple of churches, one in Latvian style and one the Russian Orthodox. The Latvian style (wooden and simplistic) does not detract from the real meaning of the church in the first place unlike the main Orthodox Church, adorned with ornate gold detailing. The Latvian Academy of Sciences, also known as Stalin’s Birthday cake, is one of the tallest buildings in Latvia but also one of the only ones with remaining traces of the soviet influence. It is decorated with several hammers and sickles. We walked through the Moscow district, which is apparently the sketchiest area of Riga. In this district, we stopped for a few minutes in an old junk market, selling everything from buttons and medals to tires and cord to drills and remotes. Upon seeing me snatching a couple pictures, the guide mentioned that I should be careful about taking pictures, as many things sold at this market have probably been sold and are now being resold. The guide said that when she had her bike seat stolen once, and this was the place that she thought to come. Also, one time she saw a man on the street bringing his (or some one else’s) hot water boiler to market. Apparently this is how desperate some families are…so tight for cash that they are willing to sell their family’s showering capabilities. This just goes to show the level of desperation for some people. This only further emphasizes the heart-wrenching facts that 16% living under poverty level and 20% of people are unemployed due to the recent economic crisis. So far, my impression of the city is good. For being denoted “Europe Crime Capital” by Forbes in 2008, it looks pretty good. However, my views are probably slightly tainted, as I am visiting a native friend. With a population of 709,145, it is about twice the size of Wichita, and also the third largest city in the Baltic states behind Saint Petersburg and Stockholm. According to Wikipedia, it is a major industrial, commercial, cultural, and financial centre of the Baltics and an important seaport situated on the mouth of the Daugava. Riga remained the largest city in Sweden until 1710. However, by 1721 the city was seized by Russia, where it became an industrialized port city of the Russian empire and remained until World War I. The guide also took us to a neat little gallery that showed images of old wooden buildings in Riga that were being re-done in either a tacky or tasteful way. A few cartoons with Latvian inscriptions in connection to architecture (with cute, logical sayings underneath) lined the walls. For example “one piece of wood is not enough”, “a little house is better than a mansion” and “bad sauce can ruin the best meat” Also in Latvian, there is a word for fried meet. If this is not an indication of the level of family eating habits, I don’t know what is. I love the idea of families putting lots of love and effort into a home-cooked meal and eating together. Back to the topic of housing, at least some people are putting in the effort required to maintain the buildings and sustain their historical value. Good to see. I ended the day walking around the historical city center and reading about the Latvian independence day of May 4th. If I am correct, this is how Latvia got the reputation of the land that sings because everyone was singing in streets that day to celebrate Latvia’s independence. Arturs met up with me after work and took me to a Russian dumpling place. We talked about his job, which sounds really interesting. I am so thankful that he was able to find a job in such difficult economic times. He also mentioned a good book “The Travels of a T-Shirt in A Global Economy.” Something else to add to my never-ending reading list. After a nice dinner, we walked through the park (saw the light coming through the trees) and headed to the top of a hotel to have a hot drink with Riga Black Balsam and see a nice view overlooking Riga. What a beautiful city, I will miss this place for sure.
Today was another beautiful day in Latvia. I took the train with Till to Jurmala, a Latvian town on the Baltic Sea with 33 KM of white sand, and kilometers and kilometers of forests and woodlands containing gorgeous old wooden structures and pieces of architecture. We missed the 12:15 train (as we were getting a coffee at Double Coffee) but managed to catch the 12:45 one. The ride was about 35 mintues to Majora, where we got off the train and began to wander around the town. Next we wandered around the beach, taking about an hour long break to lay down in the sand, read, relax, and chill. I bought a couple of presents for the cousins before heading back to Riga to meet with a girl named Liva from Riga who wanted to practice her English. We took the tram into the Moscow district to eat dinner at the biggest Lido in Latvia, specially designed for tourists (the items on the buffet were translated into English). Outside was a child’s paradise…hockey (ice hockey in the winter) and a mini driving track complete with stop lights. Till and I stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the hostel to buy some drinks. I bought a Black Currant drink (with 12% alcohol!) We’ll see how I do on this one =)
Last night was great. Went out with the five Spanish guys and Till and ended up meeting two guys from London who flew in the other night. I got to chatting with them at the bar, and found out that they were planning on renting a car and driving to Lithuania the next day. While it was quite the tempting offer, I had already made plans to meet up with Inese and visit the open air ethnogeographic museum, which was totally worth the 1 lati that I paid to get in. There were various different architectural styles from the five different regions of Latvia: kurzeme, zemgale, selija, vidzeme and latgale. Most estates had a bath house and a bee house. There are many quirky things about Latvia, such as the fact that one is only supposed to give odd numbered amounts of roses, saving the even amounts for funerals, to individuals. The Latvians are also extremely superstitious about things, such as keeping flowers over beds and ferns over doorways to ward off the witches and evil spirits. The next day, Arturs and I had dinner with Jalena, who made a nice meal of stuffed peppers for us. For some reason, this dinner reminded me of a grandma cooking for her grandkids, probably just the way that Jalena interacted with AIturs and his brother. While it was obvious that Arturs and Jalena were very dear friends, I could also see that she sometimes “babied” him a bit. The apartment looked like old-fashioned and soviet style from the outside but was quite nice on the inside. After dinner we went bowling (and tried these amazing garlic bread French fries). We watched a little bit of Latvian TV (which was TV with Latvian and English over the top, pretty bizarre). On Saturday, Arturs and his brother drove me to Sigulda castle, about an hour outside of Riga. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous, and Arturs and I even took a cable car across the big river (which you can apparently bungee jump off of, but I decided against). I enjoyed a nice relaxing last day in Latvia, as my flight was the next afternoon. Arturs made sure I made it safely onto the bus headed in the direction of the airport, and off I went. Latvia, with its lush green fields, is one of my favorite places that I’ve been to so far. Perhaps I will make it back someday.