I woke at my hotel after not getting much sleep. The bed was ok, the room got stuffy, but wouldn’t you know it, opening the window just meant I got the smoke of cigarettes wafting into my room at midnight, so closed it again and reopened it about 2 am and closed it again at 6 am. I had a shower and packed my bags ready to swap hotels later in the day.
First thing was to find something to eat. By 10 am I’d given up and found a local coffee chain called “Caffeine” and I stopped there for a really large coffee and a piece of cake. I figured that would keep me going until lunchtime at least. I eventually got to the old part of Riga by about 11 am and started to wander around the town.
Riga Cathedral
Its very nice but nothing really took my attention. There was a flow to Vilnius that doesn’t exist in Riga. Around every corner, though there is another church or cathedral, lighting is strung across between the buildings making the streets less appealing. there were also a lot more tourists in Riga, partly because there is a port here and also regular ferries to other countries.
Powder tower
I did discover two museums I might visit Sunday though. The Museum of the occupation of Latvia and the Latvian War museum in the powder tower, which was part of the old Riga Castle.
After wandering for quite a while I realised it was well past lunch, so settled in for a beer and lunch beside one of the small squares that dot the Riga old town. After lunch I checked into the new hotel and had a bit of a rest, before making the long trek back to the old hotel to collect my bag and checkout. The lady there was really nice, I just told her a little white lie about having to leave Riga early.
Riga
So my first full day left me wanting more from Riga. I’ll explore a bit more on Sunday. I have a pretty full on day tomorrow as I’m catching the early train to Sigulda to visit the NP and its castles. Fortunately, the railway station is only 5 minutes away now and my hotel will serve me breakfast also before I have to catch the train.