Got up at half-past seven this morning, so we had plenty of time to have some breakfast before our excursion at 9.00am. Looking out of our window, we were dismayed to see that it was raining.
When we arrived at the dining room and went to the juice counter, we saw that there was a bottle of Prosecco on ice so that we could make a complimentary Buck’s Fizz (or enjoy it neat). It was like being on a Fred Olsen ship! 🙂
I enjoyed some granola with yogurt washed down with coffee and some Buck’s Fizz. Then we returned to #509 and dressed for the weather; walking trousers, socks, boots, fleece hoody and, of course, a capacious cagoule over the top. Then we took the glass lift down to reception where we met the rest of the group, and Edgar and Mike were already waiting for us.
We all trooped outside and onto the coach. It would take about an hour to arrive at the Gauja National Park, where we would see beautiful rugged countryside, pine forests and – hopefully – any wildlife, although we imagined the soggy weather would have any animal seeking shelter.
Around 10.20am the coach pulled up and we all alighted, before a 10-minute walk that would take us to Turaida Castle, a large, turreted red brick construction completed in the 13th century. As we walked along, our guide Edgar took us to a grave which had a black plaque in front of it, stating that this was the resting place of “Turaida Rose” (sometimes known as the Rose of Sigulda) who was only 19 years old when she was murdered (born 1601 – died 1620). Rather than repeat the legend here, you can read about it at Wikipedia at this link.
As we walked along in the mizzly weather, we were pleased that we soon came to a charming wooden church which would allow us to shelter for a few minutes. We learned that it was built in 1750 and is one of the oldest wooden churches in Latvia. It is the Evangelical Lutheran Church and is still in use by worshippers. It underwent extensive restoration in 2009-2010 to return it to its orginal 18th century appearance.
After our visit to the church, Edgar advised us we had about 30 minutes’ free time, and he pointed out to us where we could find the restrooms, the souvenir shop and a café that served the “best ice cream in Latvia” and came in 10 different flavours. We decided to go there, even if it seemed strange to be enjoying ice cream in December. I had a fruit loaf ice cream (which actually contained pieces of fruit loaf) – I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. Then we noticed that they were doing mulled wine, so we each opted for some of that. The steaming hot drinks arrived in a glass contained within a metal holder, and they were totally delicious; fruity and spicy and a very Christmassy flavour. 🙂
Once we’d used the loos and made our way back outside again, we continued walking along the paths and grounds of the castle, which contained lots of curious sculptures, which Edgar told us were all based on Latvian folk songs. One many-side sculpture depicted the face of Krisjanis Barons, a prominent Latvian folklorist.
We then came to the castle and we decided to climb up the turret as we had heard that the views were amazing. What they would be like on this drizzly, cloudy day we didn’t know, but it was worth ascending the steep stone staircases to see.
The views were actually better than we’d imagined, despite the grey skies. We could see the castle grounds and outbuildings below us, as well as the river and the lush green countryside. We walked round the full 360 degrees of the circular tower, looking out of each draughty window for the best vantage point. As the steps were well-worn and uneven, it took just as long going back down as it had to go up, but eventually we were back on solid ground again.
Back outside, it began to rain harder, but by now it was near to the end of our half-day excursion, so we didn’t have to wait too long until we were back on the coach again, heading for the centre of Riga. On way way, Mike (the Newmarket rep) asked us if we’d like to visit the Radisson Hotel, as it had a rooftop bar with views on all sides (the “Sky Bar”) which would afford us amazing views over the whole city. Everyone agreed, so the coach pulled up there and most people alighted, only a few opting to go straight back to the Avalon Hotel.
We took the lift to the top floor and emerged into a large bar that was doing a roaring trade. We were lucky enough to procure a table by the window so we could see the amazing view below us. Trevor went to the bar and ordered a couple of pints of the local beer. We could see right over the city, from the wonderful gold-domed cathedral to the Riga Central Market (the “hangars”) in the distance.
Once dusk started to settle, we decided to walk back to the hotel, and perhaps call in for another beer (or a Riga Black Balsam, for which we had by now acquired a taste!) and maybe something to eat.
We walked back along and through the thronging city centre, with its Chistmas lights and glowing shop windows. We saw a bar/restaurant which was serving food, but when we went inside we were immediately advised that there were no spare tables, so out we went again.
It was same story at the next place, so we decided to go and find Queens, the lively pub we had visited on Thursday, as we knew they served food. We went inside but it was absolutely jammed, as there was a football match being shown on a large screen. It gave us an idea, because we hoped that we would be able to watch the Manchester City v Sunderland match later on. In the meantime, we still hadn’t found somewhere with any vacant tables, a case of “no room at the inn”.
Eventually we did manage to find a place serving beer and gourmet burgers, so we went in there; Trevor had a pint while I had an Aperol spritz, and we each enjoyed a burger and chips from the extensive menu.
Back outside again, we continued on our way until we spotted another pub, this one was called the “Funny Fox Sports & Karaoke Bar”. We could see through the window that a football match was on and, even better, it was the Man City v Sunderland game. We’d only missed the first 18 minutes of the match, so we went inside and managed to find somewhere to sit, allowing us a decent view of the massive TV screen above the bar. Ordering a drink each, we sat and watched the match; most people seemed to be supporting Man City, but every now and then I joined in with a hearty “Ha’way the Lads!” in support of Sunderland.
We ended up losing 3-0. We were simply outclassed. 🙁
It was around 7.00pm when we left the pub, a little dejectedly, and walked back to the Avalon Hotel. We decided we’d just stay in the hotel for the rest of the evening as it was still pretty wet outside, so we enjoyed a power nap, after which I enjoyed a long, hot shower and shampooed and blow-dried by hair before changing into clean, dry clothes.
Around 9.30pm, we went down to the hotel bar which was packed. We therefore each perched on a bar stool and ordered our drinks; an Aperol in my case and a beer in Trevor’s. Then we decided to try the different flavours of Riga Black Balsam; it was our last night in Latvia after all! 🙂
We returned to room #509 just before midnight and settled down for the evening. We didn’t have to check out until 10 o’clock tomorrow morning, and the coach would be coming to collect us around 1.30pm, so we had the morning at our leisure.