Latvia

In upper secondary school my best friend Roman had roots in Latvia, and once at a break we stole a huge sack of potatoes and then sold it to our teacher. When she asked where we had got them from, we said Roman's dad was a farmer in Latvia and that we helped him sell them and she believed us. She even recommended us to other teachers and that's when we thought it went out of hand.

Roman was my only vague connection to Latvia when I many, many years later set out on a cruise by myself to go see the capital Riga. It was the last of my three cruises in a week departing from Stockholm, I had already been to Finland and Estonia. The boat was maybe in the worst shape of the three and my bed was even tilting so it felt like I was going to fall off at any minute. Instead of complaining I just thought of it as a part of the experience to go to a poor country like Latvia, and I had a really nice time on the boat with going to the spa and watching the Stockholm archipelago passing us by while sitting in the sauna. That moment was so beautiful and I just wished for two things, that I could share it with Felicia who I was dating at the time and that I could sit in a sauna for more than 5 minutes at a time. When I went into the pool area I noticed that they had a wall paper of how it could look outside instead of just having windows, and I thought it was so dumb and hilarious at the same time.

Then I spent the night in my cabin watching a biopic about Alfred Hitchcock, and it was more fun than it sounds. I also marked out things to see on a map of Riga that I had found on the boat, so I would have something to do for the next day when I would arrive.

I woke up the next day and went on an architectural sightseeing and almost every house looked amazing with its Art Nouveau style. I saw details like cats on the roofs and even saw a sphinx with breasts guarding a house. I was a bit tired of churches since my earlier visit to Finland but I just had to visit The Nativity Cathedral with its golden roof. It was freezing cold outside so I went in with my winter hat on, and a priest started yelling at me for dishonouring his made up god by wearing it. I don't know why god hates me for being warm but I quickly went out to the cold again.

I continued my sightseeing tour and went to see the Freedom Monument and I thought it was ironic that it was guarded by plastic soldiers. That's how much they care about freedom in Latvia. 

When I went to the Powder Tower, which originally was a part of the defensive system of the town, I seemed to walk into a movie set. I don't know which kind of movie though since it seemed to feature a sheep, a nun and a police officer.

I went to see the Three Brothers, which in Riga means three houses that stands next to each other in a narrow street. They looked amazing and I realized Riga is a dream for architects.

On my way to the Riga Castle I spotted a Depeche Mode bar and I had just been to one in Estonia. It's funny how the band seem so big in the Eastern Bloc that they need a bar for them in every capital. 

I soon discovered that the city was a maze and that I could think I was going in one direction but end up in the same place as I started from. Thankfully they have lots of sculptures and stuff so that I could realize when I went wrong. I walked by a hostel called The Naughty Squirrel and I was glad I wasn't staying there for the night because of the name. I was trying to find a place called Hardcore Hangover Club since I loved the name, and the further I went when I couldn't find it, the vibe just got different. I crossed a bridge over a canal after I had walked over some railroad tracks and you could tell I was in a bad place, the houses seemed worn down, and the people on the market that I walked into seemed up to no good. A man started following me and tried to talk to me in Latvian, he wanted me to give him some money I guess, but I couldn't make out if he was a beggar or a robber because he was quite aggressive and I thought I better get out of this place before it's too late. When I got into the city center again I checked the map and realized I must have been tired when I marked the club on the map the night before. I had marked it completely wrong and now I found the club easily and since I survived the outskirts of town I could appreciate that mistake too. Because often you just see the tourist version of the places and don't see how real people of the town lives, so it was an experience even if it was a bad one. 

While walking the streets in the city center again I saw a street performer, it was a midget covered in gold paint sitting completely still on the street asking for money. A luxurious version of a beggar and I tried to take a photo of him but then he jangled his jar at me. Since I had no cash since I was just there for the day, and I would pay with my Visa throughout the day, I walked by without taking the photo. But I just couldn't let the moment slip away so I took a picture without him knowing, or at least that's what I thought. He got mad when he discovered me and I quickly walked away feeling a mix of shame and accomplishment. I had gotten what I wanted but in a bad way, and I wished that I could have just had a euro in my wallet so I could have done it the right way. It was a bad end to the trip and I have to blame myself for that, but other than that Latvia felt alright, nothing more, nothing less. At the same time I can't help myself from comparing it with the neighbouring countries Estonia and Lithuania that are so much better. 

* Best things about Latvia – almost every house looks amazing

* Most mediocre thing about Latvia – nothing much seems to be happening and that sets the tone

* Worst things about Latvia – the food was awful and the vibe in the market area near Riga Central Station was scary, I also didn't like that it was so far to the International Museum Of Vodka that I couldn't go there, the guys that owns the place seems crazy and I would have loved to witness it in real life

Best countries in the world according to the nerd (will be updated with every post):

1. Croatia
2. Andorra
3. Cyprus
4. Greece
5. Italy
6. Iceland
7. Denmark
8. Ireland
9. Belgium
10. Estonia
11. Kosovo
12. Finland
13. Latvia
14. France
15. Bulgaria
16. China
17. Bosnia And Herzegovina
18. Albania