Riga

A touch of Latvia 

As the capital and largest city of Latvia, Riga has a historic area-Old Town Riga, which gathers some beautiful architecture.  One that stood out for me was the House of Blackheads in Town Hall Square, which was rebuilt in 2001 to commemorate the city’s 800th anniversary.  Originally owned by a merchant guild, it currently serves as a museum and concert hall.  It was destroyed in 1941 and buried by the Soviets in 1948.  Ironically, it sits next to the Museum of Occupations, which houses information boards and exhibits on what the Latvian people endured during the Nazi occupation followed by the “Russification” of the country when the Soviet Union took over the country.  Hundreds of thousands of Russians moved across the Soviet Union to Latvia to work during the Russian occupation.  Today, about a third of the population in Latvia are made up of Russians, and half of the population speaks Russian.  We weren’t surprised to see Russian on the streets and in cafes.  But beneath the calm surface, there are many ethnic divides between Russians and Latvians and language is just the beginning.

 By the time we made it to Rundale Palace, a beautiful baroque palace built in the 18th century just outside of Riga, it was snowing like mad and summer time is definitely a better time to visit the palace when the flowers in the gardens are in full bloom.  But the snow didn’t ruin our spirits as the palace is splendid inside, especially the detailed ceiling paintings in the ballrooms and halls.  There is even a dedicated space that house porcelain pieces.    

 My trip in the Baltic countries continues on with Vilnius!

Trip back in time

Medieval Tallinn 

The overnight cruise from Stockholm to Tallinn was around 16 hours, from 6pm to 10am the next morning.  For someone who gets easily seasick, I found the cruise to be pretty calm, and I had plenty of time to take in the gorgeous views of the sunset before heading to bed early.  The next morning, I woke up to the sound of the boat cruising through broken ice sheets.  Everything was very calm and I had an enjoyable breakfast right by the window offering a nice view of offshore wind turbines from a distance.

 Not before long, we reached Tallinn, where we first visited Toompea Hill followed by the historic city centre.  Before climbing up the steps to Toompea Hill, we came across the Russian Orthodox Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.  This magnificent onion-domed structure was built in 1900 during the tsarist Russian empire.  The inside is filled with colourful and intricate mosaics and it also has 11 church bells which sound off before service.  The largest one weighs over 15 tonnes!  We gradually came to the viewing platform which is the perfect spot for a panoramic view of Tallinn with a skyline of old new buildings.  The neat thing is that there are always photogenic pigeons hanging out here.  It might have to do with all the vendors selling roasted almonds in the area.  You can spot St. Olaf’s church in the distance from the platform.  This was the tallest building in the world from 1549 to 1625.  Its 159-metre spire was a very effective lightning rod and throughout the church’s history, its steeple has been hit three times, completely burning the entire structure three times!  Now, the steeple is 124-metres, a much less likely target than before.

 We walked downhill into Old Town which is filled with charming twisted cobblestone paths reminiscent of Medieval times.  We settled into the Olde Hansa Medieval restaurant for lunch, where all the servers were dressed up in Medieval costumes.  It can’t get more authentic than this!  The bathroom was quite amusing as it was pitch black and we had to move in a bunch of candles to make sure we could see well enough and rather than having a tap, a pot of water had to be tipped over in the sink area to wash our hands, very interesting indeed.  The 2km city wall surrounding the historic district is still intact and dates back to the 13th century.  Gothic architecture can be found throughout the district, including the Town Hall, which is the only Gothic town hall still intact in Northern Europe.  Another well-known landmark is the Pharmacy, a small little shop in Town Hall Square which dates back to 1422.  It is the oldest continuously running pharmacy in Europe and has been operated by ten generations of the same family.  It was famous for specialty items such as snakeskin potion, powdered unicorn horn, as well as every day items like tea and marzipan. Today, it’s still a pharmacy, but sells modern products.

 My fascination with famous old towns in Northern Europe continues at the next stop: Riga!

Stockholm City Hall

Site of the Nobel Prize banquet

Stockholm City Hall is one of the iconic landmarks in the city, also known as the Stadshuset.  It sits on Kungsholmen, one of the many islands that Stockholm spans across.  City Hall’s Blue Hall is well known for being the venue of the annual Nobel Prize banquet.  Nobel Laureates for all the Nobel Prizes, except for the Nobel Peace Prize, gather in this hall after the awards ceremonies at the Stockholm Concert Hall each year for a celebration banquet.  For those who want to experience the nobility of the banquet but who are not on the guest list of 1,300 on December 10 each year, the luxurious cellar restaurant Stadshuskallaren in the building offers the previous year’s menu.

 Blue Hall isn’t actually blue as it was named after Ragnar Ostberg’s original designs which did have blue glazed tiles for the hall but he later changed his mind seeing how beautiful the red bricks used in the construction of City Hall are on their own.  There’s a magnificent organ in Blue Hall which is made from 10, 270 pipes, the largest in Scandinavia.  A well known part of City Hall is Golden Hall with its more than 18 million glass and mosaic pieces showcasing pictures of Swedish history.  After dining in Blue Hall, guests are invited to dance in the Golden Hall.  Another interesting space in City Hall is the Council Chamber which has an open roof inspired by a Viking longhouse.  Nearly eight million red bricks were used in the construction of the hall itself.  From the courtyard, the site overlooks Riddarfijarden and offers picturesque views of central Stockholm.  I also love the sculptures by famous Swedish sculptor Carl Eldh by the water-a female Dansen and male Sangen, Swedish for Dance and Song.

 Watch for my next blog for pictures of the cruise from Stockholm to the beautiful city of Tallinn!