Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
If you’re at Rīga, Latvia and want to see the Baltic sea you need to travel a bit. In contrast to Tallinn, Estonia the city center is some kilometers afar from the shore. The best place for that is the city of Jūrmala and the most famous place there along the shore is Majori (in German ‘Majorenhof‘). It is located on a languet between the Baltic sea and the river Lielupe which forms a beautiful landscape.
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I like visiting botanical gardens while travelling around the world. It’s about relaxation, having a nice walk through a park, seeing wonderful plants and often the chance to have a look at exotic plants in greenhouses. The botanical garden (botāniskais dārzs) of Rīga, Latvia offers all of these, but has another nice feature: a house full of butterflies. There you can walk around in tropical atmosphere and watch those beautiful animals.
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The brothers’ cemetery (Brāļu kapi) at Rīga, Latvia is a fascinating memorial for the soldiers of World War I and the Latvian independence war between 1950 and 1920. It was created between 1924 and 1936 and was designed by Kārlis Zāle who also created the freedom monument. The memorial is located in the north of the city centre in a vast complex of different cemeteries.
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The zoological garden of Rīga, Latvia dates back to the year 1912. It is located north of the city within the giant Mežaparks and close to the Ķīšezers lake. The zooloģiskais dārzs is a classic zoological garden with 4000 animals of 500 species – you’ll find every animal you would expect. But it is also still a zoo in the making – with some areas deteriorating and some areas buing currently rebuilt.
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The museum of the occupation of Latvia (Latvijas Okupācijas muzejs) at Rīga is currently at a temporary location. A new and modern building is created next to the town hall and the Melngalvju nams. Until its completion the museum can be found in Raiņa bulvāris 7 – not for from the freedom monument. There it is only a small collection of texts, images and some items in display cabinets.
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The national art museum (Latvijas Nacionālais mākslas muzejs) of Rīga, Latvia can be found close to the art nouveau quarter of the city within the Esplanāde park. It is located in a wonderful building designed by Wilhelm Neumann and dateing back to the year 1905. It contains 52.000 art works and is the most important collection of works of Latvian artists – including paintings and sculptures.
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The main railway station of Rīga, Latvia (Rīga Pasažieru) is located close to the city center, well-connected with busses and a quite modern one with good shops in the basement. It was once a dead-end station with a beautiful station building that was torn down in 1965 and replaced with the current modern one.
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When you’re at Rīga, Latvia you will experience the Daugava river as a mighty and wide stream located near the city center and dividing the old town from the newer parts of the city. You need to cross it to go to the airport, the botanical garden or – by train – if you want to visit Jūrmala. The river is 1020 kilometers long, begins in Russia and passes through Belorussia and Latvia to the gulf of Rīga where it floats into the Baltic sea.
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The central market (Centrāltirgus) of Rīga, Latvia is located directly next to the bus station and not far away from the railway station. You can’t miss it because it is located within iconic buildings once used to built airships. On 72.000 squaremeters you can buy fruit, cheese, meat, fish, flowers and more. The market plays an important role in everyday life and I’ve never seen so many people accessing a market.
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I really love sky bars as they combine good drinks with good views, give you the chance for a nice picture of the city and you can really enjoy sundown. At Rīga, Latvia you just have to leave the old town in direction of the freedom monument, pass the orthodox church and than you’ll already see the hotel Latvia, belonging to the Radisson hotel chain. The old skyscraper is the highest building in that area and therefore the best spot for a bar like this.
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