Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Riga, Latvia
66F and sunny
TK!
Today we decided to go to Riga on our own. Riga is
the capital of Latvia and its largest and oldest city. It is the second largest city in the Baltics with 591,882 inhabitants in 2025. Latvia has a
population of about 2 million people.
An interesting bridge!
The ship docked within a short walking distance of the old
city about 8:30 a.m. We disembarked at 9
a.m. only to discover that Latvians must be late sleepers. Shops did not seem
to open till 11 a.m., and coffee shops and bakeries were few and far between.
A square surrounded by restaurants
We headed to the market on cobblestone streets! Wow! The ship lecturer said it was the largest
market in northern Europe, but in my humble opinion, it was the largest market I have
ever seen.
The main structures are five indoor pavilions constructed by reusing
old German Zeppelin hangars. The space is 778,000 sq. ft. with more than 3,000
trade stands. That does not include the outdoor spaces filled with vendors in
the area surrounding the hangars.
Four of the five pavilions that make
up the market
Our
favorite Barcelona market is not this big-and neither is the market in
Florence. Walking around looking at food
labels would be a great way to learn vocabulary—I am not familiar with the Latvian
language.
Beef, pork, chicken, fish—smoked or fresh—cheeses, fruits,
vegetables (bright red tomatoes)—the largest blueberries and plums I have even
seen. Candy, raspberries, carrots, onions, potatoes, cabbage, oils, honey (no maple syrup), breads, nuts, pasta, rice, onions,
garlic, pickled everything – sauerkraut, cauliflower, garlic, and more! Dog food, clothing, amber, pots and pans,
purses, linens, and so much more. There
were places to eat—dumplings, even their version of pancakes!
Plums galore!
Flowers and vegetables
All things pickled!
Fish!
Tim finally dragged me out of the market (not really, he
likes to look around too), and off we were on to more cobblestone streets. I am
so impressed by the variety of architecture—Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque,
Modern, Art Nouveau, Classic. We were told to always look up—so many sweet little
sculptures on rooftops.
and TK took a better photo!
Statue honoring Latvian
Riflemen from 1915 to 1918
Cats!
Another cat!
I liked this tower
Finally, souvenir shops! I was disappointed that we could not
stop in such shops in Poland or Lithuania, our tours were so intense and we couldn’t
even find a t-shirt for Erie’s Zabawa next year. I was able to find exactly what I wanted
today!
We stopped about 12:30 p.m. for a cup of coffee and a sweet
treat. The ship leaves Riga at 3 p.m.
and we still had a hike back to the ship. By this time we had over 12,000
steps.
Our choices
Austina in Latvian
Palmiers in French
Very reasonably priced, about
$1.50
The street back to the ship
Lest we forget...
Riga is a very pleasant city--reasonably priced, too. The people have been very friendly every where we have gone.
TK's Takes: He saw a seagull grab a fish from the "canal" that the ship was in when we docked. A lot of Italian restaurants in Riga. Hail, lots of hail, just before we left Riga.
Hail is a first on a cruise for us!
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