#riga2014

[nataljagolubovaphoto]

[travellingimmy]

On a cycle up the river we found this warehouse/clothes shop. In this area you'll also find First Dacha Club, Koya and Aqua Luna - all high-end restaurant/bars with incredible interiors and menus. All in the middle of nowhere. All empty.. 

[travellingimmy]

Galerija Istaba - A Feast for Foodies

Best for: food lovers

Bring: your other half

Price: €€€

http://www.liveriga.com/en/3819-galerija-istaba

Riga is an unknown mystery to many people, admittedly including me before I moved over here. Reactions to telling friends I was moving to Riga include:

"Where's that?"

"Who?"

"HAHAHAHA. What, seriously?"

Whilst it now has a reputation for stag dos, in between world wars it was nicknamed the Paris of the Baltics. Cue another guffaw.. IT'S TRUE.

So, when people visit I feel the need to show Riga off and prove that its a hidden gem. Which it is.

One way I decided to do this was to take visitor #1 to a quirky, cool, and ultimately TASTY eatery. Galeria Istaba is comprised of art shop on the first floor, with a mezzanine restaurant looking down to it on the second floor. The decoration is offbeat and mismatched: a plush velour sofa in one corner, exposed pipe and dishevelled chairs in the other. Its authentically downtrodden, but definitely in a down the rabbit hole kind of way.

For the meal you simply choose your main meat (vegetarians need not apply) - the day's selection was chicken, pork, duck, shrimps or sea bass. Included in this price come starters and sides. Having had a large lunch (Latvian sushi, you have no idea) we chose the shrimps as a meal and then just the solo duck breast.

First up was fresh, warm bread with a tantalising streak of pesto down the middle to dip into rustic hummus, olive tapenade and kidney bean dip. Yum. The main was just as good. Perfect little side dishes orbiting our massive bowl of shrimps and serving of pink duck. We were served moreish and creamy buckwheat salad, sweet roasted vegetables and potatoes with seasonal Chanterelles. Wil asked for more bread to mop up the earthy, rich shrimp sauce, to which they happily obliged. No mean feat in Latvia where there usually charge you 30 cents for a slice o' lemon.

The whole thing, two mains, starters, sides, drinks, coffees, a slice of marzipan cake, came to 40 EUR. It really was one of the best meals I have ever had. It was such a perfect evening, with or without the vodka and wasabi fuelled antics that followed after...

[dianey]

Riga skies

[travellingimmy]

How not to prepare for meeting your boyfriend at the airport...

Friday morning: run around being extremely loud and excitable. Execute shoulder bump in morning broadcast (http://bit.ly/1sIGac2) then leave work. Light canter home. 

Friday afternoon: go to monster shopping centre for pillows. End up buying shoes, dress, sushi, ice cream, plastic cups..  

Friday early evening: crash and burn. Have used copious amounts of energy being excited and generally sweating anticipation. Try to nap. Get woken by German techno. Decide to eat fistfuls of hummus. 

Friday evening: put on make up. Ruin make up with jittery hands. Remove and attempt again. Ask friends (who may not be friends for much longer if you keep acting like a pre-walked Jack Russel) if you look nice. Get angry at friends for not choosing more exciting synonyms. Get cab. Check flight status en route... 20 minutes early. Schiesse. Late. Run to gate. Accidentally run to incorrect gate (there's more than one?!) and greet people landing from Milan. Ciao. Run across airport... 

22:20: FIND BOYFRIEND. 

22:45: introduce boyfriend to about 20 drunk Germans at your student pad.

02:00: wish you'd booked a hotel. 

[pandanila]

Autumn.

[travellingimmy]

Old Town - Riga

Like In Bruges... But in Riga

[travellingimmy]

Spikeri District - Riga

Art galleries, creative industries

Dali Cafe - closest to artisan coffee I have found in Riga

http://www.spikeri.lv/en/