Sign in with Facebook"A city finding itself again" Riga by lotharlerch
Riga Travel Guide: 1,492 reviews and 3,648 photos
Rīga is by far the largest capital city of the Baltics with almost as many inhabitants as Tallinn and Vilnius together, the only one which gives sometimes the feeling of being a real metropolis. When I saw it for the first time in 1992 it gave me a strange feeling in some way because the city and the inhabitants did not really fit together. The city is clearly Northern European and Hanseatic, much of its architecture reminds of Bremen, Lübeck or Stockholm plus some of Europes’s most remarkable Jugendstil/Art Nouveau ensembles competing with Vienna, Brussels or Barcelona indicating a powerful and prosperous economy about hundred years ago, no wonder, it was the second most important harbour of the Tsarist Empire. The population of this time was multiethnic (mainly Latvians, Germans, Jews and some Northern Europeans and Russians), the former German cultural dominance was going to be replaced by the upcoming Latvian cultural self-confidence. I found of course the architectonic reminders of all of that (in WW2 was here far less destroyed than in Bremen, Hamburg or Lübeck).
But it was in an other way heavily destroyed, much more than Vilnius or Tallinn, destroyed by the Soviet legacy, so all the ancient pearls from half a millenium looked out of place, not only because of the inavoidable grey crumbling and neglected concrete monsters which have grown like cancer around the old city but fortunately have been kept sufficiently far out of the city. It still reminded much of a decaying Soviet Union in its last years, even the way how people behaved was like that – other than in Tallinn or Vilnius in Summer 1992. Maybe even supported by the fact that by far most of the people I saw (and heard) were obviously Russians.
This picture was completely different ten years later, Summer 2002. Rīga had again its Northern European flair, maybe similar to that of the time before 1940, the city and the life in it fitted well together, Rīga was really on the way back to its identity. I was even wondering where the many Russians are – I still could see and hear and meet them but they did no longer appear “Russian”, at least far less “Russian” than the alleged Germans who emigrated since two decades from Russia and Kazakhstan to Germany and are livng there at the lower end of the social scale, still without a reasonable knowledge of German. Here in Rīga the Russians seem to have widely assimilated to fit into the city.
- Pros:A real Northern European gem
- Cons:already very touristy, despite the often bad weather
Reviews (14)
Panorama Southern part
Things to Do
(10)
The area south of the railway station is called Maskavas forštate (“Moscow suburb”) with the five halls of the Central... more travel advice
Ethnic Tensions
Local Customs
(1)
The titular nation - the Latvians - are in Riga still heavily outnumbered by the Russians. Latvia’s autochthonous... more travel advice
The Dogs of Riga -not according to...
Off The Beaten Path
(1)
Close to the Central Market you can find quite a selection of dogs of all races and even more all thinkable mixes for... more travel advice
Smoked Fish on Centrālais tirgus
Restaurants
(1)
All around the Baltic Sea from Germany and Denmark up to Finland you can find excellent fresh smoked fish but I found... more travel advice
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Comments (7)
Very nice description of Riga, i see your point, although did not had the opportunity to see Riga in the chaoss of early 90ties. I moved here to study only in 2000. Many latvians from country moved here, that is the reason it looks less russian.
Interesting, but where? How to get there?
I enjoyed this page!! I'm still Laughing Out Loud from your Warnings Or Dangers tip!!! Thanks Lothar!!
Hello Lothar! Enjoyed your Riga page very much! Want to go there again...
Piazza Bra,ha,ha . I remember it in Verona. I was in Riga 16 years ago in winter and all I can remember is cold,cold.... Interesting page, Lothar.
Ah, so many familiar places to see - good tips and pictures!
so you see, this Steyr 220 is good quality made in Steyr and still running today.... I will be back for the rest of the page !!