Daugavpils Things to Do Tips by daugavpilietis

Over the centuries, the Central Market gradually moved west -- from what was the main square (now Pumpura parks, across from the University) to where Unity Hall now stands, and finally to its present location behind the Ditton "Impērija," a large indoor mall (mostly of privately owned stalls selling questionable clothing). Unfortunately, the construction of hypermarkets like Maxima and Rimi in the center of town has ruined much of the atmosphere in the market (and left much of the central city empty). Still, the newly constructed fruits and vegetables pavilion is pleasant (an indoor pavilion is currently under construction). Visit Doktor Gorilka for pickles and ginseng vodka under a painting showing village life (being born, drinking, and dying...).

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Address: Behind "Impērija" in the middle of the city.
Directions: Walk through "Impērija," admiring the big black Soviet limousine... some of the tycoons at this company have a thing for Soviet vehicles and have recently opened a tank museum in Svente...

This district, stretching from the cluster of churches to "the Chemistry" (the so-called Chemists' Microregion, built to house workers for the synthetics plant in the 1960s and 1970s, used to be known as "the Daugavpils Desert," consisting of dunes), is an interesting neighborhood because you will still see many old wooden houses in the Russian style. Unfortunately, the same attention to the preservation of urban wooden architecture one can only praise in Rīga (spearheaded by the architect Zaiga Gaile) is not popular in Daugavpils... so hurry!

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Address: Between the Chemistry and the Center.
Directions: Cross Gaisa tilts along 18. novembra, passing the White Swan (a hypocorisma for the jail -- note the swans on the weathervanes -- and don't be surprised if someone shoots a message at you; you may also see stockings passing between the barred windows...).

The center of the city was planned by some of the architects who designed parts of St. Petersburg, Russia.

Pilsudski held a conference in this lovely building, at the corner of Krišjāņa Valdemāra and Ģimnāzijas ielas.

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Daugavpils recently celebrated the centenary of the American abstract expressionist Mark Rothko (1903-2003), and though the paintings you can see at the Daugavpils Museum of Regional Studies and Arts (an interesting place in of itself) are museum quality reproductions on canvas, they provide a concentrated, intense experience of the artist's work.

Born Marcus Rothkowicz in what was then Dvinsk, he committed suicide in his New York studio in 1970. The building where the Rothkowicz family lived (which isn't where Breslin's biography says it is but near Slavas Square), no longer exists -- it's a LUKoil gas station.

You'll find a new sculpture dedicated to Rothko where 18. novembra iela meets the river, by local sculptor Romualds Gibovskis.

Farida Zaletilo, the organizer of the Rothko events, is currently working to develop a major new arts center in the Fortress.

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Phone: (+371) 5424155
Address: Rīgas iela 8
Directions: The museum, which is in the former mansion of the commandant of the Fortress, looks onto Dubrovin's Garden, near the large fountain and a hideous monument to the first Soviet soldiers to enter Daugavpils in 1944.
Website: www.rothko100.org

The Daugavpils Fortress (cietoksnis in Latvian, krepost' in Russian) is the largest surviving example of military architecture in eastern Europe, and the only such structure to stand almost unchanged.

Begun before the Napoleonic wars, its beginnings were laid waste by General Ricardo. What's left of what you see today was built afterwards, in the early 19th C. It's _huge_, with something of a separate city within, and it was state-of-the-art when constructed, with a complex system of moats, ramparts and bastions, the current Griva prison across the river being part of the fortifications.

I don't want to overrate it, though -- the place is pretty dreary, especially because the inner fortress is becoming a kind of ghetto (after the departure of the Soviet army, there was many a vacancy in the city, and those persons incapable of paying rent were offered apartments there by the city council; as a local member of Latvia's parliament put it, "this is not a ghetto -- many schoolteachers live there" [an accidental comment on teachers' salaries!]).

There are some wonderful parts to the complex (which actually includes the levee along which you enter Daugavpils if driving from Riga). At the entrance to the Fortress -- before you go through its portals -- head through the grass along the makeshift paths and explore the bastions. With the cattail-choked moats and weedy ramparts, the place can remind of a romantic folly. A good place for a lovers' picnic! What's cool is that it's falling apart and not really developed for tourists (so beware of falling bricks!). Unfortunately, this decaying beauty will be short-lived (the place reminds me of the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, which was _meant_ to decay but preserved by public demand). There is, however, hope -- the current Prime Minister supports plans to restore and develop the Fortress for multiple use.

Update -- the new Rothko Arts Center is currently being developed in the Fortress.

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Address: The Levee (Dambis)
Directions: Take tram #3 from the city center to the end of the line and follow the people, most of whom live within. Once through the portal, bear left and pay a pittance for entry.

Crossing the railroad tracks on 18. novembra iela (this street, originally Chaussée Street but renamed for the date of the declaration of Latvian independence in 1918, it was called Red Army Street during the occupation and decorated with neon hammers and sickles), you'll reach Daugavpils' architectural high point -- the cluster of Lutheran, Orthodox, Catholic and Old Believers' houses of worship.

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Address: 18. novembra un Varšavas ielas
Directions: Walk along the length of 18. novembra from the Daugava and cross the bridge.

The renowned saints Boris and Glyeb (or Gleb) are connected to our city's history only obliquely; the Russians conquered Dünaburg on the saints' feast day (in 1656) and renamed it Borisoglebsk. A wooden church in their name was then constructed, but not at the site of the present cathedral.

The cathedral you see today was built in 1905 -- a year that saw bloody and incendiary revolution (hundreds of German manors were torched throughout what is now Latvia) followed by brutal czarist oppression.

Be sure to enter to see the icons. Dress appropriately -- even the Catholic church frowns upon jeans or sneakers, and women entering the Old Believers' church are expected to cover their heads.

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Address: Varšavas and 18. novembra ielas.

The Lutheran church was built in 1893. During the occupation, it was turned into a boxing club. Recently restored, this austere church has won an award for its lighting.

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Address: 18. novembra iela at Varšavas iela.

If you walk into Jaunbūve from the churches, along Varšavas iela (Warsaw Street), you will pass the Polish school (in full flower), Latvia's first Belarusian school (no longer functioning; there is a Belarusian school operating in Rīga) , and the Polish cultural center.

Latvia had a remarkably progressive system of multicultural education from its independence, which has been partly renewed today -- there are public schools offering instruction in Latvian, Russian, Polish, Belarusian, Hebrew, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, and Romany.

About 13% of the population of Daugavpils is Polish. If you continue along Varšavas, you can return to the center by crossing the footbridge (bear left before the street curves).

The crucifix you will see if you choose this route is a recent monument by Romualds Gibovskis. It marks the former graves of the Poles killed when liberating the city in 1920 -- the cemetery itself, and the adjacent Jewish graves, were turned into a quarry and then a garbage dump by the Soviets.

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Address: Varšavas between 18. novembra and Smilšu ielas.
Directions: If walking from the Center, turn left at the Cathedral of Boris and Glyeb.

On Pumpura iela, near the other churches. The icons on the exterior have only recently reappeared.

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