Riga

What I have grown to like about Eastern Europe is that it constantly confounds expectations. You picture horse drawn carts, industrial wastelands and brutalist Communist concrete architecture, and while there’s always plenty of that, what you also find is modernity, incredible nature and cosmopolitan and beautiful towns and cities. What I have grown to love about Eastern Europe is that, while you can get all the above in Western Europe, it’s still an unknown quantity and always comes with a side of the crazy and the unexpected. Latvia incapsulated this. When I told people in Berlin where I was going next, the response was the predictable mix of incredulity and confusion and to be honest, largely due to my lack of planning, I didn’t have a response, but I was confident that it would be worth it.

Worth it it was! I was only in the country for four days, but what a packed four days it was. From the moment I dropped my bags at the hostel I barely stopped for breath. I immediately hit the streets, exploring the compact and spectacular old town, before finding a bar advertising craft beer and finding out two things. Craft beer has taken off in Latvia, which provides you with access to some of the best beers I have ever drunk for $4 a pint and if the bar man takes a liking to you, he will let you play with the pistol behind the bar. Deciding that that was probably as good a sign as any to leave I headed back to the hostel where I met a group of people who validated my previously held believe that Eastern Europe is also full of the best travellers in the world. Generally more mature and fewer groups than in Western Europe and fewer wankers in search of enlightenment than in Asia, they are what made last years trip so unforgettable and it was good to see that the stereotype lives on. Most exciting personally though was that one of those people was the owner of Bucket Boys, one of my favourite bottle shops in Australia, who has promised me a weekend to remember in Sydney once I’m back in Australia. Being so far north, its still isn’t getting dark until around 10:30-11pm, so we spent a long evening hanging out in Riga’s ridiculously cool outdoor bars listening to live music and, once night fell, moved indoors, finishing at 4am singing karaoke in a subterranean bar (I figure I need all the practice I can get before Japan).

Feeling very worse for wear the next morning, but determined to get out and explore the city more, I used the excuse of the Riga free walking tour as motivation to get out of bed. Luckily the local taking us around was hilarious as well as very knowledgeable and open about his own city and country. At 35, he was the same age as me, but our lives couldn’t have had a more different trajectory. Having grown up in the USSR, he remembers when the collapse happened and at 9 was with his father manning the civilian barricades in 1991 when the Communists, with the backing of the Soviet army, attempted to take back control, pointing out the bullet holes still visible at the very spot. In the 25 years since, he has witnessed the bursts of optimism and waves of pessimism that have permeated the ex-Soviet states. A country that has only been independent for less than 50 years of the last 500, it is no surprise that his biggest fear remains the resurgent Russia. Already, the country has had to cede a small slither of land on their eastern border to Russia in the last few years and the situation in Ukraine is causing a lot of local angst despite the country being a member of NATO, but then Trumps comments regarding Macedonia recently would give anyone pause as to whether the West’s promises are worth the paper they are written on.

Following the tour I headed to the Museum of the Popular Front of Latvia, which charts the story of the fight for independence from the Soviet Union. Again confirming that each of the Soviet states journey to independence was unique, it was fascinating to find out that the sparks of independence in Latvia were lit by the environmental movement campaigning against the construction of a hydro electric dam and the shocking environmental destruction left behind by Soviet industrial policies in the mid 1980s. Maybe this isn’t as surprising when you consider that still today Latvia is covered in over 40% forest and the country has always had a strong relationship with the countryside, but it’s still not the usual story of economic conditions and democratic aspirations.

As per tradition I next headed to the Central Markets, which may well be in my top 10 markets of all time. These are the largest covered markets in Europe, which makes sense when you discover they are located in the last remaining zeppelin hangers in existence. Now included on the UNESCO world heritage list, along with Riga old town, it’s located right on the edge of the old town, the markets are imposing and rather elegant, with each individual hanger being devoted to produce, dairy, fish or meat. Each hanger also has stalls selling beer, of course, and local specialities, which while predictably stodgy, were excellent and perfect for my hangover. A couple of plates of potato pancakes and perogis later I was feeling a new man.Read more