Jūrmala

So, we don't have long here in Latvia so we didn't wander too far for Riga, where we are staying in an old house at the end of someones garden. It is very nice and they have given us fruit and vegetables from their garden!

It was our third wedding anniversary so we decided to head to Sigulda where we had seen there was a leather workshop. Stuart - who is infinitely better at anniversaries than me - had found out that leather is the gift to give.

Bucketing down with rain we diced with the treacherous Latvian roads. They are possibly the worst that we have encountered. A lot of people drive in the outside lane to avoid the huge holes in the inside lane. Lorries drive half on the hard shoulder to achieve the same.

When we arrived at Sigulda, it was still damp and dreary and we headed to the castle complex to seek the leather factory. We weren't very enamoured with the items on offer and had even less enthusiasm for the castle. We agreed that we couldn't be bothered with a visit so instead headed to the nearby town for some lunch. We found a random restaurant which looked like a huge hut but inside was quirky and comfy and the food was sooo good. We both had soup but they were incredible. Mine was tomato with goats cheese in it, amongst other things, and Stuarts was a lamb goulash. Finished off with chocolate cake, the trip to Sigulda wasn't a complete disaster.

On the drive home the clouds started to clear and beautiful sunshine arrived. As Stuart was snoozing I decided to change course from the mall where we were heading to head to the beach at Jurmala. This is apparently Latvia's answer to the French Riviera and you have to pay a toll of 2 euros just to enter the roads in the vicinity.

A long stretch of beach with soft white sand and - as the weather hadn't been too good - not too many sunbathers. We took a walk along. I was shocked that Stuart had his shoes off before I did and even dipped his toes into the sea! After stopping for a drink at the beach bar, we headed off for dinner. We first went to a restaurant we had read about online and appeared to be the only customers except for two mafia types sat at the bar. On reading the menu and seeing the price of the food however we felt even more uncomfortable and decided to bail.. Instead we headed into the town centre and had a burger meal: very relaxing, very unromantic and very us :)

The architecture there is like nothing I have ever seen before. Most of the houses are large and have either a tower or a turret poking out of the top.. I have added a little selection to give you an idea.

Jurmala was definitely worth the change of plan and the 2 euros.Read more