My Spanish Adventure Begins

Friday, April 10th 

As I mentioned in my previous post, I've been trying out an app called "TimeShifter" to help me have less jetlag. I started on Monday, and by tomorrow (Saturday) I'm supposed to be completely adjusted to Madrid time.  It's a bit too early to tell if it worked, in part because on the flights yesterday I was to get some sleep, but I can never sleep on planes.  

My flight out of Pittsburgh was delayed by air traffic control, so by the time we landed in Philly my flight was to begin boarding and I wasn't off the plane yet and still had to get to the international terminal.  Oddly enough, the couple int he 2 seats next to me were also on the flight to Madrid.  He was very polite, yet also bold enough to keep speaking up and asking people if they would allow us to go ahead of them (exiting the plane).  We all begin sprinting through the airport from Terminal C, Gate 20 to Terminal A, Gate 26.  My American Airlines app told me it was a 20min walk, but we simply did not have 20 minutes!  They were loading my boarding group as I arrived at the gate, so I had just enough time to use the restroom before I got onboard.  Then, somehow, they put a pet in the wrong cargo hold or something, so we spent an hour and a half getting that corrected and then doing all our safety briefings over again before we could take off.  According to the TimeShifter app I was to "wake up" and be exposed to bright light at 1am to help reset my circadian rhythms...so I did what I could to make that happen on a dark airplane while all I wanted to was to be asleep.

Madrid Airport was very inefficient, from my point of view, with their international arrivals.  In their defense, I believe the law requiring all visitors to be electronically fingerprinted is new, so they're still trying to work out all the logistics.  Either way, it took me over an hour to get out of the airport and I didn't even have a bag to claim.  I will say, they did have the most impressive Ride-Share pick up location I have ever seen. Sometimes it's maddeningly difficult to find out where you're to meet your driver, but Madrid had perfectly marked parking spots that get assigned to each driver as you request a ride.  I don't know how they do it, but I was impressed.

 My driver dropped me off at Meliá Madrid Serrano hotel around 12:30pm and I left my luggage with the hotel staff as my room would not be ready until 3pm.  Since I had expected to have arrived at 10:45am, I was somewhat prepared with a plan to do a walking tour loosely based on Rick Steve's guidebook.  Somehow in my planning I failed to notice that my hotel was a 30min walk from the starting point of the 'tour'.  I was exhausted and hungry, and yet, kept not stopping for something to eat.  Despite how brave people think I am, and despite the amount of Spanish I know, and the expected level of English at most places, it was too intimidating.  My brain just couldn't do it, I was even having trouble following my trusty Maps.Me app and the directions I'd printed for Steve's tour.  It was a lovely, warm, 82 degree day, and there were lots of people out and about.  Arriving at Plaza Mayor, in the Old Town of Madrid, I gave up and decided to head straight for the Royal Palace before my headache took over.

 

Palacio Real

Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena

 The Palacio Real is the 3rd largest palace in Europe (and is the largest in Western Europe). Only 6% of the palace is able to be visited and the rest is closed to the public. It has 3,418 rooms and was built to have about 3,000 people living in it (servants would be included in that total).  The first king to live in the palace was Charles III, and it was used as a royal residence from 1764 to the deposition of King Alfonso XIII in 1931.

The decorations visitors see are the same decorations from the 17th century!  The palace is only used for official ceremonies now, such as state dinners in this unbelievably large dining room.

I don't always make wise choices when traveling, and by the time I got my ticket and went inside I was confident that not prioritizing finding some sort of snack before arriving was a huge mistake.  Without a guide (human or audio) and with a pounding headache, much of what I saw was wasted on me...but it was a beautiful palace and very large.  I begrudgingly paid the $20 price for an Uber back to my hotel where water, food, and Tylenol did the trick.  Then, despite the TimeShift app, I had to lay down and close my eyes for a bit. I drifted off for maybe 15min, so I don't think it did me any harm.

The tour orientation and dinner were nice - there are 35 of us total and our guide is named José Manuel.  I sat with a couple from Indiana, named Max and Patricia.  There was one couple younger than me, maybe 26, so I wasn't the youngest, and there was one other woman traveling solo, so I wasn't the only one traveling alone either! Our dinner at La Farmacia was okay, nothing to write home about, but it was a cute location and I was tired enough to not care too much about the food.
 

Preparing for Spain

 As many of you know, I'm off to Spain today!  For a country that has been on my bucket list for the last 15 years you might be surprised I've not been there yet.  And all I can say is that I've been waiting for a tour to go on sale, and it's just never been as low as I wanted it to be!  Finally, after hearing over and over again on my tour of Portugal how much I would love Spain if I was enjoying Portugal (which I was enjoying), and after reading a fascinating book about Andalusia, I decided it was time.  Sale or no sale, it was time to book a trip to Spain.  The Gate1 Travel Single-Supplement sale came around last fall and when I saw that the fee (you have to pay extra to join tours when you're traveling alone, and they call it a "single supplement") for Spain was $1000 and that it was waived as part of the sale, I knew I had to take the leap (even if I paid full price for the tour).

 To prepare for the trip I've been re-reading the above-mentioned book, Ornament of the World.  The combination of things I learned in Portugal, and the things I learned about Jewish history from my tour of the POLIN museum in Poland, have certainly helped me keep the timeline and understand the context of the book better this second time around.  It's incredibly fascinating how the author ties together the history and how events impacted the religions and cultures of the area.

 

Also, for the first time I'm trying out an app called TimeShifter which I read about in How to Win at Travel. I'm hoping it works and helps to mitigate (even eliminate) my jet-lag and make the tour much more enjoyable for me.  That being said, it required that I be up at 3am this morning (after several days of earlier bedtimes and earlier wake-up times) and my flight doesn't leave until 5:30pm tonight!  The plus side to that is that I did the majority of my packing, cleaned my house, mowed my lawn, and still had time to write this post before heading out.

 Oh, and another first happened last night as I was checking in for my flight.  It wanted me to pay $75 to check my bag, which was a surprise because the last time I flew to Europe I only paid $40!  I did some searching and found out that the fee for checked bags to Europe is indeed $75 and now I had a dilemma.  I had planned to check a bag, but hadn't really packed anything yet, and was the extra pair of shoes worth $75 EACH WAY?  So, for this 15 day trip, I managed to pack in a carry-on.  Will my feet hate me when I have to wear the same pair of shoes every single day?  Maybe, but I'd rather spend my $150 on something else.  If only my 18-year-old self, packing for a semester abroad in Italy, could see me now!

My apologies for the teaser, as there's no way I'll end up blogging on the tour (even if I end up not having jet lag), but it's always good to have something to look forward to!  Ciao! 

A Day in Warszawa

 Thursday, April 3rd

Warsaw, "the city that saw the war" was almost 90% destroyed by Nazi Germany in 1944, out of retaliation for Polish resistance.  The historic centre was meticulously restored based on the original layout and "is an outstanding example of a near-total reconstruction of a span of history covering the 13th to the 20th century." (source)

 It has since been rebuilt in the original layout, so the buildings are mostly new.  Our local guide for the day was Philip, a charming Polish chap with lots of fun quips.  One that stuck with us was a "Shakespeare Stop" (that was code for a bathroom break - 'to pee or not to pee'). Warsaw is such a large city that the morning tour felt almost like a waste of time.  He was pointing things out as we drove, but I often wasn't even sure what building he was referring to and couldn't get a photo from a moving bus even if I did know which building.  We did learn a fair amount of history on the ride though, so one mustn't complain.

Our first stop was at the massive monument of Frederic Chopin (pronounced "show-pin"), possibly the most famous Polish man in the world.  Frederic began playing piano at age six and was better than his teacher by age nine.  By age 20, he was forced to leave Poland, less than a month before the outbreak of the November 1830 Uprising (also known as the Polish–Russian War).  Chopin went to Vienna, then Paris, then Majorca Island, before dying at age 39 in Paris, France from tuberculosis.  The park was lovely on our sunny, spring day - in the summer they hold free outdoor concerts in the park.

 

Our next stop was the POLIN Museum for a Shakespeare stop and a moment to talk about the Monument to the Heroes of the Ghetto outside the museum. The square in which the monument resides was formerly part of a Jewish ghetto, and was the spot where the first fighting of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising took place in 1943.  The people were locked in the ghetto and couldn't escape, but they chose to fight (an honorable death) instead of die like cattle.  The opposite side of the monument shows the deportation of the Jews sent to Treblinka Concentration Camp (there are Nazi helmets in the background of the relief).

 From the museum we headed to the rebuilt Old Town Square, which is stunning.  What I found so interesting was the use of polychrome decoration on the outside of the buildings.  I don't recall ever seeing anything quite like it, at least not as extensively used; it looked like they had carved the exterior of many of the buildings.

We walked to the Archcathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist (one of three major cathedrals in Warsaw) and headed inside for a peek.  The church is viewed as a symbol of the relationship between church and state, an idea staunchly defended during WWII. Buried in the crypts beneath the main aisle are several historical Polish figures, including the last King of Poland (he's actually the only royal buried there as all the other kings are buried in Krakow).  

After our visit we had free time so I wandered off on my own for quite awhile enjoying the lovely day and exploring the old city walls and environs. I found several other beautiful churches, including Pauline Church of the Holy Spirit and Paul The Hermit, and Kościół pw. Świętego Marcina (St. Martin's church).

The Mermaid Monument at the Old Town Market Place

Shortly before it was time to reunite with the group I ran into Roz, Irv, and Rose, all enjoying an ice cream, so I bought one too!  Then it was off to Jan Sobieski III's Wilanów Palace for a tour, and despite its name it was apparently never a royal residence (he became king after he built it and never lived here as King).  Since it survived both world wars, everything is original and is a stunning example of late-Baroque architecture.  Surprisingly, it is in the top 25 most visited National Monuments in the world!  We had the most delightful afternoon for a visit, clear skies and 70 degree temperatures.  The flowers were blooming as well, so the bright yellow exterior of the palace and the azure sky made for lovely photos.

  The interior was very well preserved and Philip kept things very entertaining as we made our way through the museum.  The venerable King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania was born in what is currently the Ukraine, but was then Poland. He spoke 7 languages and he and his wife, Marie Casimir, traveled extensively. They had 17 children, but only 5 lived to adulthood.  

Battle of Vienna statue

Jan (Polish for John) was the leader of the Polish Army and saved the country from Ottoman Empire's takeover. He had the largest privately owned library in the world at the time, and it has this amazing (original) stone floor in a 3D design.  

The ballroom was done in the early 1700's in Classical Baroque style. The large painting behind the piano is of Stanisław Kostka Potocki who turned the palace into a museum. He was a Polish noble and his mausoleum is outside the palace, we had passed in on our way into the museum. When the tour was over I said goodbye to Magic & Simona as that was the end of our interactions.  She was truly the best guide I've ever experienced -- maybe being the same age helped, but she was informative, fun, had a great sense of humor, was organized, made stories personal so we could connect what she was saying to real human lives.  I would love to have her by my tour guide again some day.

My day wasn't finished as I had booked a one hour Chopin recital for the evening.  I caught an Uber across to the Old Town and had some time to spare, so I explored a bit more. 

It was a very small "salon setting" much the way Chopin's first pieces would have been played. The pianist, Katarzyna Hushta, studies at the University of Warsaw School of Music, and was born in Belarus.  

 

She did a phenomenal job and it was an enjoyable concert.  The optional Gate1 concert was two hours long (I think only 1 person had signed up), and I was falling asleep by the end of my one hour recital!  The walk to the edge of the Old Town at twilight was a nice farewell to the city before I caught an Uber back to the hotel.

The group of 13 traveling together on our tour was in the lobby, so I stopped to talk for a bit.  Then Roz and Irv came into the lobby and a God-ordained comment about me flying through Dallas prompted Roz to tell me that George was also to have flown through Dallas, but they had changed his flights.  She suggested I check mine.  I'd already checked in for my flights and had boarding passes, had scheduled my Uber to the airport and set my alarm for the morning...But sure enough, my flights had been changed and they never told me!  I was now departing Warsaw three hours later than originally planned, and would be going to London and then straight to Pittsburgh.  Much, much better flights, and I would be home three hours earlier as well!  Ever so thankful for everything working out!

Until next time....

Heading to Poland

 Wednesday, April 2nd

Not much of consequence today as most of the day was spent on the bus driving from Vilnius to Warsaw.  

However, all was not lost as Simona imparted lots of history on the drive. Poland is full of historic landmarks and UNESCO sites, and has a population of about 39 million people. They are one of the rare countries in the European Union that still use their own currency (Polish złoty).

Of the countries on our tour, Poland and Lithuania have the strongest ties (and not just because our driver was Polish and our guide Lithuanian).  In 1569, the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania unified to become the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, creating one of the strongest powers in Europe at the time.  They were quite advanced and in 1791 had the first European Constitution (second in the world after the good 'ol USA)!  Unfortunately, its long period of strength and prosperity were in decline shortly after the Constitution was signed it all went downhill quickly. By 1795, the Commonwealth had been divided into 3: Russia, Prussia, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire each took a part.  We're all a bit more familiar with Polish history post-1920's so I won't add any of those details.

We also learned about the Suwałki Gap, although we did not cross it.  Knowing so much more history of this region, and their 'tussles' with Russia, it's easy to grasp the strategic and military importance of this choke point since Poland and the Baltic states joined NATO.

We finally arrived in Warsaw with a smidge over 2 hours before our farewell dinner (odd timing, yes, but it's the only free evening before many on the tour leave in the early morning hours Friday).  Anyway, I had no other free time in Warsaw, so I had to quickly choose how I wanted to spend my time.  Depositing my backpack quickly into my hotel room, I booked an Über and headed to the POLIN Museum.  The museum is actually dedicated to the history of the Jews in Poland, which actually dates back a thousand years, and was erected in the former Jewish ghetto.

POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews

 

The entrance fee was about $12 and included an audio guide, but in the end I found it unhelpful.  The guide didn't read the displays, so I would start reading the plaque next a display I was viewing and then would end up missing what was being said via the audio guide.  The museum was astounding, and they say you need about three hours to get through it.  Seeing as I had less than 2 hours eventually turned off the audio guide and continued through the very extensive and masterfully done exhibits.  

Jewish communities in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1765

 

Replica of the Gwoździec synagogue roof & ceiling

I read only what caught my attention and easily could have spent another two hours there.  To my dismay, I had to zoom through the WWII era in about 15 minutes and quickly head back to the hotel. I had a few moments to 'powder my nose' before the farewell drinks and walk to AleGloria for dinner.  It was a unique spot, served delicious food, and I had a fabulous time with some of my favorite tour-mates.

 

Vilnius

 April 1st

Vilnius (pronounced "Vill-nee-uhs") is known as the city of churches, because despite having a population of only about 600,000 people there are 48 churches.  Before the Second World War it was also known as the Jerusalem of the North because 40% of their population at the time was Jewish.  The capital city is located on the Neris River (the second longest in the country) & Vilnia River, both of which run to the Baltic Sea.  The Lithuanians have a legend about Duke Gediminas (the Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1315-1316 until his death in 1341) and the founding of the capital known as the Iron Wolf Legend.  As such, the Iron Wolf symbol is used for the city of Vilnius, sports teams, and even the Lithuanian military.

As far as today, after breakfast we were on the tour bus for a city tour of the Old Town.  We began at the Catholic Sts. Peter & Paul church, with its spectacular interior decorations, for which it is famous.  Construction began in 1668 with funding by patron Michał Kazimierz Pac, commemorating a victory over the Muscovites and their subsequent expulsion from Vilnius after six years of occupation. Construction was interrupted when Pac died in 1682, and per his request, he was buried under the entrance. His brother finished the building and had it consecrated in 1701. 

Inside the church there are some 2,000 pieces of stucco which designed by Italian Masters that took 7 years to complete.  The unique boat-shaped chandelier was brought from Latvia around 1905 to symbolize St. Peter.  The church dome was damaged by bombs during WWII, but it was rebuilt to its original design.  Even during the Soviet period the church was never closed, though no one seems to truly know why the Soviets  allowed it to remain open. The all-white interior requires repainting about every 20 years to keep it fresh and clean looking. 

From the church we walked through the Old Town which was added to UNESCO Heritage List in 1994.  Sometimes referred to as the City of Baroque as most of the buildings are in that style. We visited the Gate of Dawn, which I believe is the only remaining gate and city wall section, and is an important location in Lithuania for Catholic pilgrimage. Our next stop was St. Casimir's Church, recognizable for its pink façade modeled after the famous Il Gesù church in Rome.  Similar to Lithuania's history, the church has changed hands many times since its inception.  When the Germans occupied Vilnius in 1915 they converted it to an Evangelical Lutheran site, it was returned to the Catholics in 1919, but was damaged during WWII and closed down.  In 1963, the Soviets converted it into a Museum of Atheism and in 1991, it was finally reconsecrated as a church. 

We did get to visit the outside of the Vilnius University Library, which has an old, fancy door. Personally though, it was a disappointment not to go inside as it houses over 5 million books, almost 2x the entire country's population! Although higher education is no longer free in Lithuania about 60% of Lithuanians have a university degree.  

We wandered past the Presidential Palace and on the way Simona bought us the famous Lithuanian Šakotis ("tree" or "branch" cake) to try.  Calling it 'cake' seemed generous to my American taste buds, it reminded me a bit of waffle batter or maybe funnel cake batter without the powdered sugar. 

Saint Anne's Church, with its stunning red brick exterior, is Vilnius' version of La Sagrada Familia. "The church has remained almost unchanged over the last five centuries and is one of the most beautiful and probably the most famous buildings in Vilnius. It is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture and is surrounded by many legends" (source).  You can only go inside during services, but were told the outside is the famous part, so nothing lost in only seeing it from the street.

Our tour of the Old Town ended at the 'plaza' next to the Grand Duke Gediminas statue with The Cathedral Basilica of St. Stanislaus and St. Ladislaus (a.k.a. Vilnius Cathedral) in the background. 

 We had an hour of free time for lunch before leaving for the tour of Trakai Castle, so I decided to trek up Gediminas' Hill to see the views from the Castle Tower (the hill on which the Iron Wolf was said to howl).  There is a funicular to take you up the hill, but why pay when you're young and healthy?  The climb was steep, and due to some sort of construction I had to walk the entire way around the hill to find the detour-path, but the views were beautiful even on a slightly overcast day.  

After departing the hill, I decided to visit the interior of Vilnius Cathedral and then grab some lunch at the nearby Rimi Express (their prepared foods section was extensive and what I tried was tasty).  I ate it on a bench in the park near the church and must have looked like the other locals on their lunch break because these young girls came up to me and started talking to me.  I have no idea what they were saying and although I'm sure she knew some English, when I told her "sorry, only English" she apologized and left.

    Back on the bus, we were soon headed to Trakai Castle.  Located in the town of Trakai (pronounced 'try-kay'), about 70 miles from Vilnius, the castle sits on an island in Lake Galvė. Since Trakai was one of the main centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the castle held great strategic importance. It was built to protect against German Teutonic Knights in 1377, and was completed around 1409.  It was neat to see, but not that impressive for me, I'm just not that interested in knights and medieval living.  However, Trakai was the medieval capital of Lithuania until it was moved to Vilnius in 1373, so it does have that claim-to-fame. 

What was secondary to the visits of most people, but fascinating to me was to learn of the Karaimus (or Karaites).  I don't recall ever hearing of these people before today, but they have Turkish roots (dark hair & complexion but blue eyes) and hold to a religion related to Judaism (they worship on Sundays and do not eat pork).  They have their own language and a 'Trakai' dialect of Karaimus actually developed because of the large community of them here in Trakai. Their homes always have 3 windows on the side facing the street, and you can buy the traditional Karaite pastry called 'Kibin' here in Trakai. 

 My biggest regret of the day requires some back-story.  Earlier in the day, on our tour of the Old Town we had driven near  the district of Užupis.  It's a special artist neighborhood founded on April Fools Day. On April 1, 1997, the district declared itself an independent republic (the Republic of Užupis), with its own constitution and laws.  They have fake border border signage, an unofficial currency and even an anthem.  When we returned from Trakai I headed to my hotel room and wasn't sure what I should do, so I began uploading photos with locations, descriptions and facts, when I realized too late that I should have taken an Über to Užupis!  Once a year (i.e. today, April Fool's Day), they have parades and celebrate their republic, Simona had even told us we could get our passport stamped!  Since mine expires next year there's less danger of a cranky border guarded not appreciating my fake passport stamp).  Alas, I had missed the festivities, and couldn't help feeling that since our visit to Vilnius coincided with this auspicious holiday (said tongue-in-cheek) the day's itinerary should have been modified to let us pop in and see this local oddity.  To placate myself I headed to the hotel jaccuzzi, which I had all to myself, and spent an hour relaxing at the spa downstairs.  We have an early start tomorrow (luggage must be outside the door at 6:45am), so bed time should not be delayed.

Latvia to Lithuania

Monday, 3/31/25 - Most of the day was spent driving, but the views were nice.  Simona was accurate when she told us these 3 Baltic countries are "flat as a pancake". The highest point in the country is a 965 foot hill, no mountains, though they do have lots of lakes, forests, and rivers.

 

We saw many storks in nests up on telephone poles or in very tall trees. Storks are beloved by Latvians and they sometimes build areas that might encourage the storks to build a nest; much as we do in the U.S., Latvians believe storks bring babies.  Before crossing into Lithuania we visited the delightful Rundāle Palace (roon-dah-leh) designed in the Baroque & Rococo styles.  Built by the Duke of Courland, Ernst Johan von Biron, in the 1700s (when the Duchy of Courland & Semigallia were still independent), it survived Napoleon and both World Wars mostly intact!

The architect was the Italian, Bartolimeo Rastrelli (he also helped design the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg Palace). After the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was absorbed by the Russian Empire in 1795, Catherine the Great presented the palace to Count Valerian Zubov, the youngest brother of her lover, Prince Platon Zubov.

 

They used it for many things over the years (besides a palace), but it is now fully restored in the 18th Century style.  Spectacular and spacious, colorful as well.  Seeing how Baroque isn't my favorite, the variety of parquet floors was one of the things I loved most, along with the huge windows and tall ceilings.

We stopped for a quick lunch in Girelė and then were on to Šiauliai (show-lay) to see the Hill of Crosses.  Although the exact origin is uncertain, its roots are related to the 1831 uprising, and when it began it was more of a memorial.  The Hill of Crosses is a difficult place to describe, so I'll do my best through photos and videos.

 Today the site is more of a pilgrimage for Lithuanian Catholics.  I had never seen any photos and didn't know what to expect.  It's quite astounding - there are easily 300,000 crosses, some as small as 3 inches and some over 15 feet tall, and they're all over the place.  Intricate, simple. small, large, wood, stone, metal, plastic, you name it!  "Over the generations, not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims. Due to the symbolism of cross-crafting during the Soviet occupation, UNESCO named Lithuanian cross-crafting in the lists of good safeguarding practices and intangible cultural heritage."

 Back on the bus we soon arrived at our next Radisson Blu, in the capital city Vilnius.  To Simona's credit she did give us a lot of good information on the ride. 
A very brief history (that doesn't start at the beginning): In 1569, established by the Lublan Union, the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, joined forces.  Sometimes known as the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, it was among the most populated and largest countries in 16th-18th century Europe.  Because of this, other European powers wanted to split them.  In 1795, after successive partitions by their neighbouring powers, Prussia, Russia and Austria, the commonwealth permanently ceased to exist. Even between the world wars the Baltic nations were still fighting off Russia.  Thus, Latvia became the first Baltic country to declare independence from Soviets ( on March 13, 1989), and in 2004 they joined the EU.  

Latvijas Republika

 Sunday, March 30th

 Unfortunately for us North Americans, Latvia had Daylight Savings time last night, so we lost an hour of sleep last night, and boy did I feel it!  A quiet breakfast alone was welcome after such a night, and I soon rejoined the crew for our morning tour of the old town.  Our local guide for the morning, Ieva, was a nice woman, and knowledgeable.  She is also a Tour Director with Gate1, but Simona is still my favorite.

Rīga has three parts: City Center, Old Town, and New Living Districts.  Of the three Baltic countries, Rīga is the largest city and was founded in 1201 by German Crusaders (Livonian Brothers of the Sword).  Latvia has been ruled by Germans, Poles, Swedes, and Russians throughout its history.  The country's main waterway is the Duagava River (which means "much water") and the river basin covers more than one third of their territory and they also use it for hydroelectric power.  "The great river as a waterway and a rich fishing ground has attracted many, both in the ancient past and nowadays... The Viking Saga has more detailed information on the Daugava waterway than other rivers in Eastern Europe, demonstrating the importance of the Daugava in its trade relations at that time.  Freedom battles took place on the banks of the Daugava River and the Republic of Latvia was proclaimed" (source).  

Statue outside Museum of Occupation

The First National Awakening began in the 1850's and after WWI and two years of the Latvian War of Independence they were finally free in 1921.  That independence was brutally interrupted in June 1940 by the Soviets, then in 1941 by the Nazis, and again by the Soviets in 1944.  By 1991, they had managed to restore their independence and have since joined NATO and the European Union. 

Rīga, as I mentioned in yesterday's post, is known for its architecture.  It has around 800 Art Nouveau buildings currently on the UNESCO World Heritage list!  The style flourished in the early 1900s and the first one in this "new" style in Rīga was built in 1899.

10b Elizabetes Street (M. Eisenstein – 1903)

Ieva told us how the buildings were originally private residences built by the owner who lived on one floor and rented the remaining floors for income.  When the USSR took over Latvia they deemed owning an entire building and living on one entire floor wasteful.  The government then deported the owners or moved in three other families to join them on that one floor of the building.  Ieva remembers living in one with her grandparents and other families.  Now mind you, the other families they shared with were not relatives and these were originally built as one family homes so everyone was sharing one kitchen and one bathroom. She remembers waiting in line for the bathroom to get ready for school in the morning. Once Latvia regained independence her family tried to prove that her grandparents were the pre-Soviet owners of the house, but unfortunately the records had been lost or burnt so they were unsuccessful. Many of the buildings are still unclaimed and state owned. She can only imagine how her grandmother felt sharing her home with strangers and being confined to two rooms of her house.

Most of our morning tour was concentrated on the Art Nouveau buildings on Alberta Street (with most of these being built between 1903-1907.  The street is lined with Linden Trees and most of the architects were Latvians who had studied at the Rīga Polytechnic Institute.  There are several sub-styles (or divisions) of Art Nouveau that we were able to see in Rīga: Decorative, Romantic, Eclectic, even a Perpendicular Art Nouveau.  

entrance at 8 Antonijas Lela Street (K. Pēkšēns – 1903)

Because Latvia has lots of sand and clay, and not a lot of natural stone, much of the decorative work on the buildings is actually stucco.  

As we ended the Art Nouveau portion of our tour we came upon a unique example of the Latvian people expressing their displeasure with Russia's current actions. When the war with Ukraine started Latvia renamed the street Ukrainian Independence Street so the address of the Russian Embassy is now No. 2 Ukrainian Independence Street.  *interestingly enough, they weren't alone in this, Wikipedia has a list of streets renamed since the invasion. Since Russia technically owns the building they refused to put the street name on the wall (that's how streets are posted, on the corners of buildings), so the city simply put the street name on a pole next to the building. Additionally, the Russian Embassy is located in a gorgeous building with Art Nouveau elements and across the street is the Pauls Stradins Medicine History Museum. The museum put up a gigantic poster of Putin, with a skeleton jaw, outside on the wall so that any time the ambassador enters or exits the embassy he can see the poster.

We then continued our tour with the other highlights of the Old Town, stopping first at the Town Hall Square.  The square also contains the House of the Blackheads, which was originally a warehouse in 1334 and in the 15th century the brotherhood started using the building. The "brotherhood" was a guild (union) of unmarried, foreign merchants and ship-owners. The patron saint of the Brotherhood of Blackheads is the black Egyptian Christian, Saint Maurice whose head is also depicted on the Brotherhood's coat of arms.  The building, and much of the town, were destroyed by the fighting Nazis and Soviets in 1941.  

Brotherhood of the Blackheads

We soon saw the "Three Brothers" buildings, the oldest complex of dwelling houses in Rīga.  The oldest is from the late 15th century (Gothic-Renaissance style), the next from about 1646 (Dutch Mannerism style), and the last is a Baroque building believed to be from the 1740's.

The Three Brothers

 The last stop on our morning tour was a private organ concert at St. John's church.  She played a selection of Mendelssohn, Bach, Handel, and Baptiste Loeilllet.  According to our program she was finished, but then she began playing "America the Beautiful".  It was quite the juxtaposition, I've never heard that song on a pipe organ before, and certainly didn't expect it in a Latvian church on Sunday morning! 

Our next location was a visit to the famous Central Market (converted from old German Zeppelin hangers).  It is the largest market in Europe and is on the UNESCO list as well. The optional tour for the afternoon wasn't to my taste, so I had the rest of the day free.  After doing some wandering I walked about 25min to the Art Nouveau Center (Latvia did not have über).  

Rīga Central Market

 

Art Nouveau Museum

The museum is housed in a stunning building designed by their most prolific & prominent Latvian architect, Konstantīns Pēkšēns.  I found both floors of the the place delightful (the stairwell is beautiful) - the bottom floor was more informational on the style itself, Latvian architects, etc. and the top floor was a refurbished apartment in the appearance of a early 20th century flat in Riga. 

Since I had walked all the way across town and the Latvian National Museum of Art was nearby, it seemed only sensible to investigate.  Another stunning entry and staircase (this one I recognized from a blog I had read before my adventure) and the soon-welcoming news that, for whatever reason, the 3rd and 4th floor exhibits were free.  The parquet floors were incredible and many of the paintings were to my liking as well, so I'm very glad I stopped to visit.

I had not eaten lunch and the afternoon was waning, but I couldn't decide what else I wanted to do (i.e. what I was willing to walk to see).  I determined that if I didn't pass a kebab shop en route I'd try the Lido restaurant near our hotel which Simona had recommended to our group.  The inside was beautiful - plants, tile, old decor, stained glass - and the food options were almost overwhelming.  You couldn't beat the price and the food was delicious.  As I was walking back to the hotel, I came upon Roz & Irv, Mary Ann, and Rose.  They had just returned from the Ethnographic Museum tour (which they didn't particularly enjoy, so I felt justified in my aversion to it) and were heading to Lido for dinner.  They insisted I join them, and having no other plans, I acquiesced. I became their unofficial guide through the dinner-purchasing process (it's like a cafeteria where you choose all your dishes, put them on a tray, and then go pay).  Despite having already eaten, Roz insisted on buying me dessert since I had helped her charger her phone the other day.  We ended up sitting around talking for almost 2 hours before we all headed back to the hotel.  My phone says I walked about 7.5 miles today, so I think I deserve to be in bed at 9pm.