Riga Old Town aerial view over the Daugava river
Field Notes

Stories, honest answers, and quiet corners of Latvia

This is where I write longer than a tour booking lets me. Comparisons, seasonal notes, the questions guests ask me most often, and the honest answers I wish I’d been able to find before my first trip. Every piece is written by me, in my own words, based on what I’ve actually seen on the ground. No AI puff, no guest posts.

— Daiga

Read the Latest See the Excursions
Updated for 2026
Licensed Latvian tour guide

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Writing from Riga

Thirty-one pieces so far, grouped loosely by what they’re trying to answer. Start with the ‘Planning Your First 48 Hours’ piece if you’re new here, or the ‘Riga vs Tallinn vs Vilnius’ one if you’re still deciding which Baltic capital gets your weekend.

A folk-costume procession passes the Freedom Monument with the Latvian flag held high, Riga, 4 May
Seasonal · civic

Latvia’s Other Independence Day: A May 4 in Riga

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 9 min read

Latvia has two independence days. The 4 May one marks the 1990 vote that began restoring the country — the door-opening, before the door stayed open in August 1991. Folk costumes, daffodils, free trams, and a quiet ceremony at the Freedom Monument. Notes and photos from this year’s procession.

Restoration Day · written 4 May 2026 Read
The Latvian flag against a blue sky
Famous Latvians

Kristaps Porziņģis: From Liepāja to the NBA

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 12 min read

Born Liepāja 1995. Drafted fourth overall by the New York Knicks in 2015 and booed by the home crowd. Won the NBA championship with the Boston Celtics in June 2024 with a Latvian flag on his shoulders. The standalone profile of Latvia’s most famous athlete and the small Baltic country that watched every game.

Famous Latvians · basketball Read
The Cabinet of Folk Songs and globe at the National Library of Latvia
Famous Latvians

Krišjānis Barons: The Man Who Saved 217,996 Latvian Folk Songs

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 11 min read

Born Strutele 1835, died Riga 1923. Forty years of his life went into a wooden cabinet of 217,996 hand-written cards, one daina per card, sorted into 70 drawers. The cabinet is on the UNESCO Memory of the World register and now lives at the National Library of Latvia. Here is the man and the work.

Famous Latvians · folklorist Read
A granite sculpture and bench at Dainu Kalns, the Hill of Dainas at Turaida
Latvian folklore field guide

Dainu Kalns Sculpture Field Guide: All 26 Stones at the Hill of Dainas, Turaida

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 14 min read

The on-site plaques at Dainu Kalns are mostly Latvian-only. This is the English field guide to walk the hill with. Every Indulis Ranka sculpture, the daina each one carries, the year it was placed, and the order in which a sensible walk takes them in. Drawn from the museum’s own published guide.

Companion to the long Dainu Kalns history Read
The Konventa Sēta arched entrance from Kalēju iela in Riga Old Town, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

Konventa Sēta (Convent Yard): The Medieval Courtyard Behind Kalēju iela

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 8 min read

A quiet medieval cluster of 16th-to-18th-century buildings on 13th-century foundations, between Kalēju and Skārņu iela. A hotel, a porcelain museum, a café-lined courtyard, and the Holy Spirit dove on the keystone above the main arch. The bonus stop on the central Old Town arc.

A medieval courtyard, free to walk through Read
The central fountain in Vērmanes dārzs, Riga's oldest public park, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

Vērmanes dārzs (Vērmane Garden): The Oldest Public Park, Where Locals Actually Sit

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 9 min read

Riga’s oldest public park, founded 1817, named for Anna Wöhrmann. Five minutes east of the Freedom Monument, with the central 1880s fountain, mature 19th-century trees, and Japanese cherries that flower in early May. The park Latvian Rigans actually use.

Riga’s oldest park, since 1817 Read
The House of the Blackheads on Town Hall Square in Riga, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The House of the Blackheads (Melngalvju nams): The Most Photographed Building in the City

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 14 min read

Original 1334, destroyed in 1941, demolished by Soviet authorities in 1948, reconstructed 1995–1999 from drawings and salvaged stone. The Dutch Renaissance facade Riga has on every postcard, and the museum and Great Hall inside.

Built, destroyed, rebuilt Read
The Powder Tower (Pulvertornis) on Smilšu iela in Riga, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The Powder Tower (Pulvertornis) and Latvian War Museum: The Free Museum That Explains Latvia

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 12 min read

The only surviving tower of Riga’s medieval city walls, with nine 1656-siege cannonballs still in the north wall. The free Latvian War Museum inside — the second-largest history museum in the country — is one of the two stops that actually explains 20th-century Latvia.

Free entry, 90 minutes, full century context Read
Riga Castle with white walls and the round Holy Spirit Tower, Riga, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

Riga Castle (Rīgas pils): The President’s Residence and What You Can Actually Visit

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 12 min read

The 1330 Livonian Order castle that became the official residence of the President of Latvia. The National History Museum inside, the Holy Spirit Tower, and the prettiest short walk in central Riga along the Daugava embankment.

700 years of working castle Read
St James's Cathedral on Jēkaba iela in Riga Old Town, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

St James’s Cathedral (Sv. Jēkaba katedrāle): The Catholic Cathedral Next to Parliament

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 11 min read

Riga’s second cathedral — smaller, slimmer, Roman Catholic, next door to the Saeima. The 1660s red-and-white baroque portal, the ‘ringing rooster’ legend, and a thousand years of confessional switching.

Catholic, Lutheran, Catholic again Read
St Peter's Church with its 123-metre green spire above Riga Old Town, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

St Peter’s Church (Sv. Pētera baznīca): The Tower, the View, the Twice-Rebuilt Spire

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 13 min read

The 123-metre Gothic church with the best panorama in Riga, twice destroyed and twice rebuilt. The view from the platform at 72 metres in golden hour, the Reformation Square, and what to know before you climb.

Best panorama in Riga, €9 ticket Read
The Swedish Gate on Torņa iela in Riga Old Town, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The Swedish Gate (Zviedru vārti): The Last Surviving City Gate

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 9 min read

1698, cut through the wall for one merchant’s warehouse access, the only surviving gate of the eight that once ringed the medieval Old Town. On the prettiest cobblestone lane in Riga.

One archway, eight gates’ worth of history Read
The Freedom Monument in Riga with Milda holding three gold stars at the top, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The Freedom Monument (Brīvības piemineklis): Milda, the Three Stars, and What It Means

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 12 min read

A 42-metre column funded entirely by public donations in 1935, that survived 50 years of Soviet occupation, and is still the centre of every Latvian state ceremony, protest, and quiet flower-laying. The most loaded sculpture in the country.

42 metres, three stars, one country Read
The Cat House on Meistaru iela in Riga Old Town, with the bronze cat on the corner turret, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The Cat House (Kaķu nams), Riga: The Building, the Cats, and the Story

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 9 min read

Two black bronze cats on a yellow Art Nouveau roof, and the merchant-and-the-Guild story Riga has been telling about them for over a century. What’s actually documented and what’s polished retelling.

Two bronze cats, one century-old grudge Read
The Three Brothers houses on Mazā Pils iela 17, 19, and 21, Riga Old Town, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

The Three Brothers (Trīs brāļi): Riga’s Oldest Houses

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 11 min read

Three medieval-to-baroque houses on one short Old Town lane. Number 17 from around 1490, number 19 dated 1646, number 21 from the late 17th century. What you’re actually looking at, why each is different, and the right time of day to be there.

Three centuries, ten metres of street Read
Riga Cathedral on Doma laukums with its baroque cupola against a blue spring sky, Latvia
Old Town deep dive

Riga Cathedral (Doma baznīca): A Local’s Guide to Latvia’s Oldest Church

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 4 May 2026 · 14 min read

Why there’s no dome on Riga Cathedral, the 6,718-pipe Walcker organ from 1884, the five architectural eras visible from the square, and what to actually do with your half-hour inside.

800 years, 5 architectural eras, one organ Read
Three granite figures at Dainu kalns, the Hill of Dainas, Turaida, Latvia (sculpture by Indulis Ranka)
Long read · Singing Revolution

Dainu Kalns at Turaida: A Sculpture Garden Carved Under Soviet Rule

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 2 May 2026 · 18 min read

How Indulis Ranka and Anna Jurkāne carved a folk-song memorial in granite under Soviet occupation between 1980 and 1985, the 1988 night when the banned red-white-red flag was raised on this hill, and why the Hill of Dainas deserves more than the ten minutes most visitors give it.

26 stones, one quiet act of resistance Read
1997 Latvian EUROPA stamp — Legend of the Rose of Turaida (designed by Juris Utāns)
Long read

The Rose of Turaida: A Real 1620 Court Case Latvians Have Been Telling as a Legend for Four Centuries

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 1 May 2026 · 14 min read

Maija — the Rose of Turaida — was murdered in a sandstone cave on 6 August 1620. The story is one of the few medieval-feeling Latvian legends that turns out to be a real lawsuit, with a 1620 court protocol, a name on a stone, and a linden tree planted by the bridegroom that is still alive.

Cave, court, linden tree Read
A wooden Orthodox church with onion dome and the eight-pointed three-bar Orthodox cross — Latvia.
Religion & architecture

Gold Domes Over Riga: A Visitor’s Guide to Latvia’s Orthodox Churches

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 14 min read

Four Orthodox churches in Riga and what you’ll find inside, visiting etiquette, the surprising 11th-century history of Orthodoxy in Latvia, the theology behind all the gold and blue, and the smaller wooden churches in Latgale most travellers never see.

Quiet hour Read
Four event posters spotted around Latvia in spring 2026 — Maija's Day in Turaida, Rundāle Garden Festival, Tango Buenos Aires Night and the Jūrmala Festival.
Living calendar

What's On in Latvia: A Local's Rolling List of Events We're Spotting Around Town

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 1 May 2026 · Living calendar

A rolling list of upcoming Latvian events spotted on posters around Sigulda, Jūrmala and Riga — concerts at Dzintari, midsummer in Turaida, garden festivals at Rundāle. Updated when we walk past something new.

16 events · spring–summer 2026 Read
The Castle of Light — the Latvian National Library on the left bank of the Daugava, Riga
Architecture & folklore

The Castle of Light: Why Riga’s National Library Belongs on Every Traveller’s List

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 13 min read

The glass mountain, the sleeping princess, the Latvian-American architect who waited fifty years to come home, and the human chain of fourteen thousand people who passed books across the frozen Daugava in 2014. The best urban view in Riga, and the building that explains the country.

Reader favourite Read
Coiled Latvian sausage, pork ribs, beef short ribs and skewers on a charcoal grill — the cornerstone of Latvian cuisine.
Food & landscape

Why Latvians Eat Pork: A Forest, a Pig, and a Thousand Years of Bacon

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 13 min read

The Latvian menu is pork all the way down, and there is a real reason for it. Medieval oak forests, the autumn acorn harvest, the cow that was always a milk machine and not a steak, the November pig-slaughter season — and the steak vending machine that just landed in the basement of Spice in 2026.

Forest, pig, bacon Read
Aerial view of Riga, the religious crossroads of the Baltic states, with the Daugava river
Religion & identity

One Border, Three Religions: How Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania Came to Believe Such Different Things

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 17 min read

Catholic Lithuania, three-way-split Latvia, post-Christian Estonia. Why three small neighbouring countries ended up with such radically different religious lives — Northern Crusades, the Reformation, the Russian Empire, Soviet atheism, and one Lithuanian prince who delayed his baptism until 1387.

Three Baltic countries Read
Jūrmala — pine forest meeting the white quartz sand of the Baltic Sea, 25 km from Riga.
Coast & spa

Jūrmala: The Seaside Town Latvians Have Been Going to for Two Hundred Years

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 11 min read

33 km of white quartz sand, the shallowest swimmable Baltic Sea you can find, wooden Art Nouveau villas under the pines, sulphur-water spas dating to 1838, and a beach where locals still play football at sunset. A Latvian’s guide to Jūrmala — by train, by car, and on foot.

25 km west of Riga Read
Wood-clad Baltic sauna interior — stone-filled kiuas heater and a birch vasta on the bench.
Sauna culture

Pirts, Suitsusaun, Savusauna, Badstu: A Latvian’s Field Guide to Baltic and Nordic Sauna Cultures

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 15 min read

Why the Latvian pirts is a four-hour ritual not a fifteen-minute timer, and how it compares to the Estonian smoke sauna, the Finnish savusauna, the Norwegian floating badstu, the Lithuanian pirtis, and the box at your local gym. Plus the science of why our ponds are dark.

Five traditions compared Read
Suwałki Zachód exit sign on the S61 expressway through the Suwałki Gap, north-east Poland.
Geography & geopolitics

The Suwałki Gap: A Drive Through the Choke Point Between Us and the Rest of Europe

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 10 min read

The 65-kilometre strip of Polish-Lithuanian border that connects the three Baltic states to the rest of NATO. A Latvian’s account of driving home from Germany through it, where it came from, and what it feels like to live with that geography on the news every evening.

Living next door Read
Hill of Crosses, Lithuania — boardwalk approach with the pilgrim Jesus statue and hand-carved crosses.
Lithuania & memory

The Hill of Crosses: A Quiet Lithuanian Hill That Outlasted an Empire

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 12 min read

Two hours south of Riga, somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 crosses stand against the wind on a small Lithuanian hill that the Soviets bulldozed three times and could never make stay flat. A Latvian’s guide to what it is and how to fold it into a day from Riga via Rundāle Palace.

Across the border Read
The Latvian flag — carmine red with a white band — flying against a blue sky.
Eight voices

A Brief History of Latvia, Told by the People Who Lived It

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 14 min read

Eight hundred years through eight first-person voices — the pagan on the Daugava in 1200, the German-master’s peasant in 1500, the child handed a Latvian Bible by the Swedes, the conscript bound for the Tsar’s army, the deportee on the train east in 1941, the Soviet citizen queueing for sausage, the EU citizen today. None real, all true.

800 years in 14 min Read
The Latvian Riflemen Monument and the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia, Riga.
History & memory

Why the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia Belongs at the Top of Your Riga List

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 9 min read

Eight hundred years of Latvian history under someone else’s flag, the half-century from 1940 to 1991 that shaped today’s Latvia, and the second museum site in the former KGB headquarters at Brīvības iela 61 — a specific room with a specific door.

Essential Riga Read
Visitors in folk dress around a Mārtiņdiena bonfire at the Latvian Ethnographic Open-Air Museum, Riga.
Folk culture

A Day at Latvia’s Open-Air Museum: Why Locals Send Visitors to Brīvdabas

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 11 min read

Latvia in miniature on the shore of Lake Jugla — 118 historic farmsteads moved here piece by piece since 1924, costumed interpreters tending fires, folk festivals worth planning a trip around, and a tram-and-trolleybus journey out that’s half the day’s pleasure.

Half-day out Read
Riga's 368.5 m TV Tower — the tallest free-standing structure in the European Union.
Soviet-era history

Riga’s TV Tower: The Tallest Free-Standing Structure in the EU

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 15 min read

The 368.5-metre tripod tower that tops the Eiffel and the Berlin Fernsehturm, the Soviet engineering trick of building an antenna from the top down, and the night in January 1991 when ordinary Latvians stood in the snow between it and the OMON.

20th-century Riga Read
A classic London red telephone box — for a Latvian guide's briefing for British travellers heading to Riga.
For UK travellers

Riga from the UK: A Latvian Guide’s Briefing for British Travellers

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 30 April 2026 · 12 min read

The Royal Navy chapter most British travellers don’t know, the truth about the stag-do era, the flight options from London and beyond, airport tips that have saved my guests from missing flights home, plus tipping, beer, and Schengen post-Brexit.

UK-focused pillar Read
Cēsis Castle ruins in autumn forest, the second castle in the Sigulda day
Logistics

Can You Do Sigulda AND Cēsis in One Day?

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 10 min read

Yes, but not the way most guides describe it. The route, the timing, what to skip, and why we do it in reverse order to everyone else.

Reader favourite Read
Cobblestone street with restaurants in Riga Old Town
Comparison

Riga vs Tallinn vs Vilnius, an Honest Comparison

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 12 min read

I live in Riga and run tours here, so take the Riga verdict with a pinch of salt. But I’ve spent real time in Tallinn and Vilnius, and I’ll tell you when they genuinely do something better.

Still deciding which one? Read
Aerial view of Riga Old Town and the Daugava river, the UNESCO-listed historic core of the city
Pillar Guide

Riga Old Town: A Local’s Guide

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 15 April 2026 · 16 min read

The deep guide to Vecrīga: what to see, what to skip, three walking routes, where to actually eat, the seasons, the safety, and the practical answers most travellers want before they arrive. Twenty-five FAQs at the end.

The cornerstone guide Read
Roland statue and the House of the Blackheads on Riga’s Town Hall Square
Seasonal

Riga in Winter, an Honest Take

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 10 min read

Christmas markets, snow, and the quiet months most visitors miss. Honest on what’s worth the cold, what isn’t, and why I think January and February are the best-value weeks of the year.

Traveling off-season? Read
Cobblestone street with restaurants in Riga Old Town, the kind of evening view a first-time visitor walks into
Planning

Planning Your First 48 Hours in Riga

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 15 April 2026 · 12 min read

An honest local itinerary for a first 48 hours: one day in the city, one day out of it. Plus the practical answers (safety, money, transport, language) most travellers want before they arrive.

For first-time visitors Read
Sliced rupjmaize dark rye bread with a bowl of biezpiens cottage cheese sprinkled with dill
Food & Drink

Latvian Food: An Honest Guide

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 15 April 2026 · 18 min read

The deep guide to what to actually eat in Latvia: rye bread, cottage cheese, smoked everything, kefir we’ve been drinking for generations, the pink summer soup, pickle juice, and where to eat in Riga. Twenty FAQs at the end.

Eat well in Latvia Read
The Great Ęemeri Bog in autumn colours from the observation tower
Seasonal

Ęemeri Bog in Autumn

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 20 min read

The longest piece on the site, on the single best month to see Ęemeri, what the bog looks like in October, where to watch birds from, what to wear, and the carnivorous plants you probably walked past without noticing.

The long read Read
Aerial view of the Gauja river bending through the forested valley near Sigulda
Honest Answer

Is Sigulda Worth Visiting?

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 12 min read

People call it the “Switzerland of Latvia” and then look confused when it turns out to be a forest with three castles and a cable car. Here’s what Sigulda actually is, what to do with a full day there, and how it compares to Cēsis.

Forest-and-castles day Read
The red room at Rundāle Palace, a Bartolomeo Rastrelli baroque interior
Honest Answer

Is Rundāle Palace Worth Visiting?

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 12 min read

The Versailles-of-the-Baltics comparison is lazy and the palace deserves better. A Rastrelli baroque set-piece, rose gardens, and a real working brewery nearby. Here’s when it’s worth a full day and when it isn’t.

Big baroque day out Read
Aerial view of the Great Ęemeri Bog boardwalk winding past mirror-dark pools
Honest Answer

Is Ęemeri Bog Worth It?

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 12 min read

Yes, and here’s why, with the caveats. A licensed Latvian guide on what the Great Ęemeri Bog actually is, why it’s become the most photographed wetland in the Baltics, how to get there, when to go, and who should skip it.

Signature day trip Read
Gold Hall at Rundāle Palace, Latvia
Visual walkthrough

Inside Rundāle Palace: A Room-by-Room Visual Guide

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 29 April 2026

Every room of Latvia's grandest baroque palace, illustrated with 286 original photographs taken on a real visitor day. Gold Hall, White Hall, Duke's enfilade, Duchess's wing, hidden cabinets — and what to actually look at.

286 photos · 44 rooms Read
Baroque rose gardens at Rundāle Palace, a popular day trip from Riga
Planning

Day Trips from Riga, an Honest Answer

By Daiga Taurīte · Updated 14 April 2026 · 10 min read

The three day trips I’d send any traveller on without hesitation, the ones I’d skip, and how to pick if you only have one day. Starts with the short answer, ends with who each one is wrong for.

Start here if you’re new Read

Let’s Talk

I’d Love to Hear from You

Whether you’re just beginning to plan your visit to Latvia or you already have dates in mind, the easiest way to book is to reach out to me directly. A WhatsApp message, a phone call, or an email, whatever suits you. I’ll get back to you quickly and we’ll find the perfect day for your excursion. No forms, no automated replies, just me.

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+371 2644 0152
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[email protected]
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