Still on a high

Wednesday, May 13.

Having a good time is not easy. I am beginning to fall behind in my blog ramblings. I hope I don’t disappoint family and friends but I am about three days in arrears.

In comparison, today has been a relatively quiet day. The major event is the opera at night but it is not as if we are running out of things to do.

We still have a few hours left on our hop on / hop off public transport passes. We decide to head out of Riga in the opposite direction to the other day. 

Some of the latest trams are most impressive. Note the bike.

We take tram 6 as it is the more convenient one to pick up where we are. I do some rough navigating by the transport map. We get off in the part of town which has been built up largely during the pre-war and Soviet times. It is certainly not remarkable in any way. There are some new buildings but most of it is in a rather worn and tired shape. We don’t even take any detours along side streets because there is little to tempt us. However, all it needs is some care and capital. Along the tram route there is a Hare Krishna establishment. Further, by an Orthodox church, is a long line of people for a midday meal at a soup kitchen – all rather ironically along Brīvības gatve (Freedom Street). These parts of town are not only physically under stress but socially as well. The pearl that Old and Central Riga is does not shine as brightly further out.

The shop fronts / display cases appear to be a more recent addition to the residential building.

We walk to the Opera house, about a 25 minute stroll from the hotel. It is a great joy to walk down the grand Oak and Chestnut avenues, a few hundred years old, and relish the soft green light, gently filtered through the nearly fully emerged spring leaves. 

A section of the Berlin wall has been made into a monument.

We meet our dear friend Ingrīda who has happily taken Silvija’s seat as she is still sick. Our places in the hall are excellent. Not being opera critics, what more can we say but that it was very fine singing and beautifully staged. The Latvian Opera can hold its own anywhere. We note that there are obviously a good number of tourists (most notably Asians) in the audience for whom a visit to the opera would have to be part of their Riga experience.

The recently restored and re-gilded hall is impressive.

It is still difficult for us to get used to emerging from an evening’s entertainment in almost full daylight. A short taxi ride to the hotel but we feel a little empty. Fortunately there is a small supermarket a few doors down. They are about to close (it is 10pm!), but as the last customers we just manage to grab a couple of small tubs of salads for a late evening snack.