We have a trip of some 180km today as we travel north east towards the small town of Sigulda, known for its winter sports activities. Set in the national park, it's a good base to explore the surrounding area - well, if we had more than one day, that is.
Lutheran church (plus Lutheran person..)
View from the tower...
Obviously we climbed it..
A member of our group has a birthday and, of course, we sing the traditional song. What is really unexpected is that the Chinese group sharing the dining room sings their equivalent and congratulate our star of the day.
Isn't it great when people of different nationalities enjoy each others' company? If we forget the politics, we're all just people travelling through life.
Estonia tomorrow, all being well; join us.
On the journey we have a couple of stops, one at Bauskas Castle which, like most of these things in Latvia, is undergoing serious restoration. Worth the stop after we find somewhere to put the outfit though.
Bauskas handmaidens
Our second stop is an organised guided tour of the amazingly well restored (and very large) Rundale Palace, dating from 1736. It is one of the two major palaces built for the Duke of Courland.
Opulence:
All rooms were heated by these; the fire is loaded from next door:
This little cherub is about to blow the head off the innocent, tweeting bird:
Bauskas handmaidens
Our second stop is an organised guided tour of the amazingly well restored (and very large) Rundale Palace, dating from 1736. It is one of the two major palaces built for the Duke of Courland.
Opulence:
This little cherub is about to blow the head off the innocent, tweeting bird:
After a full tour, walking the gardens and a lunch we reach camp in Sigulda around 6.30pm.
Day 2
We have another great guide today who leads us through and around:
Lutheran church (plus Lutheran person..)
View from the tower...
Obviously we climbed it..
All this is followed by a REALLY good lunch cooked for us by the ex head chef of Red Bull Racing; remembering that I'm a F1 anorak, that's quite something, you know...
A member of our group has a birthday and, of course, we sing the traditional song. What is really unexpected is that the Chinese group sharing the dining room sings their equivalent and congratulate our star of the day.
Isn't it great when people of different nationalities enjoy each others' company? If we forget the politics, we're all just people travelling through life.
We spend a couple a couple of hours at Cesis, a non-tourist Latvian town. It's good to get a better feel for the country this way.
This has been an enjoyable and very interesting day and, because we're off to Estonia tomorrow, it's tinged with a little sadness. Latvia and it's people - we like a lot.
Estonia tomorrow, all being well; join us.
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