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City Guide  - Riga  - Key Attractions
Key Attractions

Brivibas Piemineklis (Freedom Monument)

The voluminous Freedom Monument has a sacred place in the hearts and minds of every Latvian. This potent symbol of the nation was erected by the citizens of Riga in 1935 and somehow survived four decades of Soviet rule. A popular local joke during the Communist era was that the monument was really a travel agent, since laying flowers at it guaranteed a one-way ticket to Siberia. Today, the monument, the tallest of its kind in Europe, still retains its poignancy and doubles as a favourite meeting point of the city's youth.

Brivibas bulvaris and Raina bulvaris
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.

Jugendstil (Art Nouveau)


Ironically the best place to see Jugendstil, the German-style Art Nouveau architecture, is in Riga, as it did not suffer the same WWII devastation as many German cities. Riga quite simply has the finest and most comprehensive range of Art Nouveau architecture in Europe. The style is unmistakable with ornate stucco swirls adorning doorways, human faces embellishing façades, and outlandish towers growing from the top of buildings. The best way to appreciate this architectural treasure trove is just to wander through the New Town staring upwards. One of the best examples of Jugendstil is at Elizabetes 10a and 10b, where an apartment building is laden with all the telltale signs of this ornate architectural style. These apartments were designed by Mikhail Eisenstein, whose work can also be viewed at Alberta 2, 2a, 4, 6, 8 and 13.

Riga Doms (Riga Cathedral)

Riga Cathedral
is the most photographed religious building in Riga. Its foundations were laid on St Jacob's Day in 1211 by Albert von Buxhoeveden, who became its first bishop. The cathedral is an intoxicating collage of Gothic and Romanesque styles. In the interior museum there are displays portraying Riga between the World Wars, as well as maps and postcards of Old Riga. One of the highlights is the world-famous organ crafted in 1883/1884 by the German company Waclker & Co and decorated by wooden carvings as early as the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Doma Laukums 1
Tel: 722 4053.
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.
Opening hours: Tues-Fri 1300-1700, Sat 1000-1400.
Admission: Ls0.50.

Petera Baznica (St Peter's Church)

Another of Riga's most striking edifices is St Peter's Church, which is dedicated to the city's patron saint. This unmistakable redbrick style is common throughout countries that border the Baltic, from Germany through to Estonia. Today's sturdy church dates back to 1408 when it was built to replace a wooden church on the site. The wooden spire, the highest in Europe, was obliterated by German shelling in 1941, but the 122m (403ft) steel replica, completed in 1973, has a lift that shuttles tourists to an observation gallery offering sweeping views of the city.

Skarnu 19
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1900.
Admission: Free; Ls1 (tower lift).

Latvijas Okupacijas Muzeja (Occupation Museum of Latvia)

The Occupation Museum is an essential stop that many tourists tragically miss out on. Housed in a remarkably ugly Communist era building, the museum takes visitors on a journey through Latvia's turbulent recent history, from the Soviet and Nazi occupations during World War II, right up to the tumultuous events that led to Latvian independence in 1991. The museum will probably be completely empty, something that says as much about the attitudes of today's Russian-majority population as any of the exhibits.

Strelnieku laukums 1
Tel: 721 2715.
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.
Opening hours: Tues-Fri and Sun 1100-1700; closed Jan-Mar.
Admission: Free.

Centraltirgus (Central Market)

Visitors wanting to leave the twenty-first century behind them should head for the five old hulking 1930s zeppelin hangers which are now home to Riga's Central Market. A world away from glossy shopping malls it is still possible to rub shoulders with all of Riga society, who come to snap up cheap fruit and vegetables. There is also a rabble of stalls outside the main hangers themselves. This is a great place for photography, but visitors should watch their camera and other valuables.

Negu 7 (next to Central Station)
Tel: 722 9981.
Transport: Bus 13, 21, 22, 31, 31a, 40, 50 or 52; trolley bus 3, 4, 13, 15, 19, 20 or 24; tram 2, 4, 7, 9, 10.
Opening hours: Tues-Sat 0800-1800, Sun and Mon 0800-1600.
Admission: Free.

Mencendorfa Nams (Mentzendorff House)

Mentzendorff House
is an impeccably restored late seventeenth-century merchant's house. Ornately decorated, it still boasts the original period furniture and various historical artefacts.

Grecinieku 18
Tel: 721 2951.
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.
Opening hours: Wed-Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: Ls0.75.

Latvijas Kara Muzejs (Latvian War Musem)


The Latvian War Museum is simultaneously one of the most interesting museums in the city and also the most controversial. Within the redbrick of the fourteenth-century Powder Tower, there are displays illuminating the various wars that have ravaged the country. There are good sections on the

War of Liberation (1918-20) when the Latvians fought off the Soviets and the Germans, but also on the Latvian volunteers who served with the German Waffen SS during World War II. There has been much historical debate on their role in atrocities and the surviving veterans who triumphantly parade through Riga every year are often a source of embarrassment to the government.

Smilsu 20
Tel: 722 6915.
Transport: Bus 21, 22 or 32; trolley bus 3, 13, 15 or 18; tram 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 or 13.
Opening hours: Wed-Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: Ls0.50.



Copyright © 2001 Columbus Publishing
    
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