Fri, 29 Aug 2008 17:01:16 +0000
Riga Day 1 Index Riga to Tallinn
I had an utterly horrendous night's sleep last night, due to chronic itching. I don't know why, but I suspect that I'm allergic to some chemical they use to wash the sheets. The itching faded after I put on clothes, and I ended up wearing socks, tracksuit pants, and my jumper to bed. Even then my hands got itchy. I was seriously considering sleeping on the floor at one stage, but I managed to drift off to sleep, and I slept in until around nine. I woke up to find that I'd been bitten by mosquitoes, although not enough to explain the itching. Ah well, at least there's no malaria in Latvia.
For some touristing, I first followed the advice of my roommate and went to view the old city from across the river. I must say, it's not all that impressive, I don't know what she's talking about. Maybe it's better on a sunnier day.
I noticed a few more of those padlocks like I'd seen on the bridge in Vilnius, but it's not nearly so pretty here and couples don't seem to be so inspired to make the gesture. There's also lots of wax from candles, as if people have little ceremonies on the bridge at night.
The other thing I had planned for the day was to go see the Baltic Sea, which is a few kilometres away and requires taking a bus or a train. I bought myself a ticket before realising that I was at the bus station, not the train station, but I guess that doesn't matter. The ticket was for 12:30, so there was time to get some lunch while I waited.
The place that Wikitravel had instructed me to travel to is clearly the local beach resort, and is full of restaurants and bars. But I made my way to the beach itself. The weather isn't ideal for the beach, with a bit of a chill in the air, but that just meant it wasn't crowded like a typical European beach. I found a tent serving beer, took my shoes off, and watched the world go by. "Getting Jiggy Wit It" was playing in the tent, and I can safely say I've never enjoyed listeing to "Getting Jiggy Wit It" so much.
After finishing my beer I went for a walk up the beach. There were a few hardy, or possibly just bloody-minded, souls wearing bikinis and attempting to swim or sunbathe. Made me glad that I'm not a beach person. I was also passed a couple of times by people on segways, I think the first time I've seen them used. Later on I saw they were being rented out to beachgoers. I guess they look kinda fun, but I don't see anyone redesigning cities around them yet.
I went for a late lunch at a Russian restaurant, the only place I could find serving anything remotely regional. Pork stuffed with plums, delicious. And more beer. I think I may have overdone the beer slightly today.
I then made my way back to the train station, managing to buy a train ticket this time. There's not even a platform at Majori station, you just clamber on. The trains are a little basic, still Soviet era I guess.
So I've seen the Baltic sea, or at least the Gulf of Riga. Another great body of water to add to the collection.