Riga, You Beautiful City: Between Art Nouveau and Baltic Beaches

'We might not have big, famous attractions in Latvia, but we love beauty,' says Līga as we cross the boulevard in front of the Latvian National Museum of Art. The Riga native recalls an anecdote from her grandmother, from the time when Latvia, after only a few years of independence, fell back under Russian rule and was annexed by the Soviet Empire. Līga's grandmother was a true lady who, like many Latvian women, defied the gloom behind the Iron Curtain by maintaining her elegant style. The women of the Russian occupiers tried to imitate that. In the clothing stores of Riga, they discovered lavishly adorned dresses, in which they proudly paraded through the city. What they didn't know was that these dresses were actually nightgowns, and the Latvians laughed about them in private.

The love for beauty runs like a red thread through Riga, perhaps the most splendid jewel of the Baltics alongside Tallinn and Vilnius. It manifests in plush cafés and cozy restaurants housed in historic wooden buildings, in the lovingly restored Old Town and the magnificent Art Nouveau buildings that earned Riga the nickname 'Paris of the North' in the 1920s. Even where Riga appears a bit rough at first glance, small and larger treasures abound. Riga, you beautiful city, you perfect place for a weekend getaway!

We turn onto Elisabets Iela. From now on, it's time to tilt our heads back and look up at the exuberantly decorated house facades and rooftops. Sphinxes and heads of Medusa with gaping mouths stare down at us. Bare-breasted figures dance alongside roaring lions and peacocks with spread feathers. We glance into windows that resemble women's heads, into bay windows entwined with stone floral garlands, swirly ornaments, theatrical masks - all typical elements of Art Nouveau, as known from Vienna, Paris, or Barcelona. More than 800 of these buildings can be found in the center of Riga, the most impressive are on Elisabets Iela and Alberta Iela. They were built at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century and bear the signature of a generation of young, rebellious architects who wanted to create something completely new and beautiful. The most well-known among them, Riga's Gaudí, is Michail Eisenstein. His son Sergei is, by the way, the director of the legendary film 'Battleship Potemkin.'

At Alberta Iela, we take a look at what is probably the most photographed staircase of Riga in the Art Nouveau Museum. Interesting fact: During the Soviet occupation, these magnificent buildings were to be razed to the ground. They were crumbling away, and there was no money for renovation. Fortunately, there was also no funding for their demolition, so Riga can now boast the world's largest collection of Art Nouveau architecture.

While I feel like I'm in the Art Nouveau district of Riga, as if I'm in Paris or Budapest, the Old Town gives me the sense of being in a Hanseatic, northern German city. In fact, Riga was founded by Germans in 1201 and joined the Hanseatic League in 1282. Medieval gable houses like the House of the Blackheads, a Gothic cathedral, plenty of red brick churches, and merchant houses testify to this - truly a picture-book setting. In the 1980s, the Old Town was 'hip' among locals and Russians living in Riga. They would come to party, especially at the old Anglican church, which the Soviets had transformed into a nightclub. Where prayer used to take place, champagne flowed freely. Today, most Riga locals avoid the Old Town - too expensive, too touristy. However, there are three places where they make an exception: Vinoteca Tincture Sincere, Café Fat Cat Eklērnīca, and the Gutenbergs Hotel.

At the Central Market on the eastern edge of the Old Town, which was the largest and most modern market in Europe when it opened in 1930, is worth a visit solely for its architecture: The five pavilions are former Zeppelin hangars that were converted into market halls after World War I. 'Latvia tastes like hemp to me among other things,' says Līga, pointing to bowls with a black paste. Hemp pesto and hemp butter are written on the signs. We dip a piece of bread in and discover how deliciously versatile hemp seeds can be. 'Don't stand in the way!' is what you hear as we stroll through the meat hall. Everyone is in a hurry here. Not for the faint of heart are the displays with the pig heads, pig hearts, and enormous beef tongues. In the fish hall, dried herrings stare at us with big, empty eyes; traditionally, these are washed down with strong spirits. Fried herring and other fish dishes can be had at the restaurant Sikites un Dillites.

Speaking of strong spirits: What vodka is to the Russians, beer is to the Latvians. If you're at the Central Market, you should stop by the branch of the brewery Labietis and try one of their craft beers. A Gaismas Ragana, translated 'Light Witch,' is recommended to us by Janxis, the man at the tap. 'It's a dangerous brew,' he warns, 'you can't feel anything because it's so smooth.' We sip it and also taste the ginger beer with mint. Janxis is right: Even as someone who doesn't drink beer, I find the taste enjoyable.

Finally, a bit of cheese. 'We eat caraway cheese at Midsummer when we head to the countryside, dancing barefoot in the grass, champagne in hand, singing around the campfire until the morning hours,' Līga reminisces, making me eager to visit Riga again in the summer. Then Riga locals buy lingonberries, smoked fish, cheese, and rye bread at the Central Market and make their way over to the Academy of Sciences. On the observation deck, they spread out picnic blankets and enjoy the fantastic view over the Old Town, the Moscow suburb with its old wooden houses where Russians and Jews used to live, and the restored warehouse district Spīķeri. Spīķeri is one of Riga's new creative districts, worth exploring especially because of the Riga Ghetto Museum.

Instead of exploring Riga from the bird's-eye view of the Academy of Sciences, we explore it from the water. However, not on one of those electrically powered wooden boats, but with stand-up paddleboards. At the kayak and SUP rental in Andrejsala, we wait for Normunds from the Latvian Surf Association, with whom we met the night before for a beer at Kanepes, an alternative cultural center and 'the place to be' for hip Riga locals. We carry our boards into the water and turn into the Pilsetas Canal. We paddle leisurely past Kronwald Park and Basteiberg, where the square with the Freedom Monument connects. After the National Opera, we eventually pass by the Central Market before the canal flows into the Daugava River. The river is 500 meters wide, starting in Russia near the Volga springs and flowing into the Baltic Sea. Behind the 100-year-old railway bridge, a mountain-like silhouette rises against the evening sky on the opposite bank. That must be the new National Library in Pardaugava, which due to its many windows is also called the Castle of Light. You need to paddle vigorously on the Daugava. Despite the current, we manage the seven kilometers in just over two hours. Right on time for sunset, we reach our starting point in Andrejsala, a former industrial area that today houses a marina and a whole series of chic terrace restaurants. In one of those, the Musuu Terase, we wrap ourselves in cozy blankets and squint at the sunset while enjoying catfish fillet with cucumber-caper salsa, dill aioli, and a cool white wine.

The train rattles over the railway bridge we paddled under the day before with the SUP boards. Our backpacks with the boards sit beside us. Our destination is Jūrmala, the once-glamorous Baltic Sea resort just outside Riga, where the German-Baltic elite, wealthy Latvian landowners, and the Russian nobility built magnificent villas at the end of the 19th century. Even the royal family is said to have vacationed in Jūrmala.

Even today, a touch of nostalgia hovers over places like Bulduri and Majori, where we get off after 30 minutes. Fairy tale beautiful houses hide in the dune forests behind the beach, a mix of Art Nouveau and wooden architecture, similar to Riga. The Baltic Sea lies before us, glassy smooth. Our SUP boards glide gently over the water. The white, wide beach with the beach bar of the Baltic Beach Hotel, where we enjoyed a cappuccino, the green-white bathing pavilion, and the now autumn-clad strollers on the beach grow smaller and smaller. The only sound is the dipping of the paddles. I'm starting to feel a chill; the thermometer showed only 14 degrees earlier. Time to paddle back and warm up with hot chocolate and chocolate cake at Konditoreja De Gusto.

Riga is not just about Art Nouveau and Hanseatic heritage. Riga is laid-back, Riga is cool, an up-and-coming metropolis that can easily compete with cities like Lisbon or Barcelona. In the New Town, shops with fashion and interiors in Scandinavian-inspired Latvian design attract visitors. In Miera Iela, Riga's version of Friedrichshain, you can easily spend hours in cafés and tea houses. If you find yourself in Riga on a Saturday, you should check out the street food market in the trendy Kalnciema district with its spruced-up wooden houses and taste the local specialties.