I wanted to do this last year but covid prevented it. I started booking in September when Covid looked less of a problem, but by the time it came to November Riga was having a covid crisis and a minor lock-down. I started to get concerned that it would all fall through, however I was lucky and managed to just fit it in before numbers rose everywhere again.
My trip started with a rapid journey across London to get to Victoria Coach station. I seemed to have chosen the tube stations without lifts or escalators and was faced with loads of stairs and a very heavy case. I was very fortunate as people helped me but I was left really feeling my age. This feeling was increased when I arrived at my hotel in Stansted and the receptionist took one look at me and altered my room to one on the ground floor! My flight was at 06.10 so I had the joy of catching a bus at 04.25. The path and the road outside the hotel were pitch black, there were street lights but these were unlit, fortunately I had a torch in my bag and it was easily accessible. I imagined that the bus would be empty at this time in the morning but it was absolutely jam packed with Ryanair staff. The driver looked at me, got up and asked a young lady to vacate her seat, once again I felt my age, I think that I am going to have to come to terms with being an old lady! The airport was not too busy but the security men were diabolical, I'm not sure if they had been recruited from the local prison or were were ex-army and had forgotten about the ex. They were very rude and shouted at everyone.
Lithuania. I had done a detailed check on how to get from transport hubs to my accommodation and my information for Vilnius said that I could get a bus ticket from the driver. How life has changed with covid. The front entrance of buses in Vilnius were now closed and it is no longer possible to buy a ticket on the bus so I returned to inside the airport and found the Tourist Information Office, where the woman sent me to the far end of the hall to a well hidden shop where I had to buy an e-ticket. I later discovered that these Narvesen shops were prolific over the 3 Baltic states and sold bus tickets and even stamps as well as snacks and newspapers.
I had planned where to have lunch but that restaurant was shut. After my early start I was tired so I left my heavy case at the railway station and walked to the old town.
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| I noticed the 'Camino de Santiago' sign!! |
I headed to the first restaurant that I found open, it turned out to be German, not Lithuanian, but I had a nice meal and killed time till I could get into my studio. Later I picked up my case and bought some food for snacks and breakfasts.
Saturday I spent the day visiting sites in the old town.
Sunday I took a bus out to Trakai. The fairy tale castle in the middle of the lake was originally started in the 14th century however the existing building is mostly a rebuild from the 20th century, despite this the town is really well worth the visit.
I also had a super lunch, this time in a Lithuanian restaurant. I had kibinai, a local delicacy like a cornish pasty, I forget what the dessert was called but it was delicious!!
Estonia. Monday was a long bus ride, actually two buses as I had to change at Riga. I had had to fill in 'locator forms' for both Riga and Tallinn but no-one asked to see them! I managed to buy a sandwich in the bus station, though there was a stewardess on the first bus and there was an option on snacks and drinks. The second coach had a free tea and coffee machine. In Estonia police entered the bus and looked at our passports but not at our forms!
In Tallinn my information about buying bus tickets was correct, I found a machine in the bus station and bought two tickets for the tram, one for the return journey. The tram was really convenient for the bus station and for the hostel I was to stay in. It was dark by the time I arrived but I had time to drop off my luggage in my room, with a bit of help from a young man who carried my case upstairs for me, then I returned to the closest supermarket to buy milk and snacks. Shopping is something of an adventure as I had no idea of what I was buying, though here the milk was called milk!! In Vilnius I bought soured cream by mistake!
Tallinn has an old wall and stretches that it is possible to walk around. My accommodation was near a stretch of wall but, when I looked at the notices it said that it was closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. I went to the tourist Information Office to find if there was another stretch that was open and she gave me a map and pointed me in the right direction. I had lots of information on things to see and do in Tallinn but most of them were not for winter! I would have liked to have done a guided tour but this was not possible, also many other things were not there but I was able to stop for lunch at Ill Drakon, in the base of the Town Hall, where they serve an earthen ware bowl of elk soup for €2, I combined this with a delicious meat pastie. The walled town is small enough to walk around easily and it is really beautiful. There was also a Christmas Market in the Town Hall square so I had a cup of Gluhwein in the afternoon.
Wednesday I took a stroll around the streets of Kalamaja, recommended for it's local vibe and bohemian atmosphere and to see the area’s trademark
colourful wooden houses. As my information advised I headed to the streets of Valgevase, Kalju,
Kungla, Köie, and Niine for the most charming examples, but I really didn't see anything terribly interesting, I suppose that a temperature of minus 6 degrees Celsius is likely to put a damper on vibes!! Though I did get a view of the Baltic Sea.
I had lunch at the Christmas market and then visited the old KGB prison.
Then, on a happier note I went to Katariina Kaik, or St. Catherine's passage, which was full of craft shops. There are some wonderful artistic shops in Tallinn, I was just sorry that I did not have room in my case to buy much. Then I went to a lovely French chocolate cafe for a delicious hot chocolate.
Thursday was once again a day of travel. A return, on the tram, to the bus station, where I arrived far too early and had to sit for ages! Then a coach back to Riga. In Riga I managed to find the right bus and I could buy a ticket from the driver but as I had to get on at the middle door getting to the driver, especially on a moving bus with a heavy case, was not easy. Again I was helped, and I certainly needed it. There was thick snow in Riga and pulling a case through snow isn't easy either.
Riga.
I got to my hotel in time to wonder off for a bit of a shop. The hotel information had told me that I would have a washing machine in my room, I had found this a bit surprising and was delighted to find it was a fridge. Thanks Google translate!! I spent the evening chilling. I had discovered that I could listen to Classic fm on my phone and I had my kindle so I was well occupied.
Friday I went off, across a very snowy bridge, to visit the town.
All was well until I tried to stop for coffee. I had had my booster vaccination the day I started travelling and the new Covid passport still said that I had had 2 of 2 but with the date in November. I was afraid to use this pass in case it was thought that I had only just had the 2nd vaccination. Up till now my pass had only been read by eye, no-one had checked the QR square but here in Riga they were checking the squares! When I tried to enter a cafe for coffee I was rejected. This was devastating, it was freezing cold and I had 2 days to fill in, also a ticket for the ballet. Initially my reaction was to go straight to the airport and change my flight but I realized that this was a little excessive!! I saw another cafe and tried there and I was allowed in, a warm coffee and a cake did a lot for my state of mind. I also discovered that it is perfectly in order, in Latvia, to enter cafes simply to use the toilets, I had seen this in the Ukraine as well. After my coffee I continued my wandering and found the House of the Black Heads, this had a lovely gift shop and the very nice young attendant allowed me in, he studied my pass for a while but accepted the written words, he also suggested that the QR might not work as it was out of date since I had had the 3rd vaccination, by now it was 14 days since the vaccination so I decided to use the new pass the next day.
House of the Black Heads.
From here I went to the Cathedral where again I was allowed in, I was also able to buy a ticket for the next days lunchtime organ recital.
Then I decided that I would not tempt my luck anymore. I went to the supermarket near the cathedral and bought food for lunch, this was a little difficult as I couldn't read what I was about to eat but I bought something that looked like rice with meat bits and trusted to luck. In the hostel I found that one table in the dining area was laid up and there was a plate piled high with things that looked a bit like Spring rolls. Eventually the people came in, they were a group of Russian workmen, one spoke some English, they were very friendly and gave me 2 of the rolls which turned out to be pancakes filled with a cheesy mixture, blinis I think. During the afternoon I did my 'locator form' for returning to Spain. Things were tightening up and according to the information I read I was certain that I had to organize an antigen test before returning. I discovered that I could do this at Riga airport so I booked a test, when I tried to find a time there appeared to be very few available, the options seemed to either coincide with the concert and the ballet or be at 10 p.m. so I opted for 10 p.m. the next day.
Saturday I took out my new covid pass and returned to town. Walking was difficult as the snow had mostly been cleared but there was black ice, several times I slipped and once I sat down but remained unhurt. Once back in the town I went to the theatre to see that I would be allowed in in the evening, there was no problem with this pass. Back to the Cathedral for the organ recital and then I went to a nice restaurant for lunch, where again they let me in without a problem, after this it was back to the hotel for a rest before my evening out.
The ballet, The Nutcracker, was lovely. Afterwards the trip to the airport was easy and I didn't have to wait long so I was back in the hotel even before 10 p.m.
Sunday I returned to the airport for the flight to Barcelona. The snow on the runways was a bit scary, particularly as I had experienced the black ice but we made it safely and no-one looked to see if I had had an antigen test!
