RISEBA Riga, Latvia

I've already shared some of my impressions of Riga and Latvia with you here. Now it's time for us to get to know the closer and more distant surroundings together, because there is so much to see. So welcome to the digital postcard from Riga, Sigulda, Rundale, Vilnius and Lapland, No. 6!

The nice thing about Latvia is that even if you know Riga as a city, you probably have no idea about the surrounding area. But since the country is also very small, you can see a lot of it in a short time. Although the rail system in Latvia is currently undergoing a major reconstruction, as the track size of Rail Baltic is currently being adapted to Central European standards from Tallinn to Warsaw - until now the trains have been running on the Russian track size - you can get almost anywhere cheaply, quickly, and comfortably by long-distance bus.

Sigulda and Rundale are suitable destinations for short day trips.

Sigulda is also easily accessible by train from Riga and is about an hour away. You can go on various walks and hikes locally, for example along the river Gauja or to one of the many castles and other sights. We visited Treyden Castle and watched the beautiful autumn colors of the Latvian forests in October from the top of the tower.

The castle in Rundale is easily accessible by bus and is about an hour and a half away from Riga. There you can wander through the beautiful castle gardens and, with a bit of luck, see one or the other fox scurrying by. Inside, you can visit the museum of the 18th century baroque castle, which is somewhat like the Residence of Würzburg.

Vilnius and Tallinn, both of which can be reached by long-distance bus in around four hours, are also very suitable for a weekend trip. To be honest, I've only seen the harbor in Tallinn so far, so I can't make a recommendation here yet.

Vilnius is somewhat smaller than Riga and has more of a university city character than a capital city one, as there are many alternative districts and generally has a somewhat younger atmosphere. With the Neris River running through the city and the hilly landscape, it might even remind you a little of Würzburg.

When you're in Vilnius, be sure to explore Užupis, an artistic neighborhood that even has its own constitution! You should also try cold beetroot soup at Šnekutis, a Lithuanian pub, and go to the opera social house for a beer or other cold drink in the evening. There you can snuggle up in warm blankets while sitting in a garden house on the roof in the middle of Vilnius.

The absolute highlight of trips - and everyone who has already spent a semester abroad in the Baltic States, Finland or Sweden will probably tell you this - is the one-week Lapland trip. The trip is a classical one in the region and is usually organized by the Erasmus Student Networks of the respective cities with a travel agency. You can then book activities locally through the agency itself, such as a snowshoe hike, ski tours, husky tours, sauna sessions and much more. My highlights were the Arctic Ocean Tour, where you travel from Lapland to Norway to the Arctic Ocean and can even jump in after the sauna sessions (it was freezing cold!!!), and the snowshoe hike, where you hike through deep snow at night and, with a bit of luck, you can even see the Northern Lights!

On site, there are eight of you staying in cute wooden log cabins, which gives the whole thing a school camp feel, in a good way. We had a great time there and it's a super nice experience to share with new friends.

Back in Riga, the serious side of life starts again for me, aka university exams. And slowly but surely, the semester abroad is coming to an end. While I still have about a month and a half left in Riga, many of my friends are already getting ready for their return journey, as some of them, especially the master’s students, have already finished their semester before Christmas and are leaving.

You can read more about this in the next post, Čau!