This is Island Hopper TV coming to you from Riga, Latvia
Let's do this. So we are right here in the old town of Riga, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
It is Wednesday afternoon. We are going to go through the old town of Riga
We're going to walk along some of the popular areas for shopping and maybe even head over
towards the beach. They do have beaches out here in Latvia. But this little area right here is the main city center
You'll want to come here in the evening time. We've got this nice architectural designs
Latvia is one of three Baltic states that are similar. Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania
We are on Kalka Iela. I assume Iela in Latvian means avenue or street, but we're going to head kind of through here
Oh, we got some music. Is that Elvis? Oh, I better turn it off if I got some music
I might get a copyright with somebody. Actually, I don't think that's Elvis, but let's keep cruising through here
Anyway, I'll tell you some statistics. So Riga is actually the largest city in those three states that I told you about
Latvia is also the largest. I think Latvia in total has about 2 million people
But the city of Riga has one-third of that population. Maybe even a little bit more
So Riga is the biggest city. I just left Tallinn. Next day I will be trying to get over to Lithuania
So it's just a matter of getting around here. This is a more relaxed experience
Those guys are really rocking, huh? Then what you get in... I wish I had some money to give them
Let me see if I can. Let's give those guys some money. Some euros
We got some euros for these guys. They're rocking. I like supporting those local street guys
Alright, so there's a big church right there. See if we can get right next to that
But the big thing that makes Riga a UNESCO heritage destination is its architecture
It was actually part of the European Architectural World Fair or something like this
Like, 19... or 2004, maybe? I don't know the exact year, along with the city in Sweden
There we go. Look at that. Beautiful bars outside. Why not? It's 22 degrees Celsius, 72 degrees Fahrenheit
Good vibes, man. I want to get along the waterfront and show you guys the water
Later on in the video, I'll show you what it looks like down here at night. on my other channel vert cam I made a Guide or a travel
Experience you could call it going from Tallinn to Riga Which was basically one train and two buses
So I had like three layovers no two layovers in an arrival and
Look at this look at that man if this doesn't make you want to go to Prague
I don't know what will get that hop on hop off bus
I really need to do more of those because they go to all the cool spots
in the city that TripAdvisor just doesn't tell you about and when you're in a new place
sometimes you just need someone to just be like Just take me
Show me. You can probably get like $25, $30 a night hotels if you wanted here in Latvia
Alright. Well, we're nearby the waterfront. I'll pick up when I get there
So you know what I've noticed? your experience of a city or a town really depends on the location of your hotel
Not necessarily the quality of your hotel as much as the location. For example, if I'm staying at that Radisson
my experience of Riga is probably a lot different than if I'm staying inside the city center
Crossing these roads over here in Latvia is a bit of a challenge
but it's not too terrible. So here's the old town panorama on the c
I think I want to do this, but I need a restroom. There's the boat schedule, river cruises
Look at this. I think of a bridge
Very interesting river. That's a big, wide-mouthed river. It connects right into the Baltic
Baltic has so many rivers that just pour into it. It's like rivers just carved out the Baltic
and then it became connected to the ocean. So they do these river cruises
I mean, I just talked to the guy right there. He said it's 12 euros to do a river cruise
You could do a river boat, c boat. They have a couple different boats. They're going at 4 o'clock
It's currently 3 o'clock. But 12 euros for the big boat. And they've got a bar on board
They've got a bathroom. All that stuff. It's just one hour. It's like, do I want to wait an hour
He said I can board the ship after 15 minutes after they get there and just sit at the bar and drink
And it's a one hour cruise for 12 euros. I think that's a good price per person, really
So come on over here to see those guys. It's called river cruises
Right there next to that bridge They also have a smaller boat I think that one was like seven euros
But here comes the big boat Yeah, I like the vibes out here in Riga
Everyone I've met has been real friendly, easygoing. No BS, no riffraff, no anything, no problems
Straight shooters, friendly. You know, just like you like to go hang out, chill out
Everyone around here is good, good vibes. Oh, wow. It a beautiful day Alright so I got a Lynchburg lemonade
So, yeah. That's with vodka instead of Jack Daniels, though. So when you come to Riga Black Balza
Riga Black Balza. They got Cherry, Courant, and Original. You said which one
All of them. You have to always try all of them. So if you come to Riga and you want the original alcohol, you've got to try those
But for now, I tried the Latvian lemonade. It's more like a Latvian mule
Ginger ale and vodka with some other special ingredients. So this is my second Latvian lemonade
It tastes great. landscapes in Riga and Latvia
Edgar Mickelson's. And we are now going past the Grand Palace Hotel
as we continue to explore Riga here in Latvia. Look at that beautiful church there
It's a beautiful day. Maybe 23 degrees Celsius, 73, 74 degrees. This is a war museum
What was the war that was fought here? It was a NATO Latvia battle group
They display from the first one of war to the second one of war and even earlier than that
Yeah, so if you want to learn about the history of these Baltic states, this would be a good museum for you to visit
We've got a nice little area with a park and a statue there
And if you look way up in the sky, you can see there's somebody actually flying a paraglider
I don't know if you can see that. Yeah, a very nice square that we have here
Alright. Dazu Un Parki, I think that's what it's called. Lots of roses
You know, I was looking at Riga on the map compared to Copenhagen. Turns out Copenhagen is actually lower or further south than Riga
So Riga is up there. I thought I was heading further south, but it just turns out Tallinn and Finland are way up there
Very floral city. Yeah, okay. So here we are in front of the Riga Nativity of Christ Orthodox Cathedral
Very lavish design there Okay
Now we are on Stabu Aila I think that's how you say it. It's like the main drag. They got this
rail for the rail cars that you saw just go by right there
Nordmen. Nord is north. It's like the Quebec Nordiques. Why were they called the Quebec Nordiques? Because they're the Northmen. Nordmen
It's just French, but Norway, Northway. So anytime you see that, that's what they're basically talking about
Yeah, this is like a shopping street right here in the middle of town
I'm actually going to head back towards the Old Town City Center, where most of the UNESCO World Heritage stuff is
But I figured I'd show you guys this road here during the afternoon
It's a Wednesday afternoon, actually. I was trying to get on a hop hop bus
Yeah, so... My next main stop along the way is... It's going to be Lithuania, but after that, Poland
So I'm assuming Poland will be more of a mainstay for me
Look at this little greyhound He's allowed to be off the leash, but his sister no or is that the brother I don't know
But yeah the vibes around here relaxed no real pressure from anyone
no concerns everything seems very normal, safe secure
you know, you kind of feel like you just blend in no matter who you are
everyone just goes about their business Park Inn, that looks like a nice place
I got sushi at the bottom. I like it
I like Riga. I find it to be a chilled out place just like the other Baltic states
It's definitely different than Estonia though. If you're expecting them to be similar, they are in the sense that they're on the Baltic
it's a totally different vibe here in Riga that you get in Tallinn
And what you get in Tallinn is different than what you get in Helsinki
None of them are really too similar, but they're different countries. So, you know
Well, they have this nice little water park. Well, the park is like lake or stream
on both sides right when you get close to the Old Town area
All right, we've made it back into the Old Town. Beautiful Old Town here
Well, I saw the Rock Cafe, so I stopped in. Let's look at the menu
I got a Brooklyn beer. I usually do local beer, but I like Brooklyn beer, honestly
Well, in the spirit of eating healthier, I'm getting a salad Okay, so after hanging out at the Rock Cafe, we are now going to
head into the old town Alright Getting closer, huh
Nice little area there There's that big church cathedral
It's hard to say that this city reminds me of any other European city actually
I'm not really thinking it does alright guys that's going to conclude this episode of Island Hopper TV from Riga
out here in Latvia hope you guys enjoyed it and if you did hit the like button
and consider subscribing we shall see you on the next one