The Sacred Heart Cathedral of Rēzekne is located in Rēzekne, Latvia.
I briefly visited this cathedral at the start of August 2022, during my birthday trip to the region of Latgale
On the site occupied by the church, there existed a wooden temple built in 1685. The church burned down in 1887 during a storm and the following year the works for the new and present neo-Romanesque style church began. Construction was completed in 1902 under the…
Rēzekne Castle ruins are located in the downtown of Rēzekne, Latvia, a city in the center of Latgale. The castle served as a base of the local Livonian order landlords until the 16th century and also as the main military support base for battles against Russians and Lithuanians.
Today, fragments of the stone walls and the foundation can be seen on the ancient castle hill.
Archeological excavations reveal that between the 9th and 12th centuries…
Yesterday we traveled to Ječi to move the lawn, grill a fish and use it as a camp base before visiting a pebbled beach near Nida close to the Latvian/Lithuanian.Our new favorite shop - LIDL, fish is awesome and the rest is good too. We are lucky to have one LIDL store in Liepaja, about 25 km from our Ječi house. I love both Nida and Pape, really awesome beaches. Pāvilosta is good, Jūrkalne too. After returning to Ječi and making our…
Guesthouse Odumiņi is located close to Varakļāni town in the historical region of Latgale, Latvia. We booked a one-night stay here at the start of August 2022, during our weekend trip to Latgale.
For a one-night stay here we paid about EUR 100, with the sauna included.
The vacation home comes with 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, bed linen, towels, a flat-screen TV with cable channels, a fully equipped kitchen, and a patio with garden views.
We were…
Varakļāni Palace is located in Varakļāni, in the historical region of Latgale, Latvia.
We visited this place shortly at the start of August 2022, during a weekend trip to Latgale. I was not sure what for to look in the area and just googled the top sightseeing objects in Varakļani and this place popped top on the list.
Just later I learned history of this place.
After the end of the Livonian War in 1583, the von der Borch family acquired the…
Koknese Castle is a complex in Koknese, Latvia, dating from the 13th century. The castle was situated on a high bluff overlooking the Daugava river valley. In 1965 a hydroelectric dam was built downriver, creating a reservoir that partially submerged the castle and flooded the surrounding valley.
We visited Koknese castle during a weekend trip to the region of Latgale at the start of August 2022
Before the arrival of the Teutonic Knights,…
After the tile removal in the kitchen and hallway area, it was already agreed - I will re-install laminate there. Additionally, after hydro isolation works in the bathroom I decided I will tile again.
I was very scared before the new tile job and measured everything 10 times before applying tile glue. Also, I decided to go for 6mm spacers (instead of 3mm)
I bought 8m2 of laminate, but was bit short after my first day, bought additioanal 4m2 at…
Rīta Putni is located in one of the most picturesque places in Latvia - Koknese county Bilstini just a few minutes away from Perse and Daugava river, where an impressive view of Koknese castle ruins can be seen.
I first heard about this place, or more about its products - quail eggs, a few years ago back in Georgia, an acquaintance was involved in this business. At the start of August 2022, during our weekend trip to the Latgale region, passing…
Baznīckalns or Church hill in Daugavpils is said to be one of the main tourist attractions in the city. This was one of the rare times I visited Daugavpils and I must admit I didn't had any clue what should we see here and just Google for the top attractions and Church hill or Baznickalns was atop of the list.
Every traveler who wants to be acquainted with Daugavpils should definitely visit Church Hill which has gathered the churches of four…
It was already past 8 PM, I was just finished tiling the bathroom at our Vilgāle apartment when my fiancee and kiddo arrived to pick me up. My best part gave me the drone and said - it's a beautiful evening to fly a drone.
I looked around and agreed. The Vilgāle lake was covered in mist, the Sun was setting. Beautiful.
Look at the beautiful rooftop on the bottom left.
Across the lake there is Vilgale village located where we own a…
A few weeks ago I did the tile job in the kitchen and hallway for our Vilgāle apartment. In the end, I was not happy with the result, not happy with the tile job (which could be done better), and not satisfied with the visual looks.
At one point I decided to list this apartment for sale as it is, with asking price EUR 25,000. As I didn't get any request during more than 7 days, I decided I still want to sell this flat but I will make it…
Guesthouse Pirts Baudas is located in Ilzenes parish, Aluksnes county. The property is 24.1 km from Alūksne, and guests benefit from complimentary WiFi and private parking available on site.
We booked this place during our day trip to Valka and the area. I thought this place will be much closer to Valka, but it turned out about a 2-hour drive with a distance of some 130km. Though the drive was spectacular with stops at places like Gaujiena,…
The Velēna Lutheran Church is at the crossing of the Smiltene-Gulbene-Lizums roads. I would call this as one of the most beautiful churches in Latvia.
It's said the first built church here was a wooden church with a turf roof. This is where the place got its name from – Velēna (Torf). Visitors can still enjoy one of the most beautiful organs in Latvia, built in 1898 in W. Sauer Company, they are considered as one of the best preserved organs in…
Micini has a very special place in my heart - I spent a brief time, about two years here, back in the 90-ties, living with my grandmother. Back in the days - there was some life here - a farm with more than 100 cows, few families, and even a public bus twice a week connecting to Valka.
My relatives from gradmother's side have been living here for a few centuries (at least) - and the scenery was much different here before WW2, when here lived my…
Cafe Papes Vēji is a summer cafe located next to the Pape channel in Western Latvia near the Pape Lighthouse.
This place serves traditional Latvian cuisine, and cold beer and some can buy smoked fish (apparently in the season)
I have been fond of this area for a few years already and first discovered this cafe about a year ago, now in Summer 2022 we made a stop here, had a hearty dinner, and bought some smoked fish. Awesome
Seems there is…
After some thinking, I decided to list for sale our Vilgāle apartment.
I bought this apartment about two years ago in an online auction, paying about EUR 4,000. During the past two years, we have done some serious renovation with a total investment being closer to EUR 18,000.
Today I bought my first flat on an online auction site
I decided to list it for EUR 25,000 on local ss.lv website, here is the advert:
The owner is selling…
Summer café-bar “Kazbārs” is located next to the watermill in the heart of the scenic park of Kazdanga.
This place serves freshly ground coffee, Italian dessert affogato, refreshing soft ice cream (including vegan options), cold live beer, and vegan soups.
Place is run by energetic couple from Riga, if you will be happy enough you could catch up with host Ernests and enjoy the conversation about the running restaurant, flying…
We bought a used Mercedes Benz ML 400 Diesel car in Riga a few months ago. We hoped the car would suit us for the years to come, but in the end, the vehicle was faulty even before we bought it. So the car died (or almost died) - with the problem being - a timing belt, which needed to be replaced.
I asked to a few handymen how much it could cost, and understood that I'm not willing to take the extra burden on this already old car, so we decided…
Cafe Pāvilostas Enkurs is located on Dzinstaru street 69 in Latvian Summer Capital Pavilosta.
they serve fish and chips, pizza, and traditional Latvian cold soup here.
One of the best fish and chips I've tried in Latvia
Seems like a popular place in Pāvilosta, many tourists
Give it a try once in Pavilosta
A few years ago I bought a property in rural Latvia (which is a member state of the European Union) for under EUR 4,000 - most of the time I thought this has been a bad investment.
Since my original purchase I have additionally invested about EUR 14,000, making my total around EUR 18,000, and this Summer for the first time I feel I could actually realize this apartment for EUR 25,000 or at least EUR 20,000 without much hassle. See the…
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