Quality of Life and Recreation

SIGHTS AND EXPERIENCES

Apart from being the capital of Latvia and indisputably the largest city in the three Baltic States, Riga is also Europe's capital of art nouveau architecture and one of the 'greenest' cities in the region. Entertainment options for all ages and tastes range from upmarket clubs, cinemas and casinos, to traditional theatres and exhibitions, as well as a zoo and an open-air Skansen-style museum for family visits. The Latvian National Opera, in the very centre of Riga, is a proud architectural symbol of a newly independent nation – hosting internationally renowned orchestras, opera and ballet troupes; it also attracts major international artists touring Europe. Riga's Old Town is on UNESCO's Cultural Heritage List and offers a variety of historical and contemporary influences captured in a number of Lutheran, Catholic and Orthodox churches, a Synagogue and, naturally – a mix of international restaurants and Irish & British pubs all within few blocks. Latvia's own distinctive cuisine is becoming a major attraction for visitors to Riga, with a number of local 'ethnic' restaurants arriving on the scene throughout the capital.

Nevertheless, Riga and its surrounding region is only half of the story – the remainder can offer an array of recreational options from cosy B&Bs with only a light touch of 'virtual rurality' to open-air medieval theatre or rock and pop festivals with international stars. Staying in a country house featuring a Latvian 'herbal sauna', horseback riding across scenic hills or fishing in a murmuring stream or river makes for a refreshing shared break, either for a management team or a family. For a more culturally oriented country trip there are numerous castles and manors complete with a variety of museums. The extensive Baltic seashore is full of traditional fishing villages welcoming hungry visitors with delicious freshly smoked fish or proffering pleasant boat trips.

The most important national celebration in Latvia is St. John's Day – the summer solstice on the 23rd of June, when the entire nation gathers at bonfires to greet each other with bouquets of seasonal flowers and grasses and to consume a slice of traditional cheese with a mug of specially-brewed beer. Latvia also boasts its own renowned quadrennial event — the Song and Dance Festival which culminates in an open-air massed choral concert featuring several thousand singers.

Latvia is also fond of modern musical traditions – the most popular Latvian pop music group Brainstorm has become popular across Europe after its success at the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest. Latvian singer Marie N went one step further by winning Eurovision in 2002 and the 2003 contest subsequently took place in Riga. The rapidly growing music-festival scene offers musical entertainment for any taste from the Early Music Festival in the Rundale Palace to the Positivus Festival at the seaside in Salacgriva.

For sports fans, Latvia can offer all the traditional activities including basketball, football, tennis, ice hockey, as well as golf, swimming and tenpin bowling. In terms of outdoor activities, the most popular are jogging, hiking, cycling and orienteering. In addition, there are a number of rivers and streams with good facilities for recreational rafting and canoeing, and for winter sport enthusiasts, several hills equipped for downhill skiing.

The most popular spectator sports are ice hockey, football and basketball. Since Latvian teams have participated in their respective world championships, Latvian ice-hockey and football fans have become well-known all over the world. In 2006, Riga hosted the world ice-hockey championship. Latvian hockey team Dinamo Riga competes in the newly established Continental Hockey League and in 2009 reached the competition’s semi-finals.

Wind tunnels were not initially intended for active recreation and entertainment, but Sigulda begs to differ and offers the Aerodium wind tunnel – a device blasting air upwards in the form of a vertical pillar, so enabling visitors to literally take to the air. The coaches at Aerodium are among the most professional people in the world in this area – proved by the fact that the Aerodium team participated in the closing ceremony of the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006 and built the Latvian pavilion at the international EXPO 2010 exhibition in Shanghai.

NATURAL TREASURES

Despite being a relatively small country of northerly latitude, Latvia features remarkable biodiversity as a result of low-intensity agricultural and forestry activities during the years of worldwide industrialisation. This, together with low rural population density, has ensured the survival of ancient forests which host an incredible variety of fauna, large and small. White, and the rarer black, storks have a number of colonies in northern Latvia, along with other rare plant and animal species. This has seen Latvia become a hot spot on international bird watchers' maps. For less 'professional' eco-tourists there is a national park and four nature reserves spread across the country, each with educational nature trails, observation platforms and herds of wild horses.

SETTLING IN LATVIA

Along with international chain hotels, Riga and the other largest cities have first-class residential property available for purchase or rent. The prices for these vary greatly, depending largely on location. The purchase of a comfortable country home in close proximity to any major city is guaranteed to be a sound investment.
Latvia has one of the highest ratios of doctors per head of population and this ensures the quality of medical service in both public and private health centres and clinics. This, in combination with reasonable costs, has recently created a wave of 'medical tourism' from neighbouring EU countries where medical costs can be excessive. Two international schools, in the seaside suburbs of Jūrmala, and beside the Daugava River at Kipsala, are highly appreciated by the children of diplomatic staff and the country’s expatriate populations. In addition, most Latvian universities and colleges offer education of international quality within the humanities, social and natural sciences, and technologies for English-speaking exchange students or free-movers.

Apart from organisations such as various foreign chambers of commerce, informal circles of expatriates have formed in Riga, uniting people from various countries and professional backgrounds for regular cultural and recreational activities.

Additional information at:
www.inspirationriga.com
www.latviatourism.lv
www.liveriga.com
www.allhotels.lv
www.celotajs.lv
www.li.lv