On my own? Never-ever! Not in Riga!

Yes, well, nobody can say I didn't try. But there's so many HC-members around. It's more fun to discover this beautiful old Hanse city and all the great architecture together.
No beach today, again, because of too much rain and cloudy spells. It's quite warm all the same.
Yesterday I ziggzagged through Riga center, enjoying getting lost and finding new wonderful sights. I preferred walking instead of taking the bus, even though the fare is only 0,20 lat, 0,30 euro. Did I tell you they have ticket sellers in every bus? Yes, they do. So different from Copenhagen and the ghost train without any body onboard but passengers.
The busses and trolleybusses pass quite frequently along busy Brivibas iela, and Ieva lives just round the corner. It's a half hour walk from here to the old town, and so much more rewarding then driving.
Today I strolled through markets and supermarkets to get food for tonight. I promised to cook my famous carrot-ginger-soup for dinner with Ieva and Rohiman. Well, actually it's my friend Bettina's recipe. It was fun looking for cream without having any clue what the latvian word might be. I took the package with the cows, saying 25 %. Turned out to be the correct choice. Carrots was easy, of course.
When looking for bread I discovered some really nice and tempting smelling bakeries, bekereja in latvian. There's so many german words in this language, due to seven centuries of german upper class in Riga. The latvians were rather thought of as underlings and slaves and were not allowed to own houses, let alone companies in the town. That is all past now, but the remains can still be found.
By the way, they had pumpernikeli in the bakery - not black bread, though, but gingerbreadlike cookies with nuts. And keksi, which is cake.
On my way further downtown, I was unlucky to find the shopping area. This is so unfair! But I had no chance of getting the sandals I need.
And now I'm in my favourite internetbar again, chatting away with my finnish friends, and Vindya from Sri Lanka who joined a funbus for the underpriviledged children on her island, when I met Lari in chat. He's back to Riga! So we arranged to meet at 6 pm under the clock, called laima here, which is more romantic than the freedom monument, called milda. It's the favourite meeting point since 1924, when it was set up. He's 21, and I'm older than his father (why does he have to tell everybody?), but it's always fun to meet him. Age doesn't really count when traveling.
And then off to cook dinner together, and then on to my new host Antra, who will be leaving for Norway tomorrow. Where she and her kids will be staying with HC-hosts, as well. Of course.
And I have a base from where to discover Latvia in daytrips. :-))))