It is a pleasure to see the Latgalians, who have made the long journey and, it must be said, are quite well represented at the festival. Right at the entrance from the corner of Merķelis and Barons Street, the people of the Ludza Crafts Centre have set up. Rag rugs are spread out in the tent, and a fire burns in the improvised blacksmith's forge. Nearby, clay pots bask in the sun on a twig fence.
We visited the fashion historian Alexander Vasilyev's collection exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design. The exhibition is dedicated to fashion from the late 19th and early 20th century. Here one can truly feast one's eyes and gain a certain insight into the social history of that era.
We strolled briskly along the harbour promenade, viewing and photographing the exhibited cows - among them a storm cow, a police cow, a golden cow, a herb cow, a light cow, and others. At the evening concert in Reņķis Garden, the sound and performance were up to the mark - a pleasure to listen to. Almost all the most popular old Dire Straits songs were performed.
Yesterday, 13 June, I attended a fantastic concert at the Riga Congress Hall, where New York Voices leader and Grammy Award winner - the world-famous Peter Eldridge - performed together with Latvian vocal group Framest. A small photo and video glimpse of the concert.
A brief glimpse of a few events at "Museum Night 2012". This year we visited five locations in Riga, also stopping en route at the excellent Georgian wine bar Winiveria in the Quiet Centre (which on this night had transformed into the Noisy Centre) - highly recommended!
Today, on the afternoon of 5 May, several hundred cyclists gathered on the Esplanāde near the Rainis Monument - on vintage and newer bikes, dressed in retro style: tweed outfits. This year the event in Riga was held for the third time. In May 2010, around 150 participants took part; last year - 400 cyclists; and this year it looks as though there were half as many again.
Between the last patches of snow, green shoots push their way through; snowdrops are in full bloom, and the skies are endlessly blue above the still-frozen Little and Great Ludza lakes, above the ancient hill fort, the white Catholic church towers, and us. And by the bridge connecting the two lakes, in whose nook lies Ļucina, a pair of white swans busily goes about its business.
Time is always short, the holidays are coming, and you want to create a festive atmosphere at home. So this time I have gathered twelve different ideas that will come in handy for making Easter decorations, using no more than three or four elements.
Every year in April, the spring festival known as the Feria de Abril de Sevilla takes place in Seville, the capital of Andalusia, Spain. It usually begins 2 weeks after the Semana Santa procession, typical of Easter in all Catholic countries in Europe including Latvia. The festival lasts a full week, brimming with joyfulness, music, dancing, treats, performances, a festive parade, and a fairground. This year it takes place from 24 to 29 April.
The first associations with Australia are undeniably heat, red earth, kangaroos, koalas - and also wines, as these are widely represented on supermarket shelves in Latvia too. How many are truly quality wines is another question. Because the development and spread of Australian wines in the world has been explosive, to the point of claiming the prestigious fourth place among wine-exporting countries.
