Riga, Latvia

I've posted about Riga before (on three occasions)..but seems that I have acquired a number of Riga cards in the meantime as well...and they are all so fantastic, that I just have to make a Riga post...again...

This first card arrived few months ago, resulting from a swap with Patrik...boy, I cant possibly explain how I felt when this one arrived and I saw the view and its colours! I think it is this card that made me dig into my boxes for the older Riga cards and make a Riga update...if this card doesn't make you want to visit Riga, I dont know what will! Lovely lovely lovely panorama of Riga!! Like on an early morning when the city is waking up and getting ready for the day.

It is one of those Latvian stamps from the "Coat of Arms" series...this one issued back in 1994 in a set of 4 stamps.

Another panorama of Riga...this one being more like after a nice autumn rain when the sun is struggling to breakthrough the clouds at the end of the day...

This one was sent by Oleg, almost 3 years ago...who also used the Coats of the Arms =)
The first and the last one were issued in 2010...the first one shows the Coat of Arms of Preiļi, while the last one shows the Coats of Arms of Viesīte
The middle stamp was issued in 2007, showing the Coat of Arms of the Latvian town Auce

this card gives us a closer look on the Riga castle at the banks of the Daugava river, which today it is the official residence of the President of Latvia as well as home to several museums

another Coat of Arms' stamp =) this one issued in 2005, showing us the Coat of Arms of Daugavpils. The other stamp is a Christmas one from a set of two issued in 2012

the last card here shows one of the several bridges connecting the two parts of Riga, and if im not mistaken, this one should be the Vanšu Bridge, which is a cable-stayed bridge

hey! No Coats of Arms here!!!! Ha! and I so much love this Astronomy stamp!! (Some of you should know why =) It is from the EUROPA 2009 issue, when the theme was Astronomy. Lovely!!!

Riga, Latvia

well, as for my last card today, i chose this lovely one from Latvia

im really thankful to Elena for being so kind and sending it to me...I absolutely love this card...not only coz it is railway related, but the colours feel so special too...the skies have some spectacular colour and i love the black wires crossing all over...they just give such a special touch to the overall image.

On this card you can see a railroad close to the centre of Riga while in the background is a medieval church and a modern office building of Swedbank....what a combination in total :)

thank you all for following and for giving such great contribution to my mailbox, and of course to this blog. Have a great weekend!!   

Riga, Latvia

this lovely surprise comes from my dear Katy :)

And not only its a lovely card, but its great to have it since i actually cant brag with an ownership of many Latvian cards....and it has a number of small images and here is what they are showing...starting from left to right..
- The Convent Yard; - Skarnu Street; - The Blackheads House; - The Latvian Academy of Art; - Swedish Gate; - Torna Street; - The Fountain in Opera Park; - The Parliament House; - The Latvian National Opera; - The Panorama of Riga.

I think that the Baltic countries are on my must-to-visit list. Partly coz of what ive seen on pictures and read about them, and partly coz of what ive heard from people who have been there (not natives). I really think these countries should be experienced personally. And i think that if i go, I will have some good *hosts*...at least in Estonia for example ;-))))   :D :P
Or no???!!!!

the stamps used come from a set of two, issued in 2005 under the National Symbols theme, with the subject of Coats and Arms of Regions and Towns, this one showing Jurmala.

Katy, Aitäh!!

Riga, Latvia

Yaayyy, my first one from Latvia!!!! A new country added to my collection!!!!
A private swap with Zane who sent me this beautiful multiview of Riga.


Riga, the capital of Latvia, is situated on the Baltic Sea coast on the mouth of the river Daugava and is the largest city in the Baltic States. The Historic Centre of Riga has been declared a UNESCO *whs* and the city is particularly notable for its extensive Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) architecture which UNESCO considers to be unparalleled anywhere in the world.

Some of the sites you can see on the card:

- The House of Blackheads dating from 1344, was used to house traveling, single members of the merchants guild (the large picture)

- The "Three Brothers" is a collection of medieval buildings which depict different stages in the architectural development of Riga (medieval to Baroque). (top left corner)

- The Dome Cathedral is the largest place of worship in the Baltics and don't miss its organ which is one of the biggest in Europe (6768 pipes!). the Cathedral was founded in 1211 and its present interior dating from the 17th century (the picture at the bottom, next to the large one)