Riga Rainy Weather, Filled Pancakes, and Turkish Kebabs

This week Latvia's weather is starting to remind me of a very wet April back in the northeast states. However the sun makes a BIG difference here since it's August. The difference between being in the shade and out in the sun is significant. This makes dressing a challenge.. Put on long pants and a windbreaker on a day like today, and you'll feel great in the shade. In the sun you'll wonder why you don't have a bathing suit on!

Today I decided to continue my restaurant exploration in Riga Old Town. I chose "Sefpavars Vilhelms", which serves interesting and exotic filled pancakes. It's self-service and pay at the end at a register, similar to the two Latvian restaurants from yesterday. I selected one meat filled, one cheese, and one caramel pancake. They had sour creme for the meat/cheese pancakes, and a variety of james for the dessert pancakes. I also bought a Coke, although this particular restaurant did not have ice or cold Cokes. It was room temperature. Afterwards I noticed that they were serving fresh squeezed orange juice, and this would have been a far better choice.

The decor in Sefpavars Vilhelms is very interesting. I sat near a vase of colorful wheat. The walls were all white and resembled some kind of "ice cave". The pancakes were very good, especially the caramel dessert variety. I found that the pancakes were closer in style to crepes, but they were quite thick.

I decided that today would be good day to try this Riga Black Balsam I kept seeing everywhere, so I headed to the extremely busy supermarket in the middle of Old Town. I went to the alcohol aisle and stared at the large variety of choices, while frantic locals swarmed around me. I'm not sure what the deal is with locals in Riga, but they are always running around as if they have a 10-minute lunch break. You're always in somebody's way. I can understand they're probably sick and tired of tourists, but that's the primary industry here after all..

At the supermarket I finally selected a Coke mixed drink with Black Balsam in it, for around 1 lat. I also decided to try some Vodka, and selected a popular looking brand for around 4 lats. At the register I caused quite a hold-up as I attempted to ask for a bag for my drinks. In Riga they charge you for plastic bags, and you have to ask for them specifically. I asked the lady for a plastic bag and she wanted 5 santīms or cents. Talk about nickel and diming! That's just the way it is here however. They also charge extra for cream and sugar if you order a coffee.

It started raining heavily again, and I traveled to the holocaust museum which has good cover from such weather. I decided to go to my favorite coffee place, Tea and Coffee Garden! There I actually ran into a pleasant barista, and she was happy to answer my many silly questions. She was from outside of Riga. I have noticed that Latvians from outside of the city are generally nicer than those from the city. Perhaps it's too early to make such a generalization though. The barista explained in detail about the differences between coffee and espresso, at least at her cafe. Coffee is just a larger quantity, but it is also weaker. Espresso is a small quantity, but stronger. This is similar to back home. I can hardly imagine how strong espresso must be here though. The coffee tastes like espresso from back home it's so strong!

Many Latvians don't consider Riga a city, but something closer to "the country inside a city" if that makes any sense. They say that everyone knows everyone around here. I've started to notice some "regulars" around Old Town so I can believe that. The opera singing man was out again today near McDonalds, and he's always fun to listen to. He has been the most consistent street performer that I've seen so far.

I ventured around on both sides of the Freedom Monument. The entire area is essentially a large park with some streams and even flower gardens. There are plenty of park benches and paths to walk down. The water seems pretty dirty in this area for some reason. The ducks don't seem to mind but I certainly wouldn't want to touch it. I wonder what that's all about? The area around the Freedom Monument is by far the best people watching area. There are tons of locals and tourists crossing the road going into and out of Old Town. The traffic here actually stops for pedestrians! Amazing!

While walking towards the tram station, I walked by the restaurant "TurKebab". This is a self-proclaimed authentic Turkish kebab restaurant which has a fast-food feel. I decided I really wanted to try one of the kebabs. They offered me some different choices, such as chicken or beef, or both. I chose both. I also selected hot sauce. The kebab was large and very tasty. The price was a great value at somewhere around 2.5 lats. Like most restaurants, they had an outdoor terrace and free wifi. The password for the wifi was on the receipt.

During the last few days, I haven't had quite the endurance as before, so I went home a bit earlier than usual. I've been doing SO much walking here and I'm not used to it. After getting back to the hotel I went to check out the first floor restaurant. The waitresses there always seem very jumpy, as if they could be fired at any moment for not providing the best service. My favorite not so friendly yet incredibly beautiful (Russian?) waitress came to ask if I needed help before I could even read the menu at the entrance. I asked what time the buffet closed but she didn't have time for my questions and ran off someplace. Another waitress came over to give me the hours. I wasn't particularly hungry so I headed to my room to try the Black Balsam Coke! It was similar to a Jack Daniels and Coke, with some additional strange flavors.

While writing this post, I watched Latvia win a bronze medal in Men's Beach Volleyball! Congratulations to Latvia on their first medal at the London 2012 Olympic Games!