Vilnius, Lithuania

When I arrived in Vilnius by bus it looked boring; new office buildings on the north side of the Neris river and on the south a compact old town marked by pastel coloured churches.

Vilnius can be done in a day and is easy to navigate due to its small size and plentiful English signage. Unless you are a connoisseur of baroque architecture or a Frank Zappa fan on a pilgrimage to see his head on a stick, there is not much to see.

From 1945 to 1990, the only way for Lithuanian residents to travel abroad was by plane via Moscow and only privileged people. For western visitors it was off limits unless you had a good reason to be there with restrictions.

And the legacy of those communist days is still there with the city seeming to lack personality and the service is sour, except for the older women driving trolley buses in casual clothes, who decorate their buses with flowers, stuffed toys and frilly curtains.

Things to do

• Wander around the old town looking at Baroque Catholic churches following a circuit around the main roads. I did this twice in case I had missed something, which I hadn’t. The tourist office has an audio guide tour around the old town. There are plaques to read at each attraction but the tour gives more information about local legends.

• Cathedral Square centrepiece is the neo-classical Vilnius Cathedral. Sunday mass is standing room only. Massive concrete columns inside and consists of eleven chapels. The beggars queue up outside church entrances to collect as people leave. Outside the Cathedral is a Bell Tower consisting of a mix of architectural styles and a clock which is missing the minute hand. The tower is a remnant from the old city walls but has been re-constructed over the years.

Vilnius Cathedral and Bell Tower.

• Gediminas Tower next to the Upper Castle has the most practical view over the city. The founder of Vilnius was Grand Duke Gediminas and this area is also known as Gediminas Hill or Gediminas Castle dating back to the 14^th Century and was mostly destroyed in the 17^th Century during a war with Moscow. Currently it is under re-construction.  It can be accessed by short steep walk up the hill or via the 35 second funicular ride. In the tower is a museum of armoury and a model of medieval Vilnius.

Gediminas Hill and castle.

• Museum of Genocide Victims. To understand the struggles of Lithuanians in the 20^th Century, a visit to this museum chronicles their suffering and resistance. This former Gestapo, NKVD then KGB headquarters is where you will learn about the deportation and repression of the local people. Extensive information on resistance fighters can be seen along with the chilling basement cells where prisoners were kept and tortured up until 1991. Including two water torture cells used to keep prisoners awake for excessive periods. Also there is much information about the Lithuanian Jewish holocaust during the Second World War when approximately 95% of the Jews were murdered.

The plaque outside Museum of Genocide Victims written in three languages.

 

• Walking past the old town walls off Subaciaus, there is a park in with a fantastic view higher than the castle. If you go here don’t bother straining yourself to the more touristy Hill of Three Crosses as the view is the same.

 

The view from a park off old town street called Subaciaus.

• Frank Zappa memorial statue hidden away in a back street west of the old town called K. Kalinausko. Frank Zappa has no connection to Vilnus and never visited the city but he has fans who collected enough money to commission this bronze statue.

Frank Zappa surrounded by Cheech and Chong graffiti.

• Uzupio Republic was once the poorest and neglected suburb of Vilnius and home to craftsman and weavers. Now the alternative artist district, Uzupio declared its independence on 1 April 1997. The Republic has its own president, prime minister, flag, anthem, Constitution in 12 languages which is displayed on a wall in Paupio Street. Nearby is the “national symbol” of Uzupio Republic the bronze guardian angel blowing her horn overlooking a small square. Seated in a wall next to the river is the Uzupio mermaid sculpture. Bernardine Cemetery is a scenic and peaceful place to visit and free of people, except for the buried ones.

A grave with the ‘tree of life’ in Bernardine Cemetery.

On a sunny day sit in one of the numerous parks or on the Neris riverbank planning your next move out of town.

Day trip
Trakai Castle is a 30 minutes by train from Vilnius. A medieval red castle in planted on an island which has been rebuilt with a drawbridge to get to the island. Trakai was once the capital of Lithuania.

Three hours from Vilnius near the border with Latvia is the Hill of Crosses. The Soviets took the memorial crosses away but people kept adding them back and 100,000 crosses have been put there since 1800s. There is a souvenir shop there so you can buy a cross to add yourself if so inclined.

Stay
Home Made House. A new boutique hostel conveniently located between the old town and train and bus station. Owner Linja will welcome you and tell you all about growing up behind the Iron Curtain and how Vilnius is trying to move on.

Avoid
Cili Pica Restaurant – An Italian chain of restaurants popular with the locals but bland food. My pasta was from a packet and not cooked properly and very small serves. Flat soft drinks and smelly toilets.

The main square in Vilnius old town in front of the town hall.

 Related posts:

Riga, Latvia: A Baltic city full of surprises

Riga, Latvia - The Great Cemetery

Latvian football – Skonto FC vs Liepajas Metalurgs

Posh Backpackers. Riga, Latvia

Photo essay: Memento Park, Hungary

Hungary’s Socialist past has been preserved at Memento Park and within easy reach by public transport (tram or bus) 10 kilometres outside of Budapest centre.

Opened in1993, Memento Park is an open-air statue museum with approximately fifty old communist leader statues which were erected in the streets of Budapest between 1947-1988. These statues and plaques boasted the ideology and leaders of Communism and were saved from destruction after the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

There is also an exhibition centre in an old barracks building displaying the events of the ill-fated Hungarian Revolution in 1956 and what life was like during the Soviet occupation in Budapest up to the 1989-90 political changes.

The highlight for me was the documentary secret agent film called “The Life of an Agent” which is shown in the exhibition. Unintentionally entertaining in black and white film, it explains how to recruit an agent, how to bug an apartment and other secret surveillance methods.

The world is in the iron hands. This Workers’ Movement Memorial shows the two hands protecting the granite ball representing the perfect ideology which the workers’ movement had perfected.

Based on a 1919 revolutionary poster, this mammoth figure is one of the highlights at Memento Park. These giant symbolic statues were to remind people of how powerful Socialism was.

A mishmash of tin-looking soldiers, officials and workers makes up the Bela Kun Memorial Bela Kun was the leader of the 1919 Hungarian Soviet Republic and is showing the way with his hat at the back of this memorial.

Comrades. The Soviet soldier meets the Hungarian man symbolising their friendship.

A replica of Stalin’s boots which were all that were left when anti-Soviet protested pulled down the statue in  Heroes Square during the Hungarian Revolution in 1956. It had been built as a gift to Stalin for his 70th birthday in 1951 and had an inscription reading ‘Stalin, Hungary’s leader, teacher and best friend’.

Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels were regarded as the founders of Communism as authors of ‘The Communist Manifesto’ of 1848.

Dancing in the gloom.

Ghost wall.

Mirogoj Cemetery – Zagreb, Croatia

A cemetery as a tourist attraction may not appeal to everyone’s taste.  Although art galleries are and Mirogoj Cemetery is a vast outdoor display of tombstone sculptures, produced by Croatian artists as tribute to the fellow artisans buried there.  Divided into sections depending on faith, it is definitely worth a visit and very photogenic.

Main entrance to Mirogoj Cemetery

A short ride north on bus number 106 from Zagreb Cathedral, Mirogoj Cemetery is one of the finest examples of where to be buried in Europe, if not the world. With the first internment in 1876, this beautifully landscaped memorial park was named after the previous land owner Miroslav Herkul Mirogojski.

November 1^st is widely known as ‘All Saints Day’. The Croatians call it ‘Day of the Dead’ when relatives and friends visit their loved ones who have passed on. My visit to Mirogoj was a few days after and every plot were embellished with colourful bunches of flowers and remnants of candles.

New part of the cemetery decorated first week of November

If you were a local, many of the interned names would be familiar. Croatian writers, politicians, poets, composers and the like. Perhaps foreigners may recognise internationally renowned opera singer Milka Trnina or international basketball player Dražen Petrović (died 1993 in a car accident in Germany).

The grave of Croatian writer Miroslav Krleža

The oldest section of the cemetery features a 500 metre wall frontage from north to south, completed in 1929 with green cupolas. Inside, these walls house sculptured arcade lanes with leafy vines and the crypts of past affluent families.

Wall of the cemetery from outside

One of the many arcades within the walls of Mirogoj

Taking up prominent space behind the Christ the King Church at the main entrance is the first Croatian president Franjo Tuđman. He died a Croatian national hero in 1999 while still in office.

President Franjo Tuđman has a prime position

There are numerous war memorials dedicated to lives lost in wars, including The Grave of National Heroes dedicated to the struggle for Yugoslavian freedom in World War II.  There was an attempt to blow the memorial up in 2001 without serious damage done.

including The Grave of National Heroes

There is also German Soldier burial ground on the edge of the cemetery is simply marked with white crosses.

German soldier graves

After wandering around for a few hours, I had seen only a small percentage of the burials at Mirogoj. There was a myriad of sculpture, decorations and tomb styles celebrating lives, each unique and individual more so than any other cemetery I have visited in Europe. A highly recommended day out while in Zagreb.

Related posts:

Zagreb. There is more to Croatia than the Adriatic Coast

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Bosnian Pyramids

Hostel review: Posh Backpackers. Riga, Latvia

Posh Backpackers is located in the Moscow district of Riga.

I arrived after dark to a block of confusing deserted streets. All the surrounding brick buildings looked like abandoned warehouses and minor alarm arose until I found the small Hostel sign.

Posh Backpackers entrance

Waking in the morning to noise outside, I looked out the window to find a busy flower market. During the day, with the market at the doorstep, the area is bustling and invigorates you to get out and explore Riga.

Close to Central Market, Posh Backpackers is very walkable to old town Riga and a comfortable place to stay.

Central Market, Riga

The common room was small with sofas, a computer and TV. There was no kitchen to speak of, only a small refrigerator, a bench with a kettle but there is no need to cook for yourself to save travel money. Riga is so cheap to eat out.

I had a large dorm to myself which consisted of a double bed, two singles and a fold-out sofa. The heating was sufficient to avoid the chill outside with old-style double windows.

My dorm at Posh Backpackers

Wi-Fi access was available and the staff friendly as East Europeans can get. There was a lack of English with some but it is always fun to communicate in sign language, with smiles and basic English keywords.  The older female staff tried so hard to help and made me feel so much at home, like Grandma was making sure I was comfortable and happy.

Nearby, there were a couple of local bars if you want to go out at night and mingle with locals without being ripped off.

Plus:- Easy walk to main bus and train station. Next to the Central Market. Friendly staff and well heated.

Minus:- No lockers. Can get noisy with street cleaning trucks in the middle of the night around dawn when market stalls are set up. Showers ran out of warm water fast.

Breakfast:- A decent feast of eggs and bacon with cheese toast for guests staying in private rooms. Otherwise a cheap 2 lats per person.

Address:- Pupolu iela 5 (Central Markets); LV-1050, Riga, Latvia

http://poshbackpackers.com

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Riga, Latvia: A Baltic city full of surprises

Latvian football – Skonto FC vs Liepajas Metalurgs

Riga, Latvia – The Great Cemetery

Vilnius, Lithuania

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Hostel review – Blue Mountains YHA, Katoomba, Australia

Accomodation review: Condor Ocean View Apartments, Surfers Paradise, Australia

Riga, Latvia. A Baltic city full of surprises

The Latvians have had a hard life and not just because of the weather.

Flying in over the docklands I saw burnt out buildings and the ground was black.  At first I thought it was coal, but later realised Riga has been built on black sand.

Deeper investigation reveals that Riga can erase the gloomy stigma surrounding the Baltic cities. There is more to Riga then the black trees, the black water of the Daugava River along with the black skies. Even the local favourite drink is black – “Kvass” a fermented rye which is definitely an acquired taste.

Riga is definitely worth a visit, especially for the architecture. Below are some choice itinerary suggestions:

Occupation Museum

Walk around this free museum with the provided black folder which explains the Latvians struggle against the Russians and then temporarily welcomed the Nazis as liberators. Only to be given back to the Russians after World War 2.

A large part of the exhibition displays personal items of camp prisoners such as handmade needles, embroided handkerchiefs, spoons made from melted aluminium bowls. The rope shoes and pitiful clothing worn while working in -40C after being transported to work camps in Siberia.

Horrific stories are told about people hidden when they died so others could still get their rations.

Stalin’s’ red-penned signature can be seen on a map of new borders from the Germany-USSR treaty agreed on in Moscow in 1939.

The red granite Monument to the Riflemen is a typically bloated Soviet-era statue outside the Occupation Museum. Once celebrating Latvian riflemen who protected Lenin after the 1917 revolution, it now honours all riflemen from wars gone by.

Town Hall Square

In the past the square was a weekend marketplace. Also where criminals were humiliated and witches were burnt at the stake. The first Christmas tree in Europe was decorated here and a bronze disk marks the spot. The surrounding buildings were destroyed during World War II and replaced by Soviet concrete abominations.

House of the Blackheads was rebuilt in 1999 and is the most photographed sight in Riga due to design and shiny pieces on the roof as decoration. It is two houses connected by an interior courtyard with a museum inside.

House Of The Blackheads in Town Hall Square

St Peters Cathedral

For 3Lt you can go up to the 360 degree observation platform via the manned elevator. There you can see is how flat Riga is with no mountains or hills to be seen. The tower is the tallest in Riga and has been toppled three times due to fires and war.

View of Riga to the South

Art Nouveau

One third of the buildings in central Riga are built this style therefore 700 – 800 buildings. The best examples are 10b Elizabetes Iela and 41 Strenieku Iela, now the School of Economics. Built prior to World War I, they have been restored to their original design.

10b Elizabetes Iela

Orthodox Cathedral

This five gold cupola masterpiece was returned to the people in 1990 and restoration finished in 2006. During the Soviet era it was a planetarium, cinema and restaurant.

Museum of Natural History

Opened in 1845, I think the stuffed animals on display are as old as the museum. There are five floors covering zoology and taxidermy, geology, botany, palaeontology and human evolution including skulls and foetuses in jars.

Freedom Monument

On the edge of the old town is the tall National symbol of Latvia erected in 1935 before the Soviet occupation. The fresco beneath the statue depicts Latvian’s singing, working and fighting for their country. On top stands a woman holding three stars above her head representing the three cultural regions of Latvia. The Soviets surprisingly did not tear down the monument and instead erected the now removed statue of Lenin which stood behind facing the east towards Moscow. Between 9am and 6pm two guards stand to attention below and change each hour.

Freedom Monument

Basteljkalns Park

Bastion Hill was once a part of the city defence network and the second highest hill in Riga rising 16 meters above sea level consisting of black sand. There are the memorial stones for five victims from 1991 when Black Beret forces loyal to Moscow attempted to take over government buildings nearby. Bordering the old and new Riga, small boats can be hired to cruise along the canal. Nearby the Bridge of Love fences are full of padlocks attached by married couples.

Basteljkalns Park

Moscow District

With many Russian immigrants moving to Riga for hundreds of years, this part of Riga has interesting sights to see.  The wooden buildings rotting away are protected by the state.

Dominating the skyline is the Latvian Academy of Sciences built in1956/57 as a gift to Riga from workers and peasants from the Soviet republics. The design is based on the ‘Seven Sisters’ in skyscrapers in Moscow and Warsaw. The hammer and sickles can be seen on the façade.

Academy of Science

Riga Central Market is Europe’s largest market consisting of five pavilions built as intended zeppelin hangers in the 1920’s. Each pavilion sells different products such as live air-gasping fish and caviar, meat, fruit and vegetables, clothing and household goods.

The outdoor stalls sell cheap tobacco, odds and sods with a flower market held each weekend. Old ladies sit knitting while serving customers.

Riga Central Market

On the corner of Gogola and Dzirnavu Iela you will find the flea market Latgalite full of Soviet-era items such as medals, pins and uniforms. It seems you can find anything at this market with piles of rusty tools and second-hand man toys.

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Latvian football – Skonto FC vs Liepajas Metalurgs

Riga, Latvia – The Great Cemetery

Vilnius, Lithuania

FK Rabotnicki Skopje vs. FK Drita, Macedonian National Arena

Arriving at the newly built Macedonian National Arena in Gradski Park twenty minutes before kick-off, I thought I had got the time wrong. I couldn’t find a ticket office and there and a lack of football fans. After walking up and down a few times past some bars I figured out that a man serving from a portable table was where tickets were purchased for approximately 1,50 Euro (100 den).

Rabotnicki Skopje was founded in 1937 and have won 13 titles. In the 2000s they’ve been competing in UEFA Cup and Championship Leagues qualifiers.

For a world class stadium seating approximately 40,000, it was empty with the only area open to sit on the wing. There was no fan-zone, singing or atmosphere. Most of the spectators were made up of old men puffing on cigarettes.

Obviously proud of the brand-new speaker system, loud techno music was pumped out before the game, during the drink break due to the heat and at half time.

The standard of play was poor from the start with pathetic passing and missed opportunities. Also the refereeing was atrocious with a missed handball decision and a ball obviously out of play however not picked up.

After 14 minutes, Rabotnicki scored. The player celebration was slightly over the top as they jumped on each other and injured the goal scorer in the process.

Drita scored a penalty not long after the drink break at the 30 minute mark when the Rabotnicki goalkeeper brought a player down in the square.

Half time score 1-1.

Police were enjoying a relaxing day at work as they sat in groups of three or four watching the football and playing with their mobile phones.

In the second half two teenage boys sat behind me began singing half-heartedly but got bored and gave up quickly.

Stretching to save a very wide shot at goal by Drita, the Rabotnicki goalie head-butted the goalpost and knocked himself out resulting in an ambulance taking him away.

There was a lot of rolling around on the ground in imaginary pain but the referee took no notice.  It’s all a stroll in the park and lazy game with players during play waving to friends or family in the stand.

Drita had many corner kicks in the second half but had no support from their own players as most the team are on the half way line with three left in the box to try capitalize on the chance. Drita go 2-1 up at the 78 minute mark after getting one past the replacement goalkeeper.

In the end the score is 2-2. Rabotnicki equalise late in injury time to save them from defeat.

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Zagreb. There is more to Croatia than the Adriatic Coast

When I told people I was going to visit Zagreb, I was asked “Why Zagreb?  Go to the coast to Split or Dubrovnik”.  A friend who had been to Zagreb told me it was “depressing”.  I had no expectations arriving by train from Vienna and was soon to learn that Zagreb is an underrated destination.

I didn’t realize it had once been a stop-off for the Orient Express. The posh Esplanade Regent Hotel next door had been built especially for the train patrons. The tourist office at the station had referred me to the concierge at the Regent to buy the Zagreb Card. I looked out of place waiting in the lobby with my backpack admiring the marble columns and elegance.

I stayed at a hostel on the edge of the city – near Crnomerec tram stop – where an improvised flea-market had been set up by housewives. A low wall displayed second-hand colourful cardigans and sweaters, raided from their cupboards to sell in desperation.

Crnomerec tram stop flea market

Feeling ravenously hungry after check-in, my hostel host referred me to the Nokturno restaurant, which was a short tram journey into town close to Jelacic Square. Jelacic Square is a popular meeting place under the statue of General Ban Josip Jelačić riding his horse.

General Ban Josip Jelačić statue

Dolac farmers market, behind the square, has both inside and outside areas selling vegetables, eggs, meat, fruit, cheeses and flowers, lots of homemade breads and cheeses. Bring an empty bottle and vendors will fill it with home grown wine. Souvenirs can be bought here, such as wooden ornaments and t-shirts.

Dolac farmers market

Down the narrow, dead-end street named Skalinska, I found Nokturno overflowing with customers. Serving generous sized Italian dishes at a bargain price, my capricciosa pizza was more like a large then the ordered small and most definitely tasty. I was to come back to eat here each day.

A funicular railway, touted as one of the steepest and shortest in the world, operates between Lower and Upper Towns. Next to the funicular in Upper Town is the Museum of Broken Relationships. It has a permanent exhibition of donated items that once meant something to someone. Objects such as photographs, garden gnomes, an axe used to chop up furniture, torn love letters and smashed phones, tell emotional stories which are sometimes funny, sometimes doom and gloom.

The Zagreb Mummy is on display in the Archaeological Museum. Her name was Nesi-hensu from Thebes, Egypt. The museum is crowd-free with an extensive collection of artefacts to admire filling in half a day.

The Zagreb Mummy

The Mimara Museum houses a huge collection of art, thanks to local collector Ante Topić Mimara donating 3,700 pieces, dating from the prehistoric period up to the 20^th century. The collection includes works by the best – Raffaello, Caravaggio, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Van Goyen, Rubens, Velasquez, Goya, Holbein, Gainsborough, Renoir and Degas.

Sightseeing includes a lot of cool looking religious references. Like St Mark’s Church which is surrounded by embassies, guards and parliament. It is a recognisable symbol of Croatia with a roof mosaic similar to the national flag.

St Marks Church

Also, Upper Town has the skyline-imposing Zagreb Cathedral. Inside is the tomb of local hero Cardinal Aloysius Stepinac. In Zagreb there are a lot of tears to witness when it comes to religion. When I visited the Cathedral it was busy with old ladies and schoolchildren solemnly filing past the Cardinals tomb crossing themselves and weeping.

The nearby Old Town Gate has a shrine to the Virgin Mary. Locals light a candle and sob at Mary’s portrait. The painting is considered sacred as it was the only survivor of a past massive blaze.

Zagreb has one of the most beautiful cemeteries in Europe. Opened in 1876, Mirogoj Cemetery is a ten minute bus ride to the north of Upper Town and is surrounded by tall, leafy walls. It is well-kept with flowers and candles on almost every grave and impressive arched tomb arcades.

Mirogoj Cemetery outside walls

My three days in Zagreb went fast and was unexpectedly enjoyable. I was surprised how green Zagreb was with decent slabs of parkland around town. In three days, I explored little of what Zagreb has to offer and plan to return in Summer.

Related posts:

Mirogoj Cemetery – Zagreb, Croatia

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Czech Republic – Sedlec Ossuary, The bone church in Kutna Hora

I awoke early for the 6:02 a.m. regional train out of Prague to the Czech countryside town of Kutna Hora. I was on my way to see a place that had been on my ‘to-do’ list for a long time. Sedlec Ossuary; the infamous church decorated with human bones. The journey took one hour and shrouded in fog, although I did see out the window my first wild deer standing in ploughed fields.

To the Ossuary, Kutna Hora train station is an easy twenty minute walk following tourist signs and children on their way to school. Sedlec is an outer suburb of this former silver mining boom town.

I arrived early and filled in time breakfasting on something that looked like a sausage roll from a small supermarket around the corner from the Ossuary. The only other shops around were closed souvenirs vendors.

At the Ossuary, a German film-crew was setting up their cameras outside the entrance. I walked around the surrounding graveyard, noticing a lot of fresh flowers left by early morning locals who had been coming and going quickly.

Sedlec Ossuary with the surrounding graveyard

A 13th Century Abbot brought soil back from Golgotha and sprinkled it over the Ossuary graveyard, spurring a belief that if one was buried here, their body decomposed to dust in three days.

In the 1500’s, bodies had been dug up due to over-crowding. It is said that a bored, half-blind monk decided to do something constructive with the stacked bones of 40,000 people around the Ossuary and used them for interior design.

Skulls and bones making up the bell/pyramid structures

The Schwarzenburg family bought the Ossuary in the 1700s and commissioned a woodcarver to redecorate some more. He added a coat-of-arms and a chandelier made from every bone in the human body.

After opening time at 9:00, I walked in and was immediately warned to “shhhh” by one of the film-crew.  Gunther von Hagens, a recognisable and controversial face from German ghost-and-ghoul TV documentaries, was being filmed under the chandelier.

Gunther von Hagens on camera

Creeping around inside, trying not to make echoing stepping sounds, the place seemed smaller than I thought it would be, but definitely big on bones and decoration. There were four large bells or pyramids stacked and surrounded by a protective ‘fence’. A glass cabinet displayed more unusual skulls, including one with a huge hole that had started to heal.

The glass skull cabinet with a hole in the skull semi-healed.

Hanging outside one of the bell pyramids was the Schwarzenburg coat-of-arms. A bird is depicted in the bottom-right panel pecking out an eye. Some of the designs have a touch of humour about them.

Raven pecking an eye out.

The chandelier was definitely impressive and worth seeing in real life, although Gunter hogged my photo frame as he perfected his spiel underneath. This place is a unique piece of alternative art.

Chandelier made from every bone in the human body

I left Gunter and his team to it as I exited past the gift shop full of tacky skull trinkets.

I had a fifty minute wait for my train back to Prague. I waited on the empty station platform until Misha, a painter from Ukraine approached me asking if I had a cigarette. Our language limitations revealed that he was a painter and played racquetball. He insisted on shaking and kissing both my hands, pleased to meet someone from a place so far away that he couldn’t fathom where it was.

Then he groped my breast so I moved elsewhere on the platform and pondered how that would be a sexual assault in my country.

Link to my photo essay of Sedlec Ossuary

Latvian football – Skonto FC vs Liepajas Metalurgs

The infographic sign above the ticket office at Skonto Stadium shows bombs and guns are banned inside, along with syringes. Tickets to the game are only 1 Lt (1,50 Euro) and come with a 6 page guide, written in Latvian, showing the players and current Virsliga table.  Skonto FC sits in second place and Liepajas are fifth after four games of the season.

Skonto Stadium ticket office

Skonto has won the national title 15 times, including 14 years in a row since their inception in 1991. Virsliga was suspended from 1944 due to the Soviet inconvience.  Winning 14 titles in a row is a European record. Skontos’ other boasting right is holding Chelsea FC to a scoreless draw when hosting a UEFA Champions League qualifier in 1999.

The Skonto Stadium in Riga is also the home ground for the Latvian national team and seats approximately 8,000 but this evening there is lucky to be 200 people here.

Skonto Stadium. You can see the game without paying through the temporary fences.

The only entrance open is via the club rooms where a dusty trophy cabinet greets you at the door. The merchandise shop consists of a few garments hanging off a clothing rack and there was little interest in it.

There is a bar lounge inside where the local beer, called Zelta, is served in a plastic cup. The bar girl serving was chatty as her job is very boring with just a handful of customers. She tells me how she would love to see the game outside. I ask her why she doesn’t turn on the TVs nearby but she replies that they are not allowed to be on as “there are money problems”.

Both teams walk out to an instrumental fanfare and gather for team photos before kick-off.  Players are mostly Latvians with one Japanese, one from Panama and a smattering of ex-Soviet Bloc nationalities.

Throughout the game the home team fan-zone sing familiar football chants in their own language. There are only thirteen hard core Skonto fans standing tonight in front of various homemade banners, including Bart Simpson with his pants down.

Below them is an old guy who looks drunk and sings his own songs loudly. By half time he was hoarse and was later responsible for the smoke bomb that goes off.

Skonto FC fan zone

In the second half, the scoreboard, which looks more like a basketball scoreboard, decides to work finally. Surprisingly no one claps for any good play, like when the goalie makes a good save.

Skonto is in red

Liepajas score the one and only goal of the game at the 48 minute mark. The skill standard is comparable to an amateur senior’s competition, although the majority of the players for Skonto are under 23 years of age. I doubt they are professional players yet they have a good chance of making the Latvian national team.

Smoke bomb and scoreboard

The defence for Liepajas are the size of giants and prove hard to get past for the Skonto level the score line.  It stays at 0-1 and Skonto lose a rare home game.

The official crowd attendance was 250 on a Wednesday night. The bargirl had told me it was quiet due to the weather being too cold. I didn’t think it was cold at all but then again, the game was one of the most boring games I’ve been too.  I think basketball is a more popular sport in the Baltic region. Or weightlifting.

Related posts:

Tel Aviv, Israel. Football: Hapoel Tel Aviv vs. Bnei Yehuda

FK Rabotnicki Skopje vs. FK Drita, Macedonian National Arena

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Riga, Latvia. A Baltic city full of surprises

Riga, Latvia – The Great Cemetery

Hostel Review: Posh Backpackers. Riga, Latvia

Riga, Latvia – The Great Cemetery (Russian Orthodox section)

The Great Cemetery was set up in 1773.  At the time, Catherine the Great decided that all burials in the Russian empire were to be moved from churchyards to new cemeteries set up on town boundaries. This was to overcome the overcrowding due to the outbreak of the Black Plague.

Orthodox church in background.

Walking north-east from the centre of Riga, I came across the Russian section of the Great Cemetery. I have never seen Russian Orthodox crosses before. It has three horizontal beams and the bottom one is a tilted footrest.

Russian Orthodox cross

It was a quiet place and I saw no other visitors. The graves have no flowers, except for the occasional weather-beaten plastic arrangement. The trees, in mid springtime, were still bare sticks and gave the place a bleak, dark atmosphere.

Plastic flowers and grass on a grave

Wooden crosses on graves

The Orthodox Church in the middle of the graveyard was closed and seemed to only in use for funerals. A few burials have taken place since WWII but not many.

The majority of the graves have concrete boxes on top, although small and not practical to hold an adult. I gather they are traditional or symbolic to place above a grave. Many were nameless.

There was a small section of graves of World War II Russian soldiers at the back of the cemetery.

Russian soldier memorial from WWII

Russian soldier graves from WWII

One of the Russian soldier graves.

The Great Cemetery continues across a main road from this Russian section. The area is used as parkland, more then a cemetery nowadays. A lot of the headstones have deteriorated over the years or been destroyed when Latvia was occupied by the Russians and Nazi’s.

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