The next morning we caught a cab out to the reception hall for the post-wedding breakfast and to say our goodbyes. There was still some alcohol left over so Dita proceeded to distribute the bottles to the remaining guests, I received a bottle of champagne which is now tightly packed in my luggage, Jim got both a bottle of vodka and a bottle of brandy.

Once we said our goodbyes and thank yous we got a ride back to our hotel from one of Laura’s friends we killed some time and went across the bridge to a little bar Jim had found that had great French fries with a very tasty dill and garlic dipping sauce. We caught our minibus to Riga promptly at 1555 and after a very bumpy ride down the A9 we were dropped off by a beautiful brick building in downtown Riga around 1930. Not sure where we were dropped off exactly we had seen signs for the train station so we walked ten minutes or so through the town market (which unfortunately was already closed for the night) and found an information office where we asked for directions to the hotel, turns out the hotel was right around the corner from thebuilding we were dropped off at, oh well. So we made our way back towards the hotel, checked in, then met back up at 2030 to find dinner. We walked into the Old Town, past some beautiful churches and winding streets and, after a bit of wandering, found one of the restaurants that had been recommended to us by the hotel.

It was in the basement of a building right across the street from the grand National Opera House and was definitely worth the walk. Jim, Jeremy and I had pints of local beer and we started the meal off with amazing garlic bread that Jim had recommended we get. It was different than anything I’d ever had before. It was a dark bread permeated with garlic then (my best guess is) deep fried so the outside was crisp but the interior was still soft then all of it was sprinkled with sea salt and served with a dill butter sauce. YUM. We were also given a bread basket with a traditional (according to our server) side of some kind of bacon and onion spread, also very good. Jim and I split a bowl of cream of potato soup with chantrelle mushrooms and smoked eel (tasty), and for my main course I had salmon with dill potatoes and white asparagus. I really love how they prepare potatoes here, they’re buttery but not oily and slightly crisp on the outside, need to figure out how to replicate that at home.

After dinner we headed back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep and then met up for breakfast at 8 the next morning. At breakfast they had really tasty eggs that were a combination of an omlette and a fritatta, they were served in square slices and were golden brown on top and fluffy inside, very tasty and one more thing I’d like to figure out how to do at home.

We met up with our airport taxi at 9 and have been waiting for the Lufthansa desk to open for checkin (there aren’t any Lufthansa-specific desks, they just open at some point before a flight leaves). It looks like they may be opening the desk now (it’s 1130, our flight is at 1335) so I will finish up and see everyone back in the States!

It has been a wonderful trip, a beautiful wedding, and I’m so glad we were able to make it out. Next will be sorting through the 1500+ pictures I’ve taken 😉

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