Caught in the Wind

Day 5, 17.09.2020

I woke up before the alarm clock we set for 6 AM.

By 7h20 we left the magnificent Aglona Basilika Church were we stayed for 2 days behind, and walked a short distance to the bus station in the Aglona village.

Autumn has definitely arrived here in Latvia and with it has the cold, it was a very windy and cold morning and I wished I would've packed my warmest winter jacket.

From Aglona we drove about 45km to Rēzekne.

Rēzekne

is a city in the Rēzekne River valley in Latgale region of eastern Latvia.

It is calledThe Heart of Latgale (Latvian-Latgales sirds, Latgalian-Latgolys sirds).

Built on seven hills, Rēzekne is situated 242 kilometres (150 miles) east of Riga, and 63 kilometres (39 miles) west of the Latvian-Russian border, at the intersection of the Moscow – Ventspils and Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railways. It has a population of 31,216.

Marijas Kafija

When we arrived we first walked around looking for a cozy and warm cafe to have some tea and coffee and eat some breakfast.

After walking around for a while we found the rustically cafe situated in a corner off the Main Street in town.

A nice place in Rezekne, all dishes we chose were really delicious, and our waitress was very kind and did her best to serve us.

We were very satisfied with everything. Food was really tasty, stuff was nice and prices were affordable.

After our delicious breakfast we explored the town bit even though it was cold.

Places of interest amongst others we saw where:

Castle Ruins

The Castle Ruins, situated on the hill by the river, are the reminders of the ancient fortified residence of ancient Latgalians which existed there from the 9th to 13th centuries. At the end of the 13th century the Livonian Order built a stone castle (Rozitten castle). It was situated in a strategically important place, so the Russians, Lithuanians and Poles were seeking to conquer it. The castle was completely destroyed during the Polish-Swedish war (1656-1660).

Latgales Māra

One of the most famous statues in Latvia, known as "Latgales Māra", is found in Rēzekne. It was designed by Leons Tomašickis and first unveiled on September 8, 1939. The bronze statue commemorates the liberation of Latgale from the Red Army in January 1920.

The central figure, the woman, is popularly associated with Māra the ancient Latvian goddess of motherhood, fertility, and earth.

The centre of culture "Gors"

The multifunctional culture centre "Gors" (The Embassy of Latgale) was opened in 2013. In addition to the main 1000-seat concert hall, it includes a 220-seat concert hall, Registration of marriages hall, exhibition space, repetition halls and a restaurant. The centre is used for a variety of purposes, including concerts, conferences, film, ballet and theatre

Latgale Culture and History Museum

The Latgale Culture and History Museum currently houses a vast collection of Latgale pottery, fine art and ethnographic objects.

Here we viewed permanent exhibitions:

•           “Wonders of clay and fire” – the world’s largest collection of Latgale ceramics;

•           “Rezekne’s history throughout different eras” – the history of the city throughout 7 centuries;

•           “Latgalian painting” – artistic expressions in Latgale in 30s of the 20th century to our days.

For Lunch we headed back to the same restaurant we ate breakfast before and I enjoyed African ostrich burger. We spent quite some time in the cafe to kill time, and in the afternoon we took a short bus ride to the train station and headed back to home to Riga, the capitol city where we live. I rested and slept bit on the ride home.

All in all I enjoyed my trip out of Riga and got to know other parts of Latvia better.

This weekend I will rest at home and prepare for work which I start on Monday.

Holiday well spent indeed.