Last week I came home from home. This year I have been traveling to very affordable destinations for me. Places where I have someone waiting for me. Where I have a bed made for me already. In July I flew to Latvia and then took the bus to my birth city, Ventspils. A beautiful coastal town with a lot of things to do. Especially for families with kids.
This is my home. The place I lived in until I was sixteen and the city I want to settle down in one day. It has so many great memories and my favorite place in the world is there. My countryside. This time I, unfortunately, did not have the chance to visit it as my visit was short and I gulped every moment with my brother like my life depended on it. Yes, it is like a thirst for me. My little brother is the most important thing in the world for me, especially since the time that my irrational jealousy of him was over. You know how it is with kids that are born first and later have to share their attention... But when you grow up, that little annoying ball will be like an older son to you if you raised him.
Countryside
But before I go to Ventspils, let's visit the typical countryside of Latvia. After all, I grew up in one and I still think these places are the most beautiful of them all. In my own countryside, we have a lot of forests and Latvia is unimaginable without these. We have birch trees that we tap juices from, Christmas trees that we choose and bring home in the winter, and places to swim in or catch fish. And yes, some of these places still have outhouses but most owners have modernized their toilets. This one here is just there so the people sitting next to the pond do not have to go to the house. Plus, the toilet inside is modern, it is just the exterior that still carries the breeze from the past.
Here I met some of my classmates for a rather small reunion. Only four people from more than twenty-five showed up. But that did not make it less fun. We made real, juicy Latvian shashlik, then had some marshmallows for dessert and watermelon on the side. I even had 4 tequila tiny shots when we played ''Never Have I Ever''. And that is huge for me as I do not tend to drink alcohol often. I had a bunch of fun here and I would suggest everyone who visits Latvia to visit the countryside. It is liberating and the air there is soooo fresh! Plus, there are a lot of places close to the nature that you can book on one of the mainstream sites(like booking.com or Airbnb) for a vacation stay.
The sea
But this is the real reason I love and miss home. The sea. The place everyone visiting Ventspils should go to. The beach here is clean, the sand soft, the water cool but swim-able. The first day I arrived in the town after the visit to the countryside, it was cold at the seaside. You can see rain in the distance, too. It is abundantly clear here, in the pictures. Still, even though the water temperature was 12 degrees Celsius that day, people were at the beach and some even walked in the water. My feet froze doing so! This first day we went to the beach and I met my brother to see the sand sculptures.
However, after a couple of days, me and my brother, as well as a friend, returned to the beach. This time the water was 17 degrees and I took a swim. In fact, the beach was riddled with lots of people and many were enjoying the water. This is the most popular beach as it is closest to the city, but if you walk on the coast, for a couple of kilometers, you are bound to find much quieter places. Some Nudist beaches, too. But if you are shy, you can just close your eyes when passing these through. And, we do not have so many nudists so the possibility of you meeting one might be as big as you finding a shark in the water. Yeah, we do not have these but there is always a chance, right? :D
Maybe that was not a great example...
Being together is worth celebrating
The birthday, flower carpets, city celebrations
Even though we came to see the sculptures the day after they had been made, most were still in great condition. Some were destroyed or damaged but overall we got to appreciate almost all of their glory. I, unfortunately, do not know the theme of this competition but judging from the sculptures I would say it was ''Togetherness'' or something along these lines. We have this competition every year just like Ice Sculptures in winter but I have to admit that it was the first time I went to see those creations.
We also have another event happening every year. The birthday of our City. We celebrate the city festival from 3rd to 5th of August and it is truly beautiful. Unfortunately, my flight home was on the 3rd so this year it went past me. We also have a competition of flower carpets every year and they are also similar to these sculptures but in form of carpets, on the ground. A themed competition with loads and loads of participants. It is also the time when you should visit Ventspils if you can.
Look but do not touch!
This was one of my favorite creations of the contest. The mouses look so real and cute! This was also the first impressive sculpture that we came by and it carried a punch. Also, because we came on the second day of the sculptures, we did not have to deal with a lot of people. There were some passerby's but overall, we did not have to wait a lot to take a picture or two. Sometimes at all.
My brother had an urge to touch one of the sculptures and we had to warn him away from it. After all, these things are not made of stone. Well, they are, of millions of tiny pieces of shells and stones mixed together. But a grain of sand is not considered stone in that way, right? :D So, after we warned my brother away from the sculptures and put him on the stroller duties (my friend has a baby) we did not have other incidents. And, even though I offered to help my brother with the pulling as the sand is really mean to any tires on it, he refused and was the captain of our carriage all the way back.
Tourists love us!
These are some very nice creations by great artists! At least in my mind. I was told that the middle one is created by a participant from all the way away in Russia. It does not come as a surprise as Ventspils is a popular tourist destination in Summer. We have a lot of people coming from Russia and even more from Lithuania. Many have even bought properties for themselves here. During the summer, you will hear a lot of people conversing in Russian and Lithuanian. About winter, I do not remember as I have not been back home for a winter for a very long time and not many like to be out when it is cold.
Also, Ventspils is not great just for Summer holidays. If you are ready to face cold, cold weather, you should come and visit in Winter. Then the sea is frozen at the shore and huge ice-blocks have melted. In some places, wawes have turned into ice mid-way. Nature makes a marvelous art at this time. And, even though Latvia is quite flat (very) we have made our own skiing and snowboarding hill that feeds our winter sports lovers. There are many of us. This hill was built while I was little and I have spent some great times on it. And, taking it even further, these days, there are activities on Lemberga Hūte available all year round. Head over to check them out if you are planning your vacation, it is totally worth it to go through the obstacle course hung into the trees, or slide down a waterslide in summer!
The waterparks
These two faces were one sculpture. On one side you had one face and on the other one, there was a Sphinx. Well, almost. It looks much more Venetian than Egyptian. :D They were my second favorite sculpture before the mouses and after my own first place. The detail was made beautifully and the idea of two faces on one sculpture somewhat captured me. After all, don't we all wear at least two faces in our lives? Don't we all sometimes pretend that we are happy when we are not? I am probably reading much into this but that is the great thing about art, it speaks differently to every observer.
As I did not take pictures of every place I visited, I will mention them randomly. Just like I did the skiing hill. In Ventspils, there are two water parks. It is not that the town is big. It has around 30 000 registered citizens. But the city mayor is big on making the most of our little place. So, we have both, indoor and outdoor water parks. The indoor one is smaller and mostly features saunas. It is also only open throughout the cold season. The outdoor waterpark is the opposite, it has only one sauna and more water slides. There are not many but the place would be perfect to visit for around four hours.
Also, when I and my brother went, it was packed. The slides, however, never have long lines and they are mostly self-regulated. Also, there are mostly young families here that let their kids sit in the children's pool or hold them in the adult pool. If you are looking for a swim, this may not be the best place but if you want to have fun and slide down some slides, go for it, it is ideal! BTW, the yellow slide is the best. You can slide together with your friends as it is wide and you can make tricks on the slide as well. Jump, slide backward, etc.
We have lighthouses!
The sand sculptures were right next to the lighthouse jetty that was on the end of a long stone jetty. It is being repaired right now but if you get a chance to visit, it is totally worth it walking to the green lighthouse(The red one on the other side of the river is closed for public). It is amazing to walk where the sea meets a huge river. And, if you are lucky, you can observe huge tankers going right past you, a couple of meters away. That along with the waves crashing against concrete is an amazing experience. And, if you are at the beach, you can almost always see ships in the distance. Most of the times they look like they float in the air instead of on the water.
Also, if you ever get a chance to visit the beach, you can choose between laying down at the coast, right next to the water, or going into the dunes where there is more privacy. Remember, though, you will have to be either lucky or an early bird to snatch a spot there as many people choose the dunes over the open coastline. Also, a few steps back, behind the beach, we have a watchtower that you can get high up on and check out the city on. And, on the path to the green lighthouse, there is a non-working ship set up for observing. It is a small vessel that you can get up on and check out at your convenience.
Dunes behind
This was my absolute favorite sand-sculpture. It is very ''Latvian'' and shows off our Pagan religion signs. Some of you know that I have some Latvian folklore tattooed on my body but it is not just it. I love how these signs look and make you feel. At peace, somehow. Also, the face was made in a way that spoke to me. I found this work to be the best and most amazing for me as it resembles the old Latvian spirit without an error.
Also, there are most fun things to do around the beach. We have a spacious anchor park right next to it, a nature park after the anchor place, a campsite with small houses to rent, a small train that is coal powered(I think) and takes you from the nature park to the anchor park and then to the skiing hill. Wonderful places to eat and so much more. I will touch on some of it soon. Stay tuned, and maybe ask me to go to Ventspils with you! I will gladly get my ticket and show you around as I look for any excuse to go home :).
I will write another post on my home-city and I will add some interesting facts about it. For example, we have our own currency, separate from euro, just for the city. You can get discounts if you pay with it and you can earn the currency in a fun way. I will elaborate on it. Most likely, in the weekend.
I love this place more than anywhere else. It is beautiful and there are so many things to do! A true city friendly to locals and tourists alike. Clean beaches, fun times, and everything your heart desires.
Have the best day! Today, tomorrow, and forever.
Linda