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We had the honour of being toured around the unique city of Riga. We were shown the local architecture which ranged from medieval to Italian and French influence. Remarkably, in the middle of the town square there stood The Freedom Monument which had not been destroyed during Soviet occupation. Today, it remains a constant symbol of hope and freedom to the residents of Riga.  

It was a privilege to sit in the Riga “Dome” Cathedral to experience the organ concert by Aigars Reinis. These concerts run daily at noon by numerous organists. A real gem of the city! It was a moving experience and one not soon forgotten by its AALP audience.  

During the tour, we also visited a shop for a tasting of the famous Black Balsam a traditional Latvian Herbal Liqueur. We unexpectedly entered a small shop and were greeted by a merchant who led the group down an old passageway behind a secret door hidden in a bookcase. We were taken to a small room, lit with candles where tables were set up with coffee and balsam as we listened to the lore and history of the famous drink. Black Balsam was created by an alchemist in 1750 who claimed the drink to have healing powers and was purchased by royalty such as a Russian Empress for her parties.   

We ended the evening at the 3 Pavaru Restaurant, translated “3 Chefs”. Here Class 20 participated in a cooking class with professional chefs. It was a beautiful evening with lots of laughs and amazing food! The menu consisted of delicious house salad, seared duck with smoked plums, shrimp dumplings and finished with warm carrot cake that was served with a sorbet which was made with the blood, sweat and tears of three classmates. It was a great experience and a beautiful wrap up to our time within the city of Riga.

Day 5 - Thursday Feb 20, 2025

Our first stop of the day was at the Rundale Palace in Pilsrundale, Latvia. A lively guide gave us a tour of the baroque style palace that was originally built for the Dukes of Courland. Construction started in 1736 and was finished in 1768. This palace has evolved through different purposes over the years including a hospital during World War 1, grain storage and a school until 1978. Our tour guide shared with us that due to its remote location the palace was left mostly untouched during World War II. Full restoration of the palace took place from 1972 until 2014. The palace includes extensive gardens which aid in attracting 200,000-300,000 visitors per year. 

Next we visited a modern Latvian grain farm diversified into other businesses such as a restaurant and hotel. In 2024 owners farmed 2295ha of land (5670ac) with 18-22 employees in the Jelgava region and Zalenieki parish of Latvia, everything is within a 90km radius. This farm has grown fast over the years, only established in 1992 on 74ha of land. Currently their crop mix is 65% winter wheat, 21% winter rape seed and 12% summer wheat, grass seeds, lucerne and peas. Given the strong EU restrictions in chemical use, seed use and timing of applications this operation was an early adopter of precision farming since 2003. They currently use variable rate technology to plant seed and apply fertilizer which has recently seen some uptake in Canada. This allows them to optimize their yields and minimize their inputs especially allowing them to adjust input amounts when weather events result in lower yield targets. A frustration the owner felt was that the EU is still willing to import crops from countries that do not have the same input restrictions as Latvia does, which makes it more difficult to compete. 

As we traveled towards Lithuania, we stopped at a very important place for the Lithuanian people called the Hill of Crosses. During Soviet occupation many attempts were made to destroy this site, but the Lithuanian people refused to give up and continued to place crosses on the hill even though they faced potential punishment. Today it is not known how many crosses there are, but it is estimated there are more than 100,000. Words and pictures cannot truly portray the full scope of this site. As we walked along the pathway and looked closer at the area, more and more crosses were apparent. The Lithuanian people and people all around the world use this site to commemorate loved ones. The Hill of Crosses is a popular pilgrim site for many Christians and has even been visited by past Popes. 

During our final visit of the day we were given the opportunity to partake in local Lithuanian beverages, bread making, songs and dance. Each of us had the opportunity to create our own loaf of traditional rye bread, which we personalized and took home after dinner. This venue focuses on a commercial bakery that has won multiple awards across Europe for its traditional bread-making methods, with the purpose of preserving and continuing this time-honored craft. They supply bread to stores and restaurants. They provided traditional music throughout our dinner and took the time to teach a group of people with two left feet traditional Lithuanian dances that have been passed down from generation to generation. This was a great welcome to Lithuania.