In the western part of Russia, about midway between Novgorod and Moscow, there are some heights called the Valdaj heights. There you can find the source of three big rivers: Volga, Dnepr and Daugava (also called Eastern Dvina).
Daugava is over 1000km long and flows through Russia, Belarus and Latvia before ending in the Riga Bay in the Baltic Sea. There are three power plants in the river. Construction of a fourth has been stopped after massive protests.
The most important Latvian town was always at the river. Previously it was Ikšķile, 50km further upstream of Riga. The city Riga was founded in 1201, as the capitol of Livland, belonging to the german order. German was the city’s only official language until 1891.
We were in Riga for Knut’s last filming days of the movie ‘Sulis’. So of course we had to ask if Riga has any good places for a bath? The access to water obviously wasn’t any problem. The question was if it really was suited for bathing. We got rather diverging answers to that question. Most people simply said: ‘No! It’s too cold!’. Some recommended nearby lakes. But the tourist office could inform us: Yes, there are bathing places at Daugava – which you can use in the summer (the month of may probably not included as “summer” in her mind). So off we went. As should be obvious, water temperature is no concern og ours if we want a bath.
From the old city there is a nice promenade along the river, ever so often with warning signs of ‘No swimming’. We crossed the Daugava on the bridge Salu Tilts. This has a nice concept: Pedestrians and bicyclists have their own level underneath the bridge, separated from the cars. That gives a very relaxed space, although with view only in one direction.
After crossing another small branch of the river, we arrived at Peldvieta Lucavsalas līcis. This is a nice bathing spot with golden sand. Not too crowded at this time of year, either. We spotted one fisherman and one homeless guy as we arrived.
It was a great bath. Sunny, no wind and the water seemed very nice for a river that runs through one of the largest cities in Northern Europe.
This was definitely a good time for a bath in Daugava!
After the bath is a good time for dinner. We can recommend the restaurant ‘The Good Father’, in the old city.
In ‘The Good Father’ you will find good food and lot of fun stuff to play with. Not for the faint hearted, though, be warned!
