1. My aunt and I have a tradition of visiting a new city every year at Thanksgiving, and this year, we opted for Riga, the capital of Latvia.
2. Riga is known for its Art Nouveau architecture; buildings in this style make up about a third of all buildings in the city, making Riga the city with the largest number of Art Nouveau buildings in the world.
3. Naturally, we had to visit the Art Nouveau museum which, among other things, offers a view into a typical Art Nouveau apartment.
4. It also has gorgeous stained glass.
5. And fun Art Nouveau hats to try on.
6. A nearby Art Nouveau café boasted one of my all-time favorite decorations maybe ever.
7. A different Art Nouveau café, known for its chocolate, boasted this fantastic light fixture…
8. …a gingerbread coffee that was more like a milkshake (I’m not complaining!)
9. … and this phenomenal honeycomb layer cake.
10. Riga is in fact known for its bees and its honey, so bees appear as a motif on some of the Art Nouveau buildings.
11. I also glimpsed Hermes…
12. …a Cyberman…
13. …and this pretty lady, who was selected as Miss Riga in a citywide contest.
14. We were sure to take the time to visit Riga’s central market, which is actually comprised of several market buildings.
15. Inside, we encountered bouquets of fish…
16. …shopping carts of beef…
17. …and some of the most beautiful pomegranates I’ve ever seen.
18. We visited Hobbywool, a shop selling renowned Latvian wool…
19. …and the unique local mittens.
20. I enjoyed my first snow of the season.
21. And encountered works of sculpture from the beautiful…
22. …to the eerie.
23. Riga is a city filled with color…
24. …and form…
25. …and sometimes, both.
