Warm Relationship with Riga Black Balsam on Cold Season

I usually don't get that excited to write 4 tweets about the same thing in 15 minutes. But it happened to me today and I guess that's a sign I should write a blog about it... In fact, I already did it... a year ago... Here: Where to Get The Best Medicine Ever - Honey, Herbs and Riga Black Balsam? 

The thing is that this story will be about that one magical ingredient  - Riga Black Balsam. 

I know I've been lazy (again) and I actually should write a blog about my Poland - Italy trip, but there are some obvious reasons I feel I should write about Riga Black Balsam today.

1) My Riga Black Balsam season has started exactly today

2) Riga Black Balsam is one of the best things in Riga

3) 2 days ago I tried (yes, the first time in my life) Riga Coffee (with the same magical ingredient) - although home-made coffee with balsam has been my love for several years

4) With my flatmates today we discovered a new recipe to fight cold (with the same magical ingredient)

5)  I discovered @RigaBlackBalsam on Twitter

And here come some explanations:

Riga Black Balsam season lasts from around October to March, so - cold season. No,that's not any kind of official season, that's my personal season. This beverage is good on summer with ice-cream too, but there is one big reason why cold months of the year is Black Balsam season. I've got out of all winter colds and sicknesses without any strong medicine for 2 winters because I use this magical ingredient. No, it doesn't mean I've been walking around drunk. It means that if I say that remedy for everything is Riga Black Balsam  - I really mean it.

My flatmate caught first awful autumn cold, and we are not people who have medicine at home. I'm usually the one people ask how to get out of cold (probably my old traditional recipes that do not include medicine you get at your doctor or pharmacy work well and do not hurt wallets). You already know my answer for cold season, so we were running to shop to get it. Well, since today at least all cold season we will keep it at home as I've done it for previous winters. 

And here comes our new recipe to fight cold:

Mix together hot water, honey, Riga Black Balsam, some pieces of lemon, a bit of cinnamon and black pepper. Ehm... That all to taste... We find it not only delicious, but also extremely helpful hot drink. (We invented it today, just in case if someone else hasn't discovered it before us although I'm not so sure about it).

My German friends totally love Riga Black Balsam, but two days ago I met a guy from Brazil who told me - "Oh, you mean that strong dark brown drink! Well... Some shots with it was my mistake last night, so I was totally wasted..." I didn't ask how many shots he drunk, but talking about me - I definitely feel much better having coffee with Riga Black Balsam especially when the central heating in Riga is not on yet and cold is knocking on windows.

So, if you are coming to Riga - at least try it! You can get it in almost every shop, cafe and bar. I don't ask you to drink it plain, try it in cocktails or coffee - it is delicious!

Riga Shopping: just cheap or original & exclusive as well?

Tourism-review.com today dropped into my mailbox news about tax free tourism attracting travelers to Latvia. Seems interesting: prices in Latvia sometimes seems too high for ourselves (ok, that’s a talk about salaries), in spring there appeared news that Latvia is the cheapest destination in Europe, but this summer talking to travellers and also travelling a bit, Lithuania, Poland or Romania appeared cheaper than Latvia. Shopping in Latvia is a quite huge topic to write about. And I feel it’s quite hard to write just about shopping here – these places I would like to tell about has more than just place-for-shopping value.

Riga Central Market is listed among bigger markets in Europe, but I have heard that this one really is the biggest (if we count also all that illegal market). Riga Central Market definitely is worth visiting it: Check my previous post From Zeppelins to Food – Riga Central Market.

Shoping centres you will find everywhere in Riga. In the city centre the most popular ones are Stockmann – between the central bus station and train terminal, Origo – at the train terminal, Galerija Centrs at the Old Town and the newest one of these – Galleria Riga. If you want shopping centres I personally would advice you to go to these last two – Glerija Centrs at the Old Town and Galleria Riga.

Galerija Centrs at the Old Town  is a place with stores like Bik Bok, Oasis, Guess, Hogl, Cropp Town, Cubus, Moskito, Reserved, G-star, Lindex, La Senza and others. This place also has nice photo or painting exhibitions quite often on the first floor, so you won’t miss some culture when going for shopping.

Latvian stores with high quality original products you should pay attention to in Galerija Centrs: LAUMA lingerie , MADARA ecocosmetics , STENDERS – cosmetics, parfumery.

Another shopping centre Galleria Riga  (on Dzirnavu Street 67) is more posh, luxurious and pompous with stores like Pierre Cardin, Gaudi, Elegance Paris, Bonita, Leny Tomy Factory, Roberto Verino, Triumph and others. They also have terrace on the roof (7th floor) where in summer you can go for a meal, but on winter season it becomes a skating rink – skate and enjoy the view over the roofs of Riga.

There are more than these opportunities, but I personally think that the real charm of shopping in Riga is in it’s small original shops – and believe me, Latvian shopkeepers and small business owners are extremely  creative people. More about these shopping options another time.

Related posts:

From Zeppelins to Food – Riga Central Market 

Riga Central Market on Travelers blog

3 in 1: Art gallery, Shop and Restaurant

Bohemian Street – Away From Touristic Riga

3 in 1: Art Gallery, Shop and Restaurant

„Istaba” (The Room) is an art-gallery – shop and restaurant. The small gallery-shop will make you wonder – you can find there interesting and original things from greeting cards to tableware, jevelry, matches, souveniers, home design objects – all created by local artists. Monthly exhibitions to highlight different types of art work  are organized here, so what will you see there when you come depends on the exhibition which is currently on. If you are searching for original gifts or souveniers, this place is just perfect – no trite nonsense  or rubbish, but pure art even in small practical things!

If the shop already takes you into a little dream world where every thing around you is a piece of art than the restaurant „Istabas Bufete” on the first floor allows you to dwell longer in this little La Boheme world. I think the best thing to order here is a glass of wine, although the food here is prapared by one of Latvia’s most popular local chefs Mārtiņš Sirmais. Here is just a small daily menu and if you want to eat something here the chef himself will consult you what to order. That’s also the reason why it’s not possible to know how much money you have to take with you. You can get soup, fish, meat and vagetables around 3 – 8Ls, not the cheapest place, but the food there is always fresh, ecological and high quality – these are the values of the chief.

People are admiring or hating this place. Some of them goes away from there totally unsatisfied with service – no menu, no big choise, just what the chief offers, others leave with smiling faces and always returns there to enjoy it’s atmosphere and celebrate the life with a glass of wine and intellectual talks for hours.

Address: Kr. Barona iela 31a

Working hours: Monday to Saturday: gallery-shop 12.00 – 20.00, restaurant: 12.00– 24.00, Sunday – closed