Went to the Central Market and bought some pickled cabbage with what we think was some tumeric, cilantro and red pepper, some slaw, pickles, some fresh and smoked fish. The pickled food stands are gorgeous - very tempted by the pickled garlic and will have to get some next time. We also got a very small amount of arugula - very spendy - decided that the Market is not the place to buy fresh salad greens. I had pickled some beets that were amazingly cheap. Pickled beets were one of my favorites as a child. I've pretty much stayed with mom's recipe, just added garlic. The meal was so pretty we had to take a picture. |
We had taken a rather circuitous route to arrive at the Market, first through the Quiet Centre to find two contemporary art galleries and then along the Daugava past the Rīgas pils, a castle built in 1330 which, unfortunately caught fire last year during remodeling efforts. Several of the more beautifully restored buildings are embassies. I noted that there were a stack of fliers with drawings of a giraffe dumped at the door of the Danish embassy. The American embassy is, unlike the other embassies, pulled away from the City Centre and Old Town and sits like a fortress on the road to the airport - we have been told that it was relocated after 9/11. It seems that having the world's most powerful military doesn't equate to more confidence about safety.
We took a back alley to the pedestrian tunnel to reach the Market. Saw some abandoned, condemned buildings covered in green netting similar to the netting one sees to prevent rocks falling onto the roadway on mountain highways. We have been seeing this netting covering individual fragile cornice pieces and decks of beautiful old art nouveau buildings. I assume that, during the Soviet occupation there was little funding available for the maintenance of these gorgeous examples of modern-era bourgeois decadence. Some of the buildings are for sale. As noted above the embassies appear to have the budget for upkeep and restoration, but I don't know how this newly capitalistic society can rationalize such a massive endeavor to save all of these historical buildings as there is no apparent profit motivation behind such an endeavor. Hopefully some far-sighted individuals will understand the value in tourist Euros that a restoration could support.
We took a back alley to the pedestrian tunnel to reach the Market. Saw some abandoned, condemned buildings covered in green netting similar to the netting one sees to prevent rocks falling onto the roadway on mountain highways. We have been seeing this netting covering individual fragile cornice pieces and decks of beautiful old art nouveau buildings. I assume that, during the Soviet occupation there was little funding available for the maintenance of these gorgeous examples of modern-era bourgeois decadence. Some of the buildings are for sale. As noted above the embassies appear to have the budget for upkeep and restoration, but I don't know how this newly capitalistic society can rationalize such a massive endeavor to save all of these historical buildings as there is no apparent profit motivation behind such an endeavor. Hopefully some far-sighted individuals will understand the value in tourist Euros that a restoration could support.