Ķemeri National Park

Ķemeri National Park (Latvian: Ķemeru nacionālais parks) is a national park west of the city of Jūrmala, Latvia. Established in 1997, Ķemeri is the third largest national park in the country by area, covering an area of 381.65 km². The territory of the park is mostly occupied by forests and mires, the most significant of them being The Great Ķemeri Bog. There are also several lakes, that are former lagoons of the Littorina Sea. Lake Kaņieris is a Ramsar site. The park also protects the famous natural mineral-springs and muds, used for centuries because of their therapeutic nature. The springs led to development of many resorts, spas, and sanitariums in the 19th century.
Source: Wikipedia

Thanks to BlueMoon via SwapBot for this nature view of Latvia!

Sent: 4 November 2015   Received: 1 December 2015   Travelled: 27 days

The Freedom Monument, Riga

The Freedom Monument is a memorial located in Riga, Latvia, honouring soldiers killed during the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920). It is considered an important symbol of the freedom, independence, and sovereignty of Latvia. Unveiled in 1935, the 42-metre high monument of granite, travertine, and copper often serves as the focal point of public gatherings and official ceremonies in Riga.

The sculptures and bas-reliefs of the monument, arranged in thirteen groups, depict Latvian culture and history. The core of the monument is composed of tetragonal shapes on top of each other, decreasing in size towards the top, completed by a 62 ft high travertine column bearing the copper figure of Liberty lifting three gilded stars. The concept for the monument first emerged in the early 1920s when the Latvian Prime Minister, Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics, ordered rules to be drawn up for a contest for designs of a "memorial column". After several contests the monument was finally built at the beginning of the 1930s according to the scheme "Shine like a star!" submitted by Latvian sculptor Kārlis Zāle. Construction works were financed by private donations.

Following the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 Latvia was annexed by the Soviet Union and the Freedom Monument was considered for demolition, but no such move was carried out. Soviet sculptor Vera Mukhina is sometimes credited for rescuing the monument, because she considered it to be of the high artistic value. Soviet propaganda attempted to alter the symbolic meaning of the monument to better fit with Communist ideology, but it remained a symbol of national independence to the general public. Indeed, on June 14, 1987, about 5,000 people gathered at the monument to commemorate the victims of the Soviet regime and to lay flowers. This rally renewed the national independence movement, which culminated three years later in the re-establishment of Latvian sovereignty after the fall of the Soviet regime.
Source: Wikipedia and StampWorld

Thanks to Bauska via Postcrossing for this awesome card and stamps.

Left: 2015 Flowers which comes in denominations of 

0.01 , 0.04, 0.07, 0.10, 0.25, 0.70, 0.78, 2.13.

Right: 2015 25th Anniversary of Latvian Independence.

Riga

A beautiful nightview of Riga from Elena! I thought this card was lost but

it was missent to Thailand

Sent: 7 March 2015   Received: 30 June 2015   Travelled: 114 days

Latvia

LV187023

Thanks to Diana for this beautiful street view of Riga

Sent: 18 May 2015   Received: 8 June 2015   Travelled: 20 days

Sigulda, Latvia

 

Sigulda Castle also known as Sigulda New Castle was built in 1878 in the Neo-Gothic style as the living house for the owners of the manor, the Kropotkin family. The building has changed its owners and functions several times. Since 1993, the Sigulda Region Council has been located in the castle.

Thank you to Elena for this lovely castle for my collection!

SEnt: 14 July 2014   Received: 14 August 2014   Travelled: 31 days

Riga, Latvia

 

Riga was founded in 1201 and is a former Hanseatic League member. Riga's historical centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, noted for its Art Nouveau/Jugendstil architecture and 19th century wooden architecture.The city will be the European Capital of Culture in 2014, along with Umeå in Sweden. The city hosted the 2006 NATO Summit, the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 and the 2006 IIHF Men's World Ice Hockey Championships. It is home to the European Union's office of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC). Riga is served by Riga International Airport, the largest airport in the Baltic states.

Thank you Chris(on my blogroll) for this amazing card to my Latvian collection :)

Sent:4 July 2013

Riga

 

 

Art Nouveau style building on 1 Vilandes Street, Riga, Latvia
Many thanks to Anna for the lovely card
It travelled for 7 days from UK

Latvia map

 

Latvia is a European state which is situated on the coast of Baltic Sea. One of the three Baltic states, Latvia is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, Belarus on the south east, and the Baltic Sea on the west. The most famous travel spot is the capital Riga, a World Heritage Site. There are also many other great places to see, both urban and rural, such as Liepaja with its unique former secret military town of Karosta and a magnificent beach. Kuldiga with Europe`s widest waterfall and Cesis with its medieval castle ruins are also interesting. Tourists can also enjoy the wild beauty of Latvia's unspoilt sea coast, which is 500 km long and consists mainly of white, soft sandy beaches. Forests, which cover approximately a half of Latvia's territory, offer many nature trails and nature parks

http://wikitravel.org/en/Latvia

 

Thank Oksana for the beautiful map card of Latvia!

 

Sent: 17 February 2013
Received: 5 March 2013
Travelled: 16 days