Latvia

Latvia, one of the three Baltic countries nestled in between Estonia and Lithuania and bordering Russia, is a hidden gem in Eastern Europe. In my quick research of the land, I was amazed at how sparse the population was, with 2 million inhabiting the entire country compared to a whoppingly saturated 8.3 million in London alone.

I love to visit places that are steeped in history and Latvia is perfect in that sense as they have only been independent from Communism for 20 years. However in those two decades they have grown immensely with the most beautiful Art Nouveau buildings and I'm sad to say that they put Brits to shame language-wise as English is widely spoken as well as Latvian and also sometimes Russian and German. Phew. I will stop rambling now and let the photos speak for themselves.

At the Radisson Blu you can take the elevator to the 26th floor Sky bar and have a few cocktails whilst enjoying the view of Riga.

One of my favourite places was the Apsara Tea House. It's a stunning Chinese style build with floor to ceiling glass windows and a huge selection of loose teas. The inside has a huge spiral staircase that takes you to the first floor where you can sit on pillows and look out onto the park. Heaven!