Me? A City Dweller?

I never thought that I would live (happily) in an apartment downtown in any city.  I thought of myself as a suburban house-type person with a requirement of a yard.  Was I ever wrong!

Our flat is above the Addidas store.

It turns out that one of the things that really makes me happy is proximity to amenities. In Riga, I usually do not have the car because Sonny needs it to drive to work.  It seems to work for us since we live downtown and we are in walking distance to coffee shops, restaurants, grocery stores, malls, boutiques, movie cinemas, opera and ballet, the list goes on.

National Opera House

Walking the dog has turned out surprisingly easy, as well.  We have many parks close by and I probably walk with Lincoln for about 90 minutes every day.  I think all the walking has been a great help in avoiding any kind of winter blues.  Riga can be fairly grey in the winter but to be fair, when the sun is shining, it is really quite glorious!

There is transit outside our door so if needed, I can hop on the tram.  Riga is a safe city.  Just tonight, G and I walked to his soccer practise and he took the tram (by himself) home when practise was over (he is getting so independent).  He walks to school, occasionally with me & the dog, and even if he wakes up late, he can still make it to school in about 10 minutes.

As for our apartment, it really works for us.  It has three bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms and plenty of storage space.  Of course, we knew in advance that we were moving into the apartment and were very fortunate to be able to put many of our belongings in storage (garage-type items, extra furniture, etc.). The colourful hallway/entrance makes me I smile when I step into the building from the street.

We live on the 3rd floor so taking the stairs does not take much effort.  Our building has an elevator but, as it was put in after the building was built (circa 1900), it only stops on every 1/2 floor (if that makes sense).

One thing that I would say I do miss about living in this apartment is not having a terrace or a personal balcony.  We do have access to the rooftop terrace with barbecue, and other bonuses would be the saunas and gym in the building.  The ease of leaving our home and being right in the middle of the city has been better than expected.

We have used the roof-top terrace to raise a glass (or two)

Every apartment that I have been to in Riga, has been pretty lovely.  I have seen some amazing terraces, beautiful light-filled rooms, great locations around the city, and even a car elevator!  We could have also chosen to live in a house with a yard but we would have had to give up living in downtown Riga.  Life is full of choices!

This nearby park has an "internet" booth.  There is wifi access when in close proximity to the booth!

The experience living in Latvia has been pretty fantastic and I did not expect city living to be one of the highlights.  Really, that has been the best surprise for me.