The National Museum of Latvian History - it sounds all official and intriguing doesn't it? It did to me. I've waited to go there until now, however, because there is no admission charge on Wednesdays. Yesterday, being Wednesday - and being a Wednesday that afforded free time - I went. It is housed in what is known as the Riga Castle, which also houses the Latvian President's apartment and offices. As you can tell by the photo, it's not really a castle. It's really just a big building but since it has one turret/tower, they called it a castle.
The museum itself contained an impressive plethora of artifacts, illustrations, maps, and exhibits recalling Latvia's story from its early beginnings. Despite this impressiveness, I was overtaken by boredom rather quickly; everything was in Latvian.
I know the numbers in Latvian and I can say please and thank you, and the equivalent of okay/alright, and ask, Do you have_? (supplemented with whatever word I before-hand look up in the dictionary), and yes and no. I'm beginning to become very familiar with the words for the various food items and I can even ask, And which platform? (in reference to the train station platforms) but naturally, in spite of it all, everything to be learned in that museum more or less stayed unlearned by me.
After perusing the aforementioned collection of things to see for a while, trying to at least pick out dates to pair up with whatever I was looking at, that got old. By the time I got through the middle ages, I was officially checked-out. Not wanting to short-change myself the full experience, I quickly walked through the rest the museum and then left. It was unfortunate really. I'm only glad I went on the free day.
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