Latvia

Guide to LATVIA

LATVIA which official name is Republic of Latvia or Latvia, is a country from Europe located at the Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania. LATVIA with 1,368 km sq km, limits with: Belarus 167 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 576 km, Russia 282 km; and is divided in 26 counties . LATVIA's capital is Riga which is the most populated city with about 742,570 inhabitants.

History of LATVIA

LATVIA's government is parliamentary democracy; a Republic with a Ceremonial government type, with President Valdis Zatlers as head of state and Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis as head of government.

Other symbols of LATVIA are Latvian motto " Tevzemei un Brivibai (Latvian, For Fatherland and Freedom) Latvian anthem "Dievs, sveti Latviju! (God Bless Latvia) Latvian flag.Latvian flag is composed by three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon .

LATVIA's history is quite long: After a brief period of independence between the two World Wars, Latvia was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. It reestablished its independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 30% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.

LATVIAs geography

Guide to travel to LATVIA

If you are thinking on traveling to LATVIA, you will have to take in consideration some points like LATVIA's currency, LATVIA's weather, LATVIA's national holiday and LATVIA's transports.

The first thing you need to know for your travels abroad is country's currency. LATVIA`s currency is called lat ( Ls), which is divided in 100 santims

LATVIA's weather is characterized to be maritime; wet, moderate winters. So be sure of choosing the proper date to travel to LATVIA.

You can also consider to visit LATVIA on it's national holiday to get in LATVIA's culture. If you do so, LATVIA's national holiday is called Independence Day, 18 November.

Also, if you like natural wonders, don't forget to visit the highest point of LATVIA: Galzina Kalns 312 m. And try also to get to LATVIA's lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 mBut if you prefer the city, you must visit LATVIA's tallest structure: ( ).

Don't be afraid to take a flight to LATVIA, with more than 46 airports and 4 airlines, you will get to LATVIA without problems. Once there, you can choose the transport type that better fits your needs. LATVIA has about2,303 of railways, and also300 of roadways, so is a good place for a car trip.

Latvian Culture

LATVIA is known by Latvians as Latvijas Republika or Latvija in the shortened way. Latvian, about 2,259,810 people, are composed by different ethnics: Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002). And they also have different languages: Latvian.

Another relevant point nowadays it's LATVIA's religion. Latvians are divided in Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox. So you can visit any of it's4 like Doma Cathedral, Riga .

But if want to know more about LATVIA's culture, the best way is by reading the most famous Latvian novelists' books like Andrejs Upits, Zigmunds Skujinš or Egils Venters.

Videos of Latvia

See some viedos of Latvia's places and tourism before choosing your vacations destination.

Latest News of Latvia