Latvia - Jan 2007

Fri 26th Jan

After being in Riga twice last year, once in September prior to traveling to Vilnius for Lithuania v Scotland and then back again in November for Sweeney's stag do, a few of us decided to go over for a weekend as RyanAir were doing cheap flights.

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We arrived in Riga at about 22:15 local time where we were met by our minibus. The taxi dropped us off at the Radi un Dragi hotel where we had a quick change of t shirt before heading out for a bite to eat. Steiku Haoss (Steak Chaos) was shutting being almost midnight, so we went to the 4 Rooms next door instead.

Gordon, Me and Alan in 4 Rooms


After some Solyanka soup, a decent steak and a couple of Latvia beers (no pear cider here!), we headed back out into the snow and round to the Orange Bar.

The bar was busy as usual but we managed to get a seat in the corner. Some top tunes including Blur, The Killers and an obscure Morrissey track amongst others. The pear cider was flowing and it wasn't long before Alan and Alex decided to show the locals their moves.



Unfortunately, the video taken of them dancing was subsequently deleted by Alex after his threats to stop me uploading it to YouTube were ignored.

Alex crashed about 2am, having peaked too soon and talking shite at dinner, so we walked him back to the hotel before headed round to Pulkvedim Neviens Neraksta (Nobody Writes to the Colonel) for a few more pear ciders.

Sat 27th Jan

After getting in about 4am, we got up about midday to head out to go shooting at Regro S Daugavgrivas. Gordon wasn't for moving so we left him in his pit.

Having missed the hotel breakfast, the first port of call was to Double Coffee for a coffee and breakfast before getting a taxi to Regro S Daugavgrivas.

The taxi dropped us off an we arranged to get picked up in an hour. We walked down the stairs to the underground bunker and into the reception where after checking our id and getting us to sign the disclaimer, we then proceeded to choose what guns we wanted to shoot. I went for a pistol, an Uzi and an AK-47. Alex also decided on the pump action shotgun (Winchester).

As we waited with anticipation for the previous party to finish, we chatted nervously and the adrenaline starting pumping. The noise from the shooting in the room next door was really loud and we did wonder what we'd left ourselves in for.

We were taken into the bunker with targets at one end of the room. There was a smell in the air from the bullets that had just been fired and spent cartridges on the floor. Alex was first up followed by Graham.

Finally it was my turn, I fired a pistol, then an Uzi and finally an AK-47. My hands were shaking which made it hard to aim but I actually managed to hit the target several times.

Alan was terrifying, I don't think he hit the target once - he managed to hit the ceiling and the back wall and to almost destroy the chain holding up one of the targets. I went out the room when he was shooting worried about a stray ricochet.

Me with an Uzi


Pump action shotgun and Uzi


Targets


Although I'm not one who goes for the whole macho image of guns, it was one of those things that I'll probably not get the chance to do again so that's why I decided to give it a go. It was surprisingly good fun but at the same time it was scary having a gun loaded with live rounds in your hands.

It is definitely a cure for a hangover though.

There are actually two tits in this photo!


Alex shooting AK- 47


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Alex shooting pump action shotgun (Winchester)


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Me with AK-47


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We met the taxi driver and headed back to the hotel. Gordon was surfacing so we waited for him over a pint in the Belgium bar across from the hotel before heading to Cili Pica for a pizza and pear cider.

Still snowing..






Next it was off to Cetas Debesis - which was dead apart from us - and from there we moved on to the Orange Bar when a loud and annoying stag party turned up.

Alan, Gordon and Graham in Cetas Debesis


Me and Alex


Steiku Haoss was next followed by a souless cocktail bar. After a drink in here we wandered round to Pulkvedim Neviens Neraksta.

The cheesy cocktail bar


Alex and I got into a pear cider fueled argument and then Dexy's Midnight Runners came on. We couldn't help but laugh when the song started with the words 'Poor Old Johnny Ray'.

Graham went out for a cigarette and Alex give his chair away to a girl who didn't have a seat and replaced it with a tall bar chair. Graham came in obviously annoyed but took it well as he sat two feet above the table.

A couple of guys left from the table next to ours, so Graham took one of the chairs. Five minutes later they came back in and the Swedish guy who looked like the guy with the dodgey hair cut from Abba shouted at Graham for taking his chair. Ha ha!

Graham apologised and gave him the chair back. Bjorn must have noticed the evil eye he was getting from Alex and Gordon as two minutes later he came back over and apologised to Graham.

We left the club and went back round to the Orange Bar till it shut at about 4am.

Alex in Orange Bar


Gordon and Alex in Pulkvedim Neviens Neraksta


Graham, Gordon and Alan later decided to head back out for a night cap. Alex and I had crashed out, so here's Gordon's description of what happened in the Pu Pu Lounge across from the hotel...

"The barman burns off the alcohol in the absinthe and captures the fumes in one glass while pouring the drink into another. You drink the absinthe then smoke the fumes from the upturned glass through a straw. This combination clearly took fright when confronted with the contents of Flash's stomach and did an instant runner back the way it came. Alan made for the bogs, hand over mouth, with vomit cascading from between his fingers running seductively down his neck and pouring onto the floor. He was away for a few minutes then returned from the bog having licked most of the lumpy yellow puke from his hands and neck and some more sick may well have come out at that point. Barman gets mop, barman gives Flash mop, message clear. Flash wipes floor, Flash ejected from premises."

Graham added, "You forgot to mention Alan, post-expulsion, standing in the street looking forlornly in the window at us drinking as the snow fell on his ginger napper, not unlike the touching scene depicted on the front cover of the Band Aid single, viz undernourished African children gazing, rather implausibly, through a window at well fed Victorian children opening Christmas presents.
When I went out to enquire why he was still there, he asked, pitifully, 'do you think they'll let me back in now?', like a scolded child forced to spend five minutes in the cheeky chair because of some misdemeanor."

Sun 28th Jan

After a pretty sleepless night due to too much alcohol, we headed out to Double Coffee for some scran before heading to the Skyline Bar in the Reval Hotel.

Riga, finally stopped snowing




The Freedom Monument with the Reval Hotel in the background


The view from the Skyline Bar on the 26th floor


Our flight was till 22:40 so after a few in Skyline Bar it was back to Cili Pica and then the Orange Bar till it was time to go home.

Graham's C3P0 impression made us laugh..


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