Latvia is famous for its baltic amber, along with traditional handicrafts, pottery and basketwork. Hand-made woollen garments are also easy to lay your hands on, as is traditional folk music - played with gusto wherever you go.
Smoked fish is very popular in Latvia, whilst cabbage soup and sausages are traditional dishes. Amongst the many Latvian specialities, piragi is a must - a little onion and bacon turnover - as well as the raspberry or cranberry-filled alexander torte. As for speciality beers, there are a good number of locally-made stout and light ale beers which have become very well known.
Latvia is a vast expanse of greens and blues just waiting to be explored. The countryside remains pleasant throughout the year, especially during the solstices and equinoxes when the country celebrates its ancestral roots. The winter solstice (Ziemassvetki) coincides with Christmas, but the most important of all these celebrations is summer solstice when huge crowds take part in never-ending feasts around enormous bonfires.