Baltic buses are amazing. For the longest journey of our trip - Saaremaa to Cesis (320km) - we merely hopped on a bus from the island to the seaside town of Pärnu (below) and then took a further two buses from Pärnu to Riga and finally, Riga to Cesis.
After the tourist bustle of Tallinn and the strikingly secluded Saareema, Cesis struck a balance between the two and was a perfect base for exploring the beautiful Gauja valley.
Photos of the town follow below but first, as a gherkin enthusiast, these 5 shelves had to take pride of place - call it 'cultural appreciation'.
Stormy skies welcomed us.
Cesis castle.
On day one, we set off (by bus again) to the Ligatne nature trails to see some animals from Riga zoo, who spend their summer holidays in the forest! A personal highlight was undoubtedly seeing the hogs and 'hoglets' (?)
The walk from the bus stop to the start of the trails was stunning!
Below - must be the tallest viewing platform in Latvia! SO.MANY.STEPS.
But the panorama at the top was more than worth it.
