Vanšu tilts in Riga, Latvia

Bridges on Sundays today brings you a modern, mighty and functional Bridge.

This is Vanšu tilts, Cable Bridge, in Latvia’s thriving capitol Riga. Riga was a place that didn’t feel very foreign from the very start, and I figured that that must be because it is a hanseatic city – meaning one of those cities that were part of the trade union “Hanse” that connected many cities in Northern Europe and especially in the Baltic Region in the middle ages. Hanseatic cities have a specific vibe to them that I love very, very much. My home town Hamburg is one, and so coming to another never truly feels like going to a strange place. The more excited I got when I learned that Riga was actually founded by monks that came to this area from Bremen, another German hanseatic city that I have a personal connection with because my mother grew up there. Once I knew this, I discovered similarities to Bremen on every corner.

One of the reasons I love hanseatic cities is that they are most always located at the coast or at least by a river. Riga is beautifully set right at Gulf of Riga, and water seems to run its ways through the city everywhere. The Daugava River opens up into the Baltic here, and the bridge crosses it to connect different parts of the city. Funnily enough I think this one looks a bit like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco or the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul – huge and well known landmarks in cities that have nothing to do with the Hanse whatsoever. There’s another connection for you that a bridge can make.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!