1. Purity and comfort. Latvia is a small European country.		2. The irreproachable Baltic service. It is also a high comfort.
	3. Latvia is a safe country. Moderate climate, pure products, no terrorism. Most of people speak English.		4. The advantageous geographic position. It is easy to get to Europe, Scandinavia and Russia.
	5. SPA resort is near the capital. The sandy beach of Jurmala is the most spacious in Europe, good equipped and awarded by the EU Blue Flag.		6. Many Knight’s monuments. While walking there you can meet some ghosts. There are also many places of Russian Baroque.
	7. The architecture masterpieces of the end of XIX century. You can hardly find so many buildings built in luxurious style of Modern than in other countries.		8. The famous Dome Cathedral Organ. It is the second biggest organ in the world that has the best sound on the Earth.
	9. The international center of culture and sports. The calendar of concerts in Riga and Jurmala is intensive. The main festivals of music, theater and cinema follows one after another.		10. Ecology and country tourism. Many places of nature have saved the primary purity. Latvia is very picturesque. We develop active rest and country tourism.
	11. The feverish night life. Many cafes and shops are open here every day and night. Riga is called “The Small Paris” and “The Latvian Las Vegas” because of plenty of entertainment places.		12. The exotic traditions. With some traditions, which have started in times of heathenism is possible to get acquainted only in Latvia. Here you can jump through the fire with oak garland on the head.
	13. The Latvian girls. They are beautiful, stylish, energetic and friendly.		14. Progressive development.  Almost every week new hotels, restaurants and clubs are opening in Latvia. As concerns building, Latvia has left behind Europe and steps on heels of “Asiatic tigers”.
	15. Low prices. Latvia is not expensive country. You can divide the American prices by two and in some case, by three. Especially it is concerned to restaurants services, transport and entertainment.

Basic facts about Latvia

	Geographical position. Latvia is situated on the northeastern edge of the Europe on the shore of the Baltic Sea and Riga Gulf. The area covers 64 thousand sq.km; population is 2,340,000 people. Every third person lives in Riga – in the capital of Latvia. Officially Latvia is divided in 4 regions – Vidzeme, Kurzeme, Zemgale and Latgale. The area is mostly flat, somewhere you can see the picturesque hills, forests, more than 3000 lakes and nearly 12 000 rivers. Climate. Climate is maritime, moderate. Summer is warm, spring and autumn are gentle. Winter lasts from November till the middle of March and can be cold. It is usually snowing in winter. The temperature of sea water in summer is 19-22 grades C0 (66-72 F0). Time. Winter GMT + 2, summer GMT + 3. Social system, people, language, religion. Latvia is a Republic; the head of the country is President. Her name is Mrs. Vaira Vike-Freiberga. The ethic composition: 57% – latvian, 29% – Russian, 10% – others. The main languages are Latvian and Russian. Young people in Riga and Jurmala speak English fluently. People are bound to speak English in hotels, restaurants, big trading centers and tourism areas. Religion: Lutheranism, Catholicism, Russian Orthodoxy. Money. The national currency exchange is the lats (Ls). The lats has become one of the strongest monetary units in Europe. One euro sells for 0,70 Ls, and one US dollar for 0,58 Ls. There are currency exchange booths everywhere: banks, hotels, airport, and railway station. Only banks can offer you good rate with minimal commission or without it. There are numerous ATMs around town as well. Major hotels, restaurants and shops accept Visa and American Express cards. Cuisines. Latvian dishes are tasty and not so expensive. The traditional cuisine is toast with garlic, ribs, steaks, peas with smoked meat, smoked fish and also many types of pies and cakes with different stuffing. You can also find dishes from European and Russian cuisines; more than one hundred brands of beer and vodka. Public telephones. Telephone code of Latvia is +371. Public telephones are all over the town. Telephone cards worth 2 and 5 Ls can be bought at any post office and in most of the shops. The official tariff is 0,08 Ls/per minute to call America. Transport. The Taxi costs 0,40 Ls for boarding and 0,30 Ls for km during the day. After 22.00 p.m. – the official tariff is 0,40 Ls/km. For example, you pay about 10 USD from one edge of Riga to another. It is not easy to get to the centre by taxi at rush hour. We recommend to go by public transport at rush hours between 8-10 a.m. and 18.00-20.00 p.m. – you will be in time rapidly. The price is the same – 0,25 Ls. Some prices in USD. Taxi from airport to the centre of Riga is 9-10 USD, one double room in mid-range hotel in the centre is 100-150 USD, dinner for couple in good restaurant is USD 40, lunch in a cafe is USD 6-7, cup of coffee or beer – 1,5 USD, a bottle of Vodka produced in Latvia at the shop – 5-7 USD, a ticket to Opera theater – 15-80 USD.