Riga (Latvia)
23 December - 27 December 2016
23 December - 27 December 2016
Inga & I made the deal that in alternate years Christmas would be spent in Riga or Belgrade. That deal was meant to last for as long as we were living in Belgrade, or indeed Europe, had that move eventuated. Our deal came within a whisker of failing at the first attempt.
Riga was going to be our first Christmas with family, be it Inga's or mine, but the idea unraveled so rapidly and abruptly on the afternoon of the 23rd of December whilst in terminal 1 of Nikola Telsa airport in Belgrade that the minor Christmas miracle that took place immediately after I believe has now ensured us for some time.
We had booked flights out of Belgrade to Riga, from memory, at about 16:45 that afternoon. Now these flights had been booked months in advance, so much so that from the booking date to the actual date, specifics tend to either become a little hazy or get mixed up along the way. For what seemed to have been weeks, the 16:45 departure time stood steadfast in our minds. In fact both of us had independently written down the time in support of our own understand of travel requirements.
Riga - Latvia
Riga - Latvia
Spa treatment Christmas present - Riga - Latvia
Riga - Latvia
Arriving at the airport around 15:20 we casually strolled into the terminal. Considering Belgrade is a small airport with low traffic, especially on the route we were flying, checking-in is usually a casual process. Over in 10-15 mins before easily passing through the 1st security check and passport control. This is what we had mentally prepared for.
The first thing you do when entering the airport is check the departure board.
DESTINATION FLIGHT NO DEPARTURE
VIENNA JU604 15:45 FINAL CALL
ALERT - ALERT - ALERT - ALERT
I knew exactly what that meant. For those of us that travel enough a 'final call' is the death-knell if you've not completed the necessary stop of check-in, or, if you haven't checked-in online.
I could see that rush of panic on Inga's face and I knew where the realisation was going to end up. First, there was going to be a rush for the check-in desk, only to be told, I was certain, that checking in at this late stage was going to be impossible.
Correct - we tried, and yes, we failed.
I knew now that the scramble for a resolution would inevitably dive into why we tricked ourselves into believing that the departure was later than we thought, and in addition, had we know lost what we had paid for our ticket.
Yes, on both counts.
It's an entirely unsettling situation to be at an airport with your flight still at the terminal, not having even moved an inch but still, being forced to concede that you'd already missed it. It's infuriating and drives your anxiety levels through the roof.
Riga - Latvia
Where it all started in 2010 - Shot Cafe - Riga - Latvia
Where it all started in 2010 - Shot Cafe - Riga - Latvia
Doing some shots at the Shot Cafe
So now what?
Well, this is where we kind of flipped it. From being angry, to feeling defeated and accepting something of what our fate should have been we both stepped up to the flight and decided to treat the situation like an episode of Race Around the World.
Initially thinking that we could head for home, jump in our car, drive to Vienna and be there in time to catch the connecting flight to Riga, the reality of the situation and our own common sense prevented us from making a true hash of the situation. What we did was took up residence in from of the departure board and analysed all flights leaving Belgrade that evening, where their destination were and how likely we could get a connecting flight later that night.
There they were, Rome, Prague, Budapest, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Frankfurt. We quickly processed them all and then each undertook a connecting flight search via Skyscanner. This is where the 'tricky' part comes into play. In this circumstance don't just have to be able to get out of Belgrade but you have to be able to locate a Riga flight from that location a delay long enough that would allow you to pick-up luggage and check-in at your next location in order to make the flight in the allotted time.
A Kelpe family Christmas lunch - Riga - Latvia
Christmas in Riga - Latvia
Christmas in Riga - Latvia
That time when I got myself a MULLET!
Riga - Latvia
We must have scanned the board for 30 mins, filtering through connecting flights before we landed on a possible option. An Air Serbia flight to Frankfurt and then a connecting Air Lufthansa flight to Riga - could this work? Did we really have the skills to make this? Could we actually have the skills to be successful contestants on Race Around the World? We headed straight to the Air Serbia counter to find out.
With our online Skyscanner connecting flight from Frankfurt to Riga ready to go, the Air Serbia agent confirmed that there were seats on the flight.
'Book 'em Danno'
I think the Hawaii Five 0 reference was lost on him as he asked, 'Would you like me to confirm the flight for you sir'
'Yes, yes I would Cha Chi'
Once Air Serbia was confirmed we immediately booked our Lufthansa flight online, and HEY PRESTO - we were locked in to make it to Riga. All we needed to hope for is an on time departure by Air Serbia from Belgrade - which thankfully happened.
Christmas in Riga
Christmas in Riga was really very nice. Aside from the city itself, which I find to be very attractive, it lends itself brilliantly to this time of year. Somehow Christmas in a Northern country, specifically a north European country, feels much more appropriate and real than being under 40 degree skies in Australia. With that said, I have missed having an Australian Christmas every now and then, so admittedly I try to have it both ways.
Inga's family was fantastic for Christmas Eve. We had a nice family dinner and enjoyed on another's company. It was a far my pleasant experience than what has historically transpired in the Elisher house hold. Our Christmas Eve's were very predictable, boring and at times unpleasant. My mother, as great as she is, would often drink way too much, my aunt would be demanded and sometimes nasty. There were many times that I wished Christmas Eve's away...I mean they weren't bad, they just weren't anything that I really looked forward to.
Of the next few days I got to meet Inga's extended family as we had a post Christmas lunch to celebrate the time of the year and the newly engaged couple. From memory by that stage I do recall that we had nominated Summer of 2017 at the time that we wanted to get married. Outside of a rough time frame we really didn't have too much additional planned - with only 6 months to go getting everything together, I had assumed, was going to be quite
chaotic.
With our online Skyscanner connecting flight from Frankfurt to Riga ready to go, the Air Serbia agent confirmed that there were seats on the flight.
'Book 'em Danno'
I think the Hawaii Five 0 reference was lost on him as he asked, 'Would you like me to confirm the flight for you sir'
'Yes, yes I would Cha Chi'
Once Air Serbia was confirmed we immediately booked our Lufthansa flight online, and HEY PRESTO - we were locked in to make it to Riga. All we needed to hope for is an on time departure by Air Serbia from Belgrade - which thankfully happened.
Christmas in Riga
Christmas in Riga was really very nice. Aside from the city itself, which I find to be very attractive, it lends itself brilliantly to this time of year. Somehow Christmas in a Northern country, specifically a north European country, feels much more appropriate and real than being under 40 degree skies in Australia. With that said, I have missed having an Australian Christmas every now and then, so admittedly I try to have it both ways.
Skyline Bar - Radisson Blue Hotel Latvija
The view from the bathroom - Skyline bar - Radisson Blue Hotel Latvija
Inga's family was fantastic for Christmas Eve. We had a nice family dinner and enjoyed on another's company. It was a far my pleasant experience than what has historically transpired in the Elisher house hold. Our Christmas Eve's were very predictable, boring and at times unpleasant. My mother, as great as she is, would often drink way too much, my aunt would be demanded and sometimes nasty. There were many times that I wished Christmas Eve's away...I mean they weren't bad, they just weren't anything that I really looked forward to.
Of the next few days I got to meet Inga's extended family as we had a post Christmas lunch to celebrate the time of the year and the newly engaged couple. From memory by that stage I do recall that we had nominated Summer of 2017 at the time that we wanted to get married. Outside of a rough time frame we really didn't have too much additional planned - with only 6 months to go getting everything together, I had assumed, was going to be quite
chaotic.
The new style of boutique barbers - Wood Religion - Riga - Latvia
Inga's father at Wood Religion - Riga - Latvia
A Christmas Ginger bread house - made by Jurijs Nadiradze
Heading back to Belgade - Riga Airport
Somewhere over Poland - this is my Terminator look?
...and that was that....
2016 was an incredible year for travel. We had a lot of great experiences, celebrated some major events and were setting ourselves up for an even bigger year in 2017.
Not a bad life
2016 was an incredible year for travel. We had a lot of great experiences, celebrated some major events and were setting ourselves up for an even bigger year in 2017.
Not a bad life
