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Sigulda
Sigulda (; german: Segewold, pl, Zygwold, russian: Сигулда) is a town in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, from the capital city Riga. Overview Sigulda is on a picturesque stretch of the primeval Gauja river valley. Because of the reddish Devonian sandstone which forms steep rocks and caves on both banks of the river, Sigulda has been called the "Switzerland of Vidzeme". After the restoration of Latvian independence in 1991, an emphasis was placed on conserving Sigulda's public monuments and parks as well as improving the town's tourist sector. Supported by the town council, a traditional Opera Festival takes place in an open-air music hall in the castle ruins each summer. A Town Festival is celebrated in May when cherry trees blossom, while Sigulda is known for the colors of its trees in autumn. Sports such as skiing, bobsledding, and the luge are popular in wintertime and bungee jumping is practiced during the rest of the year. The Gutmanis Cave lies halfway between Sig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigulda Castle
Sigulda Castle also known as Sigulda New Castle ( lv, Siguldas jaunā pils). Built in 1878 in the Neo-Gothic style as the living house for the owners of the manor, the Kropotkin family. The building has changed its owners and functions several times. Since 1993, the Sigulda Region Council has been located in the castle. History The manor center began to develop in the fore-castle area of Sigulda Medieval Castle during the 17th century. There are still a few remaining 18th and 19th century buildings built during the ownership of the Von Borghs and Kropotkins. These are the Summer Castle, the New Castle, the White Castle, the vagar's (supervisor of serfs) house, the servants' house, a barn, a laundry house and a vegetable and fruit basement. The manor center is enclosed by chipped boulder walls with a splendid gate structure. The New Castle was built during the time of Duchess Olga and Duke Dimitry Kropotkins from 1878 until 1881 using the materials from an older building which st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigulda Municipality
Sigulda Municipality ( lv, Siguldas novads) is a municipality in Vidzeme, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2003 by merging Sigulda town, Sigulda Parish and More Parish. In 2009 it absorbed Allaži parish, too; the administrative centre being Sigulda. The population in 2020 was 17,992. On 1 July 2021, Sigulda Municipality was enlarged when Krimulda Municipality, Mālpils Municipality and Inčukalns Parish were merged into it. Twin towns — sister cities Sigulda is a member of the Douzelage, a town twinning association of towns across the European Union. This active town twinning began in 1991 and there are regular events, such as a produce market from each of the other countries and festivals. As of 2019, its members are: * Agros, Cyprus * Altea, Spain * Asikkala, Finland * Bad Kötzting, Germany * Bellagio, Italy * Bundoran, Ireland * Chojna, Poland * Granville, France * Holstebro, Denmark * Houffalize, Belgium * Judenburg, Austria * Kőszeg, Hungary * Marsas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gutmanis Cave
Gutman's Cave ( lv, Gūtmaņa ala) is the widest and highest cave in the Baltic countries, located by the Gauja River in the area known as the in the Gauja National Park near Sigulda, Latvia. It started forming more than 10,000 years ago when meltwater eroded the sandstone rock after the Ice Age. It is the oldest tourist attraction in Latvia. On the walls of the cave are inscriptions from the 17th century. The legend of the Rose of Turaida began in this cave. Description Gutman's Cave is the widest and highest cave in the Baltics. It is 18.8 meters deep, 12 meters wide and 10 meters high. The cave was formed from the yellow-brown sandstone rock of the Gauja river bank; its formation is due to a millennium long interaction between the river and an underground spring. The cave is considered the oldest tourist attraction in Latvia because visitors, from even the earliest days, have left “decorations” such as names, initials and the dates of their visits engraved on the wall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turaida Castle
Turaida Castle ( lv, Turaidas pils, german: Treiden, Treyden, russian: Турайдский замок; meaning ''Thor's garden'' in Livonian) is a recently reconstructed medieval castle in Turaida, in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the opposite bank of the Gauja River from Kurzeme. History Turaida castle dominates the Museum Reserve and is visually its most impressive element. When seen from the air, or the opposite bank of the river Gauja in Sigulda, Turaida castle can be seen rising above the treeline. From this view, the forepart of the castle is formed by the northern forecastle's gate tower. The main tower which is the highest is situated centrally, and the rear view forms the southern forecastle with its tower shaped southern section. Construction of the castle was started in 1214 upon directions given by Albert, Archbishop of Riga to his Livonian Brothers of the Sword (soon to merge with the Teutonic Order) at the place where the wooden castle of Livonians had prev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobsled
Bobsleigh or bobsled is a team winter sport that involves making timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation, also known as FIBT from the French . National competitions are often governed by bodies such as the United States Bobsled and Skeleton Federation, Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton, and the German Bobsleigh, Luge, and Skeleton Federation. The first bobsleds were built in the late 19th century in St. Moritz, Switzerland, by wealthy tourists from Victorian Britain who were staying at the Palace Hotel owned by Caspar Badrutt. The early sleds were adapted from boys' delivery sleds and toboggans. These eventually evolved into bobsleighs, luges and skeletons. Initially the tourists would race their hand-built contraptions down the narrow streets of St. Moritz; however, as collisions increased, growing opposition from St. Moritz residents l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Districts Of Latvia
Until 2009 the districts of Latvia, introduced in 1949 by the Soviet occupation authorities to supersede counties, were divided into 77 cities ( lv, pilsēta), 10 amalgamated municipalities ( lv, novads), 24 rural territories ( lv, lauku teritorija) and 475 parishes ( lv, pagasts). For the new administrative divisions from 1 July 2021, see Administrative divisions of Latvia. Aizkraukle District * Aiviekste Parish * Aizkraukle * Bebri Parish * Daudzese Parish * Irši Parish * Jaunjelgava * Klintaine Parish * Koknese Parish * Kurmene Parish * Mazzalve Parish * Nereta Parish * Pilskalne Parish * Pļaviņas * Sece Parish * Sērene Parish * Skrīveri Parish * Staburags Parish * Sunākste Parish * Valle Parish * Vietalva Parish * Zalve Parish Alūksne District * Alūksne * Ape * Alsviķi Parish * Anna Parish * Gaujiena Parish * Ilzene Parish * Jaunalūksne Parish * Jaunanna Parish * Jaunlaicene Parish * Kalncempji Parish * Liepna Parish * Maliena Parish * Mā ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vidzeme
Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', liv, Vidūmō) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in north-central Latvia north of the Daugava River. Sometimes in German, it was also known as ''Livland'', the German form from Latin ''Livonia'', though it comprises only a small part of Medieval Livonia and about half (the Latvian part) of Swedish Livonia. Most of the region's inhabitants are Latvians (85%), thus Vidzeme is the most ethnically Latvian region in the country. The historic Governorate of Livonia is also larger than Vidzeme, since it corresponds roughly to Swedish Livonia. History In ancient times, the territory of Vidzeme was inhabited by Latgalians and Livs (near the coast of the Gulf of Riga and along the lower reaches of the Daugava and Gauja rivers). Until the German conquest in the 13th century the Daugava, wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the Baltic states; and is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, Belarus to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia covers an area of , with a population of 1.9 million. The country has a temperate seasonal climate. Its capital and largest city is Riga. Latvians belong to the ethno-linguistic group of the Balts; and speak Latvian, one of the only two surviving Baltic languages. Russians are the most prominent minority in the country, at almost a quarter of the population. After centuries of Teutonic, Swedish, Polish-Lithuanian and Russian rule, which was mainly executed by the local Baltic German aristocracy, the independent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gauja
The Gauja River ( et, Koiva jõgi, german: Livländische Aa) is a river in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. It is the only large river of Latvia that begins and ends its flow in Latvia. Its length is 460 km, of which 93.5 km (approximately one-fifth) are in the Gauja National Park. In this part, the Gauja River flows through the Gauja valley, which is 1 to 2.5 km wide, and the maximum depth near Sigulda is 85 m. Thus, Gauja is the longest river of Latvia when we count only the parts of the river in the country's territory. Daugava has only 367 km in Latvia, while the whole river is over 1000 km. The sandstone rocks on the banks of the Gauja and its adjoining rivers started forming 370 to 300 million years ago during the Devonian period. History Before the 13th century, the Gauja River used to serve as a trade route and border river between the Livonian and Latgalian lands. In some territories, they used to live mixed together. When Livonian language ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luge
A luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine (face up) and feet-first. A luger steers by using the calf muscles to flex the sled's runners or by exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh for singles and for doubles. Luge is also the name of an Olympic sport. Lugers can reach speeds of 140 km/h (87 mph). Austrian Manuel Pfister reached a top speed of 154 km/h (96 mph) on a track in Whistler, Canada, prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics. Lugers compete against a timer in one of the most precisely timed sports in the world—to one thousandth of a second on artificial tracks. The first recorded use of the term "luge" dates to 1905 and derives from the Savoy/Swiss dialect of the French word ''luge'', meaning "small coasting sled". History The very practical use of sleds is ancient and widespread. The first recorded sled races took place in Norway sometime during the 15th century. The sport of luge, like ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bungee Jumping
Bungee jumping (), also spelled bungy jumping, is an activity that involves a person jumping from a great height while connected to a large elastic cord. The launching pad is usually erected on a tall structure such as a building or crane, a bridge across a deep ravine, or on a natural geographic feature such as a cliff. It is also possible to jump from a type of aircraft that has the ability to hover above the ground, such as a hot-air-balloon or helicopter. The thrill comes from the free-falling and the rebound. When the person jumps, the cord stretches and the jumper flies upwards again as the cord recoils, and continues to oscillate up and down until all the kinetic energy is dissipated. Early tethered jumping The land diving ( Sa: ') of Pentecost Island in Vanuatu is an ancient ritual in which young men jump from tall wooden platforms with vines tied to their ankles as a test of their courage and passage into manhood. Unlike in modern bungee-jumping, land-dive ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Town Council
A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second tier of local government under counties, and date from 2002, when the existing Urban District Councils and Town Commissioners were redesignated, until the town councils were abolished under the Local Government Reform Act 2014 There were previously 75 such councils. Belize There are currently seven town councils in Belize. Each town council consists of a mayor and a number of councillors, who are directly elected in municipal elections every three years. Town councils in Belize are responsible for a range of functions, including street maintenance and lighting, drainage, refuse collection, public cemeteries, infrastructure, parks and playgrounds. England and Wales In England, since the Local Government Act 1972, "town council" is the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
