It is quite unlike any place we have visited in the country – the Kuldiga is definitely the most beautiful and charming town in Latvia. It is an ancient town with unique, distinctive architecture. The oldest church of St Catherine from 1252 is named after the patron of the town. The Old Town around the small river Alekšupīte is unique. It is the only remainings 17th–18th-century buildings ensemble of this kind in the Baltic States. The pride of Kuldīga is the Venta Rapid, a 240-meter wide natural rapid which is the widest in Europe. Not far from the rapid there is the Kuldīga brick bridge built in 1874, one of the longest bridges of this type in Europe. Our next short stop was Alsunga – an island of Catholicism in the land of Lutherans, it is a quaint village featuring a small Livonian castle. It is populated by the Suiti people who speak a distinct dialect and stick to their traditions.
