TOWN OF RIGA: DAILY LIFE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83-00415R007900230003-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 14, 2004
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: May 19, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

droved For Release 200 - - 3-6
CLASSIFICATION
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY 25XIREPORT
INFORMATION. -FORT
'OUNTRY r. OR (Latvia)
SUBJECT T,.wn of Riga: Daily Life
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PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE OF
WO.
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all PTO c4am o t Viv UAMER TO AU E339A333'UOUIZEU PLIR 50P !8 P wP -
333a31'E,O E.T VV. a -.,f 71.3VUCT1OU OF TRW V0EE3 is ;?oarn1TE0.
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CD NO.
DATE DISTR, 19 kz?y 1951
NO. OF PAGES 5
NO. OF~ENCLS. f ~ n
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SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS U NEVALUATED_..INFORI1ATIO .
I.3txtldinr's and La dmarka
Pi.ga is still a clean European town, The streets are swept early in the
nc ing by the caretakers of buildings before the population sets out for
W4) k
2, T.. "any well-Down landmarks are still st pding: the Statue of liberty (&i
L bas niem1weklis ), the Natinnal Opera, now called the Ballet and Opera
e., ,-ater (Baleta un Operas Teatre), and Riga University.
Gan the site of the former Otto Schwarz Cafe, there is now a small park with
t. statue entitled "Mother and Son". Opposite the Opera, where the well-
krown Hotel de Roma used to stand, the foundations are now being laid for e.
or 8-story building, the Hotel Maskava, scheduled to be completed in two
Y time,
The Riga Radio building has been rebuilt and the K3inistry of Building In-
0', .stry (DP.vju T .x11sta1. ja) is to be housed there. The militia is now
cocommod?ated in the former Latvian police prefecture
5, & ;;arcely any changes have taken place at the two main railway stations,
except that Riga Strand Station (Jurmalas Stacija) now has three entrancez%
opposite the main station (old entrance),, from Dzirnavu Street (old en-
trance),. and from Gogola Street (new entrance),
6. The Central Market is still in use and is at present being renovated, The
Unugava s bnent has been rebuilt and there are now benches along the r-,i.ver.
I'".& now has 4 bridges across the River Daugava, two steel bridges, the old
Mntoon bridge, and the new wooden bridge leading.f -Valdemara Street,
'I:`..Vans-Daugava (Pardaugava) has not changed much, except that there are some,
open spaces here and there where houses used to stand,
8 ~ In 1%za 'arks now the park for Culture and Recreation (Rigas Ifal.turas un
/! tputas Parks %, hardly any changes are am arent to the ordinary pleasure-
e:oeker, except that there is a new open.-pair theater, a dance-floor, an
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X I NS!! _I I~... DISTRIBUTION
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AL ;LCLE .L L ONS
IS NOT TO BE FU THER
'D WITHiINN '1I'-E LNITED
LE'GNL'iELOI'L1LS
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open-air cinema, volley-ball fields, and buffets. The road from the
~r
to these places is decorated with huge flower vases and pica es of
Lenin,, and members of the Politburo. This district is frequented mo s ' .
by Russians, and on Saturdays and Sundays may drunks are to be seen r~> i.st
fights are common,
9? There are shops for new and secondhand articles all over Riga, Most ,a: ;i
especially consumer goods, are not scarce. Scarcities do occur but, o .n. t
whole, it is usually possible to find what one requires.
lO,, There are cafes, restaurants,, and buffets all over Riga. Restaurants buffets are frequented by all kinds of persons, cafes mostly by them 'imp. ~
classes, A great deal of black market activity takes place in restau; -=,-,
and buffets, and the police keep these places under close observation.
Lately, badly dressed persons have not been admitted into restaurants
go+at3ons gL_Tlt ablit~ Offices Y n3 s-Lxteg . and 1l:7 Most of the large public offices and ministries are still in their old
(194041) buildings. However., not all of the locations are ca monly k
r m 1.
to persons who have always lived in Riga and It is quite usual to ask r:-,
militiaman or a passer-by for directions. The following are some addzn;:1;q
of ministries and public offices:
Ministry of Reealth (Veselibas Idnistrija): 28, Skolas Street.
Miniatr7 of Education (lagitiba,s inistri ja): 2, Valnu Street
Ministry of Commerce (Tirdzni,eaibne Ministri!'a) s- 6, Smilsu Street
M Ministry of Finance (Finansu Htnistri ja): .4, Sm ilsu Street
MVD: Rains. B~.' urs, not far from Vaeldeaara Street.
MGBs corner of Brivibas (now Leenina) and Stabs Streets.
Ministry of Agriculture (Laukasimieojbas 1'iizdetrl ja): Nomanarn
Railway Main Office (Dzeelzcela 'asaldee) s 1, Gogola Street
Communist ?arty Central Committee (Centrals Ko teja): Valdomara
x ete
in the building of the former YAnistay of Foreign Affairs..
Prefedtura s in its former building.
Welfare Department (Socialas Modrosinava ,s Dew ts) s V .dc x ..
Street, between Lacplesa and Gertrudees Streets,,
Acade of Art (Makalas Akademija)t corner of Y?cmunarrs and V~z1 U{ ;;; ..
Streets
SuPrem Soviet of Latvia (Augstaka Padc ): in the building of
former Saiama.
Cabinet (Mini strew Pado ) : in the former building of the Mini s
Justice.
Main Post office (Ge. veenais Pasts)* corner of lEi bas (now Lenin
and Merkela Streets,
State Archives (Valets Archive) s Slokas Street,,
0 one ee n
i2., The addresses of offices. ministries,.: and hotel ? times
of tra
hone
e
"%AUz4
~_~-
a can be o ned ror Oo5O ruble at infomatio #. o
in various parts
f l4
o
ga 3 Tb.en are information Offices or bureaus n v3,,
main rail
ta
way s
tion and on the corner Of MrOva and vtba,s Streets.,,
LV-- a lea 01
ruiblees, from Monde r to Sund;y in show-cases nearwthe Statu
s of Liberty
Briwibas Bulvare and in Brivibas Street near the Matisa market Sine.
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newspapers do not accept advertisements from the public, this means of ad-,
vertising is widely used by the population of Riga. 'Advertisements are ac-
cepted in any language.
da
62:y On Sundays,, life in Riga starts at approximately 10 a.mo Shops, buffer,-:;;
and markets are open on Sundays but closed on Mondays. Cinema perfor?~:~.::E.;
for children start at 10 a.m. All theaters have shows during the day,
noon onward. On the whole.. Latvians are inclined to spend their free c 4
at home, but every Sunday many can be seen leaving Riga in trucks on thm,
15., 'here are plenty of persons about in the streets all day long, but especially
between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., when many persons, particularly young folk and military
personnel&go out walking? after 8 p,mo , it is more quiet, since the theaters,
opera, and circus have started by then,, Later, between 11 p.m,, and midnight, many
persons are again to be seen, mostly theatergoers returning home. After midnight
all is quie, mainly because of the possibility of document controls, which every
one tries to avoid, but also because of the fear of bandits; the latter are
freouently heard of in the outskirts of the town, where many persons have been
assaulted and robbed.,
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CLASSIFICATION s,cffiu.I
.77A~E 9#14' y NS12B IaE $1RIIf3UTJ
Tovn of Riga: Daily fife
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DATE DISTR. 7 Sept 1951.
NO. OF PAGES
NO. OF EDGES.
(U&TEQ BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT I Q4
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
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 Approved For Release
SECk T,
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
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16..; In nearly every family, both husband and wife must work, The husband often
has two jobs or takes extra work home,, Only by w~rkin very hard is it possible
to exist, Military personnel and higher members of. the Communist Party are in the
the most pcsition financially; scientists and Aechnicians come next, and
told
working classes are in the worst condition:, Although the wor~Cinp n
that everything belongs-.to a he receives only about 250 to 400 rubles per
month, out of which he has to pay taxes and to subscribe to a letter to "our
father Stalin", thanking him for the"beautiful life and liberty", It is upon
the worker that the burden of Soviet occupation falls heaviest:: During working
hours, every second of his time is accounted for; and? if he does not fuUTft;.l
his nor he will soon be declared "harmful" and is likely to. be arrested:..
17. After working hours there are ET-egwnt political lectures which everyone must
attend and, in addition, there are compulsory two-year courses at the M rxist_
Leninist Evening University for educated perms, Before State holidays, there
are also special "holiday courses" and "holiday,meetings" after working hours at
the work-centers. When a worker finally arrives home,, he either s-more work
to do or he must study some political book,.or he must sleep in order to have
enough strength for next dayus work., There is very little time for hobbies,,
entertainment, or religion:, Nevertheless, individuals do occasionally find
time for recreation. Members of the free professions,, artists,) actors,,
interpreters, and translators at the book center have more free time than the
average person,,
1164, Those who earn enough to save money do not buy houses or apartments, since
to do so would be a sign of a kulak,. Instead,, they put their money into yachts,
motorcycles, or motor cars, Many private cars are to be seen in the streets of
Riga.
Personal Appearance and Dior le
19, On the whole,, the population in Riga dresses well. Individuals wear decent
suits and coats, collars and ties,, and good shoes., Many of the shoes in rather
fancy styles, with crepe soles, etc,,,, are imported' from Czechoslovakia,, as are the
brief cases that so many persons carry? The middle-class Latvian prefers to eat
less rather than. to appear badly dressed on the streets.
20., Life in Riga appears to be quite normal. No anti-Soviet feeling is openly evddent,
but this is because everyone keeps his political opinions strictly to himself
and avoids talking to strangers: It is felt that this is the only way to
survive the Soviet occupatior, Every patriotic Latvian still hopes for
liberation and looks upon Latvia not as a part of the-Soviet Union but ai
occupied territory. Of course, no one talks about it in public but, in trauma
or In shops, incidents between Latvians and Russians can often be observed which
indicate that anti-Soviet feeling is still Very much alive. Politics are never
discussed with strangers, and individuals repeat in parrot fashion what is said in
the newspapers and in political books To the outside world, it is always "our
Stalin" and "our Party",,
Summer Holidays
Z, everyone who can afford to do so trios to go to Riga Strand for his summer
holiday. A room or two for the summer season costs between 500 and lt,000
rubles.: Rooms have to be rented early.in the spring before hussians from the
interior of the USSR start to arrive, All nationalities from the USSR can be
seen there during the summer, Most Russian visitors stay in the Majori and
Dzintari districts., Riga Strand has many concert halls, restaurants, cafes, and
an endless number of buffets,, The Strand is connected with Riga byirain and busy
trains leave every 15 to 20minutes0 Latvians who prefer a more quiet holiday
mostly go to Vecaki,, on the coast east of Riga Strand:, -
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