A statue built to honor the elite soldiers who fought for Latvia during World War I.

With a design inspired by traditional Latvian textiles, this monument honors the Latvian people who suffered under Soviet occupation.

The reconstruction of this prominent building fulfilled a long-written command.

A stone marker and sculpture in the city of Riga stake a claim for the very first community Christmas tree.

A preserved oak tree about 3,500 years old found in Riga, Latvia.

A former graveyard for Riga’s elite is now a large park with elegant monuments.

This statue is dedicated to the animal cosmonauts that perished during space flight experiments.

This charming Latvian lane doubled as Baker Street on the Soviet Union’s version of Sherlock Holmes.

A subtle memorial marks where a human chain protested Soviet control in 1989.

A bare tree in Riga’s Esplanāde is transformed into an extraordinary vertical neighbourhood by scores of colourful bird nesting boxes clustered across its trunk and branches.

Flamboyant architecture from the turn of 20th century.

A former Latvian headquarters of the brutal KGB secret police is now open as a grim reminder of their atrocities.

The oldest housing complex in Riga is a mini timeline of architectural trends.

A black cat protests the City Guild in Riga's Old Town.

This celebration of Latvia’s freedom and independence avoided demolition over half a century of Soviet occupation.

This former Nazi labor camp is now a poignant memorial, complete with giant Soviet-style monuments.

An old hill fort covered in over 100,000 crosses is a symbol of Lithuanian nationalism and beliefs.

A century-old prison in the heart of Vilnius is now a lively bar, dance club, and artist residency.

A miraculous three-handed portrait of a saint can be found inside this church.

These traffic lights celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the women's suffrage movement in Lithuania.

An abandoned masterpiece of Soviet Brutalist architecture.

The largest coin pyramid in the world is a carefully balanced stack of over 1,000,000 pieces.

While this monument tile is shrouded in mystery it also marks the end of the longest ever human chain.

This former KGB building is now a museum memorializing the people who suffered during the Soviet regime.