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LATVIA is middle in size among the three Baltic States. A good half of Latvia's long coast faces the Gulf of Riga. Latvia borders Estonia in the north, Russia and Belarus in the east, and Lithuania in the south.

LANDSCAPE
Latvia is a country of diverse natural landscapes. The coastal plain is mostly flat, but inland to the east the land is hilly with forests and lakes. Forests cover 44 percent of the territory, there are nearly 3.000 lakes and 12.000 rivers.

LANGUAGE
Latvian is an official state language of the country. It belongs to the Baltic group of languages and is similar only to Lithuanian. Other foreign languages spoken: English, Russian and German.

POPULATION
The population of Latvia totals 2.4 million. Latvians comprise 57%, Russians 30%, Byelorussians 4% and others 9%.

RELIGION
Largest religious confessions: Evangelic Lutheran, Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox. Since the Reformation movement in the 16th century, the Lutheran church has played a leading role in Latvia.

NATIONAL HOLIDAYS
January 1 - New Year
March/April - Easter
May 1 - May Day - Convocation of the Constituent Assembly of the Republic of Latvia
May 4 - Declaration of Independence
1st Sunday in May - Mother's Day
Sunday in May/June - Whit Sunday
June 23/24 - Ligo Day and Jani, the summer solstice
November 18 - Proclamation of the Republic of Latvia
December 25/26 - Christmas

CURRENCY
The national currency of Latvia is the Lat (LVL), 1 Lat = 100 santimi. Foreign currencies can be easily exchanged in banks and exchange offices. The exchange rate for 1 EUR = 0.60 LVL.

GETTING THERE
By air. The international airport in Riga has regular flight connections with most European capitals and major cities.
By sea. As a port city, Riga has direct ferry lines from Travemünde in Germany and Stockholm in Sweden.
By rail. Trains link Riga with Moscow, St. Petersburg and Minsk. The Berlin-St. Petersburg service passes through Daugavpils in southeastern Latvia.
By road. There are direct buses to Riga from Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Belarus, Estonia and Lithuania.

CLIMATE
Latvia's weather is governed by a moderate sea climate with pronounced cyclone activity and a considerable amount of precipitation. Average temperatures: +160C in summer and -4.50C in winter. Average precipitation amount is 195 mm in summer, 116 mm in winter.