Day 70: Hangover tea and karaoke!

As the morning lecture was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances, another activity was arranged in its place - a short trip to Valmiera's medicinal herbal garden.

A beautiful arrangement.

Located in the old part of the town, the main house which the garden belongs to is the third oldest house still standing in Valmiera, dating back to the 18th century. The house and its garden were used as a location to introduce released prisoners back into society but then it became state-owned and had to be stopped. After great war damage, the house was rebuilt in 2011 and became owned by the local museum. The herbs and medicines that existed at the nearby pharmacy house were subsequently moved here.

I love the balcony.

We were given a detailed tour of the herb garden. Whilst being highly encouraged to smell and touch the plants, I managed to make some mental notes of the effects when the herbs and plants are properly consumed:

Flu and cough relief.

Dill: Good for the heart and digestion.

Echinacea: flu and cold relief. 

Put in wine for a lethargic effect.

Oregano: Effective weight loss.

Calendula: Deters head lice.

Reduces body odour.

A type of cannabis (really!), but
you'd have to consume a lot to feel any effect.

Reduces blood sugar levels.

Cure for hangovers.

We went to sit down inside a smaller house and we told to grab a cup and saucer, ready to be served different types of herbal tea. The "hangover tea" was definitely a big hit among the students. I tried field horsetail, common nettle, celery, calendula and lemon balm (my favourite of them all). The amount of times I've been ill this year, I may as well start growing my own herb garden - medicinal, of course!

I know my tea etiquette.

We were also given the opportunity to explore both houses. I went upstairs and the first thing I saw was an antique wooden chest. I had to open it!

The excitement went a little too far.

After opening a few doors and wooden chests we probably shouldn't have (oops!), we walked back to the university to continue our day. I needed to do a bit of admin for leaving Latvia next weekend - i.e. how I'm getting to the airport in Riga - and then some preparations for the international food party and karaoke taking place later in the evening.

I love my labels.

With all the food laid out on the table, a representative from each country stood up to give a brief explanation of each delicacy - the Dutch waffles and Latvian fudge caught my eye. I could actually hear the scones calling my name to eat them... The UK lecturer's wife (who has the same birthday as me) made them fresh today.

UK: Scotch Whisky, Baileys Irish Cream,
English homemade scones and biscuits, Welsh cake and "Bara Brith" - yum!

I took one of everything, even if I couldn't remember what it was. The crazy karaoke that followed definitely helped to work off the calories... Time for some of those German pretzels I stuffed into my bag for a midnight snack!