Moving to Latvia — A Survival Guide for Sri Lankans
Moving to a new country is one of those life-changing decisions people make (hopefully, once in a lifetime and not once every few years as mine has been).
I’ve become less excited about moving countries because, after multiple international moves, I think I have finally come to a place where I want to settle in one location and grow roots. Please don’t get me wrong! I still love travelling but moving to live long-term is an entirely different experience.
When you travel, you leave your home knowing that you are coming back. You know you are leaving for a relatively short time. You will return home to your family, friends, work and pets soon. You know you will return to the life you built over the years. You might even know the exact date or time of return since most travel visas (at least for Sri Lankans) require proof of a return ticket.
Moving countries is different.
When you move, there is no guarantee of returning home. You will not have a return ticket. You have to say goodbye to family and friends whom, God forbid, you may never see again or that you might only see after many years.
You have to leave possessions you have treasured over time. Taking more stuff means heavier luggage. If the given weight allocation exceeds, you will have to pay extra; not fun for the wallet.
How about saying goodbye to beloved pets who may not understand what happened to their favourite girl? It is heartbreaking to leave them with your family when it is wagging its tail — knowing you might never see them again to rub their bellies.
Then there’s the mystery of the new place you’re going to (if you’ve never been there before).
Will you get to eat your favourite food? Or will it be the last time you try that delicious dhal curry?
Will there be any other Sri Lankans? Or will it be a country full of foreigners with nothing in common with you?
Will they understand your way of speaking English?
What is the weather like? Will you be able to handle it?
Will you find work?
How affordable will it be to find a home or the stuff you need to live?
Will you find friends?
If you’re religious/spiritual, are there any similar places of worship?
You’d be wondering about some (if not all) of these things when you know you’re leaving home to move to another country.
So if you’re Sri Lankan and if you’re planning to move to Latvia for the first time (whether it is for your studies, work or like me…because your spouse lives here), I’m listing some things I wish I knew before coming to Latvia and things that have helped me in my previous moves.
ESSENTIAL LUGGAGE
Figuring out what to take when you’re moving and leaving your old life behind is challenging. You wish you had a bag like Mary Poppins’ so you could just take everything…but you can’t… so I’ll try to help you there.
These are categories of things I think you must take with you when you move. You can take them in either your hand luggage or your checked luggage.
For first-time travellers,
Hand luggage (carry-on luggage) is the bag you can take by hand when you board the plane. These bags must be small enough to fit under your flight seat or inside the overhead bins. These bags will be with you at all times. Their weight allowance is smaller, at around 5–10kg, depending on your ticket and the airline you fly.
Checked pieces of luggage are the bags (or big items) that don’t fit under your seats/in the overhead bins. These must be handed over to the airline staff at check-in.
There are various restrictions about the kind of items you can take in both of these types of luggage and it’s different from airline to airline so you should check with your airline for more details about these restrictions. Usually, they have a list on their websites.
The most common restriction for hand luggage is the limit of 1 L/100ml each for liquids. This means 1L of liquids is allowed in your carry-on luggage but it must be inside a sealed bag. Also, each bottle inside the sealed bag can only be 100 ml maximum.
You also (obviously) can’t carry any item that can be considered dangerous inside a high air-pressure-locked environment.
E.g. aerosol containing items, explosive items and sharp items like knives or scissors.
In your checked luggage the rules slightly differ. You can’t carry dangerous items but you can generally have more liquid items like large cream/shampoo bottles.
Coming back to the previously mentioned categories, they are:
- Clothes — (Pack few clothes in carry on. Rest in checked luggage)
- Medicine — (Pack few essentials in carry on. Rest in checked luggage)
- Entertainment (One or two in carry on. Rest in checked luggage)
- Electronic equipment (The most valuable like laptops in carry on. Rest in checked luggage)
- Documents (Carry on)
- Toiletries (Few in carry on — within the liquid limit. Rest in checked luggage)
- Money (Carry on)
Okay, so let’s look at these in more detail.
Clothes
Make sure you bring good quality clothes that will last long. Forget about any clothes with tears, holes or any clothes that have faded. Donate or get rid of the clothes you had in your closet for years but never wore. Chances are, you won’t wear them in Latvia either.
In general, I’ve noticed that most Latvians wear solid-coloured clothing with less noticeable patterns. So if you wear bright-coloured clothes with a highly noticeable pattern — you might stand out a bit. If you want that — no problem. Bring them along. However, if you want to blend in with everyone else, don’t waste your precious luggage space with them.
Latvian summers are warm but not as hot as Sri Lanka. If you’re coming to Latvia from Sri Lanka during summer, it might still be cold for you — especially at night. So don’t forget to bring at least one sweater and hoodie (zip-up hoodies are my favourites). House of Fashion, Odel and Cool Planet had some decent winter wear.
Latvian winters are extremely cold. This winter (2023–2024), there was a period when the temperature was below — 20C in Riga. So unless you’re coming to Latvia in winter, I highly suggest you buy your winter wear in Latvia rather than in Sri Lanka. Some of the winter wear you purchase in Sri Lanka might not be warm enough in Latvia. So you will merely waste your time, money and precious luggage space to bring all that bulky winter wear if you buy from Sri Lanka.
If you are buying winter wear from Sri Lanka (especially if you have to come in winter) — try to find a well-insulated, waterproof, thickly quilted winter jacket. Don’t go for the lightly quilted jackets. Thick jackets may look a little puffy and less stylish but they keep you warm. Another option if you find them in Sri Lanka is thick ‘peacoat’ type winter jackets (made of Cashmere or wool). They are thicker than trench coats. I haven’t personally tried them but they keep you warm too.
Also, remember the key to keeping warm in sub-zero temperatures is layers!
You can’t just wear a long-sleeved top and denim with a jacket. You will feel like a cute little icicle! You will have to wear layers.
Buy at least a pair of thermal wear to use as your base layer (the layer closest to your body that you wear first after underwear). I’ve included a picture link here for you to see how it looks like.
Then for your mid layer (what you wear after the base layer), you can wear a thick sweater (made of wool, cotton, cashmere, polyester blend etc.) or a thick hoodie. Depending on its thickness & warmth, you can wear two sweaters.
Finally, you wear the thick winter jacket mentioned earlier, as your outer layer.
Wool or cashmere scarves, beanies, and gloves are also useful to keep warm. Waterproof boots are a must.
Don’t wear sandals or light sneakers if you’re coming in winter. Find a pair of waterproof boots or at least some kind of waterproof, thick shoes that cover your entire feet.
Try not to go overboard with your winter shopping in Sri Lanka because you can find a better range and better quality clothes that suit the sub-zero weather here after coming to Latvia. I suggest just buying a pair or two pairs of the above clothes to survive your first few days (if you’re arriving in winter) and then heading off to one of these shops as soon as possible to purchase the rest of your winter wardrobe.
There are popular malls like Riga Plaza, Origo, Galleria, TC Spice, Akropole and Olimpia that have a wide range of clothing stores to buy new clothes.
My favourites are H&M, Reserved, Zara, New Yorker, Cropp and Sinsay (in that order). I find clothes I like at a decent price (especially during sales seasons) in these stores. You can even shop online & have them deliver it to you if you don’t want to go out in the cold.
If you’re more budget-conscious and don’t mind using second-hand clothes, try Kilomax, Humana and R.D.A clothing chains that sell second-hand clothes.
Medicine
In Latvia, you need to have health insurance to use health services. Unlike Sri Lankan private hospitals with outpatient services (OPD) where anyone can just walk in, pay the fees and consult a doctor for general medicine, the process is more complicated in Latvian hospitals. They do thorough checkups if you go to the hospital which may include various scans. I waited on a hospital bed with an IV drip & got multiple injections followed by an ultrasound scan for a stomachache (that I knew was gastritis from previous experience). It might be hospital policy in Latvia, but that visit cost us over 100 euros (after insurance deductions!).
As we learned the hard & scary way, the first point of contact for medical needs (unless for emergencies) must be family doctors/clinics. You visit hospitals if they recommend it and escalate it to a specialist.
Click Here for a list of hospitals in Riga if you need it. This list is compiled by the U.S. embassy in Riga and hosted on their site. It was last updated some time back (not very recent). I’m simply sharing the link with you in case it is useful for you.
Make sure you have insurance for medical needs before coming.
Also, some common medicines are sold under a different brand; try to bring a stock of medicine with you until you visit a clinic & figure out what you need to purchase in Latvia. For example, I sometimes take Gaviscon tablets/ liquid in Sri Lanka when I get gastric pains but it wasn’t available at the pharmacies I checked in Riga. However once I showed a picture of it from Google to the attendant and explained what it was for, I was directed to a Latvian-branded medicine that worked fine for me.
Entertainment
If you love movies and prefer to watch them on free sites accessible in Sri Lanka — those sites might not work in Latvia. Because of strict copyright policies, using torrents to download movies is unsafe.
Be ready to pay subscriptions for Netflix, Crunchyroll or some other streaming service if you don’t have your favourite collection saved on your digital device.
If you’re a fan of books -it’s not easy to find books in English. Some stores have a small collection; it’s not comparable to Sarasavi or Vijitha Yapa. You might have to ask the store attendant to find it. You might consider buying from Amazon (Germany is the closest Amazon store) or using Kindle (either the device itself or the Kindle app to read on your phone).
So come prepared! Bring a few books you love to read and re-read.
Electronic Equipment
In today’s digital age, most of us can’t live without electronic equipment like smartphones and laptops. In addition, you may have a tablet/iPad, kindle/e-reader, or hair dryer that you want to take with you.
Latvia uses a different type of plug from Sri Lanka. You will need a converter/universal travel adaptor to use your electronic equipment.
In Latvia, electrical sockets and plugs are type C or F. The standard voltage in the sockets is 230 V, Frequency of 50 Hz.
So bring along a multiplug extension & one or two travel adaptors to use your electric equipment in Latvia.
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I suggest keeping bulky electronic equipment like hair dryers at home because stores like Euronics and the larger Rimi or Maxima stores have them at affordable costs.
Documents
Remember to bring all important documents with you.
A passport, ID card & confirmation documents from your school, university, workplace, tour itinerary, and accommodation proof are compulsory. All these documents should be in your hand luggage (carry-on).
I also suggest bringing the original of any other document that might be difficult to obtain without you being in person in Sri Lanka.
My husband came to Latvia as a student more than six years ago. He suggested bringing original documents of the following:
i) A police report obtained less than three months before you arrive in Latvia
ii) All the original documents of whatever copies you submitted to VFS to get your visa.
iii) Get all official documents like education certificates, birth certificates, and marriage certificates legalized. This means, you get these documents certified as authentic/original by the Sri Lanka government immigration office. This process is called Document Attestation.
If any document is NOT in English — get it translated and get the original translation also attested by the Sri Lanka government office. In case someone takes your translated document, get multiple originals of the translated document.
Get your documents attested/legalized by placing an appointment online well ahead of time. My husband suggests asking the immigration to send the document additionally by e-mail, to have a soft copy in case you need additional copies after coming to Latvia. Notarizing by a lawyer is not enough. It is unrecognized in Latvia. The attested/legalized document the immigration gives you will have a QR code scanned in Latvia to validate the authenticity of your documents. So don’t skip this step. It is vital — especially if you have plans to stay long-term for work or higher studies.
Also, remember to bring any recommendation letters you have.
Because we can have so many documents, I like to organize them in one or two clear pocket folder files (Binders with Sleeves) that have plastic/polyethene sheets where we can slide in the documents to protect them from getting torn, crumpled or wet in case of any exposure to liquids while travelling.
Toiletries.
Latvian grocery stores like Rimi, Maxima & Lidl have a great range of toiletries. You won’t need to bring a stock of them unless you have specific local products that you can’t stay without. Bring enough for one or two weeks (or for the first month if you want to be careful).
So essentials (in my opinion) are:
- 1 Toothbrush
- 1 Toothpaste
- 1 Deodorant
- 1 Perfume
- 1 Nail clipper
- 1 Hairbrush/comb
- 1 Small Shampoo
- 1 Small Conditioner
- 1 Soap/body wash
- Moisturizing Lotions/Creams (for body & face) with sunscreen
- 1 Towel
- 1 Toilet paper roll (just in case for the first few days)
- 1 Hair products (oil/gel/hair sprays etc)
- 1 Hair tie/clips/bands (as needed)
Especially for Ladies:
- Make-up (foundation, concealer, face powder, eye shadow, eyeliner, mascara, lip balm, lipstick/gloss)
- 1 Makeup remover
- 1 Nail polish
- 1 Nail polish remover (MiniSo/Ximi had these cute little circular containers with nail polish wipes. They are much less bulky to bring than a liquid nail polish bottle. So check it out if it’s still there)
- 1 Tweezer
- Feminine hygiene products (pads, tampons, wet wipes etc)
For ladies who love Korean face masks — don’t worry, you don’t have to bring a stock. They are available even in Latvia at Rimi, Maxima and a store called Drogas.
Money
If you’re leaving Sri Lanka for many years — consider closing your bank accounts. If you have multiple accounts — consider keeping only one or two open. If you keep your accounts open, please submit letters informing the bank regarding your departure, including contact information in Latvia. This way, you will be informed how you can use your banking services even in Latvia. If your debit card/credit card was not accessible internationally before — they may remove any restrictions (which you might have otherwise found out only after leaving ).
This is important because unlike other countries I’ve been to, it’s not easy for foreigners to open a bank account in Latvia. You need a minimum amount of 200 euros just to open the bank account (and you will not get it back). You will also need your Latvian resident permit to open a bank account. This is a challenge because most likely it will take around 3 months to get it). So if you were expecting to receive money from abroad after coming to Latvia — you might find it extremely challenging.
My suggestion to overcome this is:
i) Bring enough money with you in cash.
ii) Bring an international debit/credit card linked to your Sri Lankan bank account (Visa/Master preferably since American Express is not available for some stores). This way, if you have an emergency, you can always use the finances in your Sri Lankan bank account or ask someone to deposit money into your Sri Lankan account.
iii) Open an international bank account like Revolut/Wise and add funds to it using a debit/credit card before leaving Sri Lanka. I think Wise has lower fees but you can check for yourself. For Wise, you can obtain a digital and a physical debit card once you arrive in Latvia and you update your address. It takes a few weeks to arrive but it works well as a bank account you can use for bank transfers and card payments while in Latvia until you can open a Latvian bank account. You can stay as long as you want without a Latvian bank account if you have one of these international bank accounts since they offer similar functions but the only downside is in case of an emergency you won’t have a physical bank office to contact. You’ll need to rely on online communication.
If you want to check out Wise use this LINK and you’ll get a fee-free transfer of up to 500 GBP thanks to their referral program.
I’ve covered some essentials to surviving Latvia for Sri Lankans.
I asked for some additional suggestions from my husband and he said the following based on his initial experience as a student in Latvia,
- If you’re coming as a student try to use the student dorms. If you decide to rent an apartment, you don’t need to pay extra for a “rental agreement” in addition to the rent.
- At the time of obtaining the agreement from your landowner, it is usually mandatory to pay:
~ rent to the landowner
~ utilities
~ a deposit (usually one or two month’s rent).
~ If you use an agent, there may be an additional agent fee
Other than the above payments you are not generally required to pay anything extra.
We have heard of nasty situations where some people took extra money for an alleged additional “rental agreement fee” only to be discovered to be cheating. There was no such fee required by the land owner.
- Make sure your rental agreement includes your name with the address so you can show it if necessary to government offices. Keep this original safe and make scans to have soft copies. You can use apps like Adobe Scan to get a good-quality scan from your phone.
- Try to come in time for your orientation. If you miss it for any reason, you might find yourself in a bit of a tough spot — having to figure out all your class locations, schedules etc by yourself. Some universities may not follow up on your studies. You will have to keep track of your classes, any changed schedules, locations etc so you won’t miss anything. Some universities might not give English documents — you’ll need to translate the documents from Latvian to English.
- I suggest downloading an app called Google Lens for quick translations. It makes life easier! All you need to do is open the Google Lens app, press “search with your camera”, show the document in the camera view screen and press “translate”. The language should automatically be detected as “Latvian” at the top. If not, change it from Latvian to English. Then you will see the English translations displayed near the Latvian text.
- We have heard multiple negative stories from international students who studied at the business informatics faculty of Riga Technical University (RTU). My husband also had a negative experience there so we do not recommend this faculty to any Sri Lankan students. He said other faculties may be better (less discriminatory) but not the Business Informatics faculty at RTU. There are other universities he recommended such as Turiba, University of Latvia, ISMA & RISEBA.
- Latvia has work opportunities in the Engineering & IT fields for international students studying for a master’s degree (as they can work) but not for bachelor’s degree students. It may not be easy or fast however as naturally, preference is given to locals- so be patient and keep applying to find work. Please check with your university for more current information about any restrictions. For other fields, since Latvian knowledge is compulsory, you might find it difficult to find work unless you first improve your Latvian language skills.
- Married students may find it difficult to bring spouses to Latvia as an invitation letter is required from the university to bring the spouse and they will only be allowed to stay for a month or two. So married students may have to wait until they find work and get a working visa. For those who have lived and worked in Latvia for many years, consider applying for a blue card for a smoother process.
- Students can get a student pass for cheaper public transport. It can be obtained at Riga transport centres. The cost for unlimited monthly travel within Riga can be halved when using this pass.
- Be prepared for the language barrier & culture shock if this is your first time travelling.
Most Latvians prefer speaking in Latvian. Younger Latvians may speak English. There are also a large community of Russians living in Latvia who speak Russian and Latvian.
Unlike in Sri Lanka, don’t expect people to smile back if you smile or readily jump in to help you if you look lost if you don’t ask for help. Even if you do ask for help — some may not help & just shrug and walk by — simply because of the language barrier.
Some Latvians say that “Latvians are introverted and that’s why many of them don’t talk much with strangers, appearing aloof and unfriendly”. However, if they do become friends — they are great friends.
I think it depends on who you meet.
So your social life might not be as effortless as it might have been in Sri Lanka. You’ll need to actively look for any groups or activities where you can meet similar-minded people who might be open to interacting in English with dark-skinned foreigners.
This might not be the most encouraging thing to hear but I want you to be prepared for the reality you will face here.
If you have tan/dark skin, it’s not uncommon to be discriminated by random people — hear a comment or two because of your skin colour/nationality.
Recently I read some comments to a facebook video of a South Asian who works as a courier in Latvia. The comments were very harsh and discriminatory against Asians and dark skinned people — generalising all to be similar to the individual. Being compared to ‘dogs’ and ‘pigs’ shouldn’t come as a surprise.
Don’t be mistaken. It’s not just online — it happens in the streets too. You’d be surprised when it happens to you. Trust me — in all my travels, I’ve never encountered discrimination to the extent I did — until I came to Latvia. Initially I thought it was only Latvia but after travelling to Italy where similar encounters occurred once to us and the other time to 3 dark skinned teenagers near us, I realised it’s not just true of Latvia but it happens in various locations across Europe.
It doesn’t happen all the time though so just shrug it off if it happens to you. It’s not just you. It has happened to others too.
Find the right community — it will help a lot when you don’t feel alone. There are international churches with English services where people from different countries are welcome. Practice general safety — not going out too late, avoiding locations that give you a bad vibe.
Latvia can be a pleasant place to live in if you look beyond the language barrier, cultural differences & lack of equity in opportunities due to these reasons. If you have the opportunity to learn the language — do it! That will definitely open more doors for you and improve your experience of Latvia.
Also Riga has a considerable international student/international employee population so you will get to meet Sri Lankans and other South Asians in Latvia. You won’t be the only dark skinned person (unless you venture out of Riga to other areas of Latvia).
With regards to food,
Grocery stores like Maxima and Rimi have food like Rice, coconut milk, scraped coconut, dhal, spices and various foods we can use to make Sri Lankan food. Several Indian, Middle Eastern and East Asian restaurants are available in Riga. If you have any sudden cravings for spicy/Asian food, you can visit these. When you leave Sri Lanka you won’t have to worry about food.
I’ve shared all the information I wish I knew before I came to Riga so I hope it helps you my Sri Lankan brother/sister.
Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.
Till next time,
Sources On Electric Plugs:
Disclaimer**
As this is a personal blog, please note that any views or opinions represented here are personal and belong solely to Chamathka. It does not represent the views or opinions of people, institutions or organizations that she may or may not be associated with in a professional or personal capacity unless explicitly stated.
The content of this article is based on personal thoughts, experiences and opinions. Any facts shared would be included with necessary references if required. The content shared is meant to inspire, encourage, empathize and connect with readers. The author condemns the use of this article to incite hate speech, violence or any legal/illegal activity that can harmfully affect another person/organization
