Recent years Poker is gaining a massive popularity in all parts of the world, including Riga.
In some countries Poker has been recognized as sport, but in Latvia it is still gambling.
Photo has been taken legally in Olympic Voodoo Casino in Hotel Latvia.

Labels: casinos, entertainment, games, interior, people, sports

Loto is a lottery game, very similar to Bingo. During Soviet times, when Casinos were forbidden, playing Loto was the only opportunity to gamble :)

Labels: buildings, casinos, finance, games, hobby, people, teika

Morkovka (carrot) is colloquial name for shopping center located on the crossroads of Ilukstes & Deglava streets.
It was built in the end of 1980s and painted in absolutely irregular color for Soviet times - the orange one.
Nowadays the whole area around this building is called Morkovka, although it is not so orange as before.
Morkovka is also kind of nightlife center. Some main residents of the building are Enigma nightclub, Fortuna casino and Deli cafe.

Labels: cafes, casinos, clubs, nightlife, orange, plavnieki, post, shopping, soviet

Tobago Casino is located in the basement of Hotel Riga, but it is closed since 2008 already.
The reason why I write about this forgotten place is its name Tobago, an island in Caribbeans.
Not many people know that predecessor of Latvia, The Duchy of Courland, was the owner of this colonial island in 17th century and settled it.
In other words, Latvia was one of the first colonizers of Americas.

Labels: american, buildings, casinos, history, hotels, islands, kurzeme, vecriga

I always feel sorry, when I write about casinos, especially which are built in a very poor areas of the city.
Estonian company Casino Olympic has a low of slot machines around the town, some of them has title Lounge, and some of them has Optibet representative, the only Latvian totalizator company.
Have you ever put a bet on sport?

Labels: agenskalns, casinos, estonian, nightlife, sports

Laimētava Fenikss (Slot Machines Phoenix) is one of most popular resort of the regular labourers.
In fact it is one of the hundreds Riga casinos. Those regular people are addicted to gambling and can't do anything about it, just spend the whole monthly wage in one night.

Labels: agenskalns, bars, buildings, casinos, night, nightlife

Studio 69 is not only a night club, but a whole entertainment complex, which includes, different bars, restaurants, casino, hotel.
And on top of that Studio is connected to Rai with its 3 dance floors and hundreds of regular visitors.
Studio 69 has reputation of relatively expensive place for middle and upper-income workers. In fact here are a lot of people just pretending to be rich and the atmosphere of the club is very simulated.
Pros:

• Good music
• A lot of nice looking girls
• Sushi Bar
• Shisha Bar (aka Hookah or water-pipe)
  

Cons:

• A lot of rich people poor in spirit
• Cheap young girls looking for a sponsor (for somebody it could be more pro rather than con :))
  
• Intense gazes, not very friendly atmosphere
  
• Severe Security

Labels: bars, blue, casinos, clubs, hotels, lights, nightlife, people, restaurants

August has passed and, again, it's time for the city monthly theme! September's topic is Big.
What does Riga have really big? The Big Christmas Tree, of course. Also Bigbank. Anything else? A Big problem!
Big Game is casino network with fruit machines. My attitude to Riga casino is the same as Riga Mayor's one - All gambling places should be removed from Riga or concentrated in one area.
Especially small ones, made at the corner like Zilais Dimants on Ernesta Birznieka-Upisa iela.
Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Labels: casinos, entertainment, people, plavnieki, themes

Zilais Dimants (Blue Diamond) is a huge Casino Network in Riga, which takes the last money from rustic sloggers.
Sometimes casinos are located in such wooden buildings. Who cares?
You know, the most important in this business is to be closer to the people.
I am happy that our neighbor-country Russia had forbidden gambling from 1st of July. I am sure that we need do so as well, as we suffer from the same problem when people get lost the whole salary in 2 hours.
See also Klondaika's big game.

Labels: buildings, casinos, center, houses, poverty, shame, streets, wooden

Unfortunately there is no many places to go out in Riga during the working days.
Roxy nightclub is one of the places, which operates every day, but I wouldn't never advice to go there.
Despite that Roxy has very good location, in the very center of old town, on Kalku street, it is blacklisted place.
Roxy is widely known for ripping off the foreigners and even locals. Keep clear of this "night club".
Be aware that since July 2009 Roxy has a new name - Babylon club.

Labels: casinos, clubs, criminal, night, nightlife, shame

Everyday tens of people gathering in Vermane Garden to play chess, checkers, dominoes, cards and other games. Some of them earn money playing the whole day :) You can earn even not playing. There is many experts around who wanna bet :)

Labels: casinos, center, entertainment, games, parks, people, sports

As always I write about holdiays day after they have been.
Yesterday was a Fool's Day :) I didn't notice any hoaxes or jokes walking in Riga, so I decide to put this Organ Grinder who plays almost everyday in front of Europa Club Casino on Kr. Barona Street, but yesterday he was without his White-headed Capuchin monkey.
Maybe monkey get sick :(

Labels: casinos, center, holidays, jobs, music, people

On day before yesterday the biggest club in Riga was La Rocca club.
Saturday morning, when all visitors left the club, the roof started to fire..
Preliminary investigation discovered that the cause of the fire was a roof repair work.
La Rocca club hosted about 2-3 thousands of people every weekend night, so this news touched almost all young people in Riga in less than an hour, becoming an event greater than elections of the President :)
After 1 year, La Rocca open its doors again.

Labels: casinos, clubs, events, fire, incidents, nightlife, roofs