When the spires line up with the river

Riga's Old Town sits on the east bank of the Daugava, which runs roughly southeast–northwest. The three dominant spires — Riga Cathedral (the largest medieval church in the Baltic), St. Peter's Church (123 meters), and St. James's Cathedral — are visible from the west bank at sunset. The Akmens Bridge (Stone Bridge) and the nearby pedestrian Vanšu Bridge frame the Old Town across the water. The Latvian Academy of Sciences tower, a Stalinist skyscraper completed in 1958, has a public observation terrace at 65 meters. Alberta iela, the center of Riga's Art Nouveau district, has the densest concentration of Art Nouveau facades in Europe — best photographed between 7am and 9am before street-level activity fills the sidewalks. At 57°N, golden hour runs around 68 minutes in summer.