As my 411 - 911, A Team is aware...my passport went missing yesterday, a day of excursion to Sigulda about an 1.5 hour bus ride outside of Riga.

I should have seen the signs of disaster when I went to the bus station:

1) The clouds were starting to clear but there was still a dark cloud over me..
2) There were two buses going to Sigulda, a big regular bus and a small mini-van...something I didn't learn until I got to the Sigulda bus station.
3) The tourist information desk in the Riga bus station was closed.

Needless to say, I got on the big regular bus since I did not know there was a difference. I even asked the driver if the bus went to Sigulda, he said yes but I didn't realize I needed to say Sigulda Zentrum (City Center). The highway had no signs and I was getting concerned since an hour had passed and we hadn't entered a town yet. Just when I was thinking the worst, I saw a Sigulda sign with a big red X on it that made me realize we were exiting the area. The stop was about 5 miles from town... I walked.

I walked in the pouring rain, with no signs signaling center, I continued to walk and thankfully a nice teenage girl leaving home confirmed that I was actually walking in the right direction.

I was soaked to the bone and cold but the rain ebbed and I walked to a few of the castles and churches in town with clothes praying that the sun would come out. It didn't and as the second rain storm came, I pulled out my rain wear and entered the hotel to get a hot lunch. What I didn't realize is that either with putting my rain wear on or off, that my passport had fallen out in the process.

I had no realization of this until I return to Riga and I started packing for a days excursion to Tallinn, Estonia. In search of passport with no luck, I wrote home to my A Team, tried to get ahold of the authorities in Riga since I wasn't sure where I had lost it and right before I went to bed, I found the card of where I ate lunch in Sigulda. Out of curiousity and thoroughness, I called the restaurant hotel and they notified me that someone had found it. Instead of keeping it, they had told the gentleman to take it to the police station.

At this point, it is about 10:00 pm and in the small town of Sigulda, there was no police needed or on duty...station closed is what the machine said. At 7:30 am, I awoke and asked the hotel clerk to call the police station again. They stated that they had not recieved a passport but that I would have to go to Sigulda to create the lost or stolen report.

I boarded the bus at the same time I had done so the previous day, 9:15 am. This time I boarded the van and I didn't take the burden of a bag or camera, just myself. I wanted to make the trip as easy and fast as possible.

At 10:45 AM, I arrived to Sigulda and I decided to go to the hotel that had reported it found since it was right around the corner from the bus station. They proceeded to call the police but they had not recieved a passport...there was a women standing close by and in Latvian she rambled on to the clerk. In translation, I found out that a man did find it and that he left a phone number for contact. A breath easier, we called but there was no answer. The clerk recommended we call later and to sit in the restaurant and have a tea.

I did and thought that I should still go to the police station just in case. So as I made my request she informed me to go around the building and that there was a man there with flowers.. to find him.

I assumed that they were leading me to the police station, but as I approached the man with flowers, the woman with him started rambling in a high voice and running to her car. Out of the back, she pulls out my passport. The elderly couple that sell flowers in the same location, everyday, found it nearby. From their pointing, I know exactly where they found it.

As a thank you, I went to the local bakery and purchased dozens of sweet items including cookies and cakes. I returned to their little stand, on the empty sidewalk with a box of gratitude and in return they both gave me a beautiful smile and a batch of flowers with a sweet smell you could detect for miles. I didn't need words to say thank you, the hug and smile the woman bestowed was signal enough and I stayed and TRIED to talk to them for about 30 minutes. I was in no rush and I was thankful for the experience, it was the first moment I wanted to have my camera.

My gift of flowers at hand, I too had a smile as I board my return bus to Riga. It was a great day!