Latvia's second-largest city, Daugavpils has been around a long time: Stone Age habitations have been found within the city limits. Yet almost 80% of the city was destroyed during World War II, so most of the architecture is modern.
The population is multinational (less than 10% is ethnic Latvian; the majority is Russian) and relatively poor. The city's most visually dominating sight is the Daugavpils fortress, built in the 16th century by Ivan the Terrible. Daugavpil also has a number of interesting churches, the most impressive of which is the Italian-designed Church of St. Peter.
115 mi/185 km southeast of Riga.