The hardest thing about Latvia is the language(s). Both Russian and Latvian are used and English can be difficult to find when speaking to people older than about 40. Shopping in a foreign language is always a challenge, but it can be overcome. The only ingredients that I can think of that Americans may miss would be some spices, but there is Mexican food and other ethnic items that can be found in the groceries such as Stockman or Skye, however Rimi and Maxima are catching up on the more obscure US things. I have not found it difficult to adjust other than it may be a bit slower pace of life if coming from London or NY or Chicago. Movie theaters show current films, many in English with Latvian/Russian subtitles, and even children's movies will come out for a period of time in English before being voice-overed. Mail service is good. You cannot drink the tap water here so buying all bottled water may be annoying, but you can cook with the water (pasta). There is a lot of calcium deposits left over so I recommend bottled water for tea/coffee pots. It's not that hard but be prepared for a cold, white winter!

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