Bauska castle occupies a pretty hillock squeezed between two rivers – Mūsa and Mēmele – which flow parallel to each other. It consists of two parts – the ruins of the 15th century Livonian order castle and the 16th century duke of Kurzeme castle, which remains intact and contains a local history exhibition.
Take a good look at the grey blocks along the facade of the new castle – they appear to be bulging out of the wall, but it’s actually an optical illusion – the lower left corner of each brick has been scraped with a chisel to trick the viewer into thinking that they are seeing a shadow.
During the 18th century an Italian by the name of Magno Cavala moved to Bauska in search of a new business venture. He was something of a casanova (and a conman), and started collecting the water at the junction of the two rivers near the castle. He claimed that the water was a pungent love potion and made a fortune scamming the poor townspeople.
