NSLI-Y 2023 Latvia – Week 4
Sveiki! (“Hello” in Latvian!)
We have now reached the end of week four of our NSLI-Y Russian language program in Riga, Latvia. It is truly amazing to see the gains in language proficiency that the students have made since we arrived in Riga at the beginning of July. The confidence that our students now possess when communicating in Russian is inspiring. We would like to take a moment to thank the excellent teachers at the Baltic Center for all that they do to help our students gain valuable language skills.
Our teacher Ludmila working on her lesson on cuisine, in this case, pelmeni. For those who haven’t tried these tasty little dumplings, we encourage you to give them a try! We know our students enjoy them.
Our teacher Ekaterina addressing the students before a test. Students take weekly exams to ensure that they are grasping the material and excelling in their language acquisition. Good luck, students!
In addition to classroom activities, conversations with peer language partners each Friday provide students valuable opportunities to put the knowledge they’ve gained in class over the course of the week to good use. Peer Language Partner activities are also a great way to make new friends!
A big thank you to Margarita, who has helped organize our Peer Language Partner activities! Here she is with students and peer partners in front of the Baltic Center as they play a game of ‘Perfect Friends’ in Russian.
Fletcher, Madison, Nyrah, and Destiney are paired off and begin to acquaint themselves with their peer partners.
Kira, Meera, and Izzie test their recently acquired phrases and vocabulary. It can sometimes be hard to get to know someone in your own language, let alone a foreign one. Well done!
And now it is Kaitlyn, Caleb, and Jonathan’s turn. It is always useful to have a translator nearby, just in case. Imagine what it was like before we had translator apps on our phones!
Sam and Eva search for the rights words with their partners.
Kim and her peer partner. Photographer’s presence likely unappreciated.
Rose and her peer partner get to know each other.
Sometimes you just need a break. Caleb, Izzie, Kim, Madison, and Jonathan catch up during a break from work while enjoying some snacks from our much-appreciated snack machine.
Another thing that has helped students unwind after the rigors of class is our neighborhood Corgi. He’s always around looking for handouts at our daily lunch spot and has been embraced as part of the group.
Beyond our academic pursuits, students this week enjoyed a full-day cultural excursion of Soviet-era Riga! We started at the Latvian Academy of Sciences, built during the 1950s and 60s and mirroring the Stalinist architecture that can be found throughout the former Soviet Union, most famously Moscow State University.
The group gathers as we prepare to enter the building to go to the observation deck on the top floor. Thank you to our wonderful tour guide, Elena!
Izzie and Kira enjoy the view from up top, while learning about the building’s history from our guide, Elena.
The group enjoyed one of the best panoramic views of Riga.
Our next stop was at the abandoned Spilve Airport, the city’s main airport until the 1980s. Here we enjoyed relics of the Soviet past still decorating the exterior and interior of the terminal.
Completed in 1954, the terminal is notable for its Stalinist neoclassical style.
Hammers and sickles decorate the exterior.
The highlight of the interior is a massive mural depicting the Soviet arrival to the country after World War II.
The finely decorated waiting hall was still very impressive despite its lack of use.
As a special treat, our tour guide, Elena, presented each student with a Soviet-era pin to keep. Here, Eva receives hers as the group looks on.
The final stop on our tour was at a hidden Soviet-era bunker outside of Riga in rural Līgatne. This bunker was built in case of a nuclear war in the 1970s and 80s for the elite of the Latvian communist party. Its existence was revealed to local officials only in 2000, and the site was later opened to visitors. The bunker itself is hidden beneath a retirement and rehabilitation center that is still in active use.
After descending about 10 meters, we were greeted with this Soviet sign. Rough translation: Be on guard, take care of the defense capability of our country like the apple of your eye!
A Soviet informational advising the reader how best to protect oneself from radiation.
Fletcher tries on a gas mask while Rose and Madison look on. When Latvian authorities explored the bunker, they discovered over 2000 such gas masks stored there.
Meera salutes the camera during her inspection of the bunker!
Before returning to Riga, students had some time to enjoy the greenery of the surrounding area, as well as some man-made grottos in the sandstone cliffs around Līgatne.
Students enter two of the grottos. These were made a century ago by workers of the town and were used as storage units.
It was a nice treat to get out of the city and enjoy some nature.
Kim and Meera enjoy the good weather and fresh air of the Latvian countryside.
Thanks for checking in. We will post another update next week!