Adventures in Latvia

Epilogue

2008-09-24T01:47:00.004+03:00

I arrived safely back in the US on July 25 (the same day I left Latvia). The airline didn't even charge me for my overweight luggage even though one suitcase was 10 kilos over! Which was great because I had spent all of my money on books and souvenirs.

I just wanted to write one last blog post thanking all of my devoted readers who have read my blog to see what I have been up over the past year. I was truly an amazing experience and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to learn more about my most favorite country in the world. I am leaving Latvia to start my PhD at the University of Kansas this fall so its onward to different things while hoping that someday I will get to return to this amazing country.

Thanks so much for reading about all of my Adventures in Latvia!

One last photo of me at the University of Kansas (or KU as everyone around here likes to call it).

My Last Day

2008-07-24T06:20:00.000+03:00

I had a really crazy last day in Latvia..but I guess that kind of symbolizes my whole year in there, running around trying to take advantage of every opportunity with my research and cultural events.

First I went to an exhibit on Latvian Folk Costumes at the Railway Museum. It cost three lats (around $6.50) which is quite expensive for a museum in Latvia but in the end it was totally worth it.

Then I went souvenir shopping and took advantage of my last opportunity to take my photo at one of my favorite places in Latvia.
After that I headed to Jelgava to see my two favorite Latvian Bands play.
The concert was across the river from the Duke of Courland's palace..you can see it in the background behind the stage.

Me at the concert.
The concert was really me coming full circle with Latvia. I went to a concert of Prata Vetra or Brainstorm in 2005. At that time I didn't really know who they were and my Latvian wasn't very good so I couldn't really understand the words. When I went this year not only did I know many of their songs, I could understand all the words and the meanings of the songs. This concert was truly the best way to end my year in Latvia.

Little Goodbyes...

2008-07-23T06:07:00.000+03:00

I had the brilliant idea to say goodbye to all my friends separately instead of having a party or something before I left. I thought it would be more personable and a better way to say goodbye to everyone. Instead it was actually kind of stressful to try and meet with everyone and finish up research and interviews in my last two weeks. But it was still great to say goodbye to all the friends, new and old, who made my year in Latvia great. Here are just some of my great friends who I will miss tremendously and look forward to seeing again, no matter where in the world they live!

Kathrin, Kristina, Monika and I
The girls from my Latvian language class and a few more friends.
Mara and I
My Latvian teacher and fellow Latvian classmate
Fellow Fulbrighter Tim
Kathrin and I
Britta and I
Zanda, Amanda and I
My work colleague Martiņš

Early Music Festival

2008-07-20T05:42:00.002+03:00

Today I traveled almost the length of Latvia. I went north to Limbaži, well actually Lēdurga for an interview (for my research) and then went to Rundale Palace near Bauska in the south for the Early Music Festival. It was a long but eventful day.

Once again at Rundale Palace
Latin American Baroque Music Concert in the White Ballroom of the palace.
Then we went outside for the final concert in the garden and it was raining so they handed us ponchos! Even President Zatlers who sat behind us watched the performance in the rain.
The final concert with baroque music and dancers. But what happens when dancers try to dance on a wet stage? There were lost of falls and stumbles which at first was kind of funny but then I just felt bad. Luckily no one turned an ankle and the audience was very supportive.
No this is not a forest fire....its just fireworks in the rain.
The back of the palace light up because of the fireworks..you can see everyone in their fashionable ponchos.

Cinevilla

2008-07-19T19:58:00.004+03:00

Today I went with the embassy people to Cinevilla....or the Hollywood of Latvia. Basically its a city set that they built for the filming of the "Defenders of Riga" the biggest budget Hollywood like film in Latvian history. It was very interesting to see and definitely something I could never have done by myself (it was in the middle of no where 5 km down a dirt road). They let you walk around the set and even dress up in period costumes. Now after seeing the set I feel like I should go see the movie again (especially since they have it with English subtitles) but unfortunately I probably will not have time before I leave. Here are the photos from my adventures.

This bridge actually only goes half way and is made of wood and mostly plastic which is why I didn't venture further out on to it.
The church where a key fighting scene in the movie took place.

The entrance to the bar in the movie.
Me in old town..with German writing in the background.

The Academy

2008-07-16T21:50:00.004+03:00

Many of the capital cities in Eastern Europe have a very ugly remnant of communist times, some people call it Stalin's birthday cake, others call an eyesore or even the Kremlin. The Latvian Academy of Sciences Building which according to Wikipedia was a gift from the workers and peasants of the other Soviet republics to the Latvian people to mark the borders of Stalin's empire, is a constant reminder to many of the fifty years of Soviet Occupation. I had an interview for my research in this building today, which houses the foremost Latvian academics and scientists. The epitome of Soviet Architecture, you can still see hammer and sickles on it, has seventeen floors and an excellent observation deck but only one elevator (I was told later that they had two but maybe the other one was not working). Does anyone else find that ironic that this is supposed to represent Stalin and the power of the USSR but yet they only thought to have two elevators? Granted the building was built in the 50's but still it just goes to show you the lack of planning and thought that actually went into these gifts.

I thought after my interview I would go up and see if the door was open to the observation deck. I got some lovely pictures from the top and superseded the ticket counter by looking like I belonged there (which I guess I actually did) and acting like I knew where I was going.

Dziesmu Svētki

2008-07-13T13:37:00.008+03:00

Although my fellowship was only for 10 months I decided to stay an extra month for the biggest event of the year, The Latvian Song and Dance Festival. I call it the Olympics of Latvian folk dancing and singing because it happens every five years and it brings the best Latvian singers and dancers from all over Latvia and the world to participate. Although there really isn't a first prize it is still amazing to see just how many participants there are. According to the Song Festival website over 35 000 participants gathered in Riga for the XXIV Song and XIV Dance Celebration in 2008. The tradition goes back for 135 years and in 2003 it was recorded in the UNESCO list of Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage.
I stood in line for more than four hours to get tickets to the closing concert for singing and dancing and it was worth every second. Also I was lucky enough to get my ticket situation fixed on my flight from Madrid so I made it just in time to see these concerts and the end of the week long festival. I went to the Closing Dance Concert on Friday night where over 13,000 dancers performed folk dances while forming ethnographic patterns. It was truly amazing and something that, as a retired Latvian folk dancer, was very cool to see. Then on Saturday night I went to the closing concert for the singing portion and final concert for the festival where there was both singing and dancing. There were over 12,000 singers, almost 1,000 dancers and even more people in the audience. After the encores and the end of the actual program the festival went into a sing along where people sang songs and danced until dawn! It was one of those moments in life that I will remember forever. Here are some of the pictures to show you just how huge it really was.

The market in one of the parks with the list of events.
Another market
The big wind orchestra pavilion in Dome Square
The Closing Dance Concert
The stadium seating where you could actually see the formations.

The closing ceremony for the entire song festival in Mežparks

Monika and I
Me and the stadium
The view from the top
Monika and I showing that songs are strength as the sign says.

Holy Toledo!

2008-07-08T15:54:00.002+03:00

I saw a Rick Steve's episode about this city and always wanted to go, so when I found out that I would be able to take a day trip there I was so excited. It was only 30 mins on a high speed train from Madrid and well worth the visit! They call it the city of three cultures because there are mosques, synagogues and churches there, remnants from the three religions that have been practiced in this city at one time or another throughout its long history. Here are the photos to show you how beautiful it was.

The city is surrounded on many parts by the Arab wall and you have to climb up the winding streets to be able to get to the main part of the old city on a hill.
Me and one of the bridges that is still intact.
An old mosque (now a museum)
A cool looking church
Another gate to the city
Me and yet another gate..on a bridge that was never taken.
Me and Toledo!
Another view of the city.

Madrid

2008-07-05T15:30:00.006+03:00

In addition to attending the conference I got to take in some of the sights! Even though it was very very very hot, sunny and humid, I braved the conditions to see Madrid and some great art museums. I even learned that Spanish women really do use those fans to cool themselves on hot summer days. Here are the photos from my adventures.

Me and the Plaza Mayor (the main touristy I mean town square).
The Palacio Real (Royal Palace) and me.
Me in the gardens of the palace.
Close up at the Parque del Retiro (I wanted to jump in the pond I was so hot)!
Me and the Madrid Gay Pride Parade 2008 (I just followed the music and happened upon it).

El Rastro, the street market with lots of bargains every Sunday.

Women's World

2008-07-04T15:13:00.000+03:00

I was lucky enough to secure funding to attend the largest Women's Studies Conference in the world (3,500 people) called Women's Worlds/Mundos de Mujeres 2008 at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain. I learned a lot about the interdisciplinary field of Women's Studies, presented my final paper research for my Fulbright, and got to meet feminist academics from the states and around the world. It was really a great opportunity for me and great closure to my year long research project.

The opening ceremony of the concert with traditional Spanish music.
A panel about human trafficking and prostitution.
Me and the slogan for the conference.
The closing ceremony in the botanical gardens of the university.

Independence Day.......American Style

2008-06-28T09:42:00.001+03:00

I heard the entire year about the US Embassy's legendary Independence Day bash and I was very happy that it was scheduled for the end of June instead of actually on July 4th (because I will be in Spain then). It did live up to its reputation of free food, beer and a huge American birthday cake! There was McDonald's and gourmet hot dogs from the Raddisson hotel..but the longest line was not for American food but for šašliks, a skewered meat on a stick that is originally from the Caucuses but really popular in Latvia. It was such a huge event that I think I also saw almost every American I know living in Latvia so it was a great time to catch up with everyone before I leave. I also talked briefly with the US Ambassador who mentioned that he enjoyed reading my blog, so I guess I do have a dedicated (and famous) readership after all!

Happy Birthday America!
The Ambassador giving his Independence Day speech.
A balloon display that spelled out USA (if you can see it through the other person who was taking a photo).

Strategic Days

2008-06-26T10:59:00.002+03:00

Right after my family left I went on a Strategic planning Retreat with my Marta Centre colleagues as a kind of a last hurrah before I leave to return to the states. It was in a very beautiful location on the Daugava River and nice to spend some time and relax with everyone before I had to say goodbye.

Lolita, Lena two of my colleagues and me.
Zanda and me (looking very tall!)

Jaņi

2008-06-24T10:42:00.000+03:00

Jāņi is a Latvian festival held in the night from 23 June to 24 June to celebrate the summer solstice, the shortest night and longest day of the year. The day of Līgo (23 June) and the day of Jāņi (24 June) are public holidays in Latvia, people usually spend them in the countryside and Riga is empty. We decided to go to the seaside with a couple of my friends to check out the festivities there.

My sister and I and the beautiful sunset.
Lighting the fire
People jumping over the fire which traditionally people jump over to ensure prosperity and fertility.
My friend Kristina and I and lots of smoke!

Eugene Onegin

2008-06-22T10:52:00.005+03:00

I took my mom and sister to see an opera of one of my most favorite Russian Stories (title above) by Alexander Puskin the Shakespeare of Russia. The opera was in Russian instead of Italian but they had both Latvian and English descriptions of the sings which made it much easier to understand. We drank Rigas Champagne and hung out on the balcony of the National Opera. It was all very glamorous!

My sister, my friend Jill and I with the Brivibas Monument in the background.
My sister and I
Me and the inside of the Opera.

Road Trip

2008-06-21T10:17:00.001+03:00

Americans are really obsessed with palaces and castles. I think this is because we really don't have them and maybe because they are the quintessential sign of Europe. In order to fill my family's quota of necessary castles for the trip we rented a car and set off for the Latvian countryside. We visited Rundale Palace, constructed in the 1730s by Bartolomeo Rastrelli (the same person who designed the Winter Palace in Russia) as a summer residence of Ernst Johann von Biron, the duke of Courland. Then we went to Mežotne, built in 1797 as a gift from Russian Empress Catherine II to Charlotte von Liven, the tutor of her grandchildren. After that we went to Lithuania to see the Hill of Crosses, known as the Mecca of Lithuania, a pilgrimage site for catholics from all over the world, even Pope John Paul II visited here. After that we headed back to Latvia to see the Jelgava Palace, also by Rastrelli, which was the Duke of Courland's official residence. Here are the photos.....

My Mom, Sister and I at Rundale.
The gardens
Mežotne
The Hill of Crosses

The church next to the Hill of Crosses where the altar piece is a view of the hill.
The Latvian border and as always happy to be back in Latvia!
Jelgava Palace
My friend Monika and I..and the Riga sign.

Jaņi Market

2008-06-20T10:38:00.000+03:00

On the Friday before Jaņi (Midsummers Eve) there is a green market in Dome Square where you can buy handicrafts and flowers from all over Latvia. I took my Mom and Sister and thank goodness we got to visit it before it started raining!

Dome Square
There is always signing in Latvia!

Gender Equality

2008-06-19T10:03:00.000+03:00

Upon arrival in Riga, after a long a stressful journey, we went to the Gender Equality Award Ceremony. This award is sponsored by Marta Centre, the women's centre where I have volunteered all year, and the coalition of Latvian Women's NGOs. It is given to politicians, the media and other public figures who have worked for gender equality in Latvia over the past year. The symbol for the award (you can see it in the background) is a triangle with pink and blue lines trying to balance on it. This symbolizes the struggle and need for balance with respect to gender equality.

My boss giving a speech
The winners in the rocking chairs before they were rocked back and forth!

Tallinn

2008-06-18T09:43:00.000+03:00

After staying in Helsinki for a night we took the boat back to Tallinn and stayed over night there. The city has changed significantly since I was there in 1999 and the old town was very medieval and touristy. Still it was nice to see just how western things were in this country that has the same history as Latvia. It just shows you what a little help from your Finno-Ugric neighbors can do! Here are some photos....

Me in town square
The city hall
The medieval gates with my mom in the background!
The walk to the upper part of old town..reminded of Prague without the people selling things.
The view from the top of Tallinn.

Helsinki

2008-06-17T09:25:00.003+03:00

I took a bus to Estonia and then a ferry to Helsinki to meet my mom when she arrived for her visit to Latvia. Her flight ended up being delayed so I got a chance to walk around the city before she arrived. I knew that Finland was part of the Russian Empire but I didn't expect the architecture to remind me so much of St. Petersburg. Here are some the photos of my adventures..before it started down pouring!

Me on the boat from Estonia..it was really windy!
The main town square..eerily reminiscent of St. Petersburg with a statue of Alexander II.
Me and the Helsinki Cathedral (the city's most famous landmark).
The Helsinki harbor with an orthodox church in the background.

Laima

2008-06-16T13:57:00.003+03:00

Laima in Latvian mean happiness and I was very happy today because I got to go and get a tour of the Laima Chocolate Factory where they make my favorite chocolate in the world..Laima! It was something I looked forward to all year and definitely lived up to my expectations. Not only did we get as much chocolate as we could eat we but we also got to see where the magic happens and learn about the process. They also gave us cute little Laima bears as a souvenir....

The factory was established by some German guy in 1870 and changed its name to Laima in 1921.

The US Embassy people eating all the chocolate they can!
We weren't supposed to take pictures but I managed to sneak this one of the chocolate coming off the line.
We had to wear these fashionable suits during the tour so we wouldn't contaminate the chocolate. Me and a Laima chocolate truck.

Skroderdienas Silmačos

2008-06-15T13:44:00.003+03:00

Tonight I went and saw Skroderdienas Silmačos (Tailor Days in Silmači) a Latvian play about Midsummers Eve or St. John's Day in Latvia. I am happy to report that after almost five years of studying Latvian it is the first Latvian play I have seen or read where no dies and there is a happy ending. In fact normally when the description says comedy I expect it to be depressing and not funny at all. But I was pleasantly surprised not only did it have a happy ending everyone ended up with who they should have...it was great. This play was also quintessentially Latvian with singing, dancing, drinking, and eating. And the best part is I saw it all for less than a the price of a movie ticket at home!

The view from my seat

June 14th

2008-06-14T20:18:00.003+03:00

Today was one of the Victims of Communism Genocide Memorial Days in Latvia (the other is March 25). On this day in 1941 15,424 deported on were deported to Siberia and other regions of the Soviet Union, of these 46.5 percent were women, and 10 percent were children below the age of 10. While this number might not seem very big to many Americans it was huge for a nation of 2 million people. Additionally, the people that were targeted during this deportation were the intelligentsia and other people considered to be unreliable or dangerous to the totalitarian Communist regime. I went to the Occupation Museum today to take part in the memorial. I was chatting with some of my former colleagues (I worked at the museum in the summer of 2005) in English and this lady came up to us and started telling us that she was deported at the age of 7 to Siberia. She asked my friend to translate and I said I spoke Latvian so she continued telling me her story and how some of her family members didn't survive the deportation. She said that because I was a foreigner it was important for me to understand what the Latvians had gone through. It was really one of those experiences that I will remember for the rest of the my life. Here are the pictures from the memorial day.

The president's speech
Flower laying

New York, New York

2008-06-11T20:03:00.003+03:00

One of the perks of being a Fulbright is that we get invited to really cool US Embassy events with famous and politically important people. On Wednesday I got to go to the opening of an architectural exhibit on New York. It was especially cool because when I walked in I noticed the person playing the piano was none other than my fellow Fulbrighter Whit. It was really cool to hear him play songs about New York and see all the cool photos.

Here he is playing on the piano (my camera was almost out of batteries which is why it is so blurry).
The presentation with the photos in the background

Gadatirgus

2008-06-08T22:18:00.003+03:00

This weekend at the Ethnographic Museum craftsmen from all over Latvia descended on Riga to sell their the handicrafts and cheap prices. I went on Saturday and didn't have time to see everything so I went again on Sunday. It was great there was Latvian food, singing, dancing and tons and tons of crafts. There were so many that when we tried to find stalls again to go back and but what we wanted we couldn't find them and ended up finding more and more stalls.

Here I am in the midst of it all...in Latvian craft heaven!

Tickets

2008-06-06T20:52:00.000+03:00

Ripe with jet lag, I went the morning after I returned to Latvia to stand in line for Song Festival Tickets. The Song Festival is the culmination of Latvian culture and is a week long festival of singing and dancing. My friends and I went at 8:00 am to stand in line for tickets that went on sale at 11:00...of course the technology here isn't the best so it ended up taking another 1.5 hours to actually get the tickets despite the fact that we were 25th in line. So after 4 and half hours I am now able to attend the closing ceremony of the Latvian Song Festival!

Here we are waiting in line
The line at the National Theater
It was such a big event that the Latvian media came out

Seattle

2008-06-02T19:42:00.002+03:00

On my way to and from the conference I got to stop by Seattle and say hello to Matt and goodbye to the city that I have called home for the last four years. Matt will move us to Kansas (where I will go for my PhD) before I come back from Latvia. It was great to see Matt but a little sad to say goodbye to Seattle.

For my birthday Matt took me to the Rick Steves' store to buy me a present. Having been a fan of his for years it was great to see this store. In addition to the store there was also a library where people could do research and book his tours.
We also decided that it was finally time to go to the Space Needle (yes we lived there for four you and never went).
The view from the top

AABS

2008-05-30T18:03:00.000+03:00

I was given the opportunity to speak at the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies conference in Bloomington Indiana and I jumped at the opportunity to come back to the US even if it was for a short time. I even got to stay with one of my good friends from college who went to law school at Indiana University. It was great because I didn't tell anyone I was coming home and so I surprised all of my friends and professors.

The gates of Indiana University
My thesis adviser giving the keynote address at the conference. In true Latvian/Guntis form he sang part of his speech. (He studies Folklore and used to make us memorize Latvian folk songs and sing them as part of our quiz every Friday during Second Year Latvian.)

Team America

2008-05-18T15:23:00.000+03:00

When I got the Fulbright fellowship I decided that I wanted my first marathon to be in Latvia..well fate and a bad fall skiing in Switzerland intervened and I was relegated to the 5K race of the Riga Marathon. Luckily I got some of my friends and fellow Fulbrighters to run it with me! We decided that since we were not all Fulbrighters but all Americans that we should be called Team America and even invited some of the Embassy people to participate. This was race was quintessentially Latvian and I enjoyed every hilarious minute. People were wearing the craziest outfits completely inappropriate for running and there were so many people that we had to weave through puddles and the masses of crazy Latvians for the first 3 K. I was laughing so hard at my friends singing pump me up American songs and the people running that I thought I was going to have an asthma attack. In the end despite the soreness I had so much fun and did get a good time around 31 minutes (my goal was under 35 so I was pleasantly surprised). I even got a medal as a souvenir for running and (slightly more difficult) braving the crowds of smelly Latvians at the completely unorganized finish line.

Team America with our 5K medals
Jelena Prokopcuka, two time New York marathon winner and Latvian medaling the 5K winners.
Me and the finish line waiting for the marathoners

Night at the Museum

2008-05-17T15:15:00.001+03:00

On Saturday night over 400 museums across Latvia participated in Museum Night..a night where the museums are free, stay open until 2:oo am, and have fun cultural things to do. My friends and I braved the masses of people to participate in this event, despite the early start we had the next morning. I could not believe just how many people participated in this event, they even served alcohol at some of the museums (drunk people and priceless works of art are not a good combination). While it was a little hard to see the works of art it was still interesting to participate in this event which apparently is a European phenomenon. This is a photo of all the people looking at the Socialist Realism art exhibit at Arsenals, the Latvian Modern Art Museum.

The Motherland

2008-05-13T17:04:00.000+03:00

Ethnicity seems to play a big part in my life living in Latvia so I started referring to things ethnically and as a result call Ireland 'The Motherland'. I was able to finally visit the country of my forefathers this past weekend and had a blast. Not only was it great to visit a country I had heard about my whole life, it was also a nice reminder of home. They have many of the same restaurants and stores that we have in the US and everyone was so nice and said please and thank you...it was great. Here are some of the pictures from my trip.

Me and the River Liffey
This is Temple Bar the area of bars and restaurants by the river..we listened to traditional Irish music at the this pub.
Me enjoying food from home...McDonald's breakfast and a hot chocolate with marshmallows!
Dublin Castle
Trinity College
We wanted to see the Irish coast... so we went to Dalkey a cute little posh town where Bono from U2 lives. Unfortunately we didn't see him...
The island of Dalky with castle remnants in the background.
My friend Monika and I in front a M&L restaurant by our hostel.

May 9th

2008-05-09T16:44:00.004+03:00

I have been looking forward to seeing this day since I arrived in Latvia. Today is the day when all the hard core communists come out to celebrate the end of World War II, because it was on this day that the Nazis surrendered on the Eastern front. For many Latvians this day is a just a reminder of their continued forced occupation under the Soviets and they do not celebrate it. In fact when I was asking almost everyone I knew about if they knew what types of activities went on today most had no idea. So my friends and I decided to head over to the other side of the river to the Victory Monument (built by the Soviets) to see what was happening. When we got there instead of hard core communists we found probably half the population of Riga. There were more people and more flowers at this event than there were last week for Latvian Independence. All of the speeches and most of the conversations I heard were Russian so I really cannot attest to what was said (made me wish I would have paid more attention in Russian class) but the event had a very upbeat and celebratory vibe to it. There was lots of singing, dancing, eating (the event was catered) and even a huge stage. People were handing out red flags and black and orange ribbons in remembrance of the day. All in all it was more of a day of celebration for many people than just a day for hard core communists.

People kept giving flowers and thanking medal wearing Veterans (or wives wearing what we assumed were their husbands medals). One such even displayed below.
Here are pictures of some of the people who died in the struggle against fascism (as the Soviets called it).

No Water

2008-05-09T09:24:00.003+03:00

A couple of the girls I studied here with in 1999 found my blog on the internet (just one of the many perks of having this blog). One of them wanted to send me a photo of her daughter and asked if my e-mail accepted photos. And I thought Latvia is a developed country, member of the European Union and yes, of course we have internet access fast enough that it can download photos. Many thing have changed since we studied here in 1999, for example it no longer takes an hour to send one e-mail and now there are so many exchange students at the university that they actually created a department to deal with them (there were 13 of us in 1999).

But just when I think Latvia is becoming more western and developed....a day like today happens! I woke up this morning to find that the water didn't work. Now I have had the hot water turned off numerous times over my years spent in Latvia. It even happened this past October for like 2 weeks! But I have never had no water...and the people here act like it is the most normal thing in the world for all the water to be shut off. I mean this is the capital city of a European Union country and they just shut off the water! At first I thought it was just my block but then after asking one of my friends if I could shower at their house I learned its at least the entire city centre. And when I asked how long it would be until it is turned back on I was told maybe tomorrow. All I can say is I am flying to Ireland tomorrow and think its sad that I have to leave the country just to take a shower. There are fines for things like this in the US but in Latvia they are very nonchalant about basic necessities like having water. So Andrea I guess just when you think have changed here, they turn the water off and you realize just how backwards Latvia still is.

Independence Day...Again

2008-05-04T09:14:00.002+03:00

Latvia has two independence days, the first is November 18 which is when they declared independence in 1918 from Imperial Russia and formed the first Republic of Latvia. Then May 4 is the day in 1990 that they declared independence from the Soviet Union. The government went all out for the independence day with celebrations on four stages of music and choirs performing throughout the parks in Riga. They even had a karaoke version of folk songs with the best choirs in Riga. It was a beautiful day and the highlight was when my friends and I got to shake the President of Latvia, Valdis Zatlers' hand. After the flower laying ceremony he went around the crowd and wished everyone a Happy Independence Day. Here are the pictures from my exciting day.

Bands playing at the Freedom Monument
Flower laying ceremony at the Freedom Monument (during communist times this was illegal so now Latvians lay flowers there every chance they get)
President Zatlers fresh off a hand shake with me
This is how they announce city/country wide events with information printed on large posters displayed in public places.
Tribes of the City...a great Latvian Band
Flower map of Latvia..people could add their own flowers and then they put the pieces together at the Freedom Monument.
At 6:00 pm choirs from all over the country sang the Latvian national anthem Dievs, svētī Latviju (God Bless Latvia)!

Kuldiga

2008-05-03T23:11:00.008+03:00

Today I went with Monika to visit her family in Kuldiga a city on the western part of Latvia. It was really great to speak Latvian the whole day and walk around the city. We even had authentic Latvian food and got yelled at in Latvian. It really was a truly Latvian day!

The town of Kuldiga
Me and the widest waterfall in Europe (allegedly)!
Fire lookout tower and the town again
Another waterfall
The shaming post..I guess they used to put people in stockades here.
Me and the waterfall again

Skate

2008-05-02T22:59:00.000+03:00

Over the past couple of days there have been chorale tryouts (called Skates) in Riga for the Song and Dance Festival in July. Basically its a great chance to see the best choirs in Riga sing for free in really great venues. Plus the added bonus is that I got to see a bunch of my friends sing and dress up in really great costumes. Here are some of the photos.

Mārtiņkoris (the is the foreign choir) with Monika, Kristina, Kathrin, Whit and Tim.
Whit and his elitist 70's white suit white shoes wearing Kamēr choir.
My friend Mara and Austrums choir.
I don't know anyone is this choir I just liked their outfits!

May Day

2008-05-01T08:18:00.001+03:00

This weekend is a five day holiday weekend in Latvia because of May Day on May 1 and Independence Day on May 4 (Latvians get May 5th off because the 4th falls on a Sunday). I was talking to my Latvian tutor and telling her that in the US we really don't celebrate this day at all and she said she doesn't either. To her May Day, the workers holiday, meant forced parades, no matter the weather, celebrating the glories of communism. I asked her then why this day was a holiday in Latvia and she said that it is an EU mandated holiday. She said that between independence and joining the EU this day was not a holiday in Latvia because to them it is a communist holiday. But then when they joined the EU in 2004 this holiday was sanctioned as a workers holiday to all countries in the EU. I said to her don't you think that's an interesting parallel, that you were forced to celebrate it during communist times and are forced to celebrate it now because of the EU. Needless to say on this supposed workers holiday almost every store I walked past yesterday in Riga was open. Kind of makes you think that even today Latvians are pretending to celebrate this day to appease someone else.

My Police Visit

2008-04-30T07:53:00.001+03:00

Those of you who think that this blog entry will be about getting arrested are going to be terribly disappointed......

I have been trying to get an interview with the head of the Human Trafficking Unit at the State Police since November. Finally I just decided to e-mail again and in true Latvian fashion he said is tomorrow OK and gave me the address of his office. Thats when I realized that the interview was going to take place in the former KGB Headquarters that is now a Police Station on Stabu iela in Riga. The building hasn't been refurbished at all and I learned through the course of the interview that they were actually moving out at the end of the month because the building that used to be a hotel during independent Latvia was being given back to its previous owners. It was truly eerie walking around in a building that so many people had been killed or murdered in. As I sat in his soundproof office I kept thinking that the faded paint spot on the wall might have held a picture of Lenin and that the office I was sitting in was probably used to question enemies of the state. I really think that they should turn the building, at least the bottom floors, into a museum honoring those that died..but of course it will just probably lie vacant because who would want to live in the former KGB headquarters anyways.

The Memorial to the Victims of Communism on Stabu iela

Daugavpils

2008-04-26T10:01:00.000+03:00

When I have mentioned traveling to Daugavpils, Latvia's second largest city close to the Russian border, most people have told me to not even bother. Even one of my guide books said there is little to see there and we wouldn't recommend it. After spending the day there I seriously wonder if any of these people have actually been to Daugavpils. We took the train there yesterday for a day trip and it was a very pleasant and interesting city. I think its kind of sad that people make it out to be horrible, full of factories and economic depression because people there were nothing but nice to us and there were enough touristy things to keep us busy all day. It was actually very funny because going there felt like a different world, like we were in a foreign country but not really, all the street signs were in Latvian but everyone spoke Russian. Still we never had significant problems communicating with people and they were really excited to have tourists in their city. Here are some of the pictures from my adventures.

Alexander Nevsky Orthodox Church
Soviet World War II Memorial (that wasn't identified on my map)
The entrance to the fortress
The fortress used to be a Soviet Union Army base and the remnants of communism are still visible. People actually live in the old barracks of the fortress (we saw kids playing behind this gate).
Me and the Cathedral of Boris and Glyeb. We actually went and watched the end of the Easter service which is the most sacred holiday of the year in the Eastern Orthodox church.
Jill and I on the train ride home.

The Circus

2008-04-25T09:45:00.000+03:00

We went the circus on Friday night and a truly horrifying and awkward experience. The arena smelled like animal urine and looked like it was from Soviet times. Also most of the performers were Russian and the talking was in Russian so I couldn't understand anything. The safety equipment was on par with Latvian standards (meaning there was little to none) so I kept thinking that people were going fall down from the trapeze with the greatest of ease. The poor bears looked like they needed to eat something and they had this plus 60 year old clown that was really not funny (maybe if I could have understood what he was saying it would have been more entertaining). All in all it was an interesting cultural experience..to say the least.

The Acrobats
The Bears

My Bart Simpson Moment

2008-04-23T16:15:00.002+03:00

My friend Monika (who majored in Linguistics in college) and I have been talking about the meaning of language lately. When I first got here and I really wanted to say thank you to someone I would always say paldies (the Latvian word for thank you) and then say thank you so much. This is because the word didn't really thank you to me..and now it does..its very weird to have that kind of language transformation.

But what I am really waiting for is what I like to call my Bart Simpson moment. There are only two Simpson's episodes that I can recall with clarity, one is the episode where Bart participates in a Model UN conference and then other is when he is an exchange student in France. In this episode he lives with a French family that makes him do a lot of work, sleep in the barn and yells at him in French. They end being corrupt and when Bart goes to town he seeks the help of a French policeman and when the policeman cannot understand Bart's English, a frustrated Bart walks away and rants about how stupid he is for having not learned French, when all the sudden he starts speaking in French. He hurries back to the policeman and explains his situation in French the corrupt Frenchmen are arrested and everyone lives happily ever after. I have studies Latvian for going on five years now and still have difficulty speaking (its the last piece of the language acquisition puzzle). I mean I can communicate just fine but in my classes and at meetings when I try to articilate my ideas in coherent sentences they always come out like I am a five year old. Its just frustrating sometimes when you realize just how difficult it is to learn another language..So I guess I am still waiting for my Bart Simpson moment with only 90 days left I hope it comes soon!

Koknese

2008-04-21T15:57:00.000+03:00

On Sunday my North American friends and I went to Koknese.....a small city on the Daugava River not visited by many tourists. These castle ruins are not particularly important unless you have read the Latvian national epic. The castle is considered to be home of Laimdota, the true love of the Latvian epic hero Lačplesis and seemingly rises from the water (actually the reason it now sits on the water is because the Soviets built a dam up stream which flooded the whole are around the castle). Here are some of the pictures from my adventures.

This is the church that let us the Minister's bathroom...where we met the minister and then felt inclined to attend mass. Afterwards we climbed up to the top of the church steeple.
The castle ruins built in the 13th century, but like all the castles in Latvia the was destroyed during the Great Northern War in the 1700s.

Me and the ruins looking out on the Daugava.
This picture actually isn't mine but you can see how the castle ruins rise from the water (we didn't have enough time to walk around to other side and take a picture).

Flowers

2008-04-21T15:44:00.000+03:00

Latvians are perpetual flower givers....they give flowers for every occasion and even have a 24 hour flower market just in case you need emergency flowers at 3 am. At my Name's Day party I received a number of very nice flowers, and the bouquets seem to be growing every day as more and more people give me flowers. Its funny because I always tell Matt not to waste his money on buying me flowers because they just die but for some reason in Latvia is seems very special. Maybe this is because its part of the culture or because you can actually buy flowers here at a reasonable price. Latvians even have cultural faux pas concerning the giving of flowers. For example you can never give an even number of flowers, as it is considered to be a sign of bad luck. You only give an even number for funerals and in sympathy bouquets. Also you never give red roses to someone (especially if you are a man) unless you are interested in them romantically (one of my professors had the unfortunate experience of making this mistake at a colleagues dinner party and the man thought he was making a pass at his wife). Also think twice before giving yellow flowers to someone you love as for some people they symbolize decrease of love and jealousy.

My Name's Day Flowers

My Name's Day

2008-04-18T11:28:00.001+03:00

April 18th is my Latvian Name's Day and I had a bunch of my close friends over with my parents to celebrate. As I have written here before when it is your name's day in Latvia you make food and provide alcohol for the party...there are no potlucks here! So my friend Monika and I spent the whole day slaving away in the kitchen making all sorts of American and Latvian treats. By the time the party arrived I wanted to take a nap! I don't know how people can entertain all the time its exhausting. But in the end the party was great and a real America meets Latvia theme with Rice Krispie Bars and Piragi. Here is a picture of my friends singing Latvian folk songs with my Latvian Karaoke DVD.

Simone de Beauvoir

2008-04-12T19:57:00.003+03:00

To my astonishment there was a feminist conference on Simone de Beauvoir held at the University of Latvia this weekend. There were some very famous feminist scholars from France there, along with the few Latvian academics who are not afraid to call themselves a feminist. (When I tell people here that I am a feminist they look at me like I have a contagious disease that might spread to them and then slowly back away). The conference itself was very interesting and it gave me the chance to meet and speak with a number of people on my interview list.

But that isn't even the most exciting part. I was chatting with the head of the Gender Studies Centre (in English) and a woman came up and starting talking with her in Latvian. Then she turned to me and said (in Latvian) Laura this is Laima Muktupavela. I seriously couldn't believe it because this woman is my second favorite Latvian author (the other one is Aspazija and she died in 1943). It was like meeting the John Grisham of Latvia (in level of fame not type of content). Then I told her (in horribly nervous Latvian) that I read her book at my university in the US and that it was one of my favorites, that I even just saw the play based on her book a couple of weeks ago and that I had just read the story about her in this Latvian magazine. She probably thought I was a total dork but I seriously couldn't believe I was meeting someone I admired so much.

This is one of the reasons that I love studying Latvia because in a small country like this it is possible to just randomly be introduced to people like this and it happens all the time. If I studied Spain or Russia this type of thing would never happen but in Latvia people are genuinely interested in what I am doing and helping me succeed.

Anna Karenina

2008-04-10T19:50:00.002+03:00

Last night I went and saw Anna Karenina the ballet at the National Opera House. I ended up skipping class to go and couldn't find anyone to go with me so I just went by myself. The tickets cost $10.00 (this includes the $4.00 I spent on the program) and it was fabulous. This is one of my most favorite books and to see it in my favorite form of artistic expression was very cool. It was kind a postmodern take on the story but the pure emotion of the story and the tragic ending was extraordinary. Just in case you haven't read it I will not ruin the ending as an episode of Jeopardy did for me! This was one of the best ballets I have ever seen and what is even more amazing was how little it cost me. That is one thing I love about living in Latvia, that I can see world class ballet and opera for a fraction of the price in a historic European setting. It truly makes the experience of living here a once in a lifetime opportunity!

Cēsis

2008-03-30T11:36:00.006+03:00

I successfully persuaded one of my friends to skip a choir concert and go to Cēsis (in the north of Latvia) with me yesterday because it was a beautiful spring day in Latvia (as you can see from the pictures below). The town is very cute and very Latvian I didn't hear a word of Russian all day. It was a great trip despite an amusing incident with bananas and karbonade at lunch. We even got to take the train which is so much better than the bus because you can walk around and spread out in your seats. All in all it was a fun and eventful spring day in Latvia.

Me and Cēsis Castle
They give you lanterns so you can see when you are walking through the dark passages of the castle.
View from the top of the song festival park
The castle again looking up from the song festival park
Kristina and me in front of St. John's church..it was really sunny!
The Latvian flag is from Cēsis and this was an exhibition on the history of the flag.

Saeima

2008-03-28T15:45:00.004+02:00

Today I got to go on a tour of the Saeima, the Latvian parliament, with the people from the US embassy. While I have been there before for speeches and other things it was especially interesting for me because I got to see where all my favorite and not so favorite people in Latvian politics, sit during parliamentary sessions. Plus I got to learn some of the history of the building and the many governments the building has hosted since it was built in 1863.

Me outside the main entrance
The main entrance hall
A gift from the US to the Republic of Latvia with the words to the Latvian national anthem
The Red Hall (I gave my speech for the Council of Europe in this room)
A big Latvian candle representing the three historic regions of Latvia with coat of arms from the cities.
The room where the magic happens!
Me with the speaker's desk in the background, the Latvian coat of arms and the flag.

Winter Wonderland

2008-03-24T08:48:00.000+02:00

Everyone tells me that the winter in Latvia has been very mild this year. I actually haven't seen a snowfall stay on the ground all year so I was excited to be able to see Riga in the snow before I left even if it made for treacherous and wet walking conditions.

Lieldienas (Easter)

2008-03-23T08:30:00.004+02:00

I had a pretty exciting Easter here in Latvia and in the end was really happy that I stayed here to experience it. Easter is interesting in Latvia because they have both pagan and Christian traditions and because this year the spring solstice was on Good Friday. The day was also interesting because it was snowing so instead of a white Christmas we had a white Easter. I started the day by going to church at Doma Baznica and got to hear mass in Latvian. This was cool because while I have been to church in Europe many times and in many different languages I have never been to a church service I could actually understand. So for me it was both a cultural and religious excursion.
In America we always get dressed up for Easter and Christmas mass but in Europe no one will notice what you are wearing because the churches are old and drafty so everyone is wearing their jackets.
Egg Dyeing in Livu Laukuma.
Swinging in Livu Laukuma. Latvians believe that you have to swing three times to the left and right on Easter and then the mosquitoes will not bite you during the summer.
There is always folk dancing in Latvia....and you might be able to see it is snowing.
Then in the evening I went to a choral concert at St. Peter's Church and it was singing by candlelight.

Egg Dyeing

2008-03-21T18:01:00.001+02:00

A bunch of my foreign friends (meaning not Latvian) and I got together to dye eggs Latvian style. The Latvian way is much more natural using berries, onion peels and rice to decorate and color them. It was really fun to have all of these girls from different countries coming together to do something Latvian. After you dye the eggs then you have a contest where you smash the eggs together to see whose egg is stronger.

Wrapping the eggs and unwrapping the jelly beans my mom sent me from the US.
Boiling the eggs....we used blueberries and beets to color some purple (my favorite color).
We also made piragi, little meat filled pies, which are my favorite Latvian food.
The end result....lots of interesting all-natural colors.

St Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T17:49:00.000+02:00

St. Paddy's Day is big in my family because not only are we Irish but my Dad's name is Patrick. So I felt like I needed to go and celebrate my Irishness by grabbing a pint and listening to some Irish music. A couple of friends and I went to Paddy Whelan's the only Irish pub left in Riag in the hopes of finding a celebration. It was great not only was there no cover charge, they had a live Latvian folk band playing both Irish and Latvian folk songs. It was like the best of both worlds. We also go to meet some fun Irish people who live in Riga. All in all it felt like a successful way to celebrate the patron saint of the motherland even though I was in Latvia and couldn't eat corned beef and hash.
Fun Irish people waving the Irish flag.

Pūpolsvetdiena

2008-03-16T10:35:00.002+02:00

Today was also Palm Sunday or Pussy Willow Sunday in Latvia. I think this tradition must be from Pagan times because in Latvia on this day parents wake up their kids and hit them with pussy willows. They say a chant that goes as follows-

Verbū, Verbū, slimība ārā, veselība iekša!

This basically means sickness outside, health inside so that the kids will have a healthy year.

Here are my friends Kristina and Monika acting it out for me.

March 16

2008-03-16T10:08:00.000+02:00

This day has two meanings for me. First its the day that Matt and I got engaged and second it is Legionnaires Day in Latvia. While it might not seem that these two have anything in common..they actually do because Matt and I got engaged at the Freedom Monument in Latvia on March 16, Legionnaires Day. When I tell Latvians that they get all wide eyed and say really wow. Legionnaires Day is the day when the Latvian Legion, men who were (mostly) conscripted into the Nazi army remember their service as the 16 of March 1943 was the day the first conscription orders went out. In response to this ethnic Russians come out and protest against the Latvians because they feel that they are traitors supporting the enemy of the Soviet Union and that they participated in the Holocaust (which was actually completed in Latvia by 1942). In reality many of these men felt more inclined toward the West after the Year of Terror 1940 when thousands of Latvians were killed or deported to Siberia by the Soviets. And they were led to believe that they would be able to establish a free Latvia again if the Nazis won the war. If you would like to read more about this ever ongoing debate please see here. In past years there has been some brawls between Latvian and Russian nationalists, in fact the majority of the people at the events were there to see what would happen (as I was). So yesterday I got to celebrate the anniversary of my engagement with hundreds of other people laying flowers, waving flags and singing Latvian folk songs at the Freedom Monument (and of course the riot police see below).

This signs says Our Heads under their Roof (roughly translated) and then says 1905, 1917 and 1940 all years of historical significance with respect to Imperial or Soviet Russia.

The American Ambassador II

2008-03-14T19:50:00.000+02:00

I was invited by the embassy to a St. Patrick's Party this week held at the Marine House. I was intrigued because I did not know that there even was a Marine House in Latvia and because there was going to live music. So I dragged my two North American friends with me to a sketchy part of town. The Marine House is located near Riga's Harbor and as the directions to house suggest you have to turn right after you pass under some silver pipes. We finally arrived and went through a metal detector at the house right after we signed in stating who we were and where we were from. The a gentlemen came and offered to take our coats and I said sarcastically well thats very hospitable of you. Then one of the guys from the Cultural Affairs section of the embassy (they basically are our supervisors here in Latvia) was like oh Laura let me introduce you to Ambassador Larson. I was like oh crap I just handed my coat over the American Ambassador and made a sarcastic comment about it....way to start off on the right foot! I knew he was from Iowa and so I said hello I am Fulbright fellow here from MN and tried my hardest not to make any Idiots Out Walking Around (IOWA) comments. He proceeded to talk to me and my friends for a good half an hour....which I couldn't believe. We got a beer, met his wife and chatted about living in Latvia it was all very normal and very unlike the meeting I had with the previous Ambassador! He even let us take a photo with him. See below. It just reaffirms my notions that Midwesterners are the nicest people in the US, even people with a significant amount of power are still very down to earth and personable.

Atletika

2008-03-13T19:38:00.000+02:00

I joined a gym this week (called Atletika), since as I said previously, I am planning to attempt to run the half marathon in Riga. Its right down the street from my house and despite the fact that their are only two treadmills it seems like a good decision. From walking around in Riga you can tell that the women here are very fashionable, well this hold true at the gym as well. I wore a UW t-shirt and exercise pants and listened to my i pod. I thought since they all know I am foreign anyway why try to hide it. I not only got looked up and down by every designer wearing stick thin Latvian I got looks like what the heck are you doing here. Lets just put it this way people here don't join gyms to lose weight they join gyms as a status thing. I saw girls walking on treadmills with faces full of makeup and bright white tennis shoes that have never touched the pavement.....as I am sitting there next to them sweating up a storm, with pit stains in my non-designer shirt. It was absolutely a circus show as people pretended to work out while staring at themselves in the mirror. I mean I know gyms in the US are probably like this as well, its just sometimes living in a society where everyone judges you on how you dress I would like for once not be thought of a frumpy unstylish foreigner. But I figure at least I am getting my money's worth..by getting a work out and hopefully being able to run the half marathon in May.

Estonian Lettuce

2008-03-12T19:21:00.000+02:00

Since my host parents are out of town this week I tried to load up on the American food since I could have an infinite amount of time in the kitchen. I decided one day that I would make a salad. Seems easy enough right. When I got home from the store I realized that I had bought more than I bargained for.

Here is a picture of the lettuce (which was grown in Estonia) that I bought in the store (looks normal right?)

When I opened up the package I realized that the lettuce came in the pot (and dirt) it had grown in. I don't know if this is to keep the lettuce fresh or if Latvians really go home and continue to grow the lettuce. They say in America we are really separated and distant from the food that we eat (in growing and production), after this experience I don't think thats such a bad thing.

Easter Folk Dancing

2008-03-11T19:16:00.002+02:00

There was a special Easter session of Folk Dancing this week with Scandinieki a folk group from the Latvian independence movement. I went with a couple of friends to listen to the music and folk dance. Here are a couple pictures from this event.

The group Scandinieki on stage while people are folk dancing.

The Doctor's Office

2008-03-10T16:47:00.003+02:00

I hurt my knee a couple of months back and because I am planning on running the half marathon in May I thought I should get it checked out before I start training. I looked and asked around for the best place to go and finally found a private clinic with a doctor who spoke English (I feel that for health related problems its always best to speak in English, even though as I found out many of the terms are the same). She was very nice and her husband is even a famous Latvian politician which for some reason made me feel better.
So I went to doctor today to have it looked it. The office was very nice and instead of taking my weight and asking medical like questions I just sat in the room and waited for the doctor. She came in, said what seems to be the problem and then was like ok well let me take a look at your knee. I thought that her and her assistant would get up and leave the room so I could take off my leggings (because thank god I planned ahead and wore a skirt). Nope they just sat there and watched as I tried to take of my leggings without flashing them. Then I sat there with my leggings around my knees (because I was also wearing knee high boots) as she examined my knee and then consequently watched while I tried to pull my tights back up. Living here has really made me realize what a prudish American I really am. I mean almost every play I have seen has had naked people in it..on the beach there are always naked people and in the saunas. It always takes some getting used to me having grown up in a catholic family. After my doctor's appointment today I can't help but imagine what a gynecological exam in this country might be like. Yikes! On the plus side as I left I saw the former president Vaira Viķe-Freiberga walking her dog in the park..it was all very surreal.

International Women's Day

2008-03-08T22:29:00.001+02:00

March 8th was International Women's Day, a day we don't really celebrate in the US, but I found out this is quite the holiday in the rest of the world. In Latvia they have been celebrating this day for the last 100 years (according to my host Dad). Basically on this day everyone gives flowers to the women in their lives honoring and thanking them for all that they do. They don't have Mother's Day here so this is the day that acknowledge women (which is a very patriarchal society is quite nice). According to my host Dad it was also celebrated during Soviet times but women still had to go to work. I thought well at least they got flowers one day year, even during the dreary days of the Soviet Union.

I walked past the main flower market, just down my street and it was packed with people buying red flowers (apparently the fashionable color). I took a picture so you can see how neat and colorful it looks.

Women's NGO Conference

2008-03-07T22:03:00.005+02:00

Today the organization I volunteer for hosted a Women's NGO Network Conference at the City Hall in Riga. The network, made up of women's NGOs from all over Latvia, is basically the lobbying organization for women's issues in Latvia so the conference outlined what they did last year and what would happen in the upcoming year. The big goal for 2008 is the Gender Equality Law, which would make the concept of gender equality institutionalized in law and hopefully someday Latvian society. After the conference there was a reception at one of the art museums in Riga where we got to rub elbows with the Minister of Integration and other political figures. Here are some of the pictures from the event.

Riga City Hall
The inside of the City Hall
Inside the conference hall
The reception hall
My work colleagues, me and my friend Monika

Put, Vejini (Blow, Wind)

2008-03-01T20:26:00.003+02:00

Today I saw one of the most famous plays from Latvia, Put Vejini (Blow, Wind) by Rainis the Shakespeare of Latvian prose. The play was about two star crossed lovers and their attempts to be together. In the end instead of hurting her sister, the heroine sacrifices herself and drowns, it is really a beautiful but tragic ending. I have really never read a Latvian play that has a happy ending which I think speaks volumes about Latvian culture but still despite the depressing content it is probably the best play I have ever seen. They had this Darwinian montage where the actors were at a museum and they came on stage and got dressed in their costumes. Plus if you look at the pictures below we were seated on the stage very close to the action so it made everything much more dramatic. In the end the only thing I didn't like was the audience interaction (they literally came into the audience and started talking to people).

The Metric System

2008-02-26T12:52:00.003+02:00

As many of you who have traveled or lived in Europe (or anywhere outside of the US) know they use the metric system in nearly every other country in the world. So not only do you have to calculate currency conversions (with the even shrinking dollar) you also have to figure out how long it will take you to go 50 kilometers. While normally this presents a problem for me hating math and normally have to pull out my conversion chart and calculator, I discovered one instance today where this was a good thing. I was in the grocery store looking for something chocolaty to eat when I happened upon chocolate chip cookies. This in Latvia is a rare occurrence usually I have to pay three times the US price to get a package of toll house cookies from the foreign grocery store. So I was very happy to find a generic brand from England in the little shop by my house. As a sat down to enjoy them the American in me was forced to look at how much fat this indulgence was going to cost me. However because the fat content was in kJ (whatever that means) I wasn't going to bother converting it. So I enjoyed my cookies in perfect ignorance of how much exercise I would have to do to make up for my indulgence and honestly I don't feel guilty as I might in the US. I guess in Europe fat contents and things like that just don't matter when you are walking everywhere and up numerous flight of stairs every day!

Opera

2008-02-24T09:53:00.002+02:00

Yesterday I went and got a tour of the National Opera House with the American Embassy people. We got to hear about the history of the opera and how Wagner composed the Flying Dutchmen while he was here in Riga. All in all it was pretty cool and all for less than 5 dollars. Here is a picture of me on stage!

ASK Riga

2008-02-23T12:06:00.005+02:00

One of the Fulbright Professors and his wife invited us to watch Latvian Basketball last night. It turns out there are four Americans on the team and their coach is Lithuanian so the team is really more international than Latvian anyway. The team was called ASK Riga and the games were held in an arena smaller than my high school gym. Despite that the game was throughly entertaining. The cheerleaders were the most hilarious at first I called them the Parex Bank girls and they had fake tans and fake hair. Their dancing was a lot of hip moving hair flicking and was something anyone could do. Then I was expecting a nice and exciting half time show but instead they left before anyone else to change their cloths. Then they were no longer the Parex Bank girls but the Reebok girls. The game was great and the last five minutes were really exciting because the Riga team only beat Valmiera by two points. We got to meet the mascot and I even got an autograph of one of the American players.

The Tip Off ASK Riga is in yellow
The Parex Bank girls
Devoted fans with flags and drums
After half time the new and improved Reebok girls
Whit, Monika and I with the Mascot (which I think is a lion)

First Day of School

2008-02-21T14:54:00.002+02:00

I have had many of these days in my life so I really have gotten used to finding new classes in new buildings and schools. But nothing could prepare me for my first day in Latvian school. I decided that I needed to improve my academic Latvian and thought that the best way to this was to audit a class in Latvian about Latvian politics. So I went in to talk to the secretary in the political science faculty about classes they were offering this semester. I explained to her (in Latvian) that I wanted to get a copy of the course listings and she said well we only have one course in English this semester and I said no I want to take a course in Latvian. She gave me a weird look and said ok..then I asked if they have had foreign students take courses in Latvian before and she said no never. At that point I knew I was in for a big treat.

I decided to take a master's level course on the Latvian Political Process so I got all of the permissions that I needed and went to the course last night. Luckily one of the other exchange students said that she was also interested in taking the course. When I walked into the classroom the girls stopped chatting and all turned to look at me. So I sat down and waited for the other exchange student to arrive in class. When she did we started chatting in English and people kept turning around to stare at us. Eventually class started and this girl in front of us kept turning around to look at us every couple minutes or so. I think she was waiting for us to realize we were in the wrong class (which we were not) and get up and leave. Class proceeded on like this for three hours with people continually staring at us when we look up words in our dictionaries or they would giggle when the professor would explain something in Latvian and also give the English definition to a word like rule of law or something. I have never felt like that big of a freak in my life.

Then after class I was waiting at the bus stop and one of my classmates was there and said to me in English where are you from. I said is it that obvious that I am foreign and said the US. Then he said where in the US? I am always skeptical when people ask me that because many people and have no idea just how big the US really is and normally ask me if I know someone they know who lives there. So I said the middle of America by Chicago. He persisted and said what state and I was like MN..then he said he lived in Wisconsin for one year and I said oh I did my undergrad in WI and he was like where and I said Eau Claire (thinking there is no way this guy has any clue where it is). Well it turns out he studied there last year in the political science department and knows all my professors and some of the people I still know from good old UWEC. So it turns out no matter how far I am away from home I always manage to find people who remind of it even in Latvia! Plus now I have one less person staring at me in class.

Vienna Adventures

2008-02-17T14:25:00.000+02:00

I did have a little time to walk around Vienna after the conference and of course go to H&M (my favorite store). Plus I have really perfected the art of taking photos of myself and key touristy things. Here are some photos from my adventures.

Me and the Hofburg Imperial Palace
The very famous opera house

Me and the town hall
A statue of a Hapsburg on horseback...
Me and St Stephan's (the most famous church in Vienna)
Me and the Ferris Wheel (a little blurry...I am still working on my night photography)
View from the top..of the UN International City

Vienna Forum

2008-02-16T13:43:00.000+02:00

I just returned from the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking Vienna Forum at the Vienna branch of the UN. It was kind of a last minute thing because my boss decided she couldn't go so I got to go instead. It was really a once in a lifetime opportunity for me and even better because I was in Model United Nations Club in college, so the chance to go a and participate in a real UN conference was something I just could not pass up. In the end I actually learned that there were many similarities between Model UN and the real thing. Here are some of the pictures from the conference.

This is the logo of the conference
Me in front of the UN you can see the Latvian flag in the distance.
The forum main meeting room where representatives from almost all 181 member states met to discuss Human Trafficking. The interpretor booths were above the hall because every speech was translated into the six official UN languages.
Me and fellow Fulbright fellows to Cambodia and Ukraine.
Me and fellow Ukrainian Fulbrighter at the Imperial Hofburg Palace for the conference reception.
An Exhibit about trafficking called journey about one girls human trafficking story. If you look closely the exhibit was inside freight containers.

This is her story in her own words and the British government's response to trafficking (which basically is non existent).

Samples

2008-02-09T13:36:00.002+02:00

I remember when I was little and a trip to the grocery store was greatly improved when it was sample day. In my family getting something for free is kind of a cherished thing so getting free food is always a good thing. So you can imagine my surprise when I went to the Rimi grocery store in old town this past weekend and found out it was sample day. In the US on sample day you get free food and maybe if your lucky some kind of sugary juice drink. Well on Latvian sample day they give out alcohol for free! They were just giving away shots of vodka (some gross Russian concoction that when said in Russian sounded like original by apparently meant something different) and pickles to wash it down. My north American friends and I could not believe our eyes...and of course all around the booth were questionably old enough teenage boys trying to get as many shots as they could for free. Needless to say I passed up the opportunity to get something for free for once in my life.

America!

2008-02-05T13:32:00.000+02:00

Living in Latvia has really given me a true appreciation for the United States. The first time I studied here I saw the US in a different light...one that was not so flattering. But after living here again I really have developed an appreciation for my native land. So I made of list of the things I really appreciate about America living here in Latvia.
1. Service with a Smile. While many people think the fact that Americans smile all of the time is fake I would take a fake American smile over the frown that seems to permeate Latvian society any day. Also the fact that Americans say please and thank you all the time is such a nice gesture...in Latvia if you thank someone they just look at you like what is wrong with you.
2. Free Refills. This is probably one of the reasons why we are overweight in the US but I must admit I sometimes have to order two drinks because I am still thirsty after the first one. Plus the portions are much smaller here which is sometimes nice but for drinks is always leaving me wanting more. Plus you can't (or at least I don't) drink the water in Latvia so ordering table water is out of the question.
3. Ice Cold Beverages. You would think that since the weather is cold outside that the beverages might as least be cool during the winter..Um no in fact I think they are warmer. I search and search sometimes digging to the back of the drink cooler for a cold juice but it seems to always allude me for some reason. I have actually starting putting beverages in between my window panes to keep them cold because my host parents wonder why I want to refrigerate juice.
4. Fast Food. Something kind of interesting about this is that I rarely go to fast food especially McDonald's in the US (unless its for breakfast). But I probably go once a month in Latvia whenever I am feeling homesick. However when one goes to McDonald's in the US they expect the food to be fast..and usually the whole wait, order and get food time is less than 10 minutes. However here in Latvia not only is McDonald's really popular which adds to the wait time but then they are really in no hurry to get you your food. I clocked it once because I wanted to go and see a movie afterwards and I waited close to 30 minutes in line just to order. So I miss fast food actually being fast!
5. Choosing my own seat. In the US we have the freedom to sit wherever we want. In Latvia and maybe the rest of Europe when you go to a movie you have to choose your seat. Plus we we see movies we try not to sit right next to someone we don't know unless the theater is full. Well in Latvia they cram everyone, even if there is only like 10 people in a theater made for 100, right next to each other. So you almost always have the awkwardness of having to sit uncomfortably close to someone you don't know. They do this on the airlines too even if the flight is half full I am always sitting right next to someone and they think its weird when you want to move.

Les Miserables

2008-02-02T14:25:00.000+02:00

I will never forget when my high school musical did a production of Les Miserables and my Mom came home from the PTA meeting and asked if I knew how to pronounce it. She said that the student at the PTA meeting had no idea how to say it correctly. Luckily I passed the test since I had seen it on Broadway. The reason I mention this story is because I thought it was funny that in Latvian the letter s is pronounced in Les Miserables which is the way uneducated people in the US pronounce it.

So on Saturday I went to see the Latvian production of my favorite musical. It was very good even though some of the songs were a little off because it took longer to say things in Latvian. Also the symbolism between the musical and Latvia didn't hit me until I saw the barricades.
(I stole this from Wikipedia) In January of 1991 Latvia, which had declared independence from the Soviet Union the previous year, was attacked by pro-soviet forces, most notably the OMON (Soviet special forces). Events that took place January 13-27, 1991 are known as "The Barricades" because of barricades built for defense of strategic objects. At least 7 people were killed, and in total 15,611 people have registered themselves as participants of the Barricades.

I think this really shows just how nationalistic Latvia can be..staged during any other time of the year it would have been different but staging this production during January evokes Latvian nationalist sentiment at its very core.

Singing the Blues in Latvia

2008-02-01T14:14:00.000+02:00

On Friday I was invited to hear American Blues music at the only Blues Club in Riga as part of the kick off to African American History month. It was pretty cool I got to sit right by the ambassador on her last official day of work and the music was great. The singer was from Mississippi so she had a deep southern drawl to her voice and I really don't know how all the Latvians could understand her but I thought she was pretty funny. Also Latvia is not the most diverse country so strategically placed in the audience was practically every minority in the entire country. But the most hilarious thing about the whole experience was that the band looked like a bunch of 12 year old boys who could actually play and sing the blues.

Chopsticks

2008-01-06T13:37:00.000+02:00

It was my host moms 55th birthday yesterday and to celebrate we had a formal dinner party at the apartment. For dinner they ordered in Sushi (from who knows where) and it was a very Asian meal (my host parents went to Nepal this November so they are really into Asian stuff right now). We started eating the sushi with forks and to me it felt very weird until my host remembered that they had chopsticks for everyone. I cannot even convey how hilarious it was to watch a bunch of Latvians trying to use chopsticks. Then they realized that I could use them so..I proceeded to try and explain in Latvian how to eat with chopsticks. It was absolutely hilarious. I ended up having to position them in numerous people's hands and then watched them try and try again to grasp the sushi (which was actually really good). It was one of those moments that made me thankful to be an American because I had been eating with chopsticks from the time my parents took us to Pee King Duck (I think that was the name of the restaurant) in Chinatown.

Christmas Tree Stars

2008-01-05T13:24:00.000+02:00

Today my host parents took down the Christmas tree. They put it up on Christmas Eve..and take it down a week later because they don't water it so its shedding needles pretty badly after a week or so. I asked them why they put a bell in top of the Christmas tree instead of a star or an angel (like we do in the US). My host dad told me that it was a psychological thing because to them stars signify the hammer and sickle (the flag of the USSR). So putting a bell on top of their tree was a way of getting away from Moscow during soviet times...sort of a silent revolt against soviet ideals.

Clapping

2008-01-04T12:15:00.000+02:00

Those devoted readers of my blog will remember when I wrote about how Latvians clap in unison at concerts. Well I noticed another interesting thing about clapping on my way back from Switzerland. I took Air Baltic the Latvian airline because it was the cheapest and took me directly to Switzerland. When the plane touched the ground on my return to Riga a significant number of people on the plane started clapping. I remember it happening before on flights to Latvia but not from Latvia. Maybe they were happy that we arrived in one piece..or that they were home. Its one of those weird cultural things I am going to have to ask about to find out why it is done...so stay tuned!

Switzerland

2008-01-04T11:46:00.000+02:00

I just returned from spending Christmas with my family in Switzerland. I was a nice break from Latvia and I must admit it was hard to leave. We went skiing (I hurt my knee..man getting old sucks) and I got see a significant bit of the country. Here are some of my most favorite photos from the trip.

Me with Geneva in the background
Inside the United Nations where I got to do research!
Smiling at all the junk food at the American Store in Geneva
My Dad, brother and sister on their way to ski in my sister's town of Gstaad
In Gruyere where we watched cheese being made
In Montreaux the Swiss Riviera
Zurich
Overlooking Zurich

My sister and I in Bern
A truly Swiss dish.....Raclette and Dr Pepper

Cultural Week

2007-12-18T11:18:00.000+02:00

One of the great things about living in Europe especially Latvia during Christmas time is that there are so many fun free cultural things to do. Over the past couple weeks I have been really busy trying to take advantge of all these free fun cultural things. Here are some photos from my adventures.

A classical music concert at the Small Guild.
This is a folk dancing concert with one of the best folk dancing groups in Latvia.

Yet another Astr'o'nout Concert at the University of Latvia Christmas Ball (which I am severely underdressed for). This time I got to get really close and didn't get yelled at when we took photos.

Latvian Hockey

2007-12-15T11:38:00.000+02:00

This week I got to live out one of my dreams in Latvia by attending a Latvian hockey game(twice)! One of my professors invited me to see a game with her and her family. So I saw the Latvian National team play a team from Russia....Latvia won 5-1. Then the next day I saw the Under 20 tournament where Latvia played the United Kingdom Latvia won 5-0. I went to this game with one of my fellow Fulbrighters and my Canadian friend Kristina. We sat between a drunk Latvian guy who spoke Latvian to me for three hours in Latvian (which was actually good language practice for me because he didn't speak any english) and a scout for the Washington Cavaliers (the hockey team in DC). Here are some photos from my Latvian Hockey Adventures.

My North American friends
Kristina, me and our new Latvian friend.

American Party in Latvia!

2007-12-10T11:49:00.000+02:00

One of my fellow Fulbrighters and I decided to throw an American Party on Saturday at his apartment. I made boxed brownies and received compliments all night on how good they were and if people could have the recipe. I said it was very complicated to perfect but here is what you should do....go to Stockmans (the western department store here), but the brownie mix and follow the directions. They all couldn't believe that they came from a box and I said that that was the American way. All in all it was very fun and there is nothing like heaps of alcohol to break down cultural barriers and make people friends! I even stayed out all night which I haven't done since the last time I lived here in 1999. The next day I had like 10 friendship requests on Facebook and draugiem.lv (the Latvian My Space).

Me and the girls from my Latvian class

Drakula

2007-12-07T11:35:00.000+02:00

December 5 was Volunteer Appreciation Day (not just in Latvia around the world) and since I am a volunteer my work gave me a free ticket for the premiere of Drakula, Fresh Blood. I bought a program, hoping that would outline the play and help me understand it, which told the history of Drakula and all of the movies featuring him. So I was expecting a traditional play about Drakula. Or course what I expect to happen and what actually happens to me in Latvia are always vastly different. What I got was a rock musical about Drakula, where he was featured as a rock musician/terrorist living under an authoritarian police state. It was very 1984 but in musical form, which consequently is the most difficult mode of communication in a foreign language so I probably have only a cursory understanding of it all. They had futuristic costumes and there was even a nationalist resistance movement where they combined Nazi like gestures with Latvian folk dancing. One thing I will never get used to, as the prude American that I am, is the naked people on stage. Nearly every play I have seen in Latvia has had naked people...like that is supposed to make it more artistic. All in all it was yet another cultural experience where the ending was a bit unclear. Although I did ask my colleagues what happened at the end and they also had no idea. So it was a successful night at the Latvian theatre where everyone left a bit perplexed but entertained (they even played Like a Virgin by Madonna).

Meeting the Ambassador

2007-12-04T16:32:00.000+02:00

I would like to say that this was a key event in my life and one that I remember and cherish forever but I think I will remember it more for its hilarity than for anything that was actually said.

To my knowledge we are the first group of Fulbrighters to Latvia that have actually gotten to meet the US Ambassador so I feel thankful for that. The meeting was very weird and seemed more like a PR opportunity than anything else. Basically we were herded into the room in her residence, introduced to her, listened to her speak about Latvia (I was actually impressed by how much she knew) for 30 minutes, had coffee and snacks, and then she left. Maybe this is how diplomatic things work but I thought that it seemed like a very unimportant event for her.

Then I looked on the US Embassy homepage and there we were (I am on the lower left hand side). So my lasting memory of meeting the US Ambassador to Latvia will be a Latvian American flag pin and this picture I saved from the website.

Astro'n'out Concert

2007-12-02T16:08:00.000+02:00

One my favorite things to do is go to concerts, like movies in Latvia, they remind me of home even if the songs are in Latvian. After the Christmas tree lighting I met up with a bunch of students from my Latvian class and we went to hear the new hot band in Latvia at a place called the Soap Factory.

With that name I was expecting something much worse but it actually was the best concert venue I have been to in Latvia and even the bathrooms had toilet paper and doors that locked (which for me is very important). This is the second time I have seen the band Astro'n'out, the first time was acoustic, and I must say it was a very good concert (also the lead singer is a girl which is totally awesome). Their most popular song is about Riga and is kind of the ode to my year in Latvia.

When we went into the concert they said that we couldn't take photos...but of course I didn't listen. I took some with the flash off and then decided to chance it by taking one with the flash on. Then my friend Kristina wanted to take one with my camera and I said okay but if you get thrown out for taking the picture don't blame me....and sure enough about 30 seconds later a guard came right to our section and started yelling no pictures. I just told Kristina if he says anything to you just answer him in English like you don't understand. For once being a foreigner here might have actually helped us. Luckily he didn't see who took the photo so he couldn't do anything...still makes for a pretty exciting story though. Here are the pictures that almost got us thrown out of the concert.

My picture:

Kristina's picture:

Christmas Tree Lighting

2007-12-02T15:35:00.000+02:00

Today I went to see the Christmas tree lighting ceremony in the town square. This event symbolizes the start of the Christmas season. This is especially significant in Riga because the first Christmas tree was rumored to have been light in this very spot in 1510. The ceremony was very short and included Santa, a band and some Latvian pyrotechnics. By Latvian pyrotechnics I mean that they didn't take into consideration the way the wind was blowing when they set them up because all the smoke from the fireworks blew right into the crowd. I don't think I have ever seen a crowd disperse that fast. Here are some pictures from this event (I am really trying to to work on my night photography so I apologize if they are a bit blurry).

The Latvian Pyrotechnics..it was hard to see let alone breathe
Santa Claus with the little kids:

The spot of the first Christmas tree
The light tree once the smoke had cleared:

Name's Days

2007-11-30T15:14:00.000+02:00

Today is my host dad's name's day (and my dad's birthday which I always think is the 29th..so Happy Birthday). As I said in a previous post name's days are like birthdays in Latvia and everyone has one. Even if your name isn't Latvian there are name's days for unlisted names. My host dad explained to me that on name's day you don't invited people to come over to house to celebrate...they just do. So you must prepare food for an undisclosed number of people and hope that they show up otherwise you might be eating leftovers (which is hard because nothing in Latvia has preservatives so things go bad quickly). So last night my host dad asked if I wanted to come and see how they prepare trout and I was like sure. I was expecting some secret family recipe of herbs and seasoning.........instead I walked into the kitchen and a whole dead fish was staring back at me. It reminded me of all the dead fish I had to pick up while raking the shore when I was younger. Here is a picture just in case you don't believe me....let's just say there isn't a Latvian translation for "gross."

So I sat there and watched him take a whole fish apart. Let me just say that I heard crunching sounds that will give me nightmares for weeks to come. It was definitely an educational experience though I guess they use every part of the fish. They even take the stomach, head and backbone and make soup out of them. The only things they don't use are the gills and eyes...I told my host parents that more people in America would be vegetarians if they had to do this before eating fish. Then they asked "you like fish right?" and I said "I like fish sticks"....

Registering

2007-11-30T15:02:00.000+02:00

After you get your Latvian residency permit you have to register your place of residence with the government. There are only five places in the whole country where you can register your place of residence and luckily the closest place to me was only a 15 minute walk from my house. I found the whole process of registering very weird. It is another remnant from Soviet times where citizens had to register their place of residence (even though in theory the place you lived was not really yours but property of the state anyway). I just find it quite scary to have the government know exactly where you live. On the other hand the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire alumni association has been able to find me no matter where I live.....so it must not be that hard to locate people in US either, even without the registration process. It just kind of makes me wonder if the registration process is just an exercise in futility.....but then again I guess one could say that same thing about the Soviet Union.

Residency Permit

2007-11-29T13:14:00.000+02:00

Its official I finally got my Latvian Residency Permit today after 91 days of being in the country (you are only allowed to stay visa free for 90 days and they can deport you after that). As many of you know I have put a lot of time and effort into this permit (which is actually just a sticker in my passport). After all the money and leg work Matt and I have put into this is, it actually feels very anticlimactic. But I feel like I should celebrate so I will be the American that I am and go to the mall.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-25T10:32:00.000+02:00

This week in my english class I tried to teach my students about Thanksgiving. We did the usual reading about the history of the day and learning about what we do in America and such. And then the speaking activity was to think about what you were thankful for and talk about it with a partner. I always know when they don't understand something cause they all sit silently and look at their papers. So I started giving examples of what I was thankful for like my family, the opportunity to live in Latvia and learn Latvian and so on. They still gave me puzzled looks and I said well aren't you glad that Latvia is independent and that you get to live in a free country. And they were like no that's fate...I guess I didn't think that trying to teach about being thankful about things was so hard. Finally after about 20 mins they admitted that they were thankful that they get to learn English for free and other things like that. It was just an interesting cultural experience and another lesson to add to the many I have learned about cultural differences.
Also speaking of thanksgiving one of the Fulbright professors and his wife hosted us for Thanksgiving dinner last night and it was so nice to chat with fellow Americans. I think its like therapy living abroad to share your cultural stories and mishaps with other people from your country who have had similar experiences. Still it was nice to get together with other people who understood the idea behind Thanksgiving!

Me and some of the women from my english class!

You hang up no you hang up....

2007-11-23T10:17:00.000+02:00

You know those obnoxious people who won't hang up the phone when they are talking to their significant other and are like you hang up no you hang up...I guess I admit I have been guilty of it as well from time to time. Well that doesn't happen in Latvia in Latvia they can't get you off the phone fast enough and they practically hang up on you. They don't even say goodbye most times. In America usually we build up to it..like ok well talk to you later..or have a good day..in Latvia if you tried to say that the person has most likely already exited the conversation. Its probably cause mobile calls here are outrageously expensive and so people want to say what they need to say and get it over with. It reminds me of those cell phone commercials where they talk like they are in an auction to not use up their minutes except in Latvia instead of talking fast they just cut out the formalities of saying goodbye and hang up instead.

Three Prices

2007-11-20T10:06:00.000+02:00

One thing that has always perturbed me on my trips to Europe is that they charge non-Europeans more to get into museums and other touristy things. I guess I don't understand it because in America we have the same price for everything no matter where you are from (except in and out of state tuition). Plus our national museums in DC are free.
In Latvia though they have three prices for almost everything. One for Latvians, one for Europeans and one for everyone else. My Latvian class for example cost twice as much for me as it did for everyone else cause I am from outside of Europe. Then when I got some documents notarized which is supposed to be a set price they charged me 10 times as much even though I only spoke in Latvian. So I thought it was funny when I went back to same place this week to get another thing notarized for my residency permit except this time instead of 10 lats I was charged one. I think this was because it was a Latvian document and last time they were documents in English. I just think its funny that even though the dollar is doing poorly they still assume we have so much money so we have to pay twice as much. After getting ripped off and charged more then everyone else it kind of makes you miss home where there are free refills and the price that it says is the price you pay even if you have a foreign accent.

Latvian Independence Day!

2007-11-18T09:52:00.000+02:00

Today was Latvia's 89th Independence Day (of course it was interrupted by almost 50 years in the Soviet Union but I guess they just kept on counting). I went to the Latvian Military Parade which lasted about 20 mins and I couldn't get any good pictures cause there were so many people on the banks of the Daugava (the river that Riga was built around). Then I went to a true Latvian party where we sang folk songs and drank hot balsams (a really good Latvian drink with back current juice). Then we went to watch the fireworks which were pretty impressive (see picture above). They too were along the banks of the Daugava and light horizontally so they went along with the skyline of Riga. I only wish I was a bit closer!

Dinner Party German Style

2007-11-12T12:49:00.000+02:00

Living in Latvia has really made me aware of all the little cultural differences you would never see just traveling through a country. For example on Saturday I was invited to a dinner party because my German friend Thomas (who lived across the hall from me in the Latvian dorms two summers ago) was in town. I was told the party would begin at 8:00 pm so I left the house at 8:00 pm and headed to the store to buy a bottle of wine. While I was at the store my other German friend Katja called me and said are you coming and I was like yeah just picking up a bottle of wine. This was about 8:20. Then she said why are you so late and I was like um you said 8:00 and I explained that in the US when someone says 8:00 you show up fashionably late like 30 mins and she was like well in Germany when we say 8:00 we mean 8:00. Needless to say I was 45 mins late to the party and had all the Germans there wondering how we accomplish anything in the US if we are all late to things. Just another, in a long list of lessons about cultural differences!

Martiņa Diena

2007-11-11T17:13:00.000+02:00

Today was also Martiņa Diena which according to the Baltic Times is a "conglomeration of ancient pagan traditions surrounding the end of the harvest period and more modern Christian traditions brought by the Germans in the 16th and 17th centuries. Many of the customs of the holiday are similar to easily recognizable Halloween traditions. People dress in masks styled after animals and go door to door singing, dancing and begging for small gifts (St. Martin is considered the patron saint of beggars)." I went out to the Ethnographic Open Air Museum to see what kinds of festivities I could find and found that I was probably the oldest person there without children!

Some Latvian folk Dancing.
More folk dancing.
A guy in a wolf mask.
The ladies playing the music.

Lačplesa Diena

2007-11-11T15:29:00.000+02:00

Today was Lačplesa Diena, Veterans Day, or the Day of Heroes in Latvia. I was actually on my way to another celebration when I happened upon a military parade at the Freedom Monument marking the 80th anniversary of the establishment of the Latvian army. Lačplesa Diena is the official date for commemoration of Latvian soldiers. On this date in 1919, the Latvian Army won a decisive breakthrough in the fighting against the Russian and German forces, which had taken up arms against the Republic of Latvia. The victory marked the conclusion of the Latvian War of Liberation (1918-1920) and allowed the work of creating the new state to begin.

The President Valdis Zatlers giving his Lačplesa Diena speech.
The soon to be ousted Prime Minister laying flowers at the Freedom Monument.
A bonfire on the shores of Daugava River.

People laying candles on the ancient city wall in commemoration of those that fought for Latvia.

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen...

2007-11-09T15:05:00.000+02:00

Today I got to give a speech at the Parliament Building to the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. At first when my boss asked me I was kind of like OK why me but then I realized it was because she would be out of town and I spoke the best English. Flattering right. I spoke on the contribution of civil society to the participation of women in politics. It was very exciting I got to have my speech translated into French and Latvian. Although I did hear some mistakes in the Latvian translation and thought about having one of those Condaliza Rice correcting moments but thought better of it. We had those microphones I always dreamed about in Model United Nations Club.....you hit a green button to talk and your microphone turns red. Kind of makes you wonder how politicians can leave them on and say inappropriate things so everyone can hear.

Directions Please....

2007-11-06T14:58:00.000+02:00

I get asked directions all the time here in Latvia. I don't know if its because I look like a local (doubt it) or that I look like a nice person (probably more likely) or that I look very knowledgeable (I like to think its a combination of the three). Today I got asked directions in Russian. At first I gave them my I don't speak Russian phrase which I have memorized and perfectly conjugated but then I realized that I actually understood what they were asking me. It was one of those language moments that everyone who has studied a language is familiar with. What I like to call the light bulb moment when you can actually understand something in a foreign language. Except the thing is I haven't been studying Russian since I got here (only Latvian) but have managed to pick up a lot on the streets and TV. I guess this whole immersion thing has helped me with two languages instead of just one.

More Protests..but this time I was there!

2007-11-03T14:47:00.000+02:00

Today I participated in the largest protest in Latvia since the independence movement. There were different reports about how many people there were but I would say between 7,000-9,000. Which is even more amazing considering it was freezing and that the snow eventually turned to rain. I really think it was a key moment in Latvian history and I was so happy to be able to be there to see it. I really love protests, to me that is democracy. People getting out on the streets and telling the government what they think. Again they were protesting the firing of the head of the Corruption Bureau and corruption within the government. The protest took place in Dome Square and here is picture I managed to take by holding my camera high above my head.

A Bad Latvian Week

2007-11-02T17:05:00.000+02:00

I know that everyone who has lived on a foreign country has had a week like I just did. It was one of those weeks where everything goes wrong and you wish you had the comfort and for me the efficiency and customer service skills of home. I am having problems with my residency permit, got yelled at in the tram (thankfully they don't teach us much slang in Latvian class so I couldn't understand what she was saying to me), had bad cultural experiences with deadlines and people not observing them, got yelled at by a notary with about 10 people staring at me and probably thinking stupid foreigner as I was trying to convey what I needed. Lets just say it was just an all around bad week and I am glad its over! I just bought some Dr. Pepper soda and I am going to watch one of my movies and have a fun American night by myself away from all the scary yelling Latvians and hope that next week things will get better!

Babysitting

2007-10-29T16:47:00.000+02:00

After reading the title I am sure more of you, as the insightful readers that you are, are going to think this story is about me taking care of a bunch of Latvian kids. The closest thing I have come to that is entertaining my professors kids at dinner last night. No this story has nothing to do with that.
I was walking down the street today when I saw outside of one of the expensive designer shops an equally posh baby carriage and inside was a little sleeping baby...where was its mother you ask? I assume that she was inside of the store shopping and left her baby outside in 10 degree weather (Celsius) by itself. Hopefully she put the wheel brake on!
I have actually seen this a couple times before today and it still baffles me. I mean you see kids walking around the streets by themselves at all hours of the day and night....when they should probably be in school and baby carriages left outside of shops. My American professor doesn't let her children cross the street by themselves and I really don't blame her. Its scary for me sometimes trying to navigate the cobblestones in ice with cars barreling down the streets at 50 mph. It all kind of makes you wonder are the parents in Latvia?

Protests in Riga

2007-10-19T10:26:00.000+03:00

Of course it was just my luck that the one day I actually leave Riga the largest protest since independence was held. My host Mom even participated in the protest. How did all these people know there was going to be a protest? Well like in Soviet times when people wanted to announce a protest they published it in the evening newspaper. So key cultural and political figures wrote an open letter to the government. They said that they would participate in a protest the next day in front of the Saiema (the Latvian Parliament). Over 5,000 people answered the call packing the street of old town and making it difficult for the politicians to ignore them because they had to walk through a crowd of chanting people to get from their offices to the parliament building. They were protesting over the firing of the head of corruption bureau. Of course this story was not covered in the Western media but for more info about this please read The Baltic Times.

Ludza

2007-10-18T10:22:00.000+03:00

This week I had the opportunity to go to Ludza in the eastern part of Latvia to conduct a seminar educating people on Human Trafficking. I had never been to Latgale (the eastern region of Latvia) before and jumped at the opportunity. Since the city was less than 30 kilometers from the Russian border we had a number of border guards and policemen and also people from NGOs. We taught them things like what is human trafficking, how to identify a victim, how people get trafficked and what is rehabilitation. It was very interesting to hear their perspectives and see what they could actually do to stop people from getting trafficked.
Here are some of the pictures from my trip

This is were we slept in Latvian they call it campings. It was actually really nice!
This is one of the presentations from the seminar. The arrows pointing to the Paldies (thank you in Latvian) show just how many opportunities there are to save someone from being trafficked.

The American Ambassador

2007-10-16T10:30:00.000+03:00

I was invited to hear the United States Ambassador Catherine Todd Bailey speak at the University of Latvia. The speech was titled "Preserving Our Common Values" With a title like that I was expecting a light hearted comparison of Latvian and American values. Instead she basically tore Latvian politics to shreds and stopped just short of saying that the government is corrupt. It was very interesting and something that made headlines here and really pissed some people off.