A Wonderful Wedding

On Saturday, August 18, my friend, Solveiga, got married. She was a beautiful bride and the day turned out to be perfect. It started to rain, however, during the ceremony but it cleared up right on time as we all went outside to meet and greet everyone and take pictures. There were many traditional activities during the rest of the afternoon. Most of these activities included a bit of walking and often some food...

The church was located not far from Riga and the countryside was lovely. Things started at 2:00 p.m. and we left about 10:00. A wonderful way to celebrate the beginning of their lives together.

Love to Learn

The time I spent in Valmiera was excellent. Each class brought new ideas and lecturers who are professionals in their field of study or work. The content, of course, was very good, but most of all I learned a great deal more about Latvia today - and what people are thinkng about the future here. These thoughts are helping me to consider how best to relate to the youth in our program here in Tilza.

It seems that Vidzeme University would be a good place for some of our students to go if they are interested in the fields of communication, PR and Media. For those from our church who are interested in going to a Christian College, I also learned more about a place in Lithuania that would be good. Each of these schools has scholarships for those who might need it.

Summer School ended on Friday with a wonderful celebration. Each student got a certificate of completion from Latvia's Minister of Education who came out from Riga for the event. We each had a chance to introduce ourselves, tell what we do, what we had learned from the course, etc.

Eleven of us from six different countries completed the language course which was the most import part for me. We had two very good teachers for these morning classes. Because the class was relatively small, we had lots of opportunity to practice the lessons and repeat the words often. We were given a lot of material that I can use for the future because there just wasn't enough time to cover it all. Now I have plenty to keep me busy.

Summer School

Greetings from Valmiera, Latvia.
For one week now I have been attending classes at the Baltic International Summer School (BISS, http://biss.va.lv) which are giving me insight into Latvian culture and language. When I first chose this course I thought it would be intensive Latvian classes. But I learned that the language component was only a part of what we would be learning -- and I have been enjoying it all.
Classes begin at 8:15 and end at 4:30 with usually an hour and a half for lunch. Latvian classes are first then we have two lectures on subjects pertaining to communication, PR, and the future of media. It has been quite helpful to hear from lectures from all over the world but I have been particulary interested in hearing from those who are Latvian.
The afternoon is usually a workshop which helps to make things a bit more practical. Evenings are devoted to activities which are also informative and a lot of fun.
I, of course, am older than most people here - including the professors/lecturers but it is great to be with those who stimulate my thinking.
Many pieces of information can now be put together which I think could help me, our team in Tilza, or young students from our church who may be making choices for the future.
Some of my favorite classes (other than Lavtian) have been:

* blogging

* use of radio and the internet

* writing for on-line media - a workshop

Our language studies have been going at a perfect pace for me. Every day I get to use what we learn in shops, restaurants, and on the bus.