Class Exchange to Latvia
In September 2012 it was the Greek team?s turn to visit Latvia. We set off on the 20th of September and we spent the first two days in the capital ? Riga. There, we had the opportunity to have our first contact with the country and its civilization. Our group of two teachers and 10 students had plenty of time to wander around the beautiful city, walk in its streets and parks, admire the magnificent buildings and create all forms of comparisons and contrasts. Visiting the museums and monuments gave us an even better understanding of the culture of this land. We also tasted the local specialties and tried to get as much of the atmosphere as possible.
On the 22nd the Latvian partners arrived in Riga to escort us to their place, Cibla. On our way there we stopped in two places of great interest: the imposing Soviet monument, Salaspils, for World War II and the aristocratic Rundale Palace portraying a different era of the Latvian History.
The next day was a Sunday, so it was arranged for the students to spend time with their host families and as those were scattered in the wider area of Ciblas novads, to get to know the area better and visit the bigger town of Ludga for some sightseeing. It was also arranged for them to play paintball. The greek teachers, along with colleagues from the Latvian school took a trip to a couple of places of interest in the wider area of Latgale :
On the 23rd a very warming reception had been organized for the Greek delegation in Ciblas vidusskola. Everybody was presented to the assembly of students and teachers and gifts were offered to us. Next we attended some Latvian, Maths, Music and home Economics lessons. After lunch, in the school restaurant, we started working on our bilateral project, compiling our Greek-English-Latvian dictionary. Then we took a trip to Lidumnieki, by the Russian border, where we visited a war museum created by the things that the local people had been collecting.
The following day we took a trip to Daugavpils where the students took some turns on a skating rink and Rezekne, the biggest town of Latgale, where we spent the afternoon in a bowling centre.
On the 26th we attended English and Geography lessons in school and carried on with the project work. We also visited the school?s museum located in a nearby historic building. When we finished we did some volunteer work and raked the dead leaves from the school park.
The next day we went on another trip but this time to a medieval place, Cesis with an imposing castle next to a lake. And after that we took an invigorating walk in the Ligatne national park enjoying the trees, plants and animals of the reserve.
On our last day in school we had the opportunity to coincide with a festive event celebrating the Olympic Games. So, undoubtedly, we all took part in the activities and in the evening we were even given a medal for our participation. This same evening a goodbye concert was given in Ciblas concert hall where both sides presented songs and dances from their lands. This goodbye party ended by a buffet dinner offered and prepared by the students? parents where we had the chance to taste all the local delicacies and say goodbye in an admittedly emotionally overcharged atmosphere.
The next day it was our trip back to Riga through a magnificent route by the Cauja River. Before we reached our destination we visited Sigulda and learned about the medieval times and the life of knights.
On the 30th, full of impressions and emotions, we took our plane back to Greece.
