The 27th of December 2012 the wonderful Winter University organised by AEGEE-Riga and AEGEE-Ogre started. The participants were able to enjoy the culture and the hospitality of Latvian people for seven days. The activities and workshops were diverse, from social inclusion, costumes, and other more sportive activities like ice-skating or the “ciambellas” (big truck tires used to slide downhill).

As usual, the program started with an introduction of the organisers and some ice breaking games where the participants got to know each other. After breaking the ice, the participants went to a pub in the Old Town, where they enjoyed the music and some drinks. From that day on Angel Rodriguez (AEGEE-Alicante) – or Angelina as he was called during the event – started trying to become the dancing king. However, Lelde Pētersone (AEGEE-Riga) also showed her nice smile, energy and good dancing style.

For the duration of the event, the participants were divided in four groups: lions, frogs, snakes and hyenas. Different tasks were given to each group, like waking up the other participants in the morning, logical exercises or playing different games. The division of the participants helped to improve the relations between them.

On the first day, after a lesson in Latvian language, the participants got the biggest surprise of the event. In the Brazilian beach volleyball centre, the groups had to work together on different tasks. The hyenas won the overall match. Afterwards the teams tried to get the recipe of some cakes selected by the organisers in the tearoom. In the meantime there was a small workshop about AEGEE where the organisers asked the participants to give ideas on how to improve internal relations in AEGEE; how to get new members; or how to stimulate friendships between the old and the new members.

December 30th started with a city tour given by an official tourist guide of the city. The participants visited different cathedrals and quarters of the city, and learned about the traditions, history and legends of these different parts. After the tour, the group went to a guest house outside the city. Before the participants started to get ready for the European Night, they had a Latvian dance workshop given by Elmars Leja (AEGEE-Riga). During the European Night the participants were able to enjoy different drinks from Italy, Georgia, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Germany, France, Holland, Latvia and Spain. For this event the Spanish participants did not prepare the popular sangría, they chose another special mix of champagne and orange juice called “aqua de Valencia”, because it is a drink that many consume in times of celebration. Of course there also were some sweets, pasta done by the great chef Enzo Lamuraglia (AEGEE-Bari), and the famous Spanish “tortilla de patatas” provided by Angel Rodriguez.

The following morning, the group had a great time in a small ski station near the guest house. Some of the participants enjoyed skiing and snowboarding, while the rest of the group were playing with the “ciambellas”. Since there were four tires, the participants organised races and sliding in different figures like trains or squares. The participants also enjoyed a great sauna party where they got the chance to rest and build up their energy for New Year’s Eve back in Riga.

After arriving back in the gym in Riga the participants began to get ready by putting on their gala clothes, while the organisers prepared an appetizer that both the participants and the organisers enjoyed, along with some nice sangría. After dinner, the group went to the riverside of Daugava to enjoy the fireworks at midnight, while drinking champagne. The participants continued on to a pub called “Mojo”, where they celebrated the coming of New Year in each of the different European timezones while sharing some traditions like eating 12 grapes.

Next morning the bravest participants went to Riga’s freezing seaside, before joining the rest of the group who went ice-skating in the “Lido”.  After the lunch in Lido’s restaurant, the participants joined an aerobic class given by the two pets of the ice-skating park, two funny teddy-squirrels, who were dancing to “Danza Kuduro”.

And then the night arrived, and with it, the farewell party. There were prizes to be given out for the most energetic, the most relaxed (sleeping princess), the best flirt, and the best dancers. In the group contest the Hyenas finally claimed their victory while singing their song “Hyena, Hyena, Hyena”.

This event showed the participants who had never been to Latvia before how people from this area may seem cold and quiet, but when you get to know the country – and even better, if the members of AEGEE-Riga and AEGEE-Ogre help you – you will realise that the people are friendly, warm and funny. In one word: wonderful.  Thank you AEGEE for another wonderful experience!

Written by Angel Rodriguez, AEGEE-Alicante (Wieke van der Kroef ed.)

A small and beautiful town called Ogre is located almost in the middle of Latvia. Ogre? Yes, you understood correctly. But nothing to worry – there are no monsters or cannibals in the town as you could misunderstand by the name. On the contrary, it is a very peaceful town. The only thing that could give a cause to think about the monsters is a vide forest all around the city and Ogre’s Blue Mountains, but no monster has ever been seen there. Maybe someone has seen strayed Latvian blue cow in Ogre’s region, but that is another story.

In fact, Ogre city’s name is closely related to the river Ogre and there are several legends about its name. In past times, there used to be a lot of eels in the river Ogre. And one legend says that the name of the river (from which this town could derive its name) is Russian origin (угри[ugri], meaning eels). And the legend says that Catherine the Great of Russia was the one who gave the river this name. The last indication to why the Ogre has this particular name could bet thanks to the railway station, which name was Oger.

In 1861, Ogre started to develop and became popular as a rest area, especially after Riga – Daugavpils railway construction started. It was also time when the first recreational centre was built there. Besides, also business and trade were developing. In 1874, first summer visitors settled in Ogre, and their numbers was growing considerably every year. Soon, Ogre received the rights of a village. Beautiful Ogre region became one of the most favourite resting places and tourist sites. In these times, Ogre had even more visitors than the seaside city Jūrmala.

Although the sea is about 40 km further to north, tourists were enjoying the fresh and healing air of the pine forest, which could resemble the sea scent. Visitors loved walking in the area of Blue Mountains, they liked to visit cafés and different relaxing events. In 1928, Ogre was granted the rights of a town. Unfortunately, during the Soviet industrialisation period there were some big factories built and Ogre lost its popularity as a resort centre.

Ogre is a great place to live. It is situated very close to Riga, its infrastructure is developed, but at the same time – environment is clean and friendly, there is a beautiful view, fresh air, a forest for walking, a river and lakes for fishing and swimming. Ogre offers various opportunities for different sport activities too. This is a great place to make a good foundation for child development – School of Arts, School of Music, Sport Centre, etc.

Nowadays Ogre becomes more popular also for tourists. So, if you are coming to Ogre, you definitely should see:

• Ogre’s centre (Brīvības Street) – although it is quite small and it does not take much time to go all around it, you have to see it for sure! There is a peaceful pedestrian part and a small and lovely park in the beginning of Brīvības Street (starting from the Railway station). If you go further, you can find a sculpture for Bear Eric – darling for every child in Ogre. On the opposite side, there is a very elegant and beautiful house “Kūrmāja”, which was built in 1926 as a café and a boarding house with a specially made palm tree garden. Local musicians used to play there in the evenings and this house was visited by famous and well-known artists. But now, there is a jewellery
  and souvenir shop. Also in this street you can found cafés where you can enjoy delicious and tasty food.

P.S. We suggest that you to taste the potato pancakes with sour cream!

• Arched bridge (feature picture) – the bridge was built in the late 1960s. It is the only arched bridge in Latvia (94 m long and 4,5 m wide). You can see a truly beautiful view from there. Don’t know how to get there? Ask any local and he or she will show you!
• Ogre’s Blue Mountain – The nature park near the town of Ogre is a popular place for leisure, hiking and, in the winter, cross-country skiing. Most of the park’s area is covered with coniferous trees that are on a long and comparatively narrow line of hillocks with steep sides. Come and check if you can smell the fresh sea air how it smelled in the past.
• Ceramic workshop “Sproģi” Address: Viestura aleja 6 – this ceramic workshop offers an opportunity to see how clay clumps turn into beautiful things. And also you can try and make something by yourself.
• Club “Hauze” Address: Brīvības street 1 – if you want to relax, dance, eat sushi, play billiards, or any other board games, then you definitely have to go to club “Hauze”. The atmosphere is very friendly and cosy.

Ogre is one of the greenest towns in Latvia and it is very appropriate for those who love to relax in nature. But if you want to experience something different, you have to go to our capital city Riga. There, you can find a variety of art exhibitions, cafes, bars and clubs, shops suitable for many different tastes.

Also certainly you should go to the popular resort town Jūrmala. It is rich and interesting with its architecture and cultural monuments. And don’t forget about the sea. Latvia is famous for its sandy beaches and beautiful sunsets which are really romantic.

P.S. The cheapest way to travel from one city to another is by train.

We are waiting for you, so come to visit us!

Written by Kristiāna Zariņa, AEGEE-Ogre

It all started with an idea to raise awareness about Europe among children in rural areas of Latvia  and to make them feel like the European citizens they are. The idea was to abolish all kinds of boundaries, both physical and psychological. AEGEE-Ogre took the initiative and came up with a project so good that it received a grant from Youth In Action (YiA). With the financial support of YIA, the idea was brought to life.

After preparing the project during the long and tiresome winter months, its accomplishment approached together with the warmth of spring. The main coordinator of the project, Irina Sadrina, together with her team, worked day and night to make their vision a reality. From March till May, members of AEGEE-Ogre, with the help of some Erasmus students from Germany, Spain, Turkey and Ukraine, visited rural schools in the Ogre district and spread the different cultures among eager-to-learn children.

Each foreign participant got to share his culture with both 4^th graders and 12^th graders. The different age groups made the project even more interesting as different activities were held for each of the groups. While the young kids got to do more hands-on projects, enjoying games and watching short films about the countries of their guest speaker, the older kids got just as involved in discussions and seminars. In the end, it was not just some boring school lecture. It was really an upbeat discussion and very much of a “show and tell” moment.

The organisers of AEGEE-Ogre helped many kids feel that they truly are part of Europe. They gave a chance to school kids to meet young foreigners who came to Latvia to gain knowledge and experience that only an international program can give you. For some, this program opened their eyes to a whole range of new possibilities, for others, it was a chance to see themselves and their place in this world from a completely different point of view.

Special thanks for the photos to Irina Sadrina and her team from AEGEE-Ogre!

Written by Olga Volovyk, AEGEE-Kyiv

Does the name Karolina Mazetyte ring a bell? It should. She is the new Network Commissioner of the antennae in the northern part of AEGEE and also the (re-)founder of AEGEE-Kaunas. A local that re-entered the Network at Agora Enschede. The AEGEEan talked with Karolina about the creation of the antennae and here are the results.

Take us back to the beginning. When did you start on working on creating AEGEE-Kaunas?

The idea to re-establish AEGEE in Kaunas came to my mind one year ago, when I was studying in Hungary and was a member of a Hungarian local that time, but the actual work started around October 2011. In December, Kaunas officially became a contact antenna. From that moment onwards I started working two or three times harder. Starting everything from scratch on your own takes a lot of time and its not so easy. When you finally see some resulsts it is worth all the efforts.

What inspired and motivated you to start the project? 

AEGEE and our members. I fell in love with AEGEE from the very first moment and I realised that we must have it here in Kaunas. Seeing so many active, motivated and creative people in our organisation, working on several projects or events is what inspired me and motivated me to put AEGEE-Kaunas back on the map.

Were there any difficulties in the process? 

Yes, of course there were. You are facing difficulties in any kind of work you do, but it makes you stronger and shows in which field you can improve yourself. The main problem we were and still are facing was attracting and motivating people to join the organisation. Now we already have 13 members, but you have still to motivate them from time to time, a push into the right direction or telling how to improve their work, but its a normal processess in any organisation.

How does it feel to finally have signed the Convention d’Adhésion?

New Year celebration in Kaunas

It was not the first time for me. The first time I did it for AEGEE-Szombathely-Koszeg, but this time was really special. Just before leaving to Agora Enschede one of our members pointed out the excitement of being able to participate in projects and exchanges after signing the contract. The moment of signing the Convention d‘Adhésion I was very excited as well, knowing that we now can do everything and I texted our members right after the signing. It was a really amazing feeling.

How is the interest for AEGEE in Kaunas and Lithuania in general?

I cannot really talk about Lithuania in general, because AEGEE is not a visible organisation in Lithuania. It will be hard to make it visible, because AEGEE does not really have a few clear goals, clear vision, or a steady direction into which it is heading. In general, people in Lithuania are more willling to join an organisation with one or two clear goals. When people get to know AEGEE, they are interested. One of the main goals for the next one or two years should be making AEGEE visible in Kaunas, Lithuania and in other parts of northern Europe.

What is special about the city of Kaunas? 

Kaunas is a student town, so it is full of live and fun all the time. What I really like about Kaunas is that the city has lots to offer. You can find a lovely old town here, relax in the park where two rivers meet each other, play basketball in front of the city castle, sail in the lagoon, or just go camping by one of our water basins and you will feel like being at the seaside. The the best thing is that Kaunas is the heart of Lithuania, so you can reach all other places in the country very easily.

If you were to point out something special about AEGEE-Kaunas, what would that be?

Board elections in Kaunas

We do not have any special traditions yet, but we all love nature, so what we often organise picnics in connection with the meetings. Another interesting thing could be that we will probably have an office in an old factory, which was recently renovated by the local council and became a center of artists. Furthermore, the building has a garden on the top of the factory so it is environmental friendly as well, which is quite cool!

What are the plans for the near future of AEGEE-Kaunas?

In June we are organising green workshops about recycling in Kaunas in a garden on top of a factory. During the workshops we will try to make some interesting things from our rubbish and of course try to make people aware of the importance of the recycling. That will be our last event this semester and we all will move to spend a nice summer somewhere in the world till early September.

I am not able to give a lot information but what is interesting is that we are also working on organising a Summer University in collaboration with AEGEE-Ogre in 2013. The concept would be something like ”Get to know the Baltic cultures”, so it would include history, arts, languages, traditions and trips in nature, because in the Baltics people are crazy about canoes and camping.

The AEGEEan gives AEGEE-Kaunas warm welcome to the Network!

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-København