"The air is full of flying factories..."

What KIND of factories?!  Please, HELP!

(Night view from apartment window)

Yes.  The daily trials and random incomprehensible word vomits of professors speaking in their second languages.  Here I am, world!  I've been in Rīga now for a few weeks and finally getting into a groove.  As expected, the transition to life in Rīga hasn't been that difficult, thanks to the previous summers of internships and random visits.  But getting into a new university and entering a completely foreign scholarly system is proving to be a bit of a challenge!  So, I've decided to keep at it with the blog to share some of the quirks and peculiarities of a student's life in Rīga.

Let's start with my program.  With the help of my darling friend Santa, this past summer I was enrolled at the University of Latvia, the faculty of Humanities in the Baltic Sea Region Studies masters degree program.  Phew, that's a mouthful.  And quite misleading, as I've found in explaining it to others.  No, I haven't suddenly had a change of heart and decided to study science...  this is not a program that studies the creatures of the sea!  The Baltic Sea Region is comprised of the countries that border the Baltic Sea, therefore, in this study program we explore not only the Baltic countries themselves (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), but also the Scandinavian countries and a touch of Northern Poland and Germany, in a comparative approach covering all the bases of politics, economics, and social studies.  To my advantage (I hope!), this is one of two programs at the University of Latvia, which is offered in English.  The Latvian language laws restrict all education in the country to be presented in the national language, Latvian, however, with some quick maneuvers and calling this an international program (it is linked with several other universities in the region), the instruction language can be English.

 

(Entrance to the main building of the University of Latvia)

As a generosity to those master's degree students who are gainfully employed during the day, my schedule consists of night classes.  Monday thru Friday 6:15pm- 9:30pm.  At first I thought I'd be fine with this adjustment, but I think this is the hardest thing to get used to, mostly because it interferes with all the other social activities I had planned on doing while in Rīga.  Yes, bar hopping is clearly a part of that, but future prospects of singing/playing in bars, as well as joining a folk group or two, arranging rehearsals, etc is much harder when I'm sitting in lectures.

My class schedule currently consists of:
Monday- Baltic Sea Region Concepts, an overview of themes and a mix of different faculty members sharing their expertise with us every week.  So far we've had a touch of Geography and History (looking back from before the Christianization of the region, all the fun stuff I learned back in Latvian Saturday school and Garezers!)
Tuesday- Research Methods & Organization, shockingly thrown back into the world of Statistics.  UGH.  I hate math with such a passion and keeping up with a professor who is spitting out formulas like a Eminem spitting out raps, it's a challenge to keep my brain from exploding.  She also has an incredibly hard time explaining the relevance of our exercises; if I could understand WHY I'm doing this, I'd be much more willing to do it.  But I guess it's good to exercise the other part of my brain... right?
Wednesday- EU Government & Institutions Theory & Practice, a comparatively easy course taking into consideration that I've heard it all before, time and time again.  This class is together with the European Studies program, so we have a much bigger and more diverse group.  I'm excited to get to group work for upcoming Seminars (aka group presentations about a theme).
Thursday- European Economies & Integration Development, another course of little interest or investment, especially because so far we've taken a retrospective view of the development of the EU.  GIVE ME SOMETHING MODERN.  I want to talk about today's crisis and what we're going to do about it.
Friday- Geography.  HA.  Geography? Really?  But when on the first day we were given a map of the region to fill out, I realized I didn't know as much as I thought I did... ooops.  And thank goodness we're discussing all aspects of Geography, current topic: Urban tourism. 

 (Faculty of Economics and Management)

Lucky for me, classes are between two buildings very close to Old Town, where I'm living.  The main building of the University of Latvia and the Faculty of Economics and Management, both right outside of tourist-packed Old Town, making it an easy 10-15 minute commute, even if it means dodging and pushing my way through some large tourist groups snapping away at pictures.

But what about those flying factories?  Last night in Econ class, a student asked about the expenses of transporting goods from far away places to Europe, the professor responded "yes... well... it is more expensive... but nowadays, the goods are always in the air... flying factories... the air is full of flying factories."  I guess what she meant to say was something about technology allowing products to be more accessible, but please loop me in if there are flying factories that I wasn't aware of before.

  So there you have it!  A start to another great adventure... with some pictures to go along with it.  More to come soon, but I need to get to reading and planning papers and group projects...

 (Walking to the main building of LU, you can see the round observatory that's on the roof!)

 (My street, Krāmu iela (Junk Street), on this lovely Friday morning!)

(Coming out of the apartment- the entrance is right behind me- earlier this month with Pops.  Trust me, it's not that warm anymore!  Definitely need a coat!)

3x3 Catskills- Ķēvīt mana švilpastīte

Well, another summer has come to a close.  It was great to be back in the States, spending time in nature with some great friends.  But man- how time flies!

I'm back in Latvia beginning the newest chapter of this blog: Attending the University of Latvia in the Master's degree program Baltic Sea Region Studies.  (You'll have to wait for another post about that)

Before we jump into NOW, I'd like to rewind a bit and post a video of my fabulous friends and I performing Ķēvīt mana švilpastīte at 3x3 camp in the Catskills.  These girls are so fun to jam with and we always have a blast coming up with arrangements of our favorite Latvian folk songs.  I seriously can't wait until we're together again to come up with more material!

Enjoy it here!!!

Group "Vēja ziedi" song/ music video!

A few years back my friend Agnese and I started playing around with GarageBand on my Mac and came up with some funky, techno-y arrangements of traditional Latvian folk songs. It came together in an album (which was sold to family and friends- still available!) and the group "Vēja ziedi" was formed. Since then we've continued to drop some tracks whenever we're together (either in Latvia or elsewhere...) and here's one of the latest jems we've created.

Song- Man atnāca Jāņu diena
Artist- Vēja ziedi
Lyrics- traditional Latvian folk song
Video- Vid

Man atnāca Jāņu diena - Vēja ziedi from tomsons eagleton on Vimeo.

Check out me singing with LA!

Hello dear friends!

A few weeks ago, my dear friend LeighAnne invited me over to sing some songs with her. We had a great time jamming and working out fun harmonies to bring you two great cover songs!

LeighAnne is working on a blog where she gets together with her best buds to sing songs. It's awesome and you should check it out!

http://laandfriends.wordpress.com/

Here are the videos we put together as seen on YouTube!

Something in the Water by Brooke Fraser:



Don't Panic by Coldplay/Ellie Goulding:

Off to the capital!

("Gay rights are human rights" -Hilary Clinton)

A visit to DC is always written in my books whenever I can manage it because it's where my best friend from high school days, Christine lives. It's hard to believe that we're already out of college and fighting it in the real world!

This trip was especially exciting because we were going to see Mumford & Sons LIVE! AHHH! I've been following this group for a while now. LOVED their performance at the Grammy's (along with the Avett Brothers and Bob Dylan):



Gotta say that this concert was nothing short of incredible. The musicians were jumping from one instrument to another, their harmonies were tight and they didn't miss a beat! They themselves mentioned that this was the biggest gig they had played (obviously they didn't count the Grammy performance...a nation wide publicly televised performance?). They were pros and did a good job balancing between songs we all have grown to love and new songs they were trying out on us. Their music tends to get a bit repetitive and predictable, but the concert as a whole was well rounded and entertaining.

(Why, hello! Mr. Mumford!)

The rest of the weekend was spent trying to stay as cool as possible (the heat wave was reaching 90s-100 * F!). It was gay pride weekend in DC, therefore, the party was hoppin' and the city buzzing with excitement!

(Christine, Sean, Imanta)

Now, I hate to get all sappy on you, I try to keep this blog light and joyful, but there are some things that just hit you hard. A few years ago I attended a walk to support gay rights in Latvia. At that time (and still today), the country had very little support or acceptance of LGBT people. A general stand on the topic is that being homosexual is a disease and that this is not something people want to accept in society. The walk was enclosed, on the other side of the fences was the opposition yelling hateful words to us participating. It's so unfortunate that a country can be so close minded to letting people love each other. This is a struggle that the people of Latvia will one day hopefully overcome and move forward with their beliefs to allow all citizens to feel safe and free to express their sexual orientation.

That being said, this was my first gay pride experience in the USA and boy, was it a different from the one in Latvia! A quiet, somber moment to hesitantly show support for this group in Latvia is countered with hooting, hollering, music, joy and pure happiness in D.C! Flags, rainbows, drag queens everywhere you looked. It was a party! There was one moment in particular, where parents and loved ones of LGBT people were marching with signs that showed their support. I was almost brought to tears thinking about how wonderful it is to be able to live in a place where people can feel free to express themselves and this is one right I will always cherish and defend as a US citizen. But, I was so hurt that in Latvia a day like this is still far away in the future.

So there you have it folks! A few weekend trips summed up in a few posts. Next week I'm off to Latvian summer camp in the Catskills to sing and play with little kiddies and keep the Latvian juices flowing! Can't seem to get away from the kid jobs.. Cheers!

Pittsburgh and Cory turns 21!

The great thing about being back in the USA is the chance to see friends who I've only been able to communicate with via Internet. Nothing beats the satisfaction of hugging a buddy you've been away from for 7+ months! Even BETTER, when you get to go to a great baseball game, celebrate a 21st birthday!!

It's been a busy couple of weekends, but all worth it and many new memories made with fabulous people.

The first stop was to Pittsburgh to visit my Alma mater! After picking up Nivi, we got on the Turnpike and away we were! (Unfortunately our trip back was a bit more difficult as we got a HUGE nail in my front tire and needed to stop at PepBoys to get it fixed) We had a busy busy weekend planned thanks to Cory, Kareem and Cody! A must-go was to Hofbrauhaus, to get some delicious beers and try out some shot-skis. It was a week after Cory's 21st so celebration was in order.

(Imanta, Nivi, Michelle @ Hofbrauhaus)

(Pendu-alums + Honorary Pendulum!)

The next day, after recovering a bit from the joys of the previous night we headed out for breakfast in the best breakfast joint in Pittsburgh- DeLuca's Restaurant. Pittsburgh has so many fabulous places to eat! And this is definitely worth the long long line that is always wrapping around the sidewalk in the Strip District around brunch time. Prices are decent, portions are gigantic and the ambiance is of a real old fashioned diner. Yes! Then, let the food coma set in...

(Nivi, Imanta, Cody)

That evening we got ready to head out to PNC Park to watch the Philadelphia Phillies battle it out with the Pittsburgh Pirates. I'm not too into baseball, but when two teams that I need to have some sort of support for are playing each other, it's got my attention! The boys were psyched for the game and although the Phillies lost (the underdog Pirates won! WHAT?!), it's always an uplifting and exciting atmosphere to be a part of. Even better were the fireworks as we were crossing the Andy Warhol bridge back into Downtown Pittsburgh. This city is SO BEAUTIFUL!

(The boys ready for a great game of baseball at PNC Park!)

(Fireworks post-baseball game, overlooking downtown)

Then came the good old fashioned tradition of a 21st birthday bash in Oakland. And we got to visit all of the best bars I learned to love while attending Pitt! Cory is a friend from Pendulums and I was sooo excited to celebrate his 21st with him. Even more excited to meet some old Pendu-friends who I hadn't seen in a verrry long time! Peter's Pub, Hemmingway's, and ending up in P-Caf (Pittsburgh Cafe). We went wild showing Cory what it truly is like to be of AGE in this city! And we absolutely succeeded, although I will not disclose how far that went. :)

(Newly crowned 21 year old Cory!)

(The crew enjoy the festivities!)

It's always a refreshing feeling to return to the place you've grown to call your own. Although I can't call myself a Pittsburgher anymore, I will always hold it dear in my heart and along with it all the memories that I've shared with the best people in the world! Thanks to my hosts Cody and Kareem. I'll be visiting again soon!

just because I'm not in Europe...

... doesn't mean I can't keep blogging!

(a post about Latvia cannot be complete without a picture of the freedom monument!)

It has been quite a while since my last post and a lot has changed since then! After leaving France (which was a much harder endeavor than imagined), I made it to Latvia for a relaxing two weeks of visiting friends and drinking too much beer. I never thought I would hear myself saying THAT, but I guess 7 months of wine drinking changes how your body takes in beer...

(eating rhubarb ice cream at the Open Air museum in Latvia)

Latvia, like always, was a great time. Returning there I always feel like I'm coming home, or at least relieved that I don't have to worry about not knowing where to go, asking for directions, or looking like a tourist. I'm at ease and the city is a warm welcome. While I was there we did our fare share of hanging out at the Folk bar, going to dances and sing-a-longs. We also spent a fare share amount of time in the beer gardens... oh the luxury of not having any responsibilities! It was truly a vacation.

(Vika, Jūlija, Imanta, Ilze, Kalvis @ Kiwi Bar)

I also went to visit my grandfather's family house in Vidzeme. The property is called Skābumi, found outside of Valmiera in Rencēnu parish (pagasts). I've been there a few times before, so it was nice to go back to a place where I have real family roots and escape from the hustle and bustle of the city (I guess living in the mountains for that long made me a bit of a country bumpkin!). Trees were just barely greening, as it had been quite cold the first week I was in Latvia and it had slowed down spring. Nevertheless, birds were flying around like crazy and the farmers were busy in the fields getting ready for the busy working months.

(Looking to Skābumi from the forest)

A few kilometers away from Saulgodi is a Camp Hill community. Camp Hill is an organization that helps disabled people through creating a place for them to live and work in a small farm situation. Everyone does their share, but it can be as little as picking weeds or as much as milking the cows. The visit was great! The people who are there were welcoming and the farm itself was very cute.

The trip ended with rushing to figure out paperwork for the upcoming application process to the University of Latvia, where I plan to go to graduate school for Baltic Sea Region Studies. ***This program has little/nothing to do with the sciences of the sea. It is a economics/politics/socio-cultural program dealing with the countries that border the Baltic sea!*** I'm nervous, yet excited to embark on this new adventure. And if a few meetings has shown me anything, it's going to be quite the ride dealing with bureaucracy of outdated systems and forms of thinking. This will surely keep me busy for the blog! Get ready for much ranting! :)

(my favorite ladies! Inta about to leave for her 3 month Euro-trip and Jūlija, my host!)