Thomas KinterLearn Russian in the European UnionDaugavpils, LatviaSpring 2022 The time I spent in Latvia was one of the most valuable experiences in my life. I made great friendships with both my fellow students from America and with the people of Daugavpils who taught me so much and made my life there so rich. Unfortunately, my time there was cut short when the school cautiously determined that it would be best for me to leave a country so close to Russia as the war in Ukraine grew. While I understand the decision, it is an understatement to say that […]

Thomas KinterLearn Russian in the European UnionDaugavpils, LatviaSpring 2022 Recently, my friends and I were fortunate enough to visit the neighboring Baltic nation of Lithuania. Lithuania is a country of about three million people on the eastern side of the Baltic Sea. Its capital, Vilnius, is in the eastern part of the country and even closer to Daugavpils than Latvia’s capital, Riga. Together, Latvian and Lithuanian are part of what are known as the Baltic languages which I have come to learn are quite different than the Slavic languages Russian, Belarusian, and Polish that are spoken in the surrounding countries. […]

Thomas KinterLearn Russian in the European UnionDaugavpils, LatviaSpring 2022 February 16, 2022 It has been five weeks now since I got off of the plane in Riga, and I can now write about having gone back to see more of the city than the bridge I crossed over on my way out on that first day. My pre-semester language program recently ended and the other students and I decided to spend the weekend in Riga to see the town that holds a third of this country’s people. The bus-ride took about three and a half hours from Daugavpils to the […]

Thomas KinterLearn Russian in the European UnionDaugavpils, LatviaSpring 2022 January 25, 2022 Привет из Латвии! I have now been in Latvia for a little more than two weeks. More than a month or two ago I would not have believed that I would actually be here in spite of what felt like a thousand road blocks and diversions that worked to keep me in Virginia. Truth be told, I was extremely nervous and full of self-doubt when I finally did arrive here. I have never before left the United States and have never spent very long away from my home […]