STUDY TRIPI Want it and I Want it Now orHow We Discovered <strong>the</strong> Ne<strong>the</strong>rlandsBy Laura MikelsoneThough for some <strong>of</strong> us it seemed <strong>the</strong>worst tim<strong>in</strong>g possible due to enormousworkload at school, 16 courageous, adventureseek<strong>in</strong>g students from SSE (Y1and Y2) went on an Xtraord<strong>in</strong>aryXchange Xperience program to a smallcity <strong>in</strong> Holland – Enschede.This exchange week was organizedfor us, students, to get to know thisweird country as well as to learn someth<strong>in</strong>gabout <strong>the</strong> differences <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> threecultures – Rumanian, Dutch andLatvian.The TripThe bus was ra<strong>the</strong>r small – 16 placesfor 16 people, <strong>the</strong>refore, we wouldn’t call<strong>the</strong> nights spent <strong>in</strong> it <strong>the</strong> most comfortableones <strong>of</strong> our lives. But that seemedquite unimportant as <strong>the</strong> people weregreat and we were also quite lucky with<strong>the</strong> drivers. We even conv<strong>in</strong>ced <strong>the</strong>m tocut down on sleep on our way back, soall <strong>of</strong> us got home earlier than expected.Besides, <strong>the</strong> guys had prepared quitewell for <strong>the</strong> long journey, those who hadnot, made <strong>the</strong> most <strong>of</strong> our last stop atRimi <strong>in</strong> Bauska… have to add that thisresulted <strong>in</strong> too many pee stops on ourway. Besides, we discovered some hiddentalents on our way home – didn’tknow <strong>the</strong>y could s<strong>in</strong>g or maybe that<strong>the</strong>y would s<strong>in</strong>g…Dutch PeopleWhat can we say – <strong>the</strong>y are a bitweird, but <strong>in</strong> a positive way. Have toadmit that Holland is a verrry liberalcountry, if you know what I mean…Be<strong>in</strong>g homosexual is becom<strong>in</strong>g popular!On behalf <strong>of</strong> all <strong>the</strong> girls, I should <strong>in</strong>viteyou not to take such a pattern. However,be<strong>in</strong>g liberal is not <strong>the</strong> only th<strong>in</strong>gwe found out about people <strong>the</strong>re. Theyride bikes everywhere – even from bathroomto bedroom. They are also veryfriendly, open m<strong>in</strong>ded, and k<strong>in</strong>d. Wewere taken care <strong>of</strong> all week through andI believe that many <strong>of</strong> us have madegood friends! The organizers really did<strong>the</strong>ir best to satisfy our needs! Hopefully<strong>the</strong>y will visit us as well… Andno, <strong>the</strong>y are not high all <strong>the</strong> time…FoodThe <strong>Insider</strong> #3 (64), May 2004; Page 12Everyth<strong>in</strong>g can be expla<strong>in</strong>ed with <strong>the</strong>help <strong>of</strong> one word – BREAD. Bread forbreakfast, bread for lunch… It seemedquite unusual for us, Latvians, to haveonly one hot meal a day – late d<strong>in</strong>ner.But what a d<strong>in</strong>ner! After <strong>the</strong> long days<strong>of</strong> walk<strong>in</strong>g, communicat<strong>in</strong>g, hav<strong>in</strong>g funand learn<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> d<strong>in</strong>ner seemed fantastic!Maybe because we were also veryhungry… I’m quite sure that quite many<strong>of</strong> us have cut down on bread consumptionafter com<strong>in</strong>g back home…ExperienceYou might have <strong>the</strong> wrong impressionthat all we did was had fun (perhapsit is not that wrong after all…).Anyways, what I am try<strong>in</strong>g to say isthat we also learned someth<strong>in</strong>g. Welearned about <strong>the</strong> problems <strong>of</strong> Hollandwith immigrants and how <strong>the</strong>y arehandled. For many <strong>of</strong> us this issue wasunfamiliar. We also learned about <strong>the</strong>problems <strong>of</strong> Rumania with <strong>the</strong>ir m<strong>in</strong>orities.And, <strong>of</strong> course, had hot discussionsabout <strong>the</strong> situation with Russian people<strong>in</strong> Latvia. Once aga<strong>in</strong> found out that thistopic is never end<strong>in</strong>g. These topics madeus th<strong>in</strong>k a bit more about tolerance towardso<strong>the</strong>r people, <strong>the</strong>ir lifestyle andculture…Enterta<strong>in</strong>mentDon’ t really know how to put it <strong>in</strong>one paragraph. We really did have fun!There were planned parties almost everynight, which made <strong>the</strong> early morn<strong>in</strong>gseven more impossible. Happy DaysParty – music from <strong>the</strong> 50s and 60s, Rockn Roll, dances, live band, beer…, Internationalparty – many different studentsfrom Enschede, a very crowdedpub, beer…, Rumanian –Latvian party– national snacks, music, danc<strong>in</strong>g allnight long, beer, black balsam andvodka…; Dutch even<strong>in</strong>g – pancakes,folklore danc<strong>in</strong>g, beer… I might be miss<strong>in</strong>gsometh<strong>in</strong>g! There are just someth<strong>in</strong>gs you cannot describe!Ne<strong>the</strong>rlandsThough a week was def<strong>in</strong>itely notenough to get <strong>the</strong> whole picture, we gotto know quite much about this extraord<strong>in</strong>arycountry through different places<strong>of</strong> <strong>in</strong>terest we visited <strong>in</strong> Enschede,Amsterdam, The Hague and Leiden.Rijksmuseum – fabulous art; AnneFrank museum – our own history; Palace<strong>of</strong> Peace – just have to see it for yourself,Scheven<strong>in</strong>gen – beautiful beach;Tweede Kamer – <strong>the</strong> parliament, etc…All that <strong>in</strong> just seven days, seems wewalked miles…Red Light District & C<strong>of</strong>feeshopsYes, <strong>the</strong>y are real and <strong>the</strong>y are worthvisit<strong>in</strong>g, if only to say that you havebeen <strong>the</strong>re. It is all you can imag<strong>in</strong>e plusmore… The Red Light District (whichwe just visited, really…) was shock<strong>in</strong>gand funny at <strong>the</strong> same time, though itbrought up some thoughts about whatit takes for a person to choose thisway… The c<strong>of</strong>feeshops – every corner<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> street, all you need is an ID thatproves you’re over 18. Noth<strong>in</strong>g unusualfor <strong>the</strong>m, ma<strong>in</strong> location for some <strong>of</strong> us…Really cheap – 1 gram = 5 Euros = 4jo<strong>in</strong>ts = 8 average people. (I might bemistaken) Shall we <strong>in</strong>vite our countryto legalize drugs as well? It has lead to adecrease <strong>in</strong> consumption <strong>of</strong> drugs <strong>in</strong>Holland, hasn’ t it?ShopsOf course, you cannot go abroad andignore shops. You need souvenirs tobr<strong>in</strong>g home as a m<strong>in</strong>imum – funny postcards,T shirts, sweets, cheese, woodenshoes… Just wanted to add that surpris<strong>in</strong>glyit was <strong>the</strong> guys who did most<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> shopp<strong>in</strong>g, cause, accord<strong>in</strong>g to<strong>the</strong>m <strong>the</strong> choice <strong>in</strong> cloth<strong>in</strong>g was wider<strong>the</strong>re than here at home. Well, perhaps<strong>the</strong>y are right! The only sad th<strong>in</strong>g aboutthis weird country is that <strong>the</strong>y closeway too early…What we th<strong>in</strong>kIt seemed a month, it seemed anhour… It was a weird trip, fantasticexperience and lots <strong>of</strong> fun. Yep, youshould regret miss<strong>in</strong>g this fabulous opportunity!We would also like to thankour dear school for support<strong>in</strong>g this adventureas well as <strong>the</strong> organizers formak<strong>in</strong>g this week come true!On behalf <strong>of</strong> Zane, L<strong>in</strong>da, L<strong>in</strong>da,Mar<strong>in</strong>a, Natalija, Mart<strong>in</strong>s, Mart<strong>in</strong>s,Kaspars, Maris, Konrads, Agris, Arturs,Kristaps, Inga, Una and Laura –Dank je wel!
THE little LOGO ADVEN-TURES with “5K”By AgSpecial thanks to Aiga Dzene andL<strong>in</strong>a Banyte for apply<strong>in</strong>g to <strong>the</strong> schoolnewspaper contest “5K”!“Once upon a time (around lastyear) <strong>the</strong>re was a sleep<strong>in</strong>g Eye stick<strong>in</strong>gto <strong>the</strong> first page <strong>of</strong> our school’s newspaper.You may know her as <strong>the</strong> <strong>Insider</strong>logo (abb. “<strong>the</strong> Eye”). She slept <strong>the</strong>re fora whole year till <strong>the</strong> new <strong>Insider</strong> teamsaw <strong>the</strong> sleep<strong>in</strong>g Eye too sleepy andchanged it to Mr. F<strong>in</strong>gerpr<strong>in</strong>t. Poor Eye?Not at all! She would have been seducedby <strong>the</strong> Swedish spirit anyway, andwould have left us right after April 12 th .Everyth<strong>in</strong>g started when a knight on awhite horse came over <strong>the</strong> Daugava tosearch for a bride.The knight, called <strong>the</strong> largest newspaper<strong>in</strong> Latvia “Diena”, had an occasion,called competition “5K”, and hesearched for<strong>the</strong> bestbrides amongall Latvianschool newspapers.Hedidn’t f<strong>in</strong>done. But hedid like particularparts<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>m.Crazy one! Hehad 16 nom<strong>in</strong>ationssuchas <strong>the</strong> best article,news,reportage, design,andlogo.The f<strong>in</strong>aldecision <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>knight’s tastestated that “<strong>the</strong> jury found <strong>the</strong> logo <strong>of</strong>newspaper “The <strong>Insider</strong>” as <strong>the</strong> mostcreative and student oriented amonguniversities <strong>in</strong> Latvia” (Konkursa 5kuzvaretaji, “Diena”, April 3 rd , 2004, 4.lpp).Go<strong>in</strong>g even more back <strong>the</strong>re were o<strong>the</strong>rpublications about <strong>the</strong> “5K” contest, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g<strong>the</strong> knight’s desires, expectaferentlayers <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> largest media concern<strong>in</strong> Sweden “Bonnier AB”. Explor<strong>in</strong>gwas made <strong>in</strong> top-down manner,start<strong>in</strong>g from presentations and question& answer sessions <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> boardlevel, cont<strong>in</strong>u<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> publish<strong>in</strong>g houselevel, and f<strong>in</strong>aliz<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> pr<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g shoplevel. Particularly two “Bonnier” prod-The <strong>Insider</strong> #3 (64), May 2004; Page 13STUDY TRIPtions, and <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion on <strong>the</strong> candidates(Radosie un Aktivie, “Sestdiena”,March 28, 2004, 4.lpp). The article gavea short <strong>in</strong>sight <strong>in</strong> some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> universitynewspapers, and, <strong>in</strong>deed, it beganwith two rich text paragraphs aboutour SSE Riga newspaper. If skimmedthrough fast: “…11 university newspapershave applied...gossip page is <strong>the</strong>most beloved part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Insider</strong>…pupilsread it start<strong>in</strong>g from <strong>the</strong> back just like<strong>in</strong> Arabic countries… enterta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g andno over-pack<strong>in</strong>g with academic<strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion…F<strong>in</strong>ance should be reallycrazy, s<strong>in</strong>ce Vidmantas does not dr<strong>in</strong>kbear anymore…“I expect pr<strong>of</strong>essionalevaluation from <strong>the</strong> contest, which willbe useful for improv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> <strong>Insider</strong>,”says L<strong>in</strong>a <strong>in</strong> a clear Latvian language…”The prize for <strong>the</strong> bride was more educativeand experienc<strong>in</strong>g than materialistic.It was a five-day trip to <strong>Stockholm</strong>from 12 th -16 th <strong>of</strong> April, where all <strong>the</strong> 16w<strong>in</strong>ners were given deeper understand<strong>in</strong>g<strong>of</strong> journalism through visit<strong>in</strong>g difuctswere explored: <strong>the</strong> largest morn<strong>in</strong>gnewspaper <strong>in</strong> Sweden “DagensNyheter” and tabloid “Expressen”.Have some little comments from <strong>the</strong>little Eye:Eye, share some little experience!…Market<strong>in</strong>g: Image <strong>of</strong> quality andfreedom <strong>of</strong> speech; sooner or later somebodyf<strong>in</strong>ds out your weak side, especiallycompet<strong>in</strong>g media; take short runlosses to enjoy long run success …. CorporateF<strong>in</strong>ance: strong ownershipstructure; “Bonnier” is pure familyowned; currently it has accumulatedalready 79 owners… F<strong>in</strong>ance: no externalf<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g; “Bonnier” wants to grownaturally without overheat<strong>in</strong>g resources…No, I mean, Eye, be more creativeabout “Bonnier”……Bus<strong>in</strong>ess is art. The outside <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>“Bonnier” <strong>of</strong>fice house rem<strong>in</strong>ded gray“Preses Nams”; but <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>side spoke <strong>the</strong>language <strong>of</strong> art. Different exponentspositively refreshed <strong>the</strong> formal <strong>of</strong>fice atmosphere…art more than <strong>in</strong> SSE Riga.Even <strong>the</strong> technical pr<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g house hadart spirit…especially enjoyable was aduck on ice (see picture).Before fad<strong>in</strong>gaway <strong>in</strong>our memory<strong>the</strong> Eye wishesto you: “dreamgood th<strong>in</strong>gsand make evenbetter th<strong>in</strong>gsw h e nawake…” Mr.F<strong>in</strong>gerpr<strong>in</strong>t isawaken <strong>the</strong>second time.Hope he doeseven better!The knight wasalready <strong>in</strong>terested<strong>in</strong> himbut found himtoo young. Hehas to grow till<strong>the</strong> next year“5K” competition.P.S. The knight was upset f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gno best photo illustration….place forimprovement to all school newspapers<strong>in</strong> Latvia… SSE Riga is full <strong>of</strong> digitalcameras, say, why not we?