The summer started with a pink soup festival in Vilnius. Pink soup is a traditional cold beet soup made with kefir, marinated beets, boiled eggs, fresh cucumbers, dill and potatoes on a side. Šaltibraščiai in Lithuanian. The color of the soup is pink - may not look tasty to people who are not used to this dish.
Vilnius is changing the perception and made the whole day full of activities related to the soup: ŠTV = šaltibarščių television, 360 meters long table and 1,000 people eating the pink soup at the same time, foam slide into a bowl, photo op places, Stiklių street covered in pink carpet, LOTS of different pink soup variations and dishes to try. We attempted a Mexican version of the soup and šaltibarščiai ice cream. People were encouraged to dress in pink or with šaltibraščiai accessories. There were music concerts in the evening and many restaurants participated with special dishes. It is only the second year the festival is happening. It is worth attending (make plans for the next year!).
The month of May was filled with lovely time with lovely people. My mom came in early May. We travelled a bit with her to Pakruojo dvaras, she also went to see Rome with her sisters. We managed to see several mom's cousins (only a few from the 30+ she has). I took both moms to Druskininkai spa town. Cannot resist and need to add a few photos.
Big nests of storks are everywhere in Lithuania. I finally managed to take a picture. It is an amazing part of the Lithuania's country side. You see storks in nests, flying over the fields or just walking in the fields.
I had American visitors!!! It was so fun to show Vilnius, Trakai and Kaunas to them. We made our guests climb narrow and steep stairs to get nice Vilnius views, try the pink soup and walk lots of steps around the city. It was lovely to catch up in person and to show the small unique things.
We took a culinary trip to Dzūkija. We made large potato pancakes (bandos) and cookies, walked in nature and heard stories from the guide about the history of small towns and villages.
There was a presidential election in Lithuania. Nothing exciting compared to the US -- the campaign lasted two months, very few ads, several debates on TV and calm voting process. In the first round, nine people were competing for the presidency and since no one got more than 50%, there was the second round with two candidates that received most votes. I like the current prime minister, however, she didn't win. The voting was super easy. The line is from the early voting, it took only 15 min and it was a very quick procedure, my ID was checked but I could vote anywhere in the country.
Fulbright program had a capstone event. Every fellow made a presentation, we got certificates, a group photo and had a reception time to chat more with the embassy' staff and other fellows. Most other Fulbrighters are either English language teacher assistants or professors. There is a US ambassador in the country, but I didn't have a chance to meet her. My Fulbright project continues to the end of June, but it was nice to have an official end.
At my work, I organized a capstone event for all public sector institutions that collaborate with the State data agency. The Prime minister's chief of staff opened the event, I spoke at the beginning and moderated a panel at the end. There were other good speakers and we gave prizes to 10 data ambassadors. We had a professional MC for the event. The prize was a printed graphic of all Lithuanian rivers. About 400 people registered and came to the event, which was held in the Prime minister's place (Vyriausybės kanceliarija). I was very happy how the day turned out and definitely feel that it was a highlight and summary of my project here. Video is below:
A few notes about the family. Everyone is doing well, kids are having fun at school. Andrew had a viola weekend with his teacher and all her viola students. Every kid performed a piece, had a group photo and ate plovas, which was made by the teacher's husband. On another weekend, kids ran a 5K. Photos of "before" and "after." Andrew finished in 28 minutes and Dominick in 30 min. They were very happy to participate and run in Vilnius streets. The last photo is with the yellow ice-cream. Usually, there is ice-cream covered in chocolate, but there is a type that is covered in a lemony tasting layer. One of our favorite odd things.
The last note is about my BFF. I grew up next door to her, our favorite imaginary game to play was called pirates and swans, and we even wrote letters to each other (although the distance between our houses was only couple feet). I am so blessed to have her in my life and was very glad to celebrate her birthday in Kaunas.
Happy summer! Two more months and we are flying back to Madison, Wisconsin.