Sunday 25 September
The project continued in the autumn 2022 with the ninth grade students. Everyone eagerly waited for the Local recreation! mobility week in Jelgava, Latvia that was about to come true in late September. The small but energetic group of students made all the preparations needed well in advance and were ready for take off at Kuopio airport!



Taking the flight from Kuopio airport, the students were excited to meet the Latvian friends again, and after only a couple of hours we were reunited with them at the school. The students were taken to their host families and the teachers to their hotel. Everything ran smoothly and the welcoming was warm.

Monday 26 September
The mobility week in Jelgava was full of action. On the first day there was a welcome ceremony with a small concert at the school. The band played both one Italian and one Finnish song, the Finnish one being "Ievan polkka", which was just amazing! In the afternoon we made a tour in Jelgava with both professional and student guides. The weather was warm and sunny and the first day could not have had a better start!




Tuesday 27 September
On Tuesday morning we all were excitedly waiting for the first real nature experience. We would head for the river Mēmele on the border of Latvia and Lithuania for a paddling trip. Once we got to the starting point, we were divided into canoes so that each canoe had one local student/teacher and two visiting students/teachers. The first canoe was lead by the leading teacher for this event Ingus who has years, or even decades, of experience as a scout leader. The atmosphere was calm but excited since some students had never been on a canoe before. The paddling started in cool and cloudy weather but we could also enjoy sunshine at times.



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The trip was expected to be about four hours long but it turned out to be more or less eight hours of paddling. We had trouble getting ahead every once in a while because the water was very low in many places and we had to push the canoes standing in the water. Well, all is well that ends well. Afterwards we had a traditional Latvian soup and bread which both tasted like heaven after the paddling. 

Wednesday 28 September
The day started at the school where the students from all the partner countries gave their Nature protection presentations which they had prepared before the mobility. The Finnish students' presentation included information about e.g. Finnish national parks, game keeping, second hand shops and recycling. 



When the presentations were given, a bus took us to see the capitol Riga and later to the sea shore. The Riga Old Town was presented to us and we saw many amazingly beautiful sights and could even do some shopping before leaving for the coast. 



At the coast, in Klapkaimciems we were surprised by our hosts who wanted to show us a memorial installed for the Finnish Jaeger Movement. The Finnish soldiers were trained here in Liepaja in 1916-1917. The students, as well as all the teachers, were also interested and delighted by the sea and the views over the Baltic Sea.




 

Thursday 29 September
On Thursday it was time to do some orientering and solve some tasks in the nature. But first all of us attended some classes. A few students had home economics and a museum visit, some sports and some art. 



The Jelgavas Spīdolas Valsts gimnāzija owns a piece of forest that can be used for educational purposes. When we arrived at the site, the students were divided into mixed groups to carry out various tasks. The tasks involved working together as a group, sawing, throwing javelin, orienteering and so on. Despite the typical cloudy autumn weather the mood was cheerful and even some dancing was seen in the middle of the forest. The lunch was cooked by the fire by our hosts.





In the evening the teachers were invited to a dinner in a restaurant in the St. Trinity church tower by the Latvian colleagues and the vice head teacher. The restaurant in the tower was an absolute sight for sore eyes, beautifully restored with amazing views over the city of Jelgava. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and the amiable company of our partners. These friends we will always keep in our hearts and cherish our friendship.





Friday 30 September
The next nature experience took place in Tērvete Nature Park. We walked in the paths of the nature park, students did some orienteering and just enjoyed the nature. The weather was sunny and quite warm and we had lunch at a café outdoors. 





Close to the nature park there is a zipline adventure park called Tarzans. The students were excited to go climbing and a few of us teachers were happy to take part as well. The schedule for the farewell ceremony had to be postponed a bit because the students were so eager to stay longer in the climbing park and just started climbing new routes when it was already time to finish. After the climbing we walked to the nearby conference hall where we could see Maija's photos which were taken during the week projected to the wall. The farewell ceremony was emotional and the diplomas were handed to touched students and teachers accompanied by joyful applause. 





Saturday 1 October
In the morning we gathered in the backyard of the school to start making our way to the airport together with the Italian group. The week had been memorable and friendships were strengthened. There were hugs, tears and promises to keep in touch.







What an extraordinary experience the project has been, travelling to places, learning to communicate via electronic platforms, tackling problems they caused, bonding with new friends. The main goal of our Healthy lifestyle - power from nature -project was to bring the students in contact with nature, getting new insights on healthy eating and exercising, as well as getting to know new cultures and people from different countries. Hearing the delighted hellos when meeting online for the last time in November, we, the teachers, are sure the project reached its goals and made a permanent effect on all our students.