ASU student had an audience with the King of Bahrain

Russian Language Ambassadors in the World is an international volunteer program realized by Pushkin State Russian Language Institute with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. The participants are students, postgraduates and young professionals aged from 18 to 30 years. The program was established 3 years ago and it continues to expand and involve more people in its work. Thus, over 3,000 applications have been submitted this year, but only 120 ambassadors have been chosen. One of them is Veronika Ozhogina, the 3rd year student of the Faculty of Sociology at Altai State University. For the record, she has already become a permanent participant.

“I saw an advertisement of the program in 2015, so I submitted my resume and I made it into the list of ambassadors. There were just a little over 1,000 applicants, and only 74 of them were admitted to participate. That’s how my ambassador career started,” recollected Veronika. “Our motto is “To make the world fall in love with Russia”. Our mission is to teach the Russian language, culture and literature to pupils from all over the world with the help of games and interactive environment.”

Veronika visited 3 places: Kyrgyzstan, China and Bahrain. Ambassadors spend up to 2 weeks in each country, work with children at schools, describe the incredible beauty of Russia, and tell the pupils about the Russian language, traditions and classic works of literature.

“Any expedition is unique and unusual, but I was impressed by the trip to the Kingdom of Bahrain, because this country is located far away and has completely different set of mind, customs and traditions that are strange for Russian people,” said Veronika. “We made a lot of preparations for the trip and even had to buy such new clothes as long skirts and long-sleeved blouses, as women there are not permitted to show bare knees and elbows. They also cannot walk around the town alone and hug one another in public, and they have to distance themselves from men.”

Despite the fact that Veronika was amazed at traditions of Bahrain, she seized the opportunity for shaking hands with the King, which does not happen every day.

“Of course, I felt nervous. We went through all the necessary instructions before the meeting and followed the rules, so everything turned out well. The King shook hands with each of us and even allowed us to make commemorative photos.”

It was interesting to communicate with Arab pupils. 12 Russian language ambassadors worked with 180 pupils in 6 children’s activity centers. Children got acquainted with Russian alphabet, folklore and art and learned the main polite words and phrases in Russian.

“People in Bahrain speak Arabic, and if they speak foreign language it is usually English. So Russian is exotic for them,” continues Veronika. “It was hard to explain some Russian sounds. Moreover, pupils knew nothing about Russia, except the fact that it is the biggest country in the world. We taught them how to say “Hello”, “How are you?”, “Goodbye”, conducted a masterclass in Russian traditional doll making and told them about A.S. Pushkin and his works. The children were also amazed when we told them about snow.”

Veronika Ozhogina learns something new in the course of every expedition. Thus, she learned May There Always Be Sunshine song in Kyrgyz when she worked in Kyrgyz schools.

“The Kyrgyz language is similar to Russian in some way, Kyrgyz children study Russian culture at school, that is why we tried to come up with something new and show them another side of Russia,” said Veronika. “My partner and I decided to show the greatheartedness of the Russian soul and learned a song in Kyrgyz. 2 years have passed, but I still remember the words.”

Veronika Ozhogina has become a permanent ambassador. After the first expedition she defended the project successfully and received a badge.

“I am happy that I am the part of such a major project,” admitted Veronika. “I don’t care where to go the next time. The important thing is that I will be able to tell everybody about the almighty Russian language, our country and our kind people. Children are the same everywhere. They have bright eyes and wait for something interesting to learn. What is more, I often feel like I am a child myself, when I discover new countries, new knowledge and new events.”

Participation in the program has entirely changed Veronika’s attitude towards life. Her dream is to get even broader education. This year Russian language ambassadors are going to travel to France, Finland, China and Korea. The place where Veronika will go is kept in secret, but she has already confessed that she is currently learning the French language.