KHACHATUR ABOVYAN ARMENIAN STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY

Five students of the Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) participated in the six-day “Summer School” Program hosted at Saint Petersburg University of Economics. Through the Program, the students attended lectures devoted to the history of the city, the establishment of the University, the historical and cultural sites located in Russia, Russian literature and writers, national games and manuscripts, as well as ornaments.

What also constituted a major part of the Program were the visits to remarkable sites in St. Petersburg. The students paid visits to Smolny Cathedral, the Hermitage Museum, rode in a motorboat on the River Neva where they were introduced to the structures in the city, as well as visited the Saint Isaac’s Cathedral and the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood (in Russian: “Спас на крови”). During the “Summer School” Program, besides new acquaintances, the students also interacted with young Russian volunteers — something that contributes to the strengthening of cross-cultural communication and the exchange of knowledge.

During a conversation with aspu.am, the representatives of the ASPU remarked that they were visiting Saint Petersburg for the first time ever and were very impressed by the knowledge that they had received. Monica Poghosyan, 2nd year student of the Informatics Department of the Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, remarked that out of all the sites in St. Petersburg, she was most impressed by the Hermitage, while Master student of the Department of Artistic Photography Arpine Karapetyan noted that every corner of the city needs to be discovered. The Program ended with a game-quest during which the students had to visit different parts of the city and take photos near historical and cultural sites.

The students added that participating in similar initiatives serves as an opportunity to reinforce knowledge and cross-cultural ties.