Mmm, European Rye Bread

Living in the Washington area, I'm fortunate in that I can purchase both Storye Latvian rye bread and Black Rooster Latvian-style rye bread locally. Many other folks around the U.S. are not so lucky. Thus I was intrigued when I heard about the Kickstarter campagn to bring European rye bread to a wider audience. The very cool thing is if I you back this campaign with a donation of $20 or more, your reward -- if the project is fully funded -- is bread shipped to your house! I backed the campaign, but it needs quite a few more backers in a very short period of time, as it will expire on Saturday May 14 at 8pm Eastern time. Knowing my readers are fans of quality cuisine, I figured I may as well spread the news.  So, follow this link and contribute. Remember -- with Kickstarter, your credit card will be charged only if the project is fully funded!

European Union Film Showcase 2014

Along with Christmas, December also brings the European Union Film Showcase at AFI. For quite a few years now I've made it habit to see several movies during the showcase; the offerings represent all EU member countries, and this year numbered fifty films!

 The movies I have seen during this showcase include: "The Imitation Game" from the United Kingdom, which will be a relatively big movie given the popularity of its current star Benedict Cumberbatch; the German film"Beloved Sisters" which is about the poet, playwright and historian Friedrich Schiller and his supposed love triangle with two sisters; and the Swiss movie "Clouds of Sils Maria", which stars Juliette Binoche and American actress Kristen Stewart.

The Imitation Game's official poster

"The Imitation Game" is about to be widely released in the U.S., but several friends and I jumped on the chance to see it earlier. Playing to a sold-out crowd in the AFI's beautifully restored main theater, the movie and its subject, Alan Turing, was introduced by Britain's Defense Attache in the U.S., Major General Buster Howes. The story of Turing's life reminds us fact really is stranger than fiction. He was, among other things, a cryptanalyst and pioneering computer scientist who helped decode the secret codes Germany used during World War II. Turing was also gay at a time when that was a criminal offense in the U.K., and was prosecuted for homosexual acts in 1952. The movie is excellent, and we all greatly enjoyed it. "The Imitation Game" has already garnered numerous awards, and is certain to win more. Just recently the Golden Globe nominations were announced, and the film has been nominated for Best Motion Picture in the Drama category, as well as for Best Screenplay, and Cumberbatch for Best Actor in a Drama.

An unconventional (and unconfirmed by historians) relationship between Schiller and sisters Charlotte and Caroline Von Lengefeld is the topic for the almost three-hour long period piece "Beloved Sisters." If you are a fan of typical romantic comedies, then this is not the movie for you! I rather enjoyed it, though, as it was a fascinating glimpse into the lives of mostly privileged and educated Germans in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

The Swiss movie was a disappointment - although it was somewhat interesting to see the "behind the scenes" life of a famous actress (played by Binoche), it was pretentious and generally rather boring, and was saved only by some of the gorgeous Swiss scenery.

Two screenings planned for the coming week are "The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared" (Sweden) and "Uncle Tony, Three Fools and the Secret Service" (Bulgaria). I just couldn't pass up these movies for their great titles alone!

Naturally, the showcase features movies from the three Baltic countries, as well, although I will not be able to see any of them. The movie from Latvia was a strange choice: "People Out There" is in Russian, and previously I'd not heard anything about it. This year two films from Estonia were shown: "Tangerines" and "Free Range/Ballad on Approving of the World." Interestingly, "Tangerines" just received an under-the-radar Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Language Film! Lithuania's film "The Gambler" is the country's Oscar selection for this year, and features Lithuanian-American actress Oona Mekas.

Glögi & Gnomes at the Finnish Christmas Bazaar

I enjoyed last year's Finnish Christmas market so much that I made a point to return this year - with my friend A (who had been sick last time, and had not been able to attend) in tow. We arrived at 11am when the doors opened, but the line to get in was so long that it was a while before we entered the building. Maybe going slightly later next year is a better idea, as that entire market was wall-to-wall humanity, and it was a bit insane. It also did not seem that too many items actually sold out that early.

 We enjoyed the traditional music...

...the many gnomes and elves (many of which are crafted in Estonia) for sale, and one of which I picked up for my collection...

...and the delicious food and drink in the cafe.

While I did not sample one of the enormous and beautifully prepared salmon sandwiches, A said the fish was fresh, the bread fantastic, and the combo perfect. We each savored a cup of glögi or mulled wine, which was being sold for an incredibly reasonable $2 a glass. We also appreciated running into an Estonian friend in the cafe, and catching up with him while he partook in his annual bazaar tradition of eating several Karelian pasties.

I will be sure to return next year for more glögi, another elf, and Finnish Christmas cheer.

And to my American readers: Happy Thanksgiving!

Links for You: What I've Been Reading

For your reading enjoyment, here are several links to articles or blog posts I've found to be interesting.

• Heather loved beautiful Tallinn, Estonia and the fall weekend in which she explored Sigulda, Latvia.
• Bev's vacation to Taiwan included hiking in a national park. Check out the shrine on top of a waterfall!
• (In Latvian) Ceļojumā uz latviešu debespļavām Katskiļu kalnos ASV.
• Liene and her family admirably represented Latvia in Spartanburg's (SC) International Festival.
• A reminder that experiences are more valuable than things. 
• Excellent English language summary of the Latvian parliamentary election that took place on October 4.
• Fascinating election information about Latvians voting in foreign precincts. Ninety Latvians voted in Dubai! (Once you are on the site, scroll about halfway down the page until you see "Vēlēšanu results Ārzemes iecirkņos" - gotta love the mix of Latvian and English here. If you select "All" under "Displayed entries", you will find details about every single precinct outside of Latvia - how many people voted, and for which parties.)

Two Fun June Weekends

Last weekend I flew to Michigan to take care of my niece and nephew. This was a team effort together with my mom; the kids love Omīte, but they are at an age where they are a handful! My sister and brother-in-law were on a well-deserved mini-vacation. So I fed the kids goats' milk yogurt (which they loved!) and scrambled eggs and lots of fruit, and played with them, read to them, went on outings with them, and - in 21 moth old niece's case - changed quite a few diapers. We were blessed with amazing weather, so a fair amount of time was spent outside. My nephews loves sports, and he and I played football several times and basketball once. Two walks were also taken, as well as a field trip to the beautiful Meijer Gardens. In my quest to experience something new each week this summer, I had the opportunity to visit Clique Coffee Bar, located  quite close to Meijer Gardens. The drinks and cookies we had were excellent, meaning I will need to incorporate stops here into our family's regular visits to the Gardens.

This bear guards the entrance to the wonderful children's garden.

Just one of the many fun and interesting sculptures at Meijer Gardens

These are the Great Lakes!

This weekend was full of social activities. Friday night four friends and I went to a concert at the Artisphere in Arlington. The group I was interested in seeing was San Francisco's The Family Crest, which was the opening act for Mother Falcon. The Family Crest was fantastic, and afterwards I met a few of the band members, all of whom were very nice (of course, they might have been so friendly just because they were hoping to sell me a t-shirt or two!).

My favorite TFC song is "Love Don't Go" - I could listen to that several times a day, and the video is just fun. Earlier in the day TFC had recorded a "Tiny Desk Concert" at NPR, and I am looking forward to seeing that. Mother Falcon had recorded such a concert at NPR last summer. 

Thanks to B,C,K, and R for joining me - it was a very fun night! And thank you to B and C for the photos!

Very cool poster for this concert!

With B & C

The Family Crest performing

Saturday afternoon a friend from work hosted a housewarming party and cook-out. Given that this time of year the weather is typically hot and humid, it was bizarre to put on a cute summer dress for the party - and promptly freeze. The weather was unseasonably fall-like. I had a good time at the party, but was happy to return home and change into warm clothes! 

Sunday turned out to be a very busy day. After going to yoga in the morning, and having a friend over for brunch, it was time for the biggest Latvian party of the year - summer solstice/Midsummer's Eve/St. John's - whatever you'd like to call it. I celebrated with Baltic friends in a lovely location in Northern Virginia, thanks to the generosity and hospitality of some Estonian hosts. I will probably post some photos and write a bit more about it later, but in the meantime - Priecīgus Jāņus!

Fun Latvian Tidbits and Bonus Estonian Tidbits

An interesting recent news item featured the former President George W. Bush -- and his artistic talent (or lack thereof, depending on your opinion). In the last several years, he has taken up oil painting as a hobby, and has painted portraits of many world leaders with whom he had worked while President. Two dozen portraits are being shown in an exhibit titled "The Art of Leadership: A President’s Personal Diplomacy" at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas. One portrait on display is that of former President of Latvia, Vaira Vike-Freiberga.

Look on the top row, far left.

Pretty good likeness, don't you think? (Source: Associated Press)

Latvia's neighbor to the north, Estonia, is often in the news due to its technological prowess. However, it is no slouch in the cultural arena, either. The photo below is testament to someone's wit and imagination.

Estonian Opera's parking lot gates

While on the topic of Estonia and culture, I must recommend an outstanding film which I recently re-watched. "The Singing Revolution" is the story of Estonia's struggle for independence from the Soviet Union (which was very similar to Latvia's fight). It is a moving and powerful movie, and it can be purchased or rented from Amazon (at least if you live in the United States). I saw it in a movie theatre in Washington, D.C. twice when it was released (the theatre kept having to extend the film's run due to its unforeseen popularity), but watching it a third time I was just as moved. It is a valuable film to watch, even if you are familiar with Baltic history.

DC Favorites, Part II

Continuing a list of some of the best that the DC area has to offer...

Favorite pan-European events:
1) European Union Open House Day
While some of the larger embassies regularly host public events, many smaller embassies do not have the space and staff for that. However, once a year, every May, all EU embassies throw open their doors for one Saturday. Begun only a few years ago, this has become an immensely popular event. Some embassies offer food and drink samples and kids' activities, others allow you to meet and greet the ambassador, while others fill their buildings with live music. If a visitor is committed to seeing a number of embassies, then picking up a passport is a must - you'll get a stamp at every embassy you visit.
Quite a few embassies are within walking distance of one another on Massachusetts Avenue (otherwise known as Embassy Row), including the Latvian and Estonian missions. Shuttle buses are provided in order to allow visitors to more easily reach embassies that are a bit off the beaten track, including the Lithuanian.

This year's Open House is scheduled for Saturday, May 10. 

The folk music ensemble "Sudrabavots" entertains visitors at the Embassy of Latvia (credit: P. Alunans)

2) European Union Film Showcase at AFI movie theatre
Where else can a film lover see 44 different European films in a two-and-a-half week time period? I've seen many interesting, enlightening and entertaining movies here, and look forward to this event every fall.

Favorite free non-European event:
National Book Festival
Only a decade old, this is annual book lovers' event is already a mainstay on the DC area cultural calendar. Initially suggested by First Lady Laura Bush (a former librarian) and organized by the Library of Congress as one-day festival, it has grown into a two-day festival where one can hear dozens of authors, get their signatures, and pick up all sorts of book and reading-related freebies (although, really, how many bookmarks does a person need?). For its entire existence thus far, the festival has taken place under large tents on the National Mall, but apparently the National Park Service has now booted it off the Mall due to damage caused by the tents and by the festival's 200,000 (!) visitors. This year the new location will be the Convention Center, certainly a less picturesque spot, but one that is more conducive to DC area weather, as I've skipped more than one festival due to rain. DC is full of incredibly literate individuals, and it is not unusual to see visitors who bring along small rolling suitcases, full of books they wish to have signed by authors participating in the festival.
For each festival a poster is commissioned, and these tend to be quite whimsical. The three below are a few recent examples (apologies for the less than stellar quality; you can find all of the posters here). My favorite is the one with Abe Lincoln, and the third one is just for my friend Liene and her mom.

Artist: Suzy Lee

Artist: Jon J. Muth

Artist: Jan Brett

European films / Snow / Christmas cookies

The EU Film Showcase offers the fantastic opportunity to see many different films which would otherwise be inaccessible to an American audience. A friend and I spent part of our Saturday afternoon enjoying an Estonian/French co-production called A Lady in Paris. (Talk about a great combo of languages to listen to - both the many-voweled Estonian and the universally loved French!) The lady in question was an older Estonian woman who left her country at the end of World War II, and spent the rest of her life living a rather French lifestyle in Paris. After a suicide attempt, a caretaker from Estonia is hired. The movie offered some interesting insights and commentary on what it means to love, to belong and to adjust to life in a new culture. (Interestingly, I am also currently reading a memoir, Almost French, about a young Australian woman who falls in love with a Frenchman and moves to Paris to live with him. She writes in great detail about the difficulties of fitting into a different culture.)

Yesterday the threat of snow paralyzed the DMV, and many workplaces closed for the day. It did snow somewhat heavily in the morning, but stopped earlier than forecast. I decided to make the most of this sudden day off, and convinced a friend to join me for a two-part German movie, Der Turm (The Tower). The film was set in East Germany, and spanned the years 1982 to 1989. It was a riveting look at the life of a privileged East Germany family during that historic time period, and I can now recommend it in addition to the two German movies I mentioned in my last post.

With Christmas a few weeks away, the local Latvian church hosted its annual Xmas bazaar this past Sunday. When I arrived, I quickly made a beeline for the stand selling baked goods. The church ladies spend many days preparing a variety of Latvian goodies, including the popular Christmas cookies known as piparkukas. I'd talked these up to a couple of friends and thus needed to snag some of these fantastic Latvian seasonal delicacies.

For a number of years, some friends and I would get together well before Christmas to make the piparkukas dough according to a recipe that my mom has used for quite a while. The recipe had come from a woman in Milwaukee named Anna Pukite. Last year I did not meet my friends and make the dough, but one friend shared the recipe and lesson with a family visiting from Latvia. Lo and behold, this month the recipe was described published in a Latvian magazine by the woman who had learned it here in the U.S., just once again proving how small the Latvian world can be.