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SUMMER -  99    IN   DELAWARE   I ‘  LL  REMEMBER   ALL   MY   LIFE

In 1999 I became an alumna of the Awards for Excellence in Teaching Program American Councils  for International Education ( American  Council of Teachers of Russian , American Council for Collaboration in Education and Language Study : ACTR / ACCELS ).    On June 12, 1999, with the group of 30 Russian  National Finalists of the program I arrived at J.F.K.

Airport in New York by Delta Airlines.

We had our Orientation Program at the American Councils office in Washington. We were welcomed by Dr. Dan E. Davidson, President of American Councils for International Education, Robert Persiko, Chief Office of Citizen Exchanges (USIA), Paul R. Smith, Deputy Director Office of East Europe and NIS Affairs (USIA).   

The week spent in the US capital is unforgettable. We stayed in a luxurious hotel the “Embassy Suites “. Every morning we enjoyed a real American  breakfast. It was a free buffet . We had a wide choice of dishes in any amounts. Most of us liked omelets with ham, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes; all sorts of cereals served with whole or skimmed milk;  pancakes with maple juice.  Americans add great amounts of cinnamon to cereals, cakes and apple pies. They have all sorts of bagels: with cinnamon,  poppy-seeds and sesame. Bagels are cut into halves and toasted in a microwave oven. They spread cream cheese or peanut butter on them. The “Happy hour” is really something to enjoy. From 5 p.m. till 6:30 p.m. all the guests of the hotel can have two juices, cocktails or beer  free. They also serve chips with ketchup, popcorn and pretzels.

Our tours of Washington were exciting. We visited the Lincoln, Jefferson and Franklin D. Roosevelt  Memorials, the Korean and the Vietnam War Veterans Memorials, the Washington Monument, the Pentagon, Washington National Cathedral, the Arlington Cemetery. We browsed through numerous museums of  the Smithsonian Institution on the Mall. In the Library of Congress I was proud to learn that the famous Russian collection started with the purchase in 1906 Yudin’s private collection. Besides Washington we visited Colonial Williamsburg, Philadelphia, and New York. The theme park Busch Gardens, VA, is a marvelous sight.

We stayed in the U.S. through August 4. We spent most of the time in the  hospitable town of Newark, on the campus of the University of Delaware. Our time was pressed with workshops in Civics, Language Development (American Englishes), Economics and History (American Indians, Immigration, Federalism, the Underground Railroad), and Computing. Most of our time we were searching the Internet. During our visits to schools we learnt about the project work development and the way summer schools for students with poor credits work. Whenever we had  free time we spent it communicating with American people. We became real experts in shopping with constant sales and discounts. We shopped until we dropped. Our hosts introduced their family ways to us and helped us to see and understand the American values.

The highlight of the seminar was the Third Annual International Conference in Celebrating Excellence in Teaching Across Cultures. During the poster sessions, seminars and workshops 27 American finalists and 70 teachers from Russia and NIS countries exchanged their teaching experience, made friends.

It was a real cultural and heart shock to leave the friendly  and generous United States, where we have been appreciated as  enthusiastic, hard working and searching educators.

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