Lviv study tour combines learning a language with experiencing a culture (05/05/02)

A Ukrainian Summer: where to go, what to do...

Lviv study tour combines learning a language with experiencing a culture

by Marijka Kachmar

EDMONTON - Last summer, seven students from the University of Alberta in Edmonton, an engineer from Winnipeg, and a former teacher from New Jersey embarked on a summer language study course to Lviv. All had individual reasons for going, but most wanted to improve their Ukrainian language skills, experience modern Ukrainian culture, visit places their parents, grandparents or great grandparents had told stories about, and even meet relatives for the first time.

The course, "Ukrainian Through Its Living Culture," was an initiative of the department of modern languages and cultural studies at the University of Alberta, home of the Ukrainian Language and Literature Program.

As a participant and graduate of the course, I cannot but express deep satisfaction with the quality of instruction, the organization of activities and friendliness of the group atmosphere.

Our instructor and the organizer of this six-credit course, Dr. Alla Nedashkivska, gave us the freedom to explore topics of personal interest, while at the same time making sure we acquired advanced language skills and learned new phrases and vocabulary.

Everyone's Ukrainian improved, as did their confidence in speaking the language and even in making friends with strangers - especially those of the opposite sex! Homework for the course consisted of reading articles on current issues such as AIDS, homelessness, and language problems in Ukraine, as well as contemporary music and fashion.

Everyone completed weekly projects and presentations on topics of their choice. Since this was a language course, many of the projects focused on topics such as the influence of English on Ukrainian media, youth slang, gender issues and even pet names.

We spent Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the classroom, and Tuesdays and Thursdays on various outings. We thoroughly explored Lviv, visited old castles and castle sites surrounding the city, had a few picnics, and even went to an amusement park. Our weekends were free for pursuing language learning in a natural setting - mostly at cafes, bars, "diskoteky," or on short excursions to relatives in the village or nearby cities.

Most of the participants chose to live with host families, which allowed them to experience Ukrainian home life first-hand and to enjoy home-cooked Ukrainian meals twice a day. Those who chose to live independently often found themselves bargaining at bazaars for the best prices on anything from instant soup to watermelons.

We were able to afford eating in many restaurants and pizzerias on a daily basis. The food was always delicious, and the service was always worthy of comment.

Of course, there were certain negatives during the first days as well: if a student was not organized, it was difficult to go out every single night and complete homework assignments. The lack of water between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. was a constant source of frustration. (Except for those who, like me, lived in the center of town and had water all day long).

All in all, the knowledge gained and the experiences I had in Lviv were far greater and more memorable than anything we could have ever learned from a textbook. This is a great way to learn or improve your Ukrainian.

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For information on this year's course, visit the website of the Ukrainian Language and Literature Program at the University of Alberta: http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~ukraina/Homepage.html.

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