Mids Visit Latvian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

By MIDN 3/C Robert Leddy

Thirty-seven U.S. Naval Academy midshipmen headed to Washington, D.C. to visit the Embassy of the Republic of Latvia March 3.

The midshipmen were members of the academy’s Russian Studies Club. The excursion was led by two Russian professors from the Language and Cultures Department, Professor Dobrunoff and Capt. Malashenok, who was born in Latvia while it was still a part of the Soviet Union. Accompanying the group was also a member of the International Programs Office staff.

While at the embassy, Ambassador Andris Razāns and Defense Attaché Col. Ivo Mogiļnijs  gave the midshipmen a presentation on the culture, history, and military of the small Baltic nation.

Afterwards, the ambassador and the colonel met casually with the midshipmen to answer questions. Twelve of the midshipmen in the club will be journeying to Latvia this summer to participate in the USNA Language Study Abroad Program (LSAP).

Following the embassy visit, we headed to Arlington where we dined at the Russian restaurant Rus Uz, where we were able to eat traditional Russian and Uzbekistani food. The highlight of lunch, in addition to the delicious food, was the opportunity to practice our language skills by having to place our orders (successfully!) to the servers in Russian.