School students of Hungarian secondary schools spending their holidays at the 8th “Kreativ” summer camp arranged by the humanitarian department of the University of Pécs visited the Russian Center in Pécs on July 6. The summer camp program includes getting information on the university departments, taking part in seminars including seminars in English and Hungarian languages and literature, getting information on the Institute of Psychology etc. Last year, the Russian Center staff suggested the arrangers of the camp that they include a lecture named “Myths and Facts about Russia and Russian” into the summer camp program, which
was a success, and this year the summer camp arrangers asked the Russian Center staff members to give the lecture another time. The associate professors of the Institute of History gave their lectures on Russia covering such topics as the Russian Imperial Romanov family and Rasputin and Russian political iconography. It should be noted that the Russian Center regularly takes part in all the events arranged by the faculty or university in order to promote the Russian language and culture among Hungarian people.
This time, 30 school students visited the Russian Center to learn about its activity and about the facts and the myths connected with Russia and Russian people.
The Center’s staff members V.Vegvari and K.Cyuch-Rusnak told the gusts about the Russian Center and the Russkiy Mir Foundation and asked them which of them learned Russian at the gymnasium. It was found out that 4 school students learned Russian at their gymnasiums located in different Hungarian towns and cities and one school student was taught Russian by his grandmother.
Then children did a test dealing with Russia and Russian people. They were supposed to answer such questions as: “How many Russian writers won the Nobel Prize?”, “Are Russian hospitable?”, “What does the word “tovarisch” mean?”, “Do Russian people make tea in samovars”, “Was the Russian nesting doll designed in Russia?”, “What Russian Tsar was the first one to try Tokay wine, which he got from a Hungarian prince as a gift, and who said “No one ever conquered me but the Tokay wine stroke me down?” among others., ‒ и другие.
After doing the test, the gusts discussed the answers and thus some myths and stereotypes about Russia and Russian people were demolished.
A Russian Center staff member K. Syuch-Rusnak gave an interactive lecture to the school students telling them about Moscow tourist attractions and their history and shared her impressions about Russian people during the second part of the meeting.
It turned out that school children knew little about Russia and Russian people but nevertheless they were interested in Russian culture and literature and they enjoyed the event as it had helped them to learn a lot of interesting things about Russia.
