This program is no longer available in 2008.
For similar programs focusing on service learning, cross-cultural arts and exchange, language learning, leadership and adventure, please check out the following:
Bridge Hawaii
Bridge Caribbean
Bridge Puerto Rico
Bridge Peru
Bridge South Africa
Bridge China
Bridge Mexico

Call us to discuss options that might be right for you.

Angus Whyte, 1-800-862-7760
angus@WindsorMountain.org

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Explore the many faces of Russia as you journey from Moscow to St. Petersburg, forging friendships with the younger and older generations and exploring Russia’s culture and history.

Begin the program in the busy city of Moscow where you will learn about your group members as well as Russian culture. Then, travel to the outskirts of the city to work with the older residents of a boarding school for underprivileged children. Collaborate on projects to help improve the school grounds and conditions for younger residents. Take time to exchange lessons, life, language and culture with your Russian peers, possibly exposing them to their first glimpse of life outside of Russia. Join in on activities organized for Russian children, and brighten the lives of older Russians at a community center for the elderly.

The ‘Internat’ (boarding school) we partner with in Russia educates and houses children whose parents cannot afford to adequately care for them. During the academic year, students live at the boarding school throughout the week and travel home on the weekends. Many prefer life at school to life at home, because their families struggle at home. With the boarding school as home base, our Windsor Mountain group will have the opportunity to work directly with some of the Russian students as well as the wonderful school leaders and teachers, and enjoy their warm and welcoming hospitality.

Enjoy your days with the young Russian generation and foster friendships that begin without the need for common words. Share laughter over a mutual interest in learning each others’ language and the blunders that come with it. Cook your dinner with Russian students at a campground bonfire, and, finally, navigate your way through the streets of St. Petersburg during your last stop in Russia before you return home.

• Organize and realize valuable community service learning projects for children.

• Take part in building a global community with students of all ages.

• Learn about the overarching history of Russia.

• Explore different methods of community development; look at varying strategies for group decision making and reaching agreement.

• Learn what it means to be a leader and to evaluate what needs to be done in order to accomplish a given task. Reflect on the principles as you analyze your experiences.

• Develop an appreciation for a culture different from your own through immersion in the Russian culture: trying new foods, learning social and cultural norms and speaking the language.

• Gain skills in leadership, collaboration and group living.

EXPLORE RUSSIAN HISTORY, LANGUAGE, AND CULTURE: After arriving in Moscow your group will rest, get oriented and set goals for your experience ahead. You will be accompanied by select translators who will offer some basic language instruction and lead visits to key cultural spots within the city. Visit the seat of Russian power, the Kremlin, and learn about the history of this ancient civilization as you walk in Red Square. Trace the events that led Russians to Communist revolution at the beginning of the 20th century, and learn about the ending of the Communist era. Explore various museums as your group navigates the bustling city center of Moscow. By the end of orientation you will be prepared to understand and appreciate the beauty and paradoxes of Russian society.

SERVICE IN A RUSSIAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY: Live at the ‘Internat’ (boarding school) on the edge of Moscow and rotate through different projects in the morning, each designed by the boarding school director and teachers to help different areas of the orphanage. Then spend the afternoon and evening learning about the culture of the region with the help of your English speaking Russian students at the school. Help design projects for summer camps held for underprivileged kids outside of the city, and take pride in your accomplishments as you implement your activities at the camps. You will work together with older students on cultural exchange and English lessons, and take part in the design and creation of a mural that will forever reflect the partnership between the ‘Internat’ and Windsor Mountain.
In addition, you will spend time with Russian elders and enliven their daily routines at a community center. You will get to know Russia’s older generation who lived through Stalin and the various stages of Communism, and learn of their transition to living in today’s Russia. Many of these elderly Russians are extremely well-educated and speak many languages, and they yearn for the company of youth. At their community center you will build gardens, gain insight into Russia’s past, and help brighten the lives of an older generation.

VISIT TO SUZDAL: After two weeks of hard work your group will travel to Suzdal, a UNESCO heritage site and the capital of old Russian architecture and culture, dating back more than 1000 years. Get a sense of the way Russian peasants lived centuries ago, and view the art and practices of Russian Christian Orthodox faith, a heavy influence in Russian culture.

ST PETERSBURG: Sleep on the overnight train to St. Petersburg which has been dubbed the Venice of the North for its palace-lined waterways. St. Petersburg managed to escape the architectural incursions of Stalinism, and its grandiose relics of Tsarist days are virtually intact. Sculpted by islands and the sinuous Neva River, the city is a geometric vista of orderly elegance. More global in its composition, this beautiful city offers a remarkable contrast to Moscow. Visit the museums and shop along Nevsky Prospekt while taking in the architecture from every direction.