Hello, everyone! On 4 February, we, the activists of the Ministry of Culture of “Samruk” SR, visited the House of Friendship, where we were acquainted with the culture, lifestyle and traditions of ethnic and cultural associations of Lithuania, Romania, Germany and Armenia. Each country presented the beauty and diversity of its culture to us.

  At the entrance we felt all the greatness of the House of Friendship, so it could be even called the Palace of Friendship. It takes your breath away when you are entering the main hall, where all appointments and meetings are hold. The interior gives a sense of presence in a huge yurt, under common shanyrak, signifying the unity and strength of all associations.

  First, we familiarized with the Honorary Consulate of Lithuania, where we experienced special hospitality and warmth. Even in these modern times, when almost everyone knows and can find any information, we learned a lot of new for ourselves. The meeting time “flew by” so fast and very fascinatingly. We learned how Lithuania is closely connected with Kazakhstan, not only through official letters and diplomas, but also through the common words, such as “кішкентай” (“kishkentai” means “small”) and “ Сәуле (“saule” means “sparkle”).

  After seeing the sights of Lithuania, we visited Romania. A representative of “Dacia” proudly and expressively described the culture of Romania by showing the national costumes and focusing on the beauty and non-triviality of clothes.

  The next stage of our journey was visiting Germany. We learned about the traditions of the welcoming of spring, organized trips of young people to the art-camps, and, most importantly, we found that anyone could visit the ethno-cultural association, master the language and learn about the lifestyle and culture of the German people.

  The ending of the excursion around the ethno-cultural associations in the House of Friendship was very interesting and very merry: the respectable representatives of Armenian nationality familiarized us not only with their culture and customs, but also held a master class in folk dance. Within minutes they displayed the whole, both sad and happy, history of their country. They showed us endless kindness and hospitality.

  The words are not enough to describe the way each representative spoke about his culture and traditions! We enlarged our knowledge and had an extraordinary experience. The memories about this day will remain forever.

  Dear students, we strongly advise you to visit the House of Friendship and spend some quality time.