35 students from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Colombia, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan took part in the “You are in St.Petersburg!” program — the project initiated by St. Petersburg Government for a cultural immersion of international students.
On May 6, the students visited the meeting-lecture with representatives of religious denominations of St. Petersburg and the exhibition devoted to the contribution of Soviet soldiers to Europe liberation and recovery, as well as, went on an excursion to the State Museum of the History of Religion.
We would like to show our international students that St. Petersburg is not only a unique city founded by Peter the Great, the former capital of the Russian Empire, a center of culture, science, education and industry, but also a multinational, multi-denominational city. More than one hundred nationalities and representatives of different faiths has been living, working and creating here side by side.” –
Olga Nesterova, Deputy Director, RANEPA St. Petersburg
In the year of the 80th Anniversary of the Victory in World War II (Great Patriotic War), a special attention was paid to the role of multiple nations of the Soviet Union in the defense of Leningrad during the siege, their contribution to the liberation of the city and to the victory as a whole. On May 21, our international students visited the sites of military glory commemorating the fierce fighting during the Leningrad Siege.
Our international students shared:
In the Great Patriotic War, all the peoples and nations of the Soviet Union gave their lives to achieve the Great Victory. We must be proud of this and preserve the memory of our heroes. It is very important to pass on history to future generations so that they do not forget the past. I am glad that during our stay in St. Petersburg we had visited the historical sites.
Ismoil Khuseinzoda, an exchange student from Tajikistan
This program helped me to learn Saint Petersburg, its culture, history and spiritual traditions better. I particularly remember the meeting with the representatives of different religious denominations: we learned how believers supported the city and residents during the war. The excursion to the Museum of the History of Religion was very informative, I learned more about Judaism, Christianity and Islam. I especially remember the idea of the «golden rule» — to treat others as you want to be treated yourself. The trip to the memorial sites affected me greatly making me feel the value of memory and respect for heroes who fought for peace.
Breno Dotta de Brito, an exchange student from Brazil
