Cocktails Night At Radisson: Photos

Photos by Galina Soldatenko

Trip To Kaliningrad: Photos

On the weekend of 9-11 Septmeber a group of IWAV ladies, some accompanied by their spouses, went on a trip to Kaliningrad. They visited several sites of interest on the way to the city and had an extensive city tour.
See the photos from the trip below


Kaliningrad



Castle Converted into Prison



Church Tower with Antennas



Church of the Wholy Family



Amalienau Residential Disctrict



Radisson Hotel



Monument Givent to Kaliningrad by Lithuania



Milda with Statue



Milda, Olga and Guide Maria





Tour of Kalinigrad



Aldona and Alice



Amber museum



Amber Mine in Yantarni



Dancing Trees on Neringa

Photos by Barbara Little and Alice Niquet

Underground Tour of Vilnius: Photos

September 3, sixteen of us enjoyed the underground tour of Vilnius which lasted 3 3/4 hours. We visited lots of cellars which most of did not know about. Apparently there are tunnels and passageways beneath the streets of Vilnius but when shops, apartments etc changed hands then ownership went below the streets and so the streets below what we can see have been sealed off by the owners. There are tunnels which run from Vilnius to Trakai and Kernave but they are not in good condition and you would need wellies and hard hats. I think we were told that there are 26 kms of tunnels beneath Vilnius and at one time you could walk anywhere using them. We were also told that the Town Hall used to be a prison and the executioners were sent to 'Executioner School' in Munich!!!! Heady stuff this!!

For those who culdn't attend, here is a glimpse of what we've seen:







Written by Barbara Little
Posted by Galina
Photos by Susan Haftel, Barbara Little

Breast Cancer Walk: Photos

On 11 September a team of IWAV ladies participated in a Walk Against Breast Cancer organized within the frameworks of Vilnius Mini Marathon. The aim of the event was to raise awareness of breast cancer and raise funds. Part of the participation fee will be donated to Avon Breast Cancer Foundation

We were blessed with beautiful sunny weather on that day which made the whole experience even more joyful. The atmosphere at the starting line was electric and very exciting. After cheering for parents with strollers and for marathoners who had been running since early morning a crowd of mini-marathon participants got ready to race. Pink balloons were handed out to be released at the sound of the start gun shot which made for a pretty scene. Some of us did a bit of jogging mixed with walking which proved to be a great exercise. I think everyone liked this experience and there was talking about participating next year and maybe doing even more of that running or jogging.

Many thanks to Erin for organizing our team and making stylish T-Shirts with a Breats Cancer Awareness logo and message on the back.

Enjoy the photos below!














Written and Posted by Galina
Photos by Galina and Susan

New Events and Some Photos

September is an exciting and busy month here at IWAV! First of all the beginning of autumn is like an opening season for international community for socializing, attending various events and activities. In addition to the excitement of everyone returning back to Vilnius from holidays :-D there are really many new things going on in IWAV: coffee morning with a lot of new members in attendance, new weekly event CAC (which stands for cake and coffee), cocktails at Radisson (an evening not to be missed), trip to Kaliningrad, playgroup resuming its activity, lunch bunches at new restaurants, and finally sushi-making social! It seems life cannot be more busy and fun!!

Of course, I am looking forward to all of the upcoming events and especially to the sushi-making class! Cooking events are one of my favorite IWAV activities. For example cooking with Lidija Rasutis - a famous Lithuanian cook who has her own TV cooking program was an amazing event. Recently 2 more cooking sessions were organized for IWAV members. One of them was a baking weekend at Toni's and Cia's professional bakery facilities. I take the chance to post the belated photos below!

The other event was organized by a talented passionate cook Sigrid who has a beautiful and very inspiring blog. Check it out here www.sigridsbeste.de ! I hope to get some photos from that event soon as well!

Unfortunately I have never had a chance for one reason or another to participate in such an event yet. But I am planning to attend the sushi-making class- I absolutely love sushi! Promise to post photos!

PHOTOS from BAKING WEEKEND








Written and posted by Galina

For more information about IWAV or the new events, please contact Keti Tsami at aikaterinitsami6 (@) gmail.com or Barbara Little at barbsvilnius (@) gmail.com

Blossom of Hope: Handover of Biopsy Needles

On 20th June Mike and I visited Kaunas hospital and met up with Ruta from Roche to deliver a plaque and the biopsy needles. Kaunas University hospital has now merged with the Veterinarian hospital and they seem very happy about it. It was great to see all the Doctors again and to hear that they are so much more positive about the future.

Delivering Biopsy Needles to Kaunas Hospital
On the 1st July we visited Klaipeda hospital and took our friends with us. There we met up with Odeta from Roche and again met our friends the doctors. The news was again more positive but Klaipeda does not seem to get as much assistance from the government as Kaunas or Vilnius. What we did learn from all the hospitals was that the government will only pay for a consultation not the biopsy needles. The patient either has to pay herself or, in some cases, the hospital will make the purchase. Needless to say, this means that the biopsy needles and machines that we provide are extremely important.

Handover of Certificate and Needles to Klaipeda hospital
We then spent the next few days visiting Palanga and Nida and Juodkranta.

On the 8th July we visited Siauliai hospital and met up with Rima from Roche. Irina our charity co-ordinator, who was the driving force behind our Blossom of Hope event, also came with us. This was a first time visit to this hospital and it was great. They knew nothing about us or our organisation and wanted to know everything so it turned into a long visit.

Visiting Siauliai Hospital



Biopsy Needle Machine
Barbara Little,
IWAV Chair