Europe, here we are!

What are you going to do?

• You are going to watch the film clip of Latvia. After the film there are some questions for you to think about and answer.

How will you proceed?

• Watch the DVD sequence about Latvia (clip 5).·
• Read the questions so that you know what you are looking and listening for.
• Try to answer the questions and, if necessary, look at the film clip again and use the pause button.

Questions

Geography questions

• Mark the position of Latvia on the map.
• Mark and name it’s neighbouring countries.
• Has Latvia got a coastline? If so, what is the name of the sea?
• What is the name of the capital of Latvia?
• How big is Latvia in square km? And compared with anoher EU-country? Poland?
• What is said about the size of the population and minorities?

History questions

• Why were Denmark, Sweden and Poland mentioned in the film.
• What happened in 1918, in 1940 and in 1991 in Latvia?
• What does "industry was privatised" mean? Why was this necessary?
• When did Latvia become a communist country?
• Is it comfortable for Latvia to have two strong neighbours?

Cultural and social questions

• What is art nouveau? How many art nouveau buildings has Riga?·
• When were these buildings built? What countries influenced their construction and decoration?
• What did they say about employment? (%, increasing or decreasing?).
• What means the GDP is 4,5 % and inflation is 2%?
• The Latvian industry is focused on transforming raw materials into …………
  What does this mean?
• Is the service sector increasing or decreasing?
• Why is it said that Latvia has its own culture and that this culture survived?
• Is the Latvian identity/culture an old one?

Impressions

• Do you think Latvia can really fulfil a bridge function?
• Do you think you would like to live in Riga?
• Why is it said (at the end of the clip) “we are waiting for a very long time”?
• What did you like best in the film?

Material

• DVD player
• DVD Come Home to Europe