Saša Ambrožič, from Public library Ivan Tavčar Škofja Loka sent us a text and some pictures about their visit to Public library of Panevezys. These 2 libraries have been partners since December 2015:
A visit to our sister library in Panevežys
At the end of April 2017, three librarians from Slovenian Public library Ivan Tavčar Škofja Loka visited our sister Panevėžys district municipality public library in Lithuania to exchange experiences and held a workshop for our colleagues in Lithuania. We thought we could show our collegues a bit of Slovenian tradition. We decided to make Dražgoše honey breads – breads named after the highland village of Dražgoše, which is located in our region. This bread is made of thick honey dough, with spices which give them some extra special taste, and they are traditionally given as presents.
Dražgoše honey breads
Making honey breads with kids
Our collegues in Panevežys enjoyed making those breads and they put some Lithuanian ethnic ornament design on it. At the end they got a recipe for breads in Lithuanian language. We tried their traditional cake Šakotis, which is made of eggs and baked over open fire.
The headmaster Ruta Bagdoniene showed us around their library and presented us some of their activities. We were excited about “Mama academy” – its purpose is to promote children’s reading skills and motivate parents to read with their youngsters. Toddlers, accompanied by their parents, meet in the library, where they organize fairytale performances and workshops.
Mama academy
In the afternoon our hosts took us on a road trip to show us their traditional crafts. We visited the ceramics workshop and the flax museum. They showed us the Lithuanian book smugglers and Juozas Tumas-Vaižgantas Museum in the vilage of Ustrones. The museum is a part of Municipality library of Panevezys. At the end of our visit we also visited one of their branch libraries. Despite being small, they are the cultural centers of the village.
Colleagues in Kedainiai
The next day we visited Kedainiai, one of the oldest Lithuanian towns. We had the tour over Kedainiai district municipality Mikalojus Daukša public library, exchanged experiences, saw some nice exhibitions (the most impressive was the exhibition of books for blind children) and held the workshop od Dražgoše honey breads again, but this time for the children. They had fun making traditional breads, which we baked in the bakery nearby. Baked breads have so nice smell that many children couldn’t resist, so they ate them immediately. After a stroll over the beautiful historical town, we said goodbye to our colleagues and the headmaster Birute Ruzgiene and left with agreement that we will definitely cooperate again in the nearest future.
Books for blind children
We hope next time we’ll meet our collegues from Panevežys and Kedainiai in our library in Škofja Loka.
Saša Ambrožič
Public library Ivan Tavčar Škofja Loka
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