Riga Day 2

On day 2 of our of our excursion in Riga, we began the day with a lecture from the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economics, Mr. Juris Puce. He gave us some very insightful information on the current economic situation of the country of Latvia, as well as the basic economic policies they follow. After the lecture we were taken on a tour of the Old Town and the Art Nouveau buildings. Riga is a very different city from Tallinn, and it was good to see a change of scenery and some fresh views. For our first company visit of the trip, the chairman of the company Madara came and spoke to us about their business operations in Latvia and the other countries they operate in. Madara is a eco-cosmetics company, making products that are great for the skin an body as well as the environment. We were able to take a short visit to a Madara shop. The highlight of the day was the celebration of the 21st birthday of one our classmates, Daniel McClendon. For his birthday dinner he chose TGI Friday's, and we were able to provide him with the opportunity to celebrate with a cake and candles. For our nighttime activity, most of the group took a trip to the Skyline Cafe, which is on the 26th floor of a  high-rise hotel located in the middle of Riga. It was a long day, but one filled with great experiences and much learning.

I would like to give a shout out to my parents for being expert skypers, my brother Owen for not responding to my messages, my sister Sarah for responding to my messages, my girlfriend Audrey for being our most loyal Twitter follower, and everyone else who is keeping up with the blogs.

If you do not have a Twitter account, create one and follow AUCEESP, I promise you will be entertained.

-wilson