"Russia is so big!": participants of the "Wings over Sukhum" contest explore the "Geography Lessons" exposition
Participants of the "Wings over Sukhum: Bridge of Friendship" children’s creative contest, dedicated to the opening of the V.G. Ardzinba Sukhum International Airport, had the opportunity to see Gagarin’s flight into space, discover Russia’s natural riches and explore the country’s unique cartographic treasures. On 12 June, Russia Day, the children visited the National Centre RUSSIA.
As part of the contest, participants submitted almost 200 works in three categories: "The Sky of Apsny", "Russia — Abkhazia Bridge of Friendship" and "Vladislav Ardzinba Airport". The jury selected 27 winners, while 10 children shared first place and received a trip to the Russian capital as their prize. One of the key points of the programme was a visit to the National Centre RUSSIA and a guided tour of the "Geography Lessons" exposition. Their introduction to the exposition began in the Gallery of Maps, which brings together original maps from Russia’s largest repositories. The children saw how ideas about the territory of our country, its borders and the cardinal directions changed over time.
"I was very surprised that on early maps, South and North seemed to have been 'swapped'. We are used to one view of a map, but here we saw how differently people used to imagine the world," said contest winner Veronika Eyupova.
She added that it was important for her to see not only maps, but also original historical exhibits connected with travel and movement across the country: "It was great that we were shown real objects, from old carriages to other things that people once used to cover distances."
In the halls devoted to Russia’s resources and natural wealth, the children explored maps of deposits, mineral samples and materials showing how geography is connected with the development of territories.
"I learned that Russia is not only a huge country, but also a very diverse one: it has large lakes, mountains and different types of rock. It was interesting to see how people lived on ships, how my grandmother and godmother studied at school, and to compare that with how we study," said contest participant Sofia Vlasova.
These halls helped the children see that geography is not abstract maps, but real people’s lives, work, journeys and family stories. The "Aspiration. Guiding Star" hall, where geography meets astronomy and the history of space exploration, made a strong impression on the schoolchildren. It features maps of the starry sky, spacecraft routes and images of Earth from space.
"Personally, I was most interested in astronomy and everything connected with space. But the sections about soil and geography in general were also interesting. The guide explained everything so clearly that even the youngest children could understand it," Maria Surmilova noted.
According to her, projects like this bring complex topics closer to children: "When we see everything with our own eyes and are given detailed explanations in simple language, it becomes easier to understand how the world works and how to find our way in it if we ever find ourselves in a new place."
The contest is held by the V.G. Ardzinba Sukhum International Airport. The children’s trip to the National Centre RUSSIA showed that "Geography Lessons" works not only as an exposition project, but also as an important educational resource. For the young artists from Abkhazia, this meeting became a continuation of the contest’s theme: from drawings about the sky, flights and a bridge of friendship to discovering the space of a country with which they share a common history and future.
