On September 6 and 7 the members of the expedition of the Russian Geographical Society were officially received in the capital of Portugal. The head of the expedition Evgeny Kovalevsky and the head of the Coastal Center Julia Kalyuzhnaya visited the Russian Embassy in Portugal, where, on behalf of the Tomsk branch of the RGS, they presented the route of the two-year sailing on a trimaran and highlighted current projects of the regional branch. A day later Eugene and Julia were received by Geographical Society of Lisbon President Luis Ayres Barros, who showed Russian colleagues the headquarters and told the history of the oldest organization.
On the 6th of September in the embassy of Russia in Portugal took place the official reception of the participants of the round-the-world expedition. The meeting was attended by the head of the expedition, Eugene Kovalevskiy, and the head of the Coastal Center, Julia Kalyuzhnaya. The Embassy was represented by senior advisor Alexander Bryantsev and advisor on cultural issues, representative of Rossotrudnichestvo Vladimir Yaroshevsky. Eugene Kovalevskiy led the ceremony of handing the expedition’s bandanas to those present, and spoke in detail about the route of the two-year voyage on the “Russian Ocean Way” trimaran. On behalf of the Tomsk branch of the RGS Executive Director Yulia Kalyuzhnaya highlighted current projects of the regional branch, in particular, scientific and tourist development of the potential of Vasyugan swamps, located in the Tomsk region and the launch of the tourist route Golden Ring of Siberia (Discover Siberia).
On September 7, Evgeny and Julia visited the headquarters of the Lisbon Geographical Society. The President of the Society Luis Ayres Barros met with colleagues from Russia and told many interesting things about traditions and current activities of the oldest organization of the Portuguese Republic. As a token of solidarity and friendship on behalf of the Russian Geographical Society Julia Kalyuzhnaya gave Lisbon Geographical Society a miniature globe – the symbol of geographical science. The president of LGS, in his turn, treated the participants of the round-the-world expedition with a welcome glass of port, a drink originally from the north-east of Portugal. Preliminary agreements were reached on cooperation between the organization and the LGS Commission for Tourism Development, of which Julia Kalyuzhnaya is a member. The Lisbon CS expressed interest in supporting and developing the interregional route Golden Ring of Siberia (Discover Siberia).
At the headquarters, Julia and Evgeny were able to see the museum exhibit and the Geographic Society’s library, which contains old books, including those about Russia.
“We were shown maps found by members of the Lisbon Geographical Society from the 17th century, on which the territory of Siberia, Tomsk region is marked as “Lukomorye”. This is a unique historical and geographical artifact”, – said Julia Kalyuzhnaya.
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Lisbon Geographical Society (LGS) was founded in 1875 to “promote the study and development of geography and related sciences in Portugal”. The most important activity of the Geographical Society was the study and exploration of the African continent in the context of the maritime power’s colonial past. Today, the Society plays an important scientific, educational and cultural role in the life of the country. The LGO building houses a museum with exhibits from the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries. Here you can see everyday objects, musical instruments, ceramics and textiles from Angola, Guinea, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Cape Verde, Timor and Macau – former colonial territories of Portugal.
Elizaveta Shaimbaeva
