April 19, 2017: the official delegation of Kaajani, Finland visited Taganrog within the framework of a working trip to Rostov Oblast and sister city of Rostov-on-Don.
Chairman of Kaajani City Council Mr. Vesa Kaikkonen, Mayor of Kaajani Mr. Jari Tolonen and Chairman of the board Mrs. Marjatta Immonen were invited by Rostov-on-Don local government. The partnership agreement between the two cities was signed more than 60 years ago in 1956.
The visit started with a guided tour across
Taganrog Chekhov Drama Theater - a subject of unfailing interest for Kaajani City Council's chairman, who used to be a theater actor before starting his political career. Vesa Kaikkonen was invited on stage and performed an impromptu recital of a piece out of
Anton Chekhov's play "Uncle Vanya".
Finnish delegation toured Taganrog historical downtown area and Anton Chekhov
memorial sites, including
Anton Chekhov's memorial birth house and Chekhov Gymnasium Museum, accompanied by Rostov Municipality's deputy city manager Mr. Yevgeny Lebedev, Rostov City's external affairs officer Mr. Mikhail Rebro and Taganrog foreign relations officer Mr. Alexander Mirgorodskiy.