October 31st from 17:00-20:00 at the Seaside Open-Air Museum (Rinķa Street 2, Ventspils) Mazbānītis season closing ceremony

Every year on the last day of October, the unique vehicle of the Ventspils Seaside Open-Air Museum - the more than one-hundred-year-old narrow-gauge steam locomotive Mazbānītis ("Little Train") - unlike the bears that have just wandered into Kurzeme, goes into hibernation. That is almost entirely true, except for one thing: on Christmas Day, December 25, Mazbānītis wakes up again for a single day, gets decorated, and, like a true "Lucky Bear," makes a cheerful round through the fields.

Before Mazbānītis is put to rest for the winter, its water is drained, the tender cleaned, the pipes blown through to prevent condensation, and everything is washed, dried, and oiled. On the evening of October 31, friends of Mazbānītis are invited to the season's closing event, which promises not only rides through the autumn twilight on the light-adorned train, but also surprises for the bravest passengers. Be ready for anything! The season finale will be enriched by two more events - at 17:00, the monochrome photography competition "I See the Sea, Ports, and Cities of Kurzeme", part of Valdis Brauns' plein air project "Masters of the Salty Winds", will conclude. The winners will be honored, and the exhibition will open.