České Budějovice: Students' report

Caterina's report:

 

From the 29 of March to the 4 of April I went with my classmates Letizia and Miriam to Czech Republic for the final meeting of the European project Comenius. We stayed in Prague for two days, we met the Spanish girls and the French and German guys and we visited many attractions of this beautiful city such as the Astronomical Clock, the Royal Palace, the Charles Bridge and the Church of Saint George and we enjoyed the town.

 On sunday evening we went to Ceske Budejovice to meet the Czech guys that will host us.

We spent a lot of great time with them,  we saw how do they do in their everyday life, we went to school with them where every group talked about their school and their town.

We went all around the city, we visited the Budweis brewery and we also taste it in pubs in the evenings.

On wednesday we did a short trip in Cesky Krumlov, a beautiful historical town that is in UNESCO and we visited its big castle and a photographic museum.

The last evening we did a big dinner in a restaurant and we also danced and sung so we had a lot of fun.

It was so bad to leave our new friends the last day, we were all crying because even if we stayed only for a week we get on together with one another. My partner Terezska is a wonderful person, I love her and I hope that we will see again, also with all the other guys.

Caterina :)

 

Letizia's report:

On the 29^th of March 2014, thanks to the Comenius Project, students from Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Turkey, Czech Republic, England and Poland met in Ceske Budejovice. 

On our first day a sunny warm morning, unusual for that time of the year at that latitude, bright smiling faces looked trustingly at their teachers. We met the other European students in Prague where the teachers divided the big group into two smaller groups: the Mediterranean one composed by Italy, Spain, France and Turkey; and the Northern Europe one; although this “division” we got to know one another and introduce ourselves to the other students.

The first day was the most weird maybe because everybody felt magical feelings and at the same time was afraid of abandon his own tradition to get used to another. We did a tour around the city visiting the most important monuments and places such as the Prague castle, the magnificent cathedral where I felt like a child looking at the slender and colorful windows, the Prague astronomical clock and the romantic Saint Charles bridge. 

In the second day we went to the real Comenius city: Ceske Budejovice also called Budweis like the famous beer that they produce there and of which we visited the imposing factory. My accommodation was great with its comfortable one bed rooms with a big aquarium. My Czech parter Tomas was really helpful and friendly like everyone in his family and the people in general.

It was a great opportunity to measure my English knowledge, to practise the language and it was a huge experience to be together with European people all the time. I think it is that kind of feeling that you can’t explain really well because it’s a thing that I bring in my hearts and even if I told this experience with its details,  nobody might  understand what it is like to live.

At the end we had a lot of foreign friends. We promised to go back there in the future also inciting them to come in our Country. Through  these friendships I can practise the language too, both Italian and Spanish.

I want to close with a very significant image that I won’t forget: all Comenius guys who joked and laughed and loved sitting on the meadow of daisies and forming a huge, multicultural circle.

And the circle represents the perfection.

Letizia 

Miriam's report:

 This year Comenius project let us have the great opportunity to go to Czech Republic. This experience made me discover another beautiful country and, above all, beautiful people. 

  We met other participants  the first two days (Saturday and Sunday) in Prague. In this week we had the great opportunity to explore a country we‘ve never been before, and we could get to know new traditions. We visited old famous buildings such as the castle in Prague, where we saw the window of the famous defenestration and we saw some places we didn’t know like the Seidel antique photo studio in Česky Krumlov on Wednesday. The first day we were in České Budéjovice, Czech guys showed us their school, that is big and tidy. In the School lecture hall we had to present our project and even if we were a bit scared we did our job and everything went good at the end!

They took us to ČB city centre were we found out historical thing about the place through treasure hunt on Monday. In Tuesday we went to the Budweiser/Budvar brewery tour and now we know how beer is made and the steps it takes to make it and we tried it! In Česky Krumlov, beside the photo studio, we went to see the castle where there’s a bear outside!   

Last day was Thursday and after the final works we had free time to spend with our partner that at that point had turned into great friends. The Farwell dinner was funny and everyone was happy. We had to say goodbye though and that’s was the worst part. We cried a lot and we promised to see each other again!

We spend a lot of time with our hosts and with the foreigners. My partner, Lenka, made me feel very comfortable from the very first moment. She is an amazing person and I’ll never forget the time I spend with her. Every time someone asks me how this experience was I can’t help smiling widely; I had the incredible opportunity to meet great people, from different countries, that speak different languages but somehow, even if not everyone could talk English, we understood each other. 

I thought about this experience a lot and it will remain a very important part of my life. I’ve been told things that I will never forget and I’ll carry with forever. Comenius is an experience that everyone should try not just because you visit new places, but because you understand that you live in a different place, you have different traditions and ideas and yet you are so similar to someone that  lives miles and miles away from you. I think that this is what these projects are about, unite people that can share things to one another. I strongly advice it to everyone! 

Miriam