Comenius Project

Mobility to Greece

From April 20th to April 30th

2012

Report on the Activities

Teachers Élia Martins Isabel

Marques Lina Almeida Maria

Margarida Lucena Neuza Pereira

Paulo Diegues

Students Ana Pais Francisco

Gonçalves Gonçalo Pinho

Introduction

From the 21st to the 30th of April, three students and six teachers

lived a reminding adventure in a foreign European country part of

the Comenius Project ‘The Future in Our Hands’. Ana Pais,

Francisco Gonçalves and Gonçalo Pinho – me – went with Élia

Martins, Isabel Marques, Lina Almeida, Maria Margarida Lucena,

Neuza Pereira and Paulo Diegues – their teachers – to Patras, a city

located in the south-west part of Greece. The assignment was to not

only meet new people, create new experiences and enrich our

culture and knowledge, but to challenge ourselves into debating

communication, knowing what it is, which advantages and

disadvantages it signifies and unveiling its power among the world

as well as its risks.

April 20th, Friday ~ Day Zero

After a long and nervously spent day at school, the teachers and

students arrived at the airport with their luggage and anxiety around

9h30 pm. Saying goodbye to our parents and carrying our packs,

me, Ana and Francisco, were all but bored of the journey we were

seeing coming. It was Ana’s first flight, mine without my parents

and Francisco was scared of how much English he had to speak for

more than a week. The travelling went fine, having we arrived at

Athens at about 5h15 am local time.

April 21st, Saturday ~ Day One

We arrived at Athens really early. There were no direct flights to

Patras, nor to a close area, so the team accomplished to spend a

full day at the capital before going to the region where the

assignment was to be made. At around 6 am, we left the airport with

our luggage kept safe and went through the tram to the center of

Athens. We saw a lot of places, including Sintagma Square, the

Parlament, the Acropolis and Ágora and had lunch at a greek

restaurant located in Plaka. Later in the afternoon, the Turkish and

Polish teams arrived along with some Greek teachers and we all

went to pick up the French team at the airport. Tired after a very

long day as well as sleep deprivation – it was my first 48 hours

period without sleeping – we went to Patras by bus and were hosted

by our greek families around 11h30 pm local time.

April 22nd, Sunday ~ Day Two

My host family is wonderful. After making me a very hot and flavorful

dinner, they had me sleep in the host room, with a very comfortable

bed and access to the computer and bathroom. But those aren’t of

course the only factors. Georgia, the girl who accommodated me,

only made me laugh the entire week and her parents were always

very talkative, funny and kind. Well, I couldn’t complain!

I woke up at around 11 am to go with Georgia – my host –, Fabio –

a French guy – and Angie – the guy’s host – to Patras’ Castle, see

its surroundings and take some photos. After having lunch at home,

we went out. Throughout the afternoon, we walked on some of

Patras’ streets, met up with other people from Comenius and their

hosts and saw the sunset at the port as well as drank some water

and chatted a lot. Later on, me and a bunch of people from the

project gone for dinner and ice cream. We ate something called Pita,

wish is similar to a Muslim Kebab. Back home, I exchanged gifts

with my host family. They really liked the Oporto Wine bottle, the

Lisbon decorative plate, the Portuguese Sidewalk pencil tray and the

Mariza Concert DVD I gave them. We were very happy and I went to

bed early because we had go to school the next day.

April 23rd, Monday ~ Day Three

On Monday, me, Georgia

and all of the people from

the project and respective

hosts went to school. I

had to wake up really

early but everything went

fine and I was gone by 8

am for Mathematics class

at 8h15 am with Georgia and

her colleagues. The class

was quite quiet, although

there was a bit of noise

between the students, but

nothing too alarming. By 9,

we were welcomed at school

by the Headmaster, Mr.

Stamatios Chlomoudis and

there were presentations performed by the Greek students to us

which I found to be very appealing. There was this robot which wrote

the names of all the countries from the project and it was very

amusing to see and record that moment of interaction between

everyone.

I then had lunch at Georgia’s house – this is the part where I point

out how greatly and tastefully cooked was the food her parents

made me eat throughout the week – and took a nap before going

out with her and a friend of hers. We had a lot of fun in the course of

our trip by the most beautiful sites of the city and got back home,

rested and fell asleep.

April 24th, Tuesday ~ Day Four

The day began with me not seeing Georgia for the first time I woke

up. It turned out she was dressing and getting ready for her big

performance that day at the Ancient Odium. She played a part in the

play of Orpheus Hymns. It was presented to all the people from the

project and it was amazing! All the nice girls participating were

beautiful and astonishingly performing.

We were all then welcomed by the Mayor’s delegate at the City Hall.

He was back then responsible for the Education matters in Patras’

city, so he thanked all the teachers and organizers of the Comenius

Program for bringing to life such an innovative experiment which, as

he said, was working out very well. We took one more group shot

and went to visit the Apollon Theatre, where we seated for a while

and then gone to the public Library of Patras, where we got to know

it’s history, what kind of books it had available and some paintings

and curious facts as well. It was a very well spend morning and next

thing I knew I was having lunch at my host family house and going

out in the afternoon.

April 25th, Wednesday ~ Day Five

Wednesday was a very

long day. In Portugal,

the Carnation Revolution

was being celebrated

but in Greece there were

other plans. All the

people from the project

plus other Greek

students and teachers went to Olympia, the birth town of the

Olympic Games

Competition, in a

school trip which

involved a visit to

Olympia’s

Archaeological

Museum and its fields

and surroundings.

There, we got the

chance to see a variety

of ancient objects, statues and pieces, as well as listening to

important information given by our tour guide. Everyone took a lot of

photographs and we went outside to the fields where the

championship was hold

for years in the past and

rested the victories and

winners memorials.

After that, we went to

the Olympic Stadium

and every country had

to participate in a race

with one girl and one

boy whom had to run for

their country. Me – Gonçalo – and Ana represented Portugal and

ran against Greece, France, Poland and Turkey. I finished third and

we were both given an olive made coronary and clapping after the

rivalry. After this, me and my

teachers went to buy some

keepsakes, like postcards

and, I my case, an Olympic

coin. At 2 pm, we got on the

bus and went for lunch in the

village of Katakolo and

bought other souvenirs. We

then went to a beach near Strofilia Forest and around the Jonick

Sea. This was the part

when we had a very funny

while because I got wet and

had to take off my shoes

and everyone started

making fun of me. But in

the end it was great and we

took, again, a lot of

snapshots! Around 6 pm,

we returned to Patras around and I went home to rest and have

dinner.

April 26th, Thursday ~ Day Six

The day started with another school trip, this time to the Open

University of Patras, where we came across one of the most

advanced set of Greek education systems and formation options.

We participated in a live conference and saw a robot in action. Later

on, we went to the

Archaeological Museum of

Patras, where at first every

country had the chance to

talk a little about why history

was important and secondly

exited for a visit throughout

the museum, which was

similar to the one in Olympia,

only more diverse and more

nearly Patras’ local items.

I then had lunch at Georgia’s house, as usual, and saw a movie,

‘Manhattan’ by Woody Allen. We then went out a bit and had dinner

with Francisco,

Sotiria, Fabio and

Angie in a

restaurant near

Patras’ castle.

April 26th, Friday ~ Day Seven

The final day on

school activities

had arrived. I had to

participate in a

debate about

Communication and

its role on

contributing to the

world being and the

innovation of new

technologies. As

established by the

project’s rules, one

student would sit in front of a table and talk representing their one

country. It gone very well and it was well organized following

Portuguese initial idea. There were already prepared questions

made to all the elements about Communication, its’ advantages and

disadvantages, how it

was distributed in the

world, etc. and other

questions made by the

audience. In the

afternoon, every

country’s students had

their occasion to

present works they

had made about

traditional and cultural

aspects from their city.

Portugal presented works about the April 25th 1974 Carnation

Revolution and Barcelos’ Rooster legend, as well as a video of

those. After the presentations, we were all surprised by the Greek

dance performers and had a fantastic dinner offered by the school

with all sorts of greek amazing cuisine, like Moussaka, which I found

delicious and to be my favorite dish!

April 27th, Saturday ~ Day Eight

It was my final

full day in

Patras, so I

spent the whole

day with my

host family

doing pleasant

activities. We

went to have

lunch in a town

near the beach

where Georgia used to spend her summer and, as she said, was

always full of tourists by that time. I ate Moussaka again, my favorite

Greek dish. We

went with Angie

and took a lot of

photos near the

beach to

remember what

amazing times we

had.

April 28th, Sunday ~ Last Day

The climate was sad. It was my final day in Greece and all I could

think of was how I missed everyone already. Everything had been

great and I couldn’t have wished for better. It was a great week in

which I met a lot of people who became my closest friends. Saying

goodbye to Georgia was the hardest because she became my best

friend. She was lovely as well as the entire trip and opportunity I was

given.

So in this day, I left Patras by bus at around 9 am to get to Athens’

airport and leave. We first arrived in Frankfurt, Switzerland and then

we caught a flight to Lisbon, Portugal. Everything went fine and by

the time we arrived, at 8h30pm, everyone was tired, so all of us

went home to have dinner, rest and unpack.

This was one of those smiles a person has when she has been for

one of the best times of her life. My smile had that feeling. Although I

was very sad inside, I had been through and amazing experience

and all I could and can take from that is a “Thank You” and a lot of

hope for the future.

Report Conclusion

Being able to travel to a foreign country whether I liked it in the end

or not is still something I am grateful for. I would like to thank all of

the teachers and organizers of this project for giving me the chance

to have had such amazing eight days. I can’t take away any

disadvantage from this apart from it not having lasted longer. The

experience was remarkable, wordless, great, fantastic, wonderful.

The chance I got was an once in a lifetime chance and I’m proud of

it. Today, I miss those todays terribly and I wish that one day I’ll

meet my Greek friends once again, as well as my Turkish, French

and polish friends. Being part of the Comenius Program was one of

the best things that have happened in my life, since having hosted

Kaan in November to finishing this report of my hostage in Georgia’s

house in Greece. There were remarkable, happy, stressful and full

of adrenaline moments all along the way and I can’t be more

pleased to have had them. So, thanks everyone for allowing me to

go through this experience. I can’t sincerely complain because

everything was very well arranged and this trip - I’m sorry for the

informal language English – rocked!

Goodbye