ITALIAN STUDENTS’ IMPRESSIONS OF THE TRIP TO
CROATIA
Dario Buscema
Erasmus in Croatia was
an experience I will never forget. When we arrived, I was very afraid to know
where I would go, who I would be with, what environment I would find, and I was
very afraid to speak out for fear of making mistakes. It was a fantastic 6 days, I had a great time
with the host family, kind and polite, they made me feel at home. The first two days we took part in the
project on climate change organised by the school, where we created a
sustainable city with re-used materials. The third and fourth day we visited
some cities near Metkovic, the most beautiful is Dubrovnik, which is Ragusa in
Italian. In the evening, we were all
together in the usual "Industry pub", where we joked, ate and played
darts and billiards. We also did a beautiful music workshop, creating musical
instruments and then we shot a video while playing them. The last day was very sad, when we said
goodbye and got on the bus a piece of us was left there. I can't wait for January to host them here
and introduce them to our city.
Angela Cataldi
Before leaving for this
Erasmus project, I was quite skeptical for two reasons: one was the fear of
being far from home, while the other was the concern about not being able to
communicate well with those who were hosting me. However, these fears disappeared
immediately after our arrival in the town of Metkovic, where we received a warm
welcome from the students who were hosting us and from the Croatian teachers.
The Croatian girls, as soon as they met me and my other two companions,
immediately made us leave our luggage and took us on an evening tour of the
town, to help us get used to it and to get to know each other better, instead
of taking us straight home. Metkovic is mainly a smaller town than Modica, but
it probably has the same entertainment and many similar places.
We spent the week among
jokes and laughter, and even during the projects, there was not a moment when
we did not communicate with each other. Certainly, we had ups and downs, but we
were able to resolve them calmly with explanations.
This project has helped
me understand how climate change is having a strong impact in Italy, Croatia,
and Turkey, as each group representing their country talked about how this has
contributed to creating big problems for each nation. Additionally, this cultural
exchange has opened my eyes to the diversity and the importance of
international cooperation in addressing global challenges such as climate
change.
Gaia Fidelio
This experience was
really fantastic. I had a lot of fun. Initially my fear was speaking English
because I'm not used to speaking it all the time, this problem didn't last very
long until we started to develop relationships with the Croatian students. I
can't complain about the family I ended up in, the parents were extremely
helpful and the boy even more so, to the point that I now consider him like a
brother. I had a great time with everyone: teachers and students. I really
liked the project we did because it is something about current events; the
towns we visited were very beautiful and especially Metkovic, the village where
we spent a fantastic week. The bad thing is that they split the Erasmus group
and unfortunately some of those we were very close to will not come to my town
in January. I hope to have an experience like this again, it was fantastic.
Daniele La Cognata
The experience we had during the
Erasmus project was very special, on the one hand the homesickness, adapting to
a different reality and especially the difficulty I encountered at the
beginning with the English language, but on the other hand it was a unique and
very beautiful experience, which I would do again if I had the chance. Going to
another country, getting to know new cultures and customs different from ours, acquiring
new knowledge and above all I will always carry with me the new friendships
that were made during that week.
Melania Macauda
This Erasmus trip was very important
for me because it allowed me to speak in a language that you learn at school
but which is obviously very different from speaking it every day, every morning
as soon as you wake up and consequently obviously also trying to improve it ,
but also to see how each of us can manage our linguistic skills individually so
not only when we are in a group and therefore help each other but also when we
are alone together with those students, those parents and in short that family
who speak English so fluently that you often panic.
Finally, I can say that it was
actually all very nice also because the guys were very nice. Yes, at the beginning there were some
complications but then they were solved and it was therefore a great experience
to be with them and above all to get to know their habits and their hobbies,
their school, their places and their landscape, and the beautiful cities like
Dubrovnik. Also, exploring the mountain with the statue of Jesus Christ and the
first fan with ventilation ducts was an unforgettable experience that I
absolutely want to do again next year. After we left and we arrived at Catania
airport in Sicily, I had tears in my eyes because I already missed the boys, I
missed being with them, speaking in English and spending time with them.
Davide Tarantino