Erasmus+ Impressions Journal –The Czech Republic– Erasmus+ "Women Power - Raising Awareness" PL-01-KA229-081676_4 National College “Zinca Golescu” 1. Constantin Laura-Maria’s Experience: Although it started out as a “foreign country”, I now see the Czech Republic as a home away from home. I have spent a week there, learning about both the project’s topic and the country itself, alongside delightful and passionate human beings. I had the opportunity to see breath-taking places along the river banks of Vltava, such as the UNESCO heritage site Cesky Krumlov, Hubolka nad Vltavou castle, the wonderful host city, Ceske Budejovice, and most of the famous landmarks in Prague. I now wholeheartedly believe that the Czech Republic is a one of the most stunning countries in the European Union, a place in which hundreds and hundreds of years of history mix with modern advancements, creating a never-seen-before atmosphere. Personally, I was struck by the architectural style of the cities, the Romanesque and baroque stile being the most noticeable. I could’ve spent an eternity wandering the streets of the cities we visited! Besides the sightseeing, we were also lucky enough to partake in numerous presentations held by some of the country's biggest NGOs, such as Charita CZ, and, through interactive presentations accompanied by games, they have opened my eyes to everything related to abuse: types of abuse, the abuser's psychological profile and what I myself can do in order to identify and help a victim of this phenomena. We also learned about types of NGOs and, through a game, better understood what categories of NGOs take care of different specific situations. Although information is valuable, but it is nothing if you have no friends to share it with, so, in this mobility, I set out with the intention to be as outgoing and sociable as possible. Achieving this goal was a piece of cake as all of the other students were delightful. I could not have hoped for better, more trustworthy or more considerate teammates, I feel that all of the members of the Romanian team got on like a house on fire! The other exchange students were very communicative, approachable, open-minded and their proficiency in English made me effortlessly bond with almost all of them. As for the Czech students, they made me feel like I am not a guest, but a friend to them, fact which gave me a sense of belonging and helped me fit in even easier. The trip wasn’t without its difficulties: the weather was unpredictable, everyday sunny moments were followed by either hail or quick snowstorms and this made me get ill. Having caught a cold, I was not able to taste traditional foods, so I still lack knowledge on this aspect of
the country’s culture. Any and every other mishap that occurred was quickly resolved trough solidarity and teamwork, but no amount of collaboration can make storm clouds or diseases go away. In this last paragraph I would like to emphasise on how grateful I am to have had this once in a lifetime opportunity. Although it was only one week long, this experience has helped me gain knowledge on a topic of actuality (that being the ongoing fight for equal rights) make memories which I will forever cherish, significantly evolve on a personal level, satisfied my wanderlust, and re-shaped my view of the world for good. Constantin Laura-Maria Grade: 10th H 2. Stanciu Delia-Andreea’s Experience: As every Erasmus project, not only does it provide a lot of information to help us broaden our horizons, but it also brings a lot of people together and it ties beautiful friendships between students from the same group and hopefully long lasting international connections. I would love to start by saying that the experience was far better than I have expected. Firstly, I was impressed by the architecture because it was the thing that I firstly caught my eye when I entered České Budějovice. It was the combination of the old buildings’ structure and the vibrant, modern colors that made me want to see more and more of what this new place had to offer. The multitude of statues has also amazed me and I liked that some of them had no description made by the artist, so you could let your artistic style free to try and find a meaning. The blooming trees complemented the beautiful green that was covering the park and the sides of the street that guided us to our hotel. The whole view made me feel instantly relaxed and it helped me connect with my surroundings better, giving me a feeling of comfort at the same time. Secondly, I was more than happy to learn from the local students who welcomed us with opened arms and answered to all of our curiosities. The school system is what I found to be the most different thing. It was a good exercise to see and to deduce the similarities and the differences in culture, tradition, and as I have mentioned the learning system. A big difference was the area that the school specializes in – grammar. Our school has 4 sections: philology, social science, mathematics-informatics and natural sciences, which I’m studying. That means that the school has other equipment to help students better understand what they are learning about; they had big language laboratories with laptops to help student sit Cambridge exams easier. It also had biology and chemistry labs, which we don’t have at the moment due to the fact that our school is under construction.
Moreover, the people were opened and so fun to be around and I am more than grateful for meeting them and getting to spend time with them. It helped me develop my understanding and to be more aware of the difficulties that women are facing everywhere. I loved the workshops especially the first one, presented by Charita CZ. It helped me better understand that there are more categories of abuse and violence around the world and I was made aware of all the projects and steps that are taken in order to help the victim get out of the abusive environment. To sum it all up I am happy that not only did I broaden my horizons academically, but I have also got the chance to connect with a lot of people and to tie beautiful and hopefully long lasting ones. It was an amazing experience and I hope that I can go trough it again! -Stanciu Delia-Andreea Grade: 11thE 3. Preda Michelle’s Experience: When I was selected to be part of the mobility to Czech Republic, I was not completely sure what to expect. I was excited about going abroad and about seeing people I met in the mobility here, in Romania. But I could only hope everything was going to go as well as here. I believe this experience taught me more about the different cultures I met with, from traditional dances to food and life style. Now I can see how similar all of them are to ours. The city we went to is called Ceske Budejovice, a city that blew my mind with its incredible architecture, from streets to buildings. I felt at home in a city I have never been in. The little shops at the ground floor of each historical building gave the city a special feeling of coziness and safety. I could of walked hours on end on the streets of Ceske Budejovice without getting tired of the sights in front of me; I find this city a city where u can lose all your worries in. I also felt similar in Prague, the capital city. I felt mesmerized by the incredible Charles Bridge and the beautiful squares of the city. The romantic architecture gave me even more of the feeling of freedom and happiness that I felt in the first city. I would want to go back any time and relive the experiences I have lived in that one week. Also, the hosts made me feel welcomed in their home and not like a stranger. I am so grateful for having the opportunity to make friends in different parts of the world and I am very happy that I was able to see them once more. I felt sad when I needed to say goodbye to people I started to make friendships with. When I met again with people I used to know, I felt even more at home and meeting them again seemed to me just like talking to an old friend. I am also thankful for being able to try new foods from many different cultures in only one week’s time. I found out that Czech food is very similar to ours and this made me feel closer to home.
I firmly believe this experience helped me understand more about women’s rights in different countries. I was able to see that even though it is an on-going fight for equality, things are changing more and more each day, step by step. Overall, this experience gave me the opportunity to grow and understand more about myself and the world I live in and I will forever be grateful for having the chance to experience this. -Preda Michelle Grade: 11th E 4. Banu Iris-Ana-Maria’s Experience: To be completely honest I was anxious about the project. I had been in multiple erasmus exchanges as a preteen, but this was my first in highschool and I didn't know what to expect. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised. My memory has always been hazy, but what I remember is waiting for the plane in the Romanian airport and trying (and actively failing) to get to know the other girls I'd be staying with. The flight was mostly calm, only a few turbulences and when we arrived at the Czech airport there was a group of girls waiting for us. One of them was named Vendy, who showed us around the city (and kindly waited for us to take 1000 pictures). I'm sure the places I visited where beautiful and full of history, but every roadtrip we went on, i was exited to go back to the Czech school. It was so big and new, full of positive energy and the activities were fun too. Actually, the activities were my favourite part, as they challanged my creative side and allowed me to speak with students from the other countries. My favourite one by far was making poems, because I discovered I am actually pretty good at rhyming and I got movie recommendations from my teammates. Life with five other people, even for a week, was chaotic to say the least (but in a good way!). We were actually afraid of someone entering the confines of our room because everything was everywhere. But, putting aside the mess we created it was very enjoyable! We played music and sung and danced, made jokes, lost wallets, couldn't sleep due to colds, all that fun stuff! The food was questionable to say the least. But I also didn't have big expectations to begin with. From bloody chicken to soup that tasted like ketchup and fake polenta, it was a surprise with every dish! At least the breakfast was enjoyable (when we were awake for it). I am proud to admit that I left Czech Republic with more friends than I had entered with. From the Romanian team to Vendy and the rest of the Czech group + the Italians (that I had
actually dined with) and from the Turkish team to some of the Polish students, I think I've made some progress in my social skills. I honestly had the time of my life and I did not want to leave the Czech Republic on the last day. They could've forgot me there and I wouldn't have had a problem. I enjoyed myself in the project and I would gladly go in another if I have the chance! -Banu Iris-Ana-Maria Grade: 10th H 5. Anghel Andreea’s Experience: Erasmus+ is an unforgattable experience that I will happily experience it again. Everyone told me that Erasmus is one of the best experience you can have in your life and as all other good experiences you have to try it for yourself to feel it.I was extremely excited about going to Czech Republic and I can surely affirm that it was by far one of the best experience I have always had. At first glance I can say that Czech Republic is a really appealing country.The architecture is really eye catching ,time is passing by really quick there because there are a lot of beautiful things to see. We stayed in Ceske Budejovice,a city in the South Bohemian Region.I was extremely impressed by the small detailes which surround the whole city.perssonaly I was also impressed by their school system,they have a lot of classes designed specifically almost for all the subjects.I liked that thei have the opportunity to choose on what subjects they want to focus on in their last years of school Forming friendships with foreign people was not as hard as I imagined.I was surprised to be claimed with so much warm.I got the chance to change my opinions about people and to learn a few things about everyone’s culture.Learning about other nationalities culture has also brought me more respect for them and there countries.Our host,made sure every moment that everyone was allright and they gave us a really good time.Also my family host welcomed me with a warm atmosphere and much love. I can say that I thruthly had a wonderful experience and if I will have the chance I will repeat it with open arms.Erasmus+ has opened my eyes and made me realized how beautiful it is the life we live. -Anghel Andreea Grade: 11thE
6. Stoica Sinziana’s Experience: I am going to be honest and say that I don’t even know from where to start ,so I will try my best to describe in the most realistic way my experience from Ceske Budejovice. I am going to start talking about how scared I felt when I was thinking about staying in a room with 5 different girls which I didn’t know quite well, but from the moment that we saw eachother and start talking I felt like I have known them forever.Not only that we get along well but we also had a lot of fun by making stupid jokes and spreading our life drama.I was also pleased by how well the teachers took care of us and that they succeded in creating a friendship with us. What has really impressed me about all the trip was there school and how they let the kids prioritize the subjects they want to study further in college. Also other thing that has caught my eye was the fact that they had special laboratories for each scientific subject. Besides the school the kids we worked with were lovely.I wouldn’t have imagined myself interacting with so many different personalities but in my surprise I had the chance to also make friends change different opinions and trying to understand others point of views.Talking with them and finding more about their traditions had made me see them different and understanding them better. The cite was impressive full of old vintage buildings.I had the chance to see a little bit of the out town as my host was staying far from the city center.Ceske Budejovice is a beautiful city but it doesn’t compare to the capital Prague which was by far my favorite part to visit. I would totally recomand an Erasmus+ project to everybody because it s an unique experience which will develope your social skills and make you socialize better .I cant express how grateful I am for living that moments and experience all the joy everybody had and I would repeat the experience undoubtedly. -Stoica Sinziana Grade: 11thE