Project „It´s our world – take care of it“
Activity 3 Clean Water and Sanitation, Life below Water
Tursi, Italy March 14 – 18, 2022 Life below water
Monday
In the morning we went to school in Tursi, (south of Italy – Basilicata region). Our school was represented by 8 students and 4 teachers.
We presented our schools and presentations about the main topic water – Czechs about importance of water and using mineral water in the CR, Spanish about drought problem, Polish about contamination of water – causes and solutions, Italian about coastal erosion and sea. Then we went for a school tour and met Italian teachers and students.
In the afternoon we went by bus to the old part of Tursi – Rabatana which is called the city of Ghosts because almost nobody lives here. In the past there was earthquake and landslide, and people left their homes. Now there is the chance that people will move back.
From Rabatana there is a good view at Tursi.
Tuesday
In the morning we went to WWF (animal health care station).
We saw some videos about wildlife and wild animals in their environment in this area. Then we went to the beach and while we were walking, we saw wildflowers typical for this region. On the beach the guide showed us a turtle nest which was dangerously close to the sea and the guide from WWF showed us how they move the eggs to the safer place where they create a new and safer nest for the eggs (they can’t be damaged by water), in the end he told us it was all only a simulation. The exhibition in WWF was very educational and we learned new things about turtles and their style of living.
After lunch we travelled to the city Matera (capital city of culture 2019, the oldest part is UNESCO heritage) where we went sightseeing.
First, we visited underground where we could see an old rainwater collection system.
Then we started our tour around Matera and first we stopped at Piazza San Giovanni (constructed in
4 different artistic styles), after that we walked around the old town where the latest James Bond was filmed.
We have some charming memories from Matera’s sightseeing.
Wednesday
In the morning we were making presentations or videos about topic “water” to be ready to present them on Friday. In the afternoon we did “treasure hunt” in international teams around Tursi. We had to complete
11 tasks, some tasks were hard, but we completed them all. The last task was meeting Mayor of the town Tursi. We presented him our project. The last part of the program was visiting Policoro history museum, where we saw some interesting ancient artefacts from Bronze age.
Thursday
On Thursday, we went to Maratea the place on the Tyrrhenian Sea. One of the main characteristics of Maratea is the variety of its landscapes, varying from breath-taking sea views to wooded hillsides and majestic mountains which sweep down to the sea creating steep cliffs. We went up a hill to see a statue of Christ the Redeemer, or the Christ of Maratea, which was built of pure Carrara marble in 1965. It is located on the top of Monte San Biagio, right in front of the basilica. From there, we had an amazing view of the sea and Maratea. After we ate at a restaurant where we tried some seafood pasta, we were split up into 3 groups and went on a boat ride on the sea – it was amazing. On the way we talked about sea, fishing and problems connecting with it.
Friday
The main goal for this day was to present what we had been working on Wednesday. The main topics were water problems and solutions of them. At the end of each group’s project, we showed the others 2 photos and a video from the Treasure Hunt. After that, we took part in a Kahoot quiz as national teams (Czechia vs Poland vs Spain). After that the headmistress of the school and Italian project coordinator started giving us our attendance certificates.
Next on the program for students was lunch in Italian families. The families were very nice, and the choice of food was amazing – e.g., spicy roasted vegetables, pasta with tomato sauce, a thinly breaded beef schnitzel with picante sausages, desserts, which looked like cream puffs. After lunch we had to say goodbye to the Spanish group, who was already leaving and with the Italian student group. Czech and Polish group stayed with Italian teachers who took us to go sightseeing in the Calanchi badlands and the church of Anglona. The last dinner was for Central European very unusual! On our plates there were shrimps and little squids! I’m positive that most of us were eating that food for the first time, but as far as I know, most of us liked it and were surprised about how delicious the food was, even though it looked kind of disgusting at first sight. It was the real end of the activity.
Students’ comments:
Jakub:
I must say I really enjoyed the whole trip to Italy. I didn´t expect the plan to be that good. I would rate it as the best place, the best for old Italian architecture was Matera, but for the best view at the mountains, village and the sea was Maratea, so these are two locations I really enjoyed.
I love Italian food and tasting in Italy was indescribable. We managed to know each other and enjoyed time spent together. Still, I learned new things about environment, many other things and tasted a lot of new food, so I am satisfied. Thank you!!
Vojta:
We were accommodated in a hotel, and I can´t complain about it. I really liked food and we had lot of it. The program was very exciting, but I did not like some activities. Other groups were mostly fine but some of them didn´t know English very well. Overall, I really enjoyed our trip.
Filip:
So, Tuesday was perhaps the best day in the whole week, because of Matera and overall, the relaxing atmosphere of the day. Wednesday was a bit stressful and exhausting day, because of the time we spent in school in Tursi and also the treasure hunt was difficult, but it was a good day overall.
Josef:
As a whole, I really enjoyed the Erasmus experience. I met new people, explored new places and saw a bit of the Italian education system. All the people there were polite and nice, eager to learn new things and willing to help others. It’s a pitty that the Spanish and Polish groups weren’t good at English…
I absolutely loved the boat ride! But what I didn’t like was the Treasure Hunt activity. Even though the concept seemed quite fun, it sadly wasn’t organised well. The only other things I didn’t like were the weather on Friday and the long bus rides to and from Maratea.
Dominik:
Erasmus was a good experience. I loved the trips that Italian teachers prepared for us. First days were uncomfortable for me, since I am introverted, and it was hard to talk to foreign students, which I barely knew. It was weird to talk in English at first, but I got used to it. The accommodation was nice, it was a shame we couldn’t go in the pool at the hotel. The food was great, and I loved that they took us to different restaurants to eat. On Erasmus, I learned something about the importance of water.
It was great to go somewhere and learn about the situation which the country suffers. Basilicata is one of the poorer provinces of Italy and has water pollution problems. On Erasmus, we discussed solutions to this situation. My favourite trip was to WWF recovery station in Policoro. Even though we didn’t see the sea turtles, because they went to warmer seas, it was cool to learn about them and the process of saving them.
Adam:
What I liked was to meet new people, I got to talk to them about their countries, their culture, what they have what they don’t have etc., it was fun and educational program which I will remember for a long time. What
I liked the most was when we went to boat to explore open sea. We saw some interesting structures made by nature and by people which were the most interesting thing for me.
What I didn’t like was the treasure hunt event. It was unorganized and we didn’t even know what to do. The Italian people just went for a half an hour somewhere and we didn’t even know where.
Jakub:
So, I liked this project Erasmus, I enjoyed all days, and the atmosphere was friendly and helpful. During this week I learned something new about Italy and new vocabulary a bit. I met new friends and cultures. I liked our hotel; it was near the sea. The best experience was when we were in Maratea and saw Christ the Redeemer of Maratea. The only thing which I hated is sea food.
Samuel:
For me, Italy is simply one of the most beautiful countries in the world. I know I haven’t travelled around the world, but I know it’s the prettiest. I really liked Italy. They were all very friendly. Polish, Spanish, Italians, and we Czechs had always something to say. I really liked everything there and I have no complaints.
