The travel to Poland

              Hello! I’m Lavcho – the mascot of Hristo Yassenov Secondary school for the Comenius project. This time we’ll travel to Poland. I’m to be accompanied by Mrs. Tsvetelina Ovcharova and Mr. Ventsislav Valov.

      First we flew to Vienna. From there we changed the plane – a little old – to Krakow. We departed by bus to the town of Strumień, near Katowice, Southern Poland. Together with us were another 11 colleagues: Brian and Neil from Cheltenham, England; Laura and Cheluis (remember him – he was the "true" cardinal, with whom I had a photo in Zaragoza) in Spain;

and Gabby, Edit, Neli, Orsi, Orsi № 2, Rita and Rózhi from Budapest, Hungary. We stayed in "Willa Rufina" hotel – small but tidy.

       In Powstańców Ślaskich  Primary School welcomed us very warmly.

      The school principal and the deputy mayor brought greetings.

      The school choir "Canzonetta" winner of national and international awards, greeted us with songs in Polish and English. In the school hall students from 5th and 6th grades gave a cultural program dedicated to the 96th anniversary of the restoration of the independence of the Polish state - on 11.11.1918.

       Especially exciting was the performance of children with special educational needs.

       Young performers gave us a lesson in Polish dances: polonez and mazurek. Students from class 2 and 6 showed us their customs for Easter and Christmas. We were particularly impressed by cleanliness maintained in the school by all 240 children from 1 to 6 grade.

     The next day we had a trip to the nearby towns and Pszczyna and Bielsko Biala. We were greatly impressed by the baroque castle museum, one of the characteristic sights of  Pszczyna.

        Last night we attended a ceremonial dinner at the medieval restaurant in the Stronghold of Pszczyna Knights. The staff had prepared a trip back in time - a medieval setting, fashioned dances and games, even chivalrous duel with swords.
       At the end we said goodbye to our hosts. We all were sad, but promised to meet again in February 2015, when directors and project coordinators from the other 9 countries will come to visit Etropole.

Trip to Croatia

Hello again!

It’s been more than a year now since our Partnership started. Well, after the good summer rest it’s time for new meetings and activities. But first we need to share what we have done so far and plan our future joint adventures.

So here I am again on a trip to Croatia, where the third P&R meeting is going to be. This time we are travelling by coach, which is lucky for me as I usually get airsick on the plane.

My company now is quite large: Mrs Svetla Valova- the headteacher, Mrs Hristina Kalaydzhieva- the coordinator, Mrs Maria Barkovska- a primary English teacher, Mrs Tsvetanka Hristova- primary teacher and Mrs Rumyana Nikolova- primary teacher. The journey was rather long- it took us 12 hours to get to the Croatian capital Zagreb late at night and after a couple of hours of waiting and refreshment, we are able to catch the first bus from Zagreb to Sisak.

Croatians are very friendly and I can understand their language quite well, which makes me feel like home in this beautiful country. Hotel Panonija accommodates us and soon I meet the other mascots with their teachers in the lobby. Here is Kristina from Katarina Zrinska school is here to welcome us and  take us to Mečenčani. Our partner school in Croatia is about 35 kilometers away from Sisak, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina.

By way of tradition, the hosts have prepared a wonderful welcome with a delicious dinner.

To my surprise the food here is almost the same as ours- tasty sarmi in cabbage leaves, mashed potatoes and pastry desserts, some of which are similar to Bulgarian banitsa. Then Kristina tests our knowledge about Croatia with a nice presentation. The warm evening goes on with Croatian dances, presented by the staff. Clearly, our hosts enjoy having fun, just like us, Bulgarians.

Day two starts with a marvelous welcome ceremony. Our hosts make us feel like real VIPs as they have invited representatives of the local state administration and reporters from the local TV.

But there is nothing like the beautiful singing, playing traditional instruments and drama that the pupils from Katarina Zinska School have prepared for us. Congratulations to all participants and teachers.

After this splendid performance we are divided into groups and taken around the school which is small but very cozy and inviting the children to learn and broaden their horizons. We have the chance to visit classes of Croatian language, Maths, History, Geography, English and Quilling.

 In the afternoon our teachers set down to work. They need to present what they have done during the second semester of the Partnership.

Our hosts have prepared another surprise in the break. Croatian people, just like us, pay honour to their land, to its gifts and blessings. We were able to see a short presentation on their traditional Bread Day. I can still feel the wonderful  taste of the home-made bread, cookies and buns.

Work is going on in the morning on the next day. Now teachers are planning on what to do next semester.

In the afternoon we are taken to Hrvatska Kostajnica, where we become part of the spectacular Chestnut festival. I am amazed at how Croatian people keep their traditions and revive Medieval past.

The next day is a day of departure. We must say goodbye to our friends and set off on the long journey back home. After a few hours walking around the centre of Zagreb, which turns out to be one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen, we get on the coach to Bulgaria.

Now I am really excited as I am looking forward to welcoming all my friends in Etropole next February.

My trip to Trinec, Czech Republic

Hello, my dear friends!

I am Luvcho and I want to tell you about my trip to Trinec, Czech Republic.

On June, 12^th 2014 I got on the plane to Vienna, Austria, together with Mrs Tinka Tsolova, Mrs. Tsenka Boyajieva and Mrs. Rumyana Vutova.

Then we travelled by bus from Vienna to Brno, Czech Republic.

After that we went to Frydek Mistek. Magda, our kind host and Head of  Dany and Emila Zatopkovych Basic School in Trinec, was waiting for us at the bus station. She drove us to our hotel in Trinec.

After a short rest we went to the school.  We were welcomed very hospitably and exciting there by the teachers and the students. We enjoyed very much the programme which the students from the sports classes had prepared especially for us.

 

 

 

 Our Polish friends were also there. Together we walked round the school the next day.

 It was interesting for us to visit a lesson in Writing in the first grade, lessons in Computer studies, Biology and Art. We looked around the school and made many new friends.

 

 

 

 The Mayor of Trinec  was very kind and showed  special attention to us.

Next we visited the Steel factory in the town. The tour there was a real adventure. Even for a brave lion like me,  walking round the factory was a great challenge.

 We also went on a chair lift in the Yavorovy Mountain. The view there was wonderful. 

During our tour in the region we visited a candle-works. Our guide showed us how the candles are being made and coloured.

We also visited Rožnov – Open folk museum, not far from Trinec. From there I sent a real postcard to my friends in Etropole. I saw many old buildings where the atmosphere of ancient times still existed.

 

 

 

 On June, 15 2014 we departed to Bulgaria. Our Czech friends gave us as a present a mascot Emil and here we are together at Sofia Airport after an exciting trip and unforgettable experiences.

See you soon, my dear friends!

Luvcho