After visits to Challans in France, Pisa in Italy and Nikopol in Bulgaria, it was recently the turn of San Andrea School to host a group of 43 teachers and students from France, Italy, Bulgaria and Poland as part of the Comenius project Building Bridges Using the Five Senses. The project aims to teach the students to appreciate life’s blessings.

During the three-day visit toMalta, the local teachers and students did their best to showcase Malta’s cultural heritage.

Visits were organised to Valletta and Mdina, to appreciate the island’s historic and architectural heritage. In Valletta they visited St John’s Co-Cathedral and the Malta 5D audiovisual experience.

A day trip to Gozo included visits to Ġgantija Temples, the Cittadel, Ta’ Kola Windmill, the Azure Window and Fungus Rock.

On the final day, all the students took part in a culinary activity during which they showed each other how to prepare dishes typical of their region. A get-together was then held during which the participants were able to taste each other’s food and discuss the respective recipes. Some of the local dishes and snacks prepared included stuffed marrows and cheesecakes (pastizzi).

The school’s guests described their visit to Malta on the project blog A Trip of A Lifetime.

The project has offered a myriad of opportunities, many memories to be cherished, new friendships and a unique learning experience.

Lifelong learning programmes such as Comenius give participants the opportunity to understand what it means to be a proud citizen of one’s country. They learn that although similar in some aspects, all countries and their people are different but this diversity makes each country unique and beautiful.

http://buildingbridges-comenius2012-2014.blogspot.com