St Edward’s College in Cottonera has successfully concluded a two-year Comenius partnership programme with St Partiarh Evtimii Secondary School in Varna, on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast.
A highlight of the programme was a 12-day visit to Malta by a group of teachers and students from the Bulgarian school.
Among the many activities held was a visit to Dwejra in Gozo, the Maritime Museum, tours of Mdina and Valletta, for which Heritage Malta provided guides.
Other activities included a memorable trek from Golden Sands along the cliffs to Anchor Bay, and an intercultural evening at St Edward’s College with Maltese food dishes and Bulgarian traditional folk dancing.
College students and staff subsequently visited Bulgaria for a programme of activities that included ice-skating, swimming, a dolphin show and visits to several Orthodox monasteries.
The delegation also visited stunning Kaliakra, a long and narrow headland 60km northeast of Varna. The coast is steep with vertical cliffs reaching 70 metres down to the sea.
A popular legend about the place claims about 40 Bulgarian girls preferred to tie their hair together and jump into the Black Sea rather than be captured by the Ottomans. An obelisk dedicated to this legend at the entrance to the cape is called The Gate of the 40 Maidens.
Other highlights of the trip were horsemanship and archery lessons and a visit to the historical village and encampment complex of Fanagoriy, and to Queen Maria’s Palace and botanical gardens in Balchik overlooking the Black Sea.
As part of the programme St Edward’s College added some extra lessons in geography, art and the history of Bulgaria, together with some basic Bulgarian language lessons during the 2010-2011 academic year.
The programme was sponsored by the European Commission through the European Union Programmes Agency, Valletta.