Sunday November 27th 2016
Finally, the big day - Sunday - was here. We
were all waiting for the arrival of our guests. The excitement was almost unbearable.
Who will come? What will they look like? Will they be nice people? All those
questions went through our heads until finally, with a little bit of delay, our
guests from Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Slovenia and Italy entered the
room.
The group split up and we welcomed them nervously in English. But since they were really exhausted from their journey, we couldn't talk too much with them and decided to continue the next day.
The group split up and we welcomed them nervously in English. But since they were really exhausted from their journey, we couldn't talk too much with them and decided to continue the next day.
Monday November 28th 2016
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| Photo by Philip Lamble |
After having
breakfast we went to school. At school we met all the other students and talked
a lot. There were many interesting topics to discuss. Hearing what going to
school is like in other countries was very interesting. Also our programme was
exciting. In the beginning we introduced ourselves and spoke about our home
countries. Afterwards we continued working in smaller groups.
Tuesday November 29th 2016
On Tuesday,
one of our most busy days, we started with a little quiz by our Finnish
students and we all had the chance to win delicious Finnish sweets. After
working with our pre-tasks for a little while we were joined by the teachers
Mr. Stangl and Mr. Wolf who taught us a song containing all the languages we
speak. Straight after the lunch break we headed for the UN-Headquarters where
we had a tour and learnt many interesting facts about the work of the United
Nations. Shortly after, it was already time for dinner so we all chose from our
favourite fast food at Schwedenplatz to gain some energy for a walk through the
Schönbrunn zoo. There we were able to observe animals such as lions, penguins,
wolves and many more with the aid of night vision binoculars. We were guided by
two very friendly members of the zoo staff who gave us a lot of information and
answered all our questions concerning both the zoo and the animals.
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| Photo by Philip Lamble |
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| Photo by Erika Carena |
Wednesday November 30th 2016
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| Photo by Erika Carena |
On Wednesday it was our Italian students’ turn
to do the warm-up. Afterwards we started working on the topic “National
diversity, cultural stereotypes, where am I from?”. This program was managed by
the teachers of the Danish and Italian schools. It was about prejudice and how
to deal with it as well as about the situation in our countries. We also talked
about how we see our country and what we know about other countries. After this
we performed the song that we had rehearsed the day before, in which we
included all the languages of our visitors. We had a short lunch break,
followed by a program organized by the Slovenian and Polish teachers. It was
about everyone’s individual personality. In small groups we talked about our
everyday-life and how we are doing. Then we practiced our flash mob with music
and dance and spent the rest of the day with our families to get to know our
guests better.
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| Photo by Philip Lamble |
Thursday December 1st 2016
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| Photo by Erika Carena |
On
Thursday the students from Poland and Slovenia started our day with a warm-up
activity. Afterwards we had a well-prepared programme on the topics “personal
identity” and “cultural diversity”. In small groups we brainstormed ideas for
different terms connected to these topics. In our groups we had the chance to
exchange lots of ideas and discuss them intensely. Later we wrote short poems
and shared them in class.
After
lunch we went to „Dialogue in the Dark“. We were split up into smaller groups
again and everyone was provided with a white stick. And then our tour in pitch black
darkness started. Without seeing anything, we had to overcome a couple of
obstacles and master everyday situations. It was very interesting to experience
what it must feel like being blind, and it was astonishing to find out what
blind people manage to do every day without any help from somebody else.
After
our tour we went back home and spent the rest of the evening with our guests.
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| Photo by Erika Carena |
Friday December 2nd 2016
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| Photo by Philip Lamble |
On
Friday the students from Denmark organised a warm-up activity. We were split up
into smaller groups and then performed little scenes of things that annoy us
a lot during our everyday life. In the morning we watched
videos about patriotism and worked on this topic in more depth. We also
analysed the cultural differences between „man“ and „woman“ in our different
countries. Afterwards we performed our flash mob for all the other students at
our school. Then we had the afternoon off, so we could decide what to do with
our guests here in Vienna. Some took a ride on the Riesenrad (a tall Ferris wheel),
for example, and others stayed at home to bake cookies together with their host
family. Later in the afternoon we again met in school to go to a bowling alley
together. After this fun evening, unfortunately, we had to say good-bye to each
other. Even though we were sad and shed some tears, we were also grateful that
we were given the opportunity to participate in this project and to be part of
this great experience.
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| Photo by Erika Carena |
