Thursday 23 of
October finally came. Upon getting off the plane in Athens most of us couldn’t
help thinking we were somehow going back to the origins of our culture. The
Greek alphabet greeting us on walls and signs everywhere did nothing but
contribute to bringing back school day memories of ancient Greece history
lessons, with its deities and perfectly proportioned statues of beautiful men
and women.
The public
announcements at the airport were a bit of a surprise, though. To our ears it
was like Catalan or Spanish being spoken, only that in a way totally
incomprehensible to us. In fact, we came to find out that Greek has very
similar pronunciation to Catalan and Spanish, so the EOI Cornellà visitors were
able to replicate quite a few words in Greek with a reasonable degree of
accuracy. This made the whole mobility experience even more rewarding! This,
and Greek food too, of course! Niki – our hostess for the whole stay in Ellás –
already warned us on our first night in Athens: “You might well put on a few
pounds during your stay here.” And… some of us did.
So, after a
first taste of Greek cooking at a restaurant not far from the hotel we were
staying at we put an end to the first day with a longed-for visit to the
Acropolis just a few hours ahead of us. How exciting!
Friday 24 came
and brought the rain with it – galore. The awe-inspiring walk around the
Parthenon ruins had to be shortened because of the heavy rain. But no problem –
the visit to the recently-opened Acropolis Museum was equally fascinating and
gave us an insight into the wonders of ancient Greece.
A nice meal
followed and after that a little bit of an odyssey in its own right started.
Because of the heavy rainfall – unseen for the last 20 years, as we found out
after returning to Barcelona and being told by friends and family who had seen
it on the news – some roads were closed, and the otherwise two-hour trip to Tripoliss
became a seven-hour epic journey in a van. Well, we were on Homeric soil after
all! Luckily, a homely dinner at a cozy restaurant in Tripolis made everyone laugh
about the adventure-filled trip and was the perfect setting for a reunion with
all the Grundtvig partners. Day 2 was over now.
Saturday 25
started with the planned meeting at the hosts’ institution. What a lovely
school it is! We were shown around the several-floor building and into all the
classrooms. Honestly, we didn’t expect the school to be that big, so we were
marveled at the good job being done by our hosts to keep it all running so
professionally. It looked almost like a full-fledged, state-owned primary
school to us!
Well, after discussing
the development of the Communitek project so far and deciding on the next steps
to be taken and tasks to be carried out for the project, we set off on a day
trip around the Peloponnese.
A visit to a
cave, a newly-opened museum, the beautiful village of Vytina and a family-run
wine cellar – with the corresponding wine tasting tour – were a great way to
dive a bit into Greek culture. Pity we didn’t have more days to spend there!
We’ll go back to Greece for sure – everyone at EOI Cornellà agreed on that! A
farewell dinner in Tripolis and some dancing at a nearby disco bar – well, only
for those with still some battery power left! – completed Day 3.
Sunday 26 meant
getting up early, driving back to Athens and flying back home with our bags
full of little souvenirs, typical Greek candies – and lots of shared
experiences and knowledge acquired! Next station: Lapua!
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