LTT in Massafra

Project Meeting in Massafra, Italy

The mobility in Italy took place from 20th to 25th March 2022. This period was still characterised by issues related to the pandemic; in fact the strict Italian anti-Covid laws did not allow the participation of the Serbian group, to the great regret of all the Erasmus partners.

The groups arriving from Poland, Spain, Slovakia and Turkey were welcomed in the afternoon of Sunday 20th March and accommodated in different B&Bs in the city of Massafra. On Monday 21st March there was the welcome day at “De Amicis-Manzoni” school. The music teachers of the school performed a small concert with famous Italian classical music and the headteacher Rosa Favale, the Erasmus coordinator Grazia Orlando welcomed all the foreign guests. Even the Mayor of Massafra and the Councillor for Education were there to greet the various groups and wish a happy stay in Italy. Immediately afterwards, the pupils of the secondary school performed traditional songs and dances from Italy and the Apulia region.

After the initial ceremony, the foreign teachers had a short meeting with the Italian colleagues in the principal’s office, while the students were involved in games and activities within the school: an art workshop for the creation of pendants and necklaces with natural resins, a volleyball game with mixed groups of Italian and foreign students, and group works in the computer lab. Here the students created posters and decalogues on the importance of energy saving.

The afternoon was dedicated to a guided tour in San Marco’s ravine in Massafra to discover the rupestrian village of “Santa Marina”.

In the following days the various groups could discover the artistic and cultural heritage of the Apulia region, by visiting the town of Alberobello, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with its particular stone houses with cone-shaped roofs. In Polignano a mare the guests could admire the beauty of this city on the Adriatic coast with its high cliffs where every year an important diving championship is held. In the Salento area, and particularly in Lecce, the Erasmus participants could come into contact with the baroque art of the churches and the remains of the old Roman amphitheatre; moreover, they could visit the port, the cathedral and the castle of Otranto, the easternmost point of Italy.

A truly engaging moment of the project was held on the afternoon of Wednesday 23rd March when foreign students were hosted at the home of several Italian families. Here the Erasmus students discovered the habits, the traditions and the food prepared by families for them.

The day of Thursday 24th March was dedicated to the discovery of the marine fauna in the Ionian Sea and the analysis of the problems related to climate change and the impact of human activities on the marine habitat. The various teams were able to observe on board a catamaran the different species of seabirds and the breeding of mussels in the sea. In addition, inside the Museum of the sea in Taranto the guests could deepen their knowledge on the different cetacean species and dolphins that populate the Ionian coast, and watch movies on the subject with augmented reality. After this engaging experience, the groups could spend some hours in the important museum of MarTa in Taranto admiring the remains from the old Greek town and the precious jewels collection.

On Thursday evening the final farewell dinner was held with the ceremony of the delivery of the certificates to all participants and final greetings among teachers and students.