Now that we are back at home, we had the chance to reconsider what the whole Comenius-Project meant for us.

We think that we speak for everybody when we say that we often think back to the time we were in Portugal, the time when the Comenius project was at its best.

For us the project was something great to experience. Also all the activities we did before visiting Portugal to prepare ourselves and to learn more about other cultures were an enjoyable thing to do in school. We had the opportunity to deal with other countries in a different and more interesting way; not only in class but in a group of people and with the constant chance to directly stay in contact with this countries. It was a motivation to know that we would possibly meet people from the countries we talked about.

And finally meeting them in Portugal was a great way to finish the project, because now, honestly, we don’t want it to be over. Isn’t that good?

We really enjoyed the time in Portugal.

It was nice to meet people of our age from Portugal, England and Poland.

All the new experiences we’ve made are still present in our daily life now.

It was really, really interesting to get to know different life-styles.

The time we stayed in the school was, for us, the best time during our visit.

We noticed that school in Portugal is in a way quite the same as in Germany but also completely different. For example the school was smaller than ours and the lessons we were able to join differed from ours. The teachers seemed to be closer to their students but also not very strict at the first view. However, the biggest thing we learned is how easy it is to get along with adolescents from different countries. It was great to talk with all of you and to get to know you. The nice people we’ve met make us feel like we want to repeat this travel and if ever there is a chance to do it again we will agree.

In our eyes this project was a great success for everybody and brought us closer to people from “all over the world“ and took us far away from our worries we had in the first moments. Of course there were some strange situations when everybody was nervous but in the end it was worth it. The project taught us that these feelings are nothing to worry about and we want to say thank you to all the people who made this possible and especially to the teachers and students in Portugal who welcomed us very nicely. Hopefully there will be a possibility to meet again or to pass these experiences on to many other people.

Carolin, Louisa and Sandy, 10^th grade, for the German students

The project certainly was a great success - thanks to the creative ideas and the tireless work especially of the coordinating team. So let me say thank you to our Catalan colleagues on behalf of the German team. Our students greatly enjoyed the various tasks, competitions and in particular those projects that allowed them to compare their own lifestyle, living conditions, traditions, etc. with those of their fellow students from across Europe. My impression is that the students involved in the project have indeed overcome their stereotypes and have actually become much more interested in the way people in other European countries live than they used to be before. The fact that a couple of long lasting email or other forms of contacts have been established proves that friendships can develop that way even if the starting point might seem a little awkwardly arranged in the eyes of our students.

To have experienced an enjoyable, well organized Comenius project and – as my students have already pointed out – meeting each other during our wonderful stay in Portugal will most certainly have a lasting positive effect on our students’ attitude towards Europe. Thank you to all those who helped to make this possible! I really hope we will somehow stay in touch…

Annette, for the German team