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Erasmus+ learning, teaching, training activity in Marbella, Malaga, Spain

Sunday, 3rd April 2016

All partners arrived at the airport in Malaga, to take a pre-booked bus to Marbella.
Austria arrived early in the morning, next was Germany at 10 am, later on France and the last partner to arrive was Greece.
Most partners had set off early in the morning, Germany just after midnight, and France even spent the night before in Toulouse.
In Marbella, the host families were waiting for us at the bus station and our students received a very warm and kind welcome. Germans are not accustomed to kisses as a way of greeting somebody, and were very surprised. So except for one student who lost his travel document and travelled the next day, all arrived on time. Teachers and students used the day to explore the lovely old city of Marbella and of course the beach.
                 

Monday, 4th April 2016

At 8:15 we met at the school and our students were enthusiastic about their stay in the host families and Marbella. Some students had even been out for a meal with their families the day before, others had been invited to a boat trip. They were made to feel a part of the family and nobody showed any signs of being home-sick.
Divided into groups, Spanish students gave all visitors a tour of the school, speaking very good English and answering our many questions.
At 11:15 it was break time and students had breakfast with their host partners, sitting out in the school grounds eating their lunch pack or buying sweets and soft drinks at the school`s own kiosk.
Teachers were spoiled - the school is specialized in training chefs and waiters, and there is a little teachers` restaurant, where everything from fresh fruit juice to pizza, salads and even deserts is served by students who are taking part in an apprenticeship.
There was lots of talking and laughing going on, in Spanish, French and of course English.
Next we had an important program point: Every school introduced us to their system of education and of course their own particular school.
Each group of Erasmus+ students had prepared power point presentations, showing us diagrams and tables with charts of possible ways and opportunities to achieve qualifications in their country.
There were many similarities, but of course several differences, for example the specialization of the Spanish schools, where pupils can achieve a school leaving certificate, and then go on to do their bachelor or start an apprenticeship at that same school, in this case becoming a qualified chef or waiter. Once the bachelor or the basic training is achieved, students go on to further education, to university or out into the world of work.
The presentation of our individual schools caused great interest, pupils were listening in awe, as the French presented Mrs. Faust, who has 6 helpers to tell off badly behaved students, discipline them for forgetting their homework and generally making sure nobody misbehaves. The teachers from other countries would all like to have a Mrs. Faust at their own school.
Germany has a slide and a climbing room, which was a surprise to the students of other countries. Austria takes their students ice-skating and to theatre and musical performances. The students from each country presenting their school spoke very good English (though not all of the students thought so themselves) and in general, they were very brave to speak in front of about 50 students and 15 teachers.
On this day we had also planned to work on a wish list for students of all countries, which was to be presented to the mayor of each town and city. Internationally mixed groups of students talked to each other in English, first of all comparing their own city with the one of the partners, and eventually a list of possible wishes was drawn up.
The last step was to draw up a list of wishes of all mixed groups, this was achieved via a common wish list created with the help of a whiteboard, so all students could follow the proceedings.
In the afternoon, students went home to their host families, and many of them went to the local shopping centre, as this Monday was one of the very few wet days in Marbella. There have been periods of 1 year and more without rain, so this rain was welcomed by many local residents.
 

Tuesday, 5th April 2016

As every day, we met at school at 8:15 am. Students were divided into 2 groups and had a video and film cutting workshop or participated in lessons such as P.E., which is taught outside in a sports ground with roof, or lessons of French or German, or IT. Teachers also took part in the video workshop, to ensure that everyone is up to scratch concerning this technology, and also to make sure that future tasks in our work program are easily achieved.
At 10 am a reporter from the German newspaper Costa del Sol Nachrichten arrived and interviewed the German coordinator Mrs. Stebbing as well as Marian Gomez, the Spanish coordinator. He interviewed some pupils and watched part of the video workshop. Later on he took some photos in several locations. He informed us that about 100000 German residents are in Marbella and adjoining towns.
At 12:45 a bus took us to the 5 star hotel Don Carlos, where we received a guided tour through the different parts of the hotel, the pool, the various lounges, the magnificent outside gardens and the laundry in the basement. As expected, the beach was the pupils` favourite place to be. Some pupils enquired about prices and costs of staying at this high class hotel, others were interested in the skills needed to get a job. All in all it was a special opportunity to look behind the scenes of such a high class hotel, getting a small impression of what goes on, what jobs and professions are needed and what is done to ensure that things are running smoothly and hotel guests are satisfied.
At night, all teachers and coordinators met at a local restaurant to talk about the Erasmus+ program and of course to get to know each other better. It was very interesting to find out about different teaching requirements, employment conditions and of course we communicated in English, thus enhancing our language skills.
 

Wednesday, 6th of April 2016

Early in the morning the students had a rally through the old town in Marbella, again the Spanish teachers showed us a perfect organization, with complete lists of international groups that had to find their way through Marbella and answer different questions about the place, and the groups were equipped with a map and a quiz sheet.
At 10 am we went to the town hall in Marbella, where the mayor was granting us a reception to greet the foreign visitors, find out about our Erasmus+ project and receive the wish list.
The magnificent building with its historic wooden beams, clever carvings and golden ornamental decorations fascinated many of our pupils. They took a seat in the audience and the teachers were allowed to sit in the elevated rows of seats normally reserved for politicians.
The mayor, the director of the historical museum, the head of the youth offices and the headmaster of the school IES Sierra Blanca as well as the overall coordinator Mrs. Stebbing stood at the top row and everyone held a little speech, always being translated in either English or Spanish to make sure everyone was able to follow the proceedings.
Two students from Spain and Greece then presented our wish list to the Mayor, who promised he would do all he could to realize some of our wishes.
Next, the students and teachers had a little tour through some of the council offices, especially the rooms with a historical background and old wall paintings. Furthermore the director of the museum led us to a wall outside the city halls, where he explained some of the history of Marbella and some of the fights and attacks it had to endure in the past.
Soon it was time to get the bus t take us to Puerto Banus, a very well known harbor for the rich and famous. Here the students had to do another rally and so managed to explore the little harbour city and see all places of significance.
Soon it was time for the students to return to their host families, and the teachers were led into the school`s own restaurant, which is open twice a week and is very popular, serving set menus that vary and are advertised online. That day "Menu Galicia" was served to us, and it consisted of 6 courses of star quality. It was interesting to see that the waiters were watched by their teacher and any little misfortune was noted and written down. We could not fault anything, it was a wonderful meal of outstanding quality and the waiter service was excellent. We even had some oranges peeled to perfection - amazing.
We were invited by the school and say a big thank you for a very special and memorable occasion.

Thursday, 7th of April 2016

In the morning the bus took us to an area with dunes, where plants and beach are preserved and looked after. It is a nature conservation area and there are signs with do`s and don'ts that visitors have to adhere to. Pupils played football on the beach and many made so-called selfies in front of the sea and dunes.
Next we walked to the Andalucia Lab, which is doing research in digital technologies, that can be used for tourism in the area and are also available for workshops and private persons, who can rent part of the facilities.
In the end the pupils played a mulitplayer virtual quiz game in competing groups, testing their newly aquired knowledge about digital technology and having lots of fun.
Returning to school we were invited to Paella - the garden was turned into an open air restaurant and tables were laden with soft drinks and crisps, while 3 chefs were busy preparing paella in 2 enormous paella pans. Pupils and teachers watched step by step and are all determined to make their own original paella in their home country.
It was delicious and communication was flowing, teachers were in deep communication, students were laughing and chatting. As we noticed, there were also some new international relationships, with two German and Greek student couples.
 

Friday, 8th April 2016

Today it was an early start, as the bus took us to the city of Malaga.
We walked through steep territory until we reached a famous elevated point where we had a wonderful view about all of Malaga and its sights, even the bull fight arena.
Next we walked til we arrived in the center of the old town of Malaga, where we visited the historic castle Alcazaba. Brilliant views and lots of history made a lasting impression.
After some free time in the city, we visited the Picasso Museum. We had two groups and each had a guide speaking English and leading us through the museum. It was a wonderful experience, and all pupils paid attention, because the guides presented all facts in a way that was appealing to young people`s interests. Soon there were lively discussions about Picasso`s intentions and students were trying to interpret the painter`s pictures.
Following this, students again had some free time and explored the old part of Marbella with some just sitting in the sun relaxing and taking photos.
Soon it was time to return to Marbella, where pupils spent their last night with their host families and their new friends, most of them meeting at the beach and being picked up later by the host parents.
The teachers met at night in a restaurant, and reflected on the wonderful week everyone has had. All targets in our work program have been reached so far, the pupils are all getting on really well with each other and everyone is speaking English. Dishes were shared and tested, for example some little
fish that looked like blue and grey spaghetti. Soon it was time to say goodbye, as some of us were going to set off very early the next day, France at 3 am and Germany at 7 am.

We all had a brilliant time - a big thank you goes to everyone in Spain, the coordinator, the teachers, the pupils and of course the host families, who had even prepared a leaving present for their guests.