Comenius Project

Culture guide

Intercultural dialogue through music

Meeting in Sandhausen, Germany

September 29th- October 3rd 2009

Sandhausen

is a municipality in the district of Rhein-Neckar-Kreis, in Baden-Württemberg,

Germany. It is situated 7 km south of Heidelberg.Heidelberg is a city in Baden-

Württemberg, Germany. As of 2008, over 145,000 people live within the city's

109 square kilometres (42 sq mi) area. Heidelberg is a unitary authority. The Rhein-

Neckar-Kreis rural district surrounds and has its seat in the city, but the city is not a

part of the district. Heidelberg lies on the river Neckar at the point where it leaves

its narrow, steep valley in the Odenwald to flow into the Rhine valley. 20 kilometres

(12 mi) northwest of Heidelberg, it joins the river Rhine at Mannheim. Heidelberg is

part of a densely populated region known as the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region.

Cultural Guide – Germany

Our Stay in Sandhausen

By Stanislava Kosárová (CZ)

This time the international dialogue

through music meeting was held in

Germany.

We all stayed in families and my host

family was really nice and kind; Franziska

and her sister were friendly.

We got a warm welcome in the school

as well. After that, two German

students held a well-prepared presentation on the town and

the surroundings. Later on we were singing the project songs

which I liked.

What else did I like about our stay in Sandhausen? The

program, of course, especially the

rally through Heidelberg. I liked

communicating with foreigners.

And, yes: typical German food was

really tasty. And last but not

least: fortunately, the concert

was a success.

The last day we went to a park in

Mannheim which was a good change

and relaxation, too. The way back

was exhausting but overall, the

trip was really worth it. Thanks to

all organizers!

Observations… by Tomáš Oakland (CZ)

It's odd, how different the world is, once you cross the

border. Communism It's odd, how different the world is,

once you cross the border. Communism has run amok in

the 40 years it has been stationed in the Czech Republic,

that's why the change you see on entering Germany is

enough to take your breath away.

Heidelberg is a town of near-angelic beauty. With

rich, pre-war architecture, an obvious great respect

for history and ancestry and an atmosphere to top

probably any city or town I have yet entered.

A beautiful as Heidelberg was, it was nothing to top

what we visited one day - the Chapel of Maulbronn.

This place squeezed me so tight to its chest that I

think I'm still left a piece of me there. When I sat

under a tree imagining I was Hermann Hesse, with

my legs stretched out in front of me and no worries

what-so-ever. Or a Cistercian monk going around my

business on the outlying fields and woods, exploring

the brewery, the abbeygrounds the whole town and

taking a drink out of the fountain.

Speyer Cathedral, another place of significance awes you when first you set Speyer

Cathedral, another place of significance awes you when first you set eyes on it. A

Cathedral it is, furthermore a kaiserdom if ever there was one. That's your first look,

the facade a magnificent as any. Magnificence, that is, in its simple form with no

unnecessary twirls and turrets. The inside of Speyer is still huge, but not as thrilling as

the outside, as what you see is, after all a Cathedral, the interior of which is not as

elaborate as the sheere Moby Dick outside. As we sat by the Rhine River, the only thing

we felt the lack of, on that lush, sunny afternoon was an ice-cream.

My Father once told me, that the Germans were

among the most friendly people in Europe. More

amiable, more genial and folksy, I didn't feel

half as self-conscious when talking to someone

on the street as I would in Brno. People aren't

so shy and self-conscious as here. No-one feels

silly when addressing a stranger. I've noticed

that in England, too. That's the Western world

showing itself. The world behind the Wall.

And that's what it is. Heidelberg, Maulbronn,

Speyer... all are places that could never exist on this

side of the Iron Curtain. That's the world no-one

could have imagined 30 years ago.

Germany vs the Czech Republic

by Tomáš Vrtek (CZ)

I have never thought that Germany is such a beautiful

and friendly country but I have changed my opinion. I

liked everything in Germany. When I arrived to

Germany, I was shocked how friendly the people were. I had had

this feeling from the very beginning to the end of our trip. In the

hotel, in which me and some other students were living during the

project, in restaurants, where we spent the evenings and finally in

the city – there was very good atmosphere everywhere. It was very

pleasant. When we, for example, needed to find out some

information and ask some people, they were very kind and if it was

possible, they gave us the information immediately. And I was

surprised that they were not angry. I am afraid that it is not the

same as in the Czech Republic. It is more unfriendly

here when compared with Germany and other

western countries.

Another surprise

was the hotel

where we were

living. It was very

comfortable. I

have already lived

in a lot of hotels in

the Czech Republic

but none of them was as good as the one in Germany.

It was a very good experience to see Germany. I would like to repeat it once more because I really enjoyed it.

Germany from a Different Perspective

By Kristýna Vaňková (CZ)

Before I went to Germany, I had

heard about their specific sense of

“ordnung” but I have to say that

later on I did not find any. I found

people there just as un/friendly as

in the Czech Republic and I think

that is what we have in common, we

are not always very friendly at first sight.

If I were to describe Germany in one word, I would definitely

say "green“.

I like the way they save PET bottles and use trams

and trains instead of cars. I also find the streets

and cities much cleaner than in our country.

I really liked all those old buildings (castle,

university, university library, church etc.) in

Heidelberg and actually all of the old buildings that

we were shown were really cool. And the cathedral in

Speyer was HUGE!

The European Concert on Friday was amazing; I was

surprised how many people came to see (hear) us. I

really enjoyed the trumpets that the FEG presented

and also the guys from Cyprus were good. I liked the

atmosphere there as well as the "afterparty“ which

was a bit sad as we had to say goodbye.

The FEG really

treated us well and I felt at home there. And since

we got to know each other on the very first day, it

was a great experience to see how much we are

alike and yet different Europeans. It was my first

time in Germany and I am sure I want to go back

again some time in the future!

Our Stay in Sandhausen

By Josef Patočka (CZ)

So, this is my report

about our trip to

Sandhausen, Germany,

as a part of the

Intercultural Dialogue through Music.

Because we all

managed to arrive at

the Main Station in

Brno on time, we were in Prague at about noon. After a short break in this gorgeous city,

we were all stuffed into a little but comfortable bus, which finally dropped us off at the

Heidelberg Main Station. From that place we were taken “home” by our host families. My

family was really nice and kind to me.

The school was much

bigger then ours. A

big canteen. A big

hall. A big school. And

an extraordinarily

nice teacher of Math.

We have also seen a

lot of regional sights.

Also, the final

concert was good;

especially the

Bulgarian performance was very good. It was all fine.

Our visit in Germany by Poniatowa

From 29th September to 3rd October, a delegation from Marshal Jozef Pilsudski

High School in Poniatowa took part in an international meeting within the Comenius

project, in Sandhausen, in Germany.

Our delegation, along with students and teachers from Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech

Republic, England, Germany, Italy, Poland and Slovenia met in Sandhausen within the

confines of the Comenius project “Intercultural Dialogue Through Music.” In

addition to the attending students, our dear teachers: Mrs. Anna Rosińska-Stola,

Mrs. Agnieszka Chamera and Mrs. Barbara Kramek, represented our town and the

southern part of our country, in Germany.

And what happened there – a participant’s account:

At night, from 28th on 29th September, another Comenius mobility began. This time

our group headed for the beautiful and picturesque town of Sandhausen – a town

located seven kilometers from Heidelberg, in the south-west part of Germany. We all

were in a good mood, so even the long and tiring travel didn’t manage to discourage us.

After twenty hours of bus travel, we were glad to see our host families waiting for

us. They took us to their homes just after our arrival.

On the first day of our stay in Germany, we visited the local school, where we

participated in Art classes led in English, during which we made EU flags. We also

learnt the national songs of our partnership countries, and in return, we treated our

German friends to some Polish. It caused numerous bursts of laughter since our ś,ć, ź turned out to be a real challenge for them.

In the afternoon we went to Heidelberg – a lovely town offering a breathtaking view

of the castle on the buttress. We were given a special assignment there: we had to

find some places in the town only by means of a town map. What’s more, we were to

fulfill some additional tasks in every place we had luckily found. It wasn’t easy,

however we managed to complete the route and learnt a lot about this lovely town.

The new day brought many new attractions. At first we went to Maulbronn, where we

visited a well-preserved monastery from 1138. It was originally a Cistercian abbey,

but now it has been converted to an evangelical monastic school. An interesting point

is the fact that monks from Maulbronn are believed to have created the famous

Maultaschen – a kind of dumpling filled with meat, onions, spinach and rolls. The story

goes that since the monks were not allowed to eat meat on Fridays and during fasting

periods, one of them hid minced meat and vegetables, wrapping all ingredients into

dough, hoping that God would not notice this forbidden fruit among them.

Germany By Gdynia

'I am a second grade student of Gimnazjum #4 in Gdynia. I have been in the

Comenius programme for a year. It was my first project meeting abroad. At first, I

was afraid how the host family would be and how we would communicate with each

other. But when I met my hosts it turned out Tiana and her mother were great! While

staying at Tiana's I was treated by her family as a family member. We got on really

well. Thanks to the Comenius programme I met many wonderful people and was able to

learn what an everyday life of a German family is. Tiana and her mum took care of

myself in a wonderful way. I will surely not forget them and will be missing them. I

wish our stay in Germany had lasted longer.' By Karolina

'I am a third year student and have been taking part in the Comenius project for

about a year. My host family were very nice and pleasant. During the stay in Germany

I was not bored at all. I was living in a big house full of attractions. It's a pity the

meeting was so short as I would have stayed in Germany longer if I had been able to.

During the programme I met many friends from foreign countries and visited many

places of interest of the German region. I will never forget them.' By Ania

'When I was told I would go for the meeting in Germany I was really happy about it

and a bit afraid of it as well. I was not sure what my hosts would be like. When in

Germany I learned there was no need to be afraid at all - 'my' family were very kind,

caring, helpful, nice, loving and pleasant. I will never forget them. They organised my

free time in a really good way. We had lots of fun together. I wish I had been able to

stay with them longer! When I saw Lisa's siblings I knew I would love them as my own

family. It was quite hard leaving them all. The sightseeing tours in Germany were

great and well organised. Thanks to the project meeting I met many interesting

people and I will really miss them.' By Klaudia

'It was our first incredible project meeting abroad. The meeting was full of

excitement. Living with German families showed us their customs and helped us make

friends with interesting people. That's why in our opinion it would have been a kind of

loss if we had stayed in a hotel during the meeting. Thanks to the Comenius

programme we met great and warm families we really became attached to. While

staying at the families' we could also practice our English. The free time we spent

with them was well organised and full of attractions. During the meeting we could all

visit and learn about Sandhausen, Heidelberg and other beautiful places in Germany.

We really enjoyed meeting all the partners from different European countries and

taking part in the scheduled activities - including the concert. We wish the project

meeting had lasted longer.' By Marta and Dominika

Another exciting day (or maybe the most exciting because of the concert) of the

meeting.

First, there was music practice in the festival hall, then we went to the town hall to

meet the Mayor deputy and learn more about Sandhausen. Afterwards, we walked

around the town, listened to some organ music by Mr Zepp and finally - the concert!

All the groups did really well singing their songs and also the German project song.

What a great performance!

After the concert we enjoyed being together and dining together.

It was the final evening of the meeting in Sandhausen. We look forward to another

project meeting in England.

Sightseeing Tour

1 October, 2009

We started our day really early to visit some

interesting places of the region. We admired the

monastery in Maulbronn, enjoyed the music by

some mechanical instruments in the Bruchsal Palace

museum and the beauty of the palace itself. Later

we saw a cathedral and had some free time in

Speyer. Our music group had their music practice

in the cathedral area. People who were passing us

while the rehearsal seemed quite surprised with

our Kashubian songs.

Heidelberg

30 September, 2009

After lunch we all went to Heidelberg. Teachers did some sightseeing and visited the

Heidelberg castle hill, they also listened to a short organ concert by Mr Markus Zepp.

Students took part in a rally. What a picturesque and beautiful town Heidelberg is!

30 September, 2009

The busy meeting schedule started. In the morning we met all the project partners in

the FEG school building and later we took part in the music and art workshops. We

enjoyed singing project songs and working with our friends. The German primary

pupils we met were really cute. The boys were also doing fine while learning Polish. :)

Fist Day in Germany

29 September, 2009

After breakfast we left the hotel and went to

the bus station. We took a bus to Heidelberg

where Mr David Abesser was awaiting us. He

led us to the station and was our guide on our

way to Sandhausen (Thank you David :) ). It

took us six minutes (by train) to get from

Heidelberg to Sandhausen.We spent the rest

of the day with our host families, getting to

know each other and relaxing too.

Departure Day

28 September, 2009

We left for the meeeting in Germany on 28th Sept. We flew from Gdansk

Rebiechowo to Frankfurt Hahn. At about 11:35 pm our plane landed in Germany and

then we went straight to a hotel to get some rest there.

Students learn about Germany

22 September, 2009

Soon our Comenius group are going to Germany for another partnership meeting.

Today Ms Hanna Jamer-Graczkowski, German teacher, ran classes for students of

Gimnazjum #4 and taught them about Germany, its geography and culture. We also

learned on Sandhausen - the Comenius meeting destination.

Some students have also made albums on Germany. The albums have been displayed in

the school library.

Germany by Bulgarians

German's punctuality - myth or reality?

The meeting in Sandhausen was organized up to the very detail with an amazing team

work.

As for the German punctuality is rather a reality than myth and some of us had the

chance to experience it on their own. What made me impression was that the Germans

are extremely serious when it comes to commitments and once involved never give up or

distract their attention.

Sandhausen is a small and neat town with warm welcoming people living in tidy houses.

What we noticed and surprised us is that the Germans prefer to drink sparkling water

most of the time. The food (cuisine) in Germany offers more than one gastronomical

temptations.

We liked the most the old part of Heidelberg

and the visit of the monastery in Maulbronn. It was so lovely to have a walk in the past.

The promenade amongst the authentic buildings and atmosphere was amazing. The

monastery in Maulbronn is such a place than once you had the chance to visit it you would

never want to leave it. There you can see the weird harmony between two different

styles - gothic and romantic.

The concert in this meeting was great as usual even better ,because our hard work

provide our professional level in each projects concert and our international team is just

great.

Meeting in Sandhausen by Tortolì

From 29th September to 3rd October 2009 a group from our school, two teachers

and three students, went to Sandhausen, Germany, in occasion of the fourth

international meeting inside our Comenius project “Intercultural Dialogue Through

Music.”

Students’ report: my journey to Sandhausen by Valeria

My travel experience for the Comenius project

was very good as it wasn’t the usual trip

experience with my class. It was the fourth

meeting of our project :

“ Intercultural dialogue through music” with the

participation of : Bulgaria, Slovenia, Poland,

Cyprus, Germany, England, Italy and Czech

Republic. I left with my teachers and two other

students and I spent with them five days.

After a two hours flight we arrived at

Frankfurt airport where we met Mr. Bleur who

drove us to Sandhausen, a town of 15.000

inhabitants.

For 4 days I was hosted by a German family: they all were very kind and pleasant and

I’m sure I’ll never forget them! The girl I stayed with, Simone, was very nice and

polite. As she spoke Italian quite well, we were able to communicate both in English

and Italian.

The day after our arrival we

had a warm welcome at

Gimnasium school where we

had the possibility to take

part in the school activities

with our German friends: We

were involved in a lot of

activities : we created some

posters with each country

flag, we learned and sang the

songs of each country.

Music lessons were great, I

enjoyed them very much!

During our stay we also visited a lot of interesting places and we meet people from

over different countries. It has been an amazing experience.

I only regret the meeting was so short : I would have stayed in Germany longer!

Valeria Masala

Germany by Siria

Hello! I’m Siria, I’m one of the students who have

taken part in the Comenius project “Intercultural

dialogue through music”, so I had the opportunity

to go to Germany.

It was a nice stay, we enjoyed it a lot and we saw

again people that we met in previous meetings in

other countries participating in the project. The

meeting was perfectly organized:

We attended music and theater’s lessons,

We held a concert where we sang and played altogether.

During the concert every group sincerely applauded the other groups’ performances

and all that created a deep friendship atmosphere.

But what I’ll never forget is the kindness and the hospitality of the family that

hosted me and of people in general.

They were all very friendly and pleasant. I will have wonderful memories forever.

Siria Muceli

Angela’s impressions from Germany

Hello! I’m Angela. In September I had

opportunity to go to Germany with two

teachers and two school friends for the

Comenius Project.

My first impression when I arrived was

quite positive, I like listening to people

speaking a different language. When in Germany I stayed with a German family, in

their home. It was a meaningful experience as staying with them I learned a lot about

their habits and customs.

German food too has been a pleasant surprise!

People in Germany are really hospitable and kind. With my host student we have

a lot in common, for instance our interest in music.

During our stay we visited a lot of interesting places .

But the most important thing for me was to sing together all the traditional songs of

the countries participating to the project.

I really enjoyed this experience: it gave

me the opportunity to improve my English

and to know different ways of life,

cultures and wonderful places!

.

I know I was lucky to have taken part in it!

Angela Pinna

Germany by English studentsela

GERMANY 29.09.09- 03.10.09

1st day We set off to Frankfurt in the afternoon. Two of our students had never

flown before so within first minutes of our trip to Germany, they felt like the

adventure had already begun. At Frankfurt airport we met up with the Bulgarian

group and then we were all greeted by a German teacher who guided us to the coach,

which took us to Sandhausen, straight to an Italian restaurant where all the other

parties were at different stages of their dinners. It was such a great pleasure to see

familiar faces, and to students who were new to the Comenius project it was the first

chance to meet students from various different countries and to practise their

German! After dinner we went to the hotel for a good night of sleep… 2nd day After

a delicious German breakfast, early in the morning, we went to Friedrich-Ebert

Gymnasium, which was our hosting school. The first thing we noticed was a huge

number of bicycles in front of the school. It seems that this is the most popular

means of transport for German students! At the school we were greeted by students

and teachers and we had a short presentation of Sandhausen. Shortly afterwards,

the teachers went for a meeting and students went to observe some of the lessons.

After that, the students participated in 2 activities. One activity involved practising

the project songs of all parties in the other the students had to paint the flags of all

countries participating in the project. We finished the morning at Friedrich-Ebert

Gymnasium with a delicious lunch in the colourful school canteen, after which we set

off by train to Heidelberg at Necker River, which we absolutely adored.

1. We all liked the beautiful, compact Old Town, with the gorgeous ruins of

Heidelberg Castle, which are among the most important Renaissance structures

north of the Alps and which can be seen in the photo in the background.

However, there was much more to see. For example, the Old Bridge, Church of

Holy Spirit (the biggest regional Gothic church built from 1344 to 1441) and

Jesuit Church. The students took part in a quest search where they had to find

certain places in Heidelberg which was good fun and an opportunity of getting to

know other students. Afterwards, in our free time, we had a chance to do some

small shopping in the most famous street in Heidelberg - the Hauptstrasse.

Finally, we had a fully deserved dinner at a German Inn in the heart of

Heidelberg, where we were able to taste different types of traditional food. We

loved it, especially Frankfurter Sausage, Salty Pretzel and Schnitzel. 3rd day

The third day of the German Comenius Project was about sightseeing as we went

to 3 different places, each of them extremely interesting in different ways.

First, we went to Maulbronn Abbey, founded in 1147, which is the best preserved

medieval Cistercian monastery complex in Europe. The monastery is a UNESCO

Heritage Site and is really breathtaking.

2. Next we went to the castle in Bruchsal with impressive Mechanical Music

Instruments, where we could admire more than 400 exhibits of self-playing

musical instruments. And this is us before entering the museum - the whole group

including teachers and all students… Moreover, we were able to play some of the

instruments which can be seen in the photo below… The final destination of the

day was Speyer, beside the River Rhine, with the astonishing Speyer Cathedral,

which covers 134 square meters with a highest point of 72 meters.

3. This building was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List of culturally

important sites as one of the best examples of a monument of Romanesque art in

the German Empire. However, the only part of the cathedral that is still the

original is the Crypt (in 1689, the cathedral was almost totally destroyed). In the

Crypt there are graves of a few medieval German emperors and kings who were

buried there between 1039 and 1309. Although the students found the whole day

interesting, when evening came they decided to do something less challenging and

they went to play …. Finally, we had dinner in Wiesloch. We had a German buffet

and that means we ate, ate and ate until we simply could eat no more! It was

delicious!!!

4. 4th day On the last day of our visit to Germany we had a meeting at the Town

Hall with the Deputy Mayor, who gave us a presentation about Sandhausen and

took us for a tour around the town. The German music teacher played the organ

to us in one of the churches, which was a really amazing experience because we

felt like we had a private concert there. Later on, the students had rehearsals

and afterwards, to break the tension before the concert, they participated in

classes of traditional German dance and drama activities in which they had to

represent their home countries, using gestures but no words. Most of the

students found the drama activity quite challenging, but they all seemed to enjoy

it and were able to present their work at the beginning of the concert on the

same day. Finally, the main part of the project began - the concert! The German

party opened the event with some songs and music played by the school

orchestra. Afterwards, it was time for all countries to present their

programmes. The concert took place in the community hall and it was a wonderful

experience. Everyone enjoyed themselves and appreciated each other. Our group

in the concert.

5. At the end, everyone went on the stage and sang a song together, which ended

the concert in an atmosphere of real international unity. Afterwards we had our

last meal, as a whole group of eight countries, together, and then some of the

groups started to depart for their home countries. It was sad to see them go

but, on the other hand, we all knew that we will never forget what we

experienced and that we might meet our friends in the future… Day 5th After an

early start to the day, we arrived in Birmingham around midday, not believing

that this part of our adventure was over.

Germany by Slovenia

Day 1: In October 2009 we, students from Gimnazija Slovenske Konjice, went to

Germany through a music exchange project »INTERCULTURAL DIALOG THROUGH

MUSIC«.

After 10 hours on the train we finally reached our final destination – Heidelberg.

There, we were welcomed by our host families. We had a dinner which was prepared

for all the arriving students. We ate well. It was late and we were exhausted from

the trip so we all went home with our hosts where we unpacked and fell asleep.

We stayed in a small town of Sandhausen, which is near a famous town of Heidelberg.

The families we were staying at were taking very good care of us. During the day we

were travelling a lot and returned home very late, exhausted as hell from all the

walking around the town and sightseeing.

Urban and Gregor with twins we were staying at: Moritz (left) and Felix (right)

On the first day we went on a tour around Heidelberg. We were given instructions

how to find important buildings or statues in the town of Heidelberg. We saw an

»Universitätsbibliothek« The statue at the entrance is Prometheus, who brought fire

to Earth and for which he was punished by the gods. We also had to search for

something different on the »Jesuitenkirche« and found Jesus in the arms of his of

his mother Mary killing the devil. We were extremely fascinated by the face

expressions of the children who were at the top of the church.

Day 2: On our second day we had to wake up early because we went to Maulbronn,

Bruchsal and Speyer. In Maulbronn we visited an old monastery, which is an important

place for a tourist to see.

Posing in the monastery

Next, we went to Bruchsal, where we saw a lot of fun stuff, such as old

Juke-boxes that we were very interested in.

The Cathedral of Speyer

After that we went to Speyer, where we saw Speyer Cathedral, one of the largest

and most beautiful crypts in Christendom. The word 'crypt' is derived from the

Greek 'kryptein' and means 'something hidden'. The German poet Reinhold

Schneider, described this crypt, with its neighbouring burial place of the kings and

emperors of the Middle ages, as ´The most sublime monument on German ground´.

We were also shown the tombs which were in two rows. The rear row consists of the

oldest tombs, the graves of the Salian dynasty.

At the end of our visit we stayed there in a moment of silence and prayed for those

today who have responsibilities in politics, society and for the peace of the world.

Inside of the tomb

Afterwards we spent some time in Speyer's old town centre where we had some

leisure time for exploring this beautiful town by ourselves.

We had lots of fun.

After an exhausting day we went to a restaurant named »All you can eat«. Some

people saw a

lifetime opportunity in it.

Comment unnecessary…

The last day of our visit in Germany was filled with preparations for the final concert

that night where our singer Eva presented Slovenia with three national songs.

After the final concert we went out with our German friends for the last time and

had private party in a park. We couldn’t stay for too long, because we were leaving

Germany the following morning.

We really miss the friendships we made during our exchange and we are looking

forward to seeing our friends again.

Some of us weren't starving on our way home.