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We visited Belgium from April 25th to 29th with a group of five students and two teachers through Erasmus+ mobility. The promised land of waffles, chocolate, cycling and cartoons was an amazing experience. We were hosted by Belgian students of the same age in the city of Roeselare. Here are a few things we learned about Belgium:
1. Belgians love chocolate and sweets! If pan au chocolat for breakfast and waffles for a snack sound delicious to you, you should visit Belgium.
2. Agriculture with greenhouses and livestock farming is an important source of income for many people in northern Belgium. Everywhere you look you can see cows, sheep and horses, as well as flat fields and large greenhouses.
3. Belgians cycle everywhere. Both old and young people ride their bikes. There are huge bike parks in every city. Cycling is a great way to see Belgium from a whole new perspective.
4. People are really friendly. Most of the Belgians we met were really friendly and sociable.
The first morning in Roeselare we took the train to the city of Bruges. During the day we walked around the city, visited art museums and also visited a church. The old ambulance seen in the second picture was especially memorable. Bruges was a beautiful, medieval city with lots of old buildings and canals.
On Tuesday, April 28th, we visited the Museum Voor Schone Kunsten and the St. Bavo Cathedral in Ghent with the Erasmus group. At the art museum, we had an amazing and professional guided tour related to the role of women in art. In the cathedral, we admired one of the most famous works in art history: the Ghent Altarpiece from the 15th century.
During our Erasmus mobility in Belgium, we had the opportunity to participate in a photo competition on the topic of litter and recycling. The photo had to show litter thrown into the environment that told a story. Points were awarded for originality and creativity, as well as a clear link to sustainable development. The photo also had to be given a good title.
Our Erasmus+ group mobility in Germany explored Physics as a Profession in April 2026
We hosted Slovenian and Belgian teachers during the May job shadowing week 2026
A small group of Belgian students visited us in February 2026
Our mobility exchange with Instituut Onze Lieve Vrouw van Vroeugde in Roeselare in started this year in the bitterly cold February when the Belgians travelled to us.
We had been in contact before about the topic of the exchange: sustainability. The topic was explored from many points of view and included, for example, teaching the primary school classes about sustainable choices at home and at school.
Lots of other culture was experienced too; it was the week of penkkarit, the last school day of the third-year students and the start of a new exhibition on Sami people in the Oulu Art Museum. Both engaging experiences in their own way!
One student left this message after the week with us:
"Dear Miss Minna,
in our week in Finland, we got to see a lot of stuff that we can't see in Belgium. Such as the Sami, the a lot amount of snow, the sledding, the Winter Olympics, the sauna experience, the cabins ... all that in a single week.
We got encountered by the cold winds and weather of Finland but managed to survive!
Throughout that week we also came across a lot of sustainable things on our way, such as the windmills, the different types of trash cans, the Sami people.
We also learned about Finnish traditions, civic responsibility, and the way Finnish people live or even things that surprised me (for example they drink milk during their meal).
A cold trip that I won't forget!
Thank you Minna and the Finnish students to make this happen!"
#belgiansinfinland #erasmus #verycold
Four Italian students joined us in September 2025 for a short-term mobility for school students
The students from Liceo delle scienze umane e scientifico Regina Maria Adelaide in Aosta spent two weeks with us living in host families and taking part in the school activities. During those two weeks, we just happened to have "Messut", the fair organised by the second-year students and some made it even to the catwalk in the fashion show.
The students took part on lessons, gave presentations on their hometown and history. They also worked on a project on well-being as well as reflected on the differences and similarities of the Finnish and Italian school systems.
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