Natural Energy Resources in a Sustainable School - Group Mobility to Czech Republic

Group Mobility to Czech Republic
2-6 Dec 2024

The first week of December 1-7 2024 General Lyceum of Hortiatis visited Olomouc in Czech Republic in the frame of its collaboration with the czech school Církevní gymnázium Německého řádu . Two students of grade B', Stellina Theodoridou and Nikolas Stamidis as well as two students of grade C Nausika Tsolakou and Orestis Chatzivasileiou participated in the mobility. Students were accompanied by their teachers Chysoula Dritsari and Evangelos Tzanidis.

The Erasmus Greek team landed early in the afternoon at Prague airport and had the chance to visit the beautiful capital of the Czech Republic, Prague. The cold was bitter, but it didn't stop us from enjoying the beautiful images of the imposing buildings and temples that characterize the city-museum.

At 3 p.m. we took the train to Olomouc, a city in Moravia with about 100,000 inhabitants. Olomouc was the old capital of the country. After a delay, we arrived late at night at the city station, where the families of the Czech students and the teachers, responsible for the program on behalf of the Czech school, were waiting for us. We were warmly welcomed by everyone. Then the students went to their host families, and the teachers to their hotel, accompanied and guided by the Czech teachers.

MONDAY (written by Stellina Theodoridou)

On our first morning in Olomouc, we went to the Církevní gymnázium Německého řádu school.

It is housed in a tall, historic building, multi-story and renovated, with large doors and windows, carpets and wooden floors. In fact, teachers and students left their shoes in a wardrobe and wore their slippers during their stay in the space.

The Czech teachers welcomed us to their school and the Greek teachers offered gifts of traditional Greek dishes.

Then all together, the students of GEL Hortiatis, we presented the city of Thessaloniki, the Hortiatis region and our school.

Our new friends showed us around the place. The classrooms were especially designated for each subject and had a beautiful aesthetic and modern equipment. We were impressed by the beautiful library with its old wooden furniture.

After that, we gathered and saw all the designed logos that the students created for the program by participating in the competition that was held between the two schools last week. The students from both countries voted for the best logo and thus chose Nafsika’ s Tsolakou design, a student of GEL Hortiatis.

Then we discussed the goals of the program and the actions we will take. We agreed to submit our ideas after visiting the following days the places where water is used as an alternative form of energy.

The places to visit had been announced earlier by the presentation of the educational program, scheluded by the Czech school.
Afterwards, we all enjoyed a meal together at a restaurant next to the school with Czech flavors.

After lunch we went to the city hall and we were informed about its history by the guide who welcomed us and showed us around the historic building. It is the symbol of the economic and political importance of the former royal capital. Next to the tower of the city hall, there is an astronomical clock which has a series of original vaulted rooms inside and among them was the ceremonial hall.

From the top of the tall tower we admired the marvelous view of the city.

The teachers from the Czech school gave us a tour of the historic center and its sights. The city is located on the banks of the Morava River and has important monuments and churches, such as the Holy Trinity Column, an 18th-century UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We continued with a stroll through the city center of Olomouc, which was decorated for Christmas. In the square, there were wooden houses with bright Christmas decorations, where sweet and savory delicacies and beautiful gifts for the holidays were sold. It was a magical atmosphere!

We also visited an impressive church in the city center and toured its interior.
The group split up, renewing the appointment for the next day, but the students continued our walk.

Later we made a stop at a large shopping mall and the day ended in the most amusing way, as we spent the evening ice skating.

It was an unforgettable experience full of beautiful images and moments!

TUESDAY (written by Orestis Chatzivasileiou)

Tuesday was a very nice day. We woke up early to catch the train to Dlouhe Strane which was an amazing place. The weather was very nice and not so cold. We walked up the mountainside from where the train left us.

We arrived at the ski resort area where we were picked up by a driver and a tour guide who even knew Greek. They took us in a small bus to the hydroelectric station. It is a large project where electricity is generated thanks to the rapid movement of water from a large artificial lake to a smaller one between which there is a large difference in height.

We entered in a special room where the project's officers briefed us about how it works. They gave us VR to see how the Hydro Power Plant works. It was quite detailed and easy to understand.

Then we went inside the galleries of the project to see closely how it works up.

After that we exited the facility and bused up to the lower lake. We couldn't reach the higher one because the snow was getting thicker as we went up to the mountain. The snowy landscape was a snow-fighting challenge. Thus, we played it right in front of the station entrance.

Then we left to go eat something at the nearby ski resort restaurant.

The place was decorated in wood with paintings depicting people of the old days in ski suits.

The tradition of the area was evident.

After finishing our meal, which was quite nice, we made our way back again by train. After we got home, we sat down, played music, learned about each other's country, ate some food and rested for the next day. Nikos and Stellina went to the gym.

WENDSDAY (written by Nikos Stamidis)

We had a great time today! We started early for the Wastewater treatment facilities in Nove Sady, the biological purification facilities. The guide of the tour explained to us how from the dirty water of the sewers we reach after many stages the clean water which is finally thrown into the river.

We saw what the facilities looked like and were excited about the technology being used and how it provided a sustainable solution to water wastage, although it smelled a bit bad in the place!

We got to know all the stages of the cleaning up close and were impressed by the bio-fertilizer created from the residues removed from the water.

Then we went back by train to Olomouc again. We went to eat at a restaurant, where we tried polenta with sausages and spinach. After lunch we went to the Science Center of Palacky University Pevnost Poznani and spent our time exploring and seeing the science museum.

It was a place with many opportunities for activities and games related to mathematics, physics, biology, medicine, history.

Afterwards we said goodbye to our teachers and had free time to rest. So we walked with our new Czech friends, ate and in the evening went home to rest. This is how a nice day in Olomouc ended!

THURSDAY (written by Nausika Tsolakou)

Thursday was our last day in Olomouc, as we were leaving early on Friday for Prague.

The day started with a meeting of teachers and students at the school to discuss the topic of the project. We found a common goal for our work on sustainable water management and delineated the responsibilities of the students group.

During the discussion, some students dressed as angels, one in the uniform of a Catholic saint, one dressed as a devil and one as a wolf suddenly entered the room. The saint was Saint Nicholas. This custom is an old tradition for the days before Christmas that has Saint Nicholas leading a procession of believers dressed in costumes of Joy and demons who go from house to house. The “saint” after addressing a Greek and a Czech student, made some remarks to them about what they need to improve in their behavior and told them to sing a song. Then he gave wishes and the group of disguised people offered candies to the children. It is a Czech custom for the celebration of Saint Nicholas which is reminiscent of Santa Claus who brings gifts at Christmas. For us it was something strange and original.

After our unexpected experience, the Czech teachers had organized us to paint our own tote bags.

After packing our bags, we said goodbye to the teachers and left to spend our last moments with the families of the children who were hosting us.

I was taken to visit a beautiful church, big as a castle with wonderful architecture. This church was special, as it was the place with the best view of Olomouc and because it was the place where the parents of the girl who was hosting me had gotten married. After this tour, we went to eat at a tavern, where we had an interesting conversation.

FRIDAY 6/12/2024

Early in the morning we took the train to Prague. The last day of the educational program as well as our trip was dedicated to the capital of the Czech Republic. But first, we had to leave our luggage at our hotel. The weather was rainy but that did not stop us from enjoying the beauty of the medieval city.

In the historic center, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, we admired the astronomical clock, the square with its beautiful shops, the Charles Bridge, and Kafka's house as well.

We walked along the banks of the Vltava, through the city's cobbled narrow streets, and tasted musky, traditional gingerbread. After, we visited the museum of illusions and then ate at a restaurant serving traditional Czech food.

Our friends from the Czech school said goodbye to us in the afternoon at the train station. The moments of farewell were emotional for everyone.

We renewed our appointment for the end of January, so we will meet again in Greece, to return their warm hospitality. The Greek team continued their tour in Prague until the evening, where they spent the night. The next morning we took the return flight to Thessaloniki.

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