15th OCTOBER, by Ana Arnedo Manero
We met at the school very early to go to Manique. Once we arrived at the pond we discovered it had no water. It started to rain and we were very cold. There were a lot of plants all around (invading, by the way!) and they had little prickly balls. As they adhered to our clothes, we all began throwing them! It looked like a field battle, but it was discrete, so that the teachers wouldn’t tell us off.
We went back to Azambuja’s High School and we had roast chicken with potatoes – delicious! After that, a representative of each country planted some flowers and plants in the Erasmus garden. What came next was very surprising: we were shown a map with holes, where the teachers placed some pots in the countries involved.
The Portuguese students prepared different stations with inclusive games so that we would put ourselves in blind, deaf and disabled people’s shoes. It was amazing and we had a great time. Later, we made presentations with the activities of each partner. Paloma spoke about Biciclistas and the twins Pablo and Gonzalo about IES Alhama. We didn’t have any free time left (once again!) because we had to do some shopping for dinner, while the teachers had dinner together and enjoyed some fado – lucky them! Anyway, we bought some sandwiches and lasagna and ate them comfortably.
16th OCTOBER, by Eneko Fernández Bote
We began the day in a very good mood as we learnt about our following destinations: Cabo Da Roca and Sintra, both very beautiful places. At the beach of Avencas, we enjoyed a lovely interesting activity with Edmundo, the biology teacher. He gave us a chart with a lot of animals, algae, anemones, etc. and we had to find them among the rocks. At the beginning, it seemed a bit boring, but we really got on board with the activity as we found more and more species.
From Avencas, we went to Cabo da Roca, where we had lunch. It was terribly windy, but the views were worth it. Later, we set off toward Sintra or, as I like to call it, “The fantastic city”, made up of palaces and castles and lots of stores. We visited the palace of Monserrate, where the tour guide explained the history of this romantic monument. We had a little break (which didn’t abound on this trip, by the way), and Miguel started to roll down the slope battering himself in sand.
When the visit was over, we went back to town and we had some time to stroll around and do sightseeing on our own. I must also say that the y¡typical pastries (“pasteis de nata”) are not good at all – better leave them all to me and I’ll make the sacrifice of eating them 😉
When the visit to the fantastic city was over, we went back to Azambuja to have our last evening as the Erasmus family, with dinner at the school and one more surprise: Nady Rocha’s birthday. We all sang Happy birthday to her, which made her tear up a little. Margarida and Paula, two Portuguese teachers, have all the participants a diploma congratulating us for our enthusiastic participation in the activities.
To finish, the Portuguese team organized a contest similar to “Pasapalabra”, with lights, switches and everything. After that, there was a karaoke competition. We had the time of our lives!
When it was time to say goodbye, it was all tears, promises of future meetings, sadness… Nobody wanted to leave such a beautiful place and say goodbye to its people.
Thanks for everything, Azambuja!
17th OCTOBER, by Miguel Tonenchuk
We got up at 6 in the morning to have breakfast, we picked our stuff and we got on the bus. At seven we were already on the move. After several days of visiting different places and carrying out plenty of activities, it was time to get back home. We were tired but happy, full of joy, positive feelings and nice memories.
On the way home, we stopped at Salamanca, which is a university city well known for its ornamental architecture. When we got to the Plaza Mayor, we found an unpleasant surprise: a Bollywood movie was being shot, so we weren’t allowed in the square. Even so, we could see some interesting monuments, like both the old and the new cathedrals.
We were allowed some free time on our own and we went for lunch, some to Burger King and others to McDonald’s. We had to be back on the bus by a quarter to three, but most of us arrived late. From there, straight home. We arrived in Corella at about half past eight in the evening, where our families were waiting for us with open arms.
