Report of the visit to Italy-Campobasso

Report of the visit to Italy-Campobasso

The following text is the report of the second meeting of the Comenius Project “Europe in a museum” which was held in Italy-Campobasso from 24^th March 2014 until 28^th March 2014.

Monday, 24-3-2014: In the morning all the partners (from Poland, Lithuania, Turkey, Bulgaria and Greece) met at the lobby of the hotel and around 10.00’ Mariacristina came and we started our daily program going by bus to the school Ex casa dello studente. There we were guided around the building by Mariacristina and the headmaster of the school signora Agata, we went into the classrooms, we met pupils and we talked with their teachers. We were offered local Italian snacks and soft drinks in a buffet prepared by the school that all enjoyed, especially the Turkish and Bulgarian pupils.

Next we visited the central building of the school Giovanni Paolo II. We met the teachers and the pupils there and we saw the Comenius project museum where there are the exhibits of all the participant countries in the project ‘Europe in a museum”.  Then all partners had a brief meeting in a school hall and after we were offered lunch in the school.

At 5.00’ we went to the L. Montini school auditorium where we attended a touching welcome show organized by the children, the teachers and the parents. In the beginning the mayor of the town, the director of Education of Molise and the headmaster   welcomed us with speeches. Then the children along with their teachers and parents, danced traditional dances from all the participant countries, sang songs and played music, showed us local customs, such as the Misteri parade and the Tratturi sheep-tracks, photos from Campobasso and its museums and archaeological sites.

When the show ended we returned to our hotel which was near and that is how the first day in Campobasso passed.   

Tuesday, 25-3-2014: In the morning of  the second day, we visited the school Maschione which is located a little further out of the town. We went there by bus and when we arrived we were welcomed by the teachers and the pupils of this nice, small school. They offered us snacks, we talked and we took a lot of photos.

At 12.00’ we returned to the school in Campobasso where we had a meeting about the project. We discussed  evaluation issues, the future activities and we exchanged items and exhibits for the museums in our schools.

After the lunch we had at school, we started to go on foot to the archaeological Museo Provinciale Sannitico which is located in the historical center of the town. It is the oldest museum of Molise and houses many artifacts and other items from prehistoric to Roman times that came in light from the archaeological excavations in the area. After the visit in the museum, accompanied by Mariacristina, Lorella, Alfonsa and other teachers we had a tour of the old town of Campobasso and through beautiful narrow streets we ascended the hill to the fortress of the town. We visited Castello Monforte and after admiring the view from up there, we went to our hotel.

Wednesday, 26-3-2014: In the morning of the third day, we visited Gambatesa village and its castle. We went to the Di Capua castle and we admired its frescoes which are considered to be amongst the most important sixteenth century paintings of the mythological character of the Kingdom of Naples. A guide gave us information about the history of the castle and of the area.

We returned to Campobasso and we had lunch in a restaurant which was offered by the parents of the school.

After lunch we visited the Open Air Museum of Rural Memory in Casacilprano. We were guided around this beautiful museum where traditional objects and scenes of everyday life in the past are combined with contemporary sculptures and paintings.

 We returned to Campobasso late in the afternoon and we went to our hotel.

Thursday, 27-3-2014: On the fourth day of our visit in Italy we went to the archaeological site of Altilia and we were guided around the ancient town of Saepinum. Unfortunately, due to the rain, we could not spend time in this important town of the ancient times as much as we would have liked to. Nevertheless, we had the chance to see two of the four gates of the town, the beautiful Roman theater, the Forum, the Basilica and the ancient baths. We also visited the small but important archaeological museum which is in the archaeological site.

We came back to Campobasso, we had a nice lunch at school, which was prepared by the parents and the teachers, and we celebrated the birthday of a Turkish student altogether.

Then, we had a free afternoon and at 8.00’ the teachers and the parents of the school came to the hotel in their cars. They took us to a local restaurant where we tasted delicious Italian food and drinks, we danced together and the children had the opportunity to get to know each other better. We returned to the hotel late at night having said farewell to our Italian partners.

Friday, 28-3-2014: For the last day Mariacristina had organized an excursion to Naples. We departed from the hotel early in the morning by bus and after having left the Bulgarians partners and students at Napoli airport, we arrived at the city. We visited the castle of Naples (Castel Nuovo) and then we had free time to explore this beautiful Italian city.

At 5.00’ we all met at the meeting point and we started our journey back to Campobasso.

And with this interesting excursion to Naples, the second meeting of the Comenius project “Europe in a museum” in Italy-Campobasso ended.