Here is the translation.
Playing in the snow for the first time
Youths from different European countries have become enthusiastic about Bergen in recent days. To the teenagers from Portugal the experience was special. They had never seen snow before.
‘The snow is fun, but a cold experience. To be honest, we didn’t expect it to be as cold as this,’ says Ema Madeira.
She and the other students from Portugal are spraying each other with snow and snowballs are flying through the air. They have taken the funicular to the roof of Bergen, but are more interested in the snow than the view. There are plenty of sights in Europe, but snow is harder to get close to.
‘The trip to Bergen has been an experience for life. Everything is so well organized here. All the people are nice. In addition, everybody speaks English. That was a surprise,’ say the 17-year-olds Ema Madeira and Beatriz Ferreira from Portugal.
Learning more
45 youths and 17 teachers from Norway, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Portugal have for a week been crisscrossing Bergen and its outskirts. The teenagers are participating in a Comenius project under the aegis of the EU. Teachers at Arna upper secondary school have organized the meeting.
‘Youngsters learn a lot more from being together than reading about each other. They understand cultural differences, but also discover how similar they are in many respects even though they live in very different parts of Europe,’ says teacher Kåre Øvregård.
The students are staying at the YMCA’s centre at Nedre Korskirkeallmenning, within walking distance to many of the sights in Bergen. They have strolled along Bryggen, tasted fish at Lerøy Seafood. The Hanseatic Museum, the aquarium, and Nordnes have been visited. In addition they have traveled along the Hardanger fjord to Voss, visited Arna vidaregåande skule as well as Åsane church, Ikea and Fantoft stave church.
‘This week has been fantastic! Obviously, they do find that many things are different here in Bergen from what they are used to at home. At the same time they realize that young people have a lot in common. They listen to the same type of music and have the same dreams and longings. Not least, they understand how important language is,’ says teacher Huw Edwards-Westlake from Spain.
Getting to know their own city better
The youths from Bergen have been hosts and tried to make sure their new friends have enjoyed themselves.
‘Working with teenagers from other countries in a common project is a good idea. We understand other youngsters better, pick up a few words in different languages and have a really good time together,’ say Charlotte Hansen, Marte Hauge and Dorthe Neu Hatland.
You don’t necessarily have to travel far to learn something new. When they visited the aquarium they walked through narrow alleyways, which was an enjoyable experience. Because the youths from Arna had never walked there before.
