The first day of our Erasmus+ trip to Cologne was Monday the 9th of December. Our theme for this Erasmus project was sustainable and ecological food production. First thing in the morning, we met the project participants from Norway and Germany. The German delegation greeted us with a program made up of games that helped us all get to know each other. These games did include our theme very well, so while getting to know each other we also learned about nutrition and the benefits of seasonal and regional food. For lunch, the German and Austrian delegation both went sightseeing and explored Schloss Bensberg after getting food. During the afternoon, all of the groups went back to school and played some more educational games, this time including Physical Education. By combining sports with our program, we learned more efficiently about the food pyramid and different fair-trade brands. Following our games, each pupil and their host went back home to spend quality time together. (Madleyn, 7e)
On Tuesday, our day started early. After getting up, we went straight to school. There, we focused intensively on various topics related to food and nutrition. At the beginning, we had an interesting discussion about veganism as well as regional and interregional dishes, food, and products. We talked about what veganism means, how it differs from vegetarianism, and what opinions people have on these diets. After the discussion, we gathered the opinions of others to collect different perspectives. Following this, we gave presentations to deepen our knowledge.
After this intensive work, it was time for a break. During the break, we went into the town of Bensberg. It was nice to spend some time outside of school and stroll through the town.
Back at school, we then got hands-on with vegan recipes. Together, we baked various vegan treats:
- Vegan vanilla cookies
- Vegan marzipan cookies
- Vegan gingerbreadand more.
Baking was not only fun, but it also showed us that vegan food can be just as tasty and diverse as other dishes.
After the baking session, we moved on to the Christmas market. We spent some time there before finally going to Greta’s house (one of our hosts). At her place, we played a game of Werewolf together. It was a great opportunity to get to know each other better.
At the end of the day, we all went home – tired but satisfied. It was an exciting and varied day that gave us many new insights into the topics of nutrition and veganism. (Fatima, 7e)
Our Wednesday in Cologne was full of learning and new experiences. We started at the school in Bensberg, then took a train to Cologne, where our German exchange students gave us a tour. A highlight was the Cologne Cathedral, or “Kölner Dom”, a stunning Gothic church and a symbol of the city. They also told us about Magnus Albertus, a medieval philosopher buried there, whose ideas have left a lasting impact. After exploring the city’s history, we went shopping for local and sustainable ingredients for the next day’s cooking session. It was harder than we expected, even with Cologne’s busy markets and shops, and showed how tricky it can be to make eco-friendly choices in a big city. (Vuk, 7e)
On Thursday we started our day by meeting in school at eight o’clock. Shortly afterwards, we made our way to the kitchen of the neighboring school with the groceries we bought the day before. As soon as we arrived, we started by getting together with our groups, because we were split into four different groups to prepare different kinds of vegan, healthy, sustainable foods. Thereafter the members of the groups showed their items and explained how and where they bought the items, what they were careful of, their experience and how they contributed to sustainability. So, we eagerly started cooking.
While we were having a lot of fun, we prepared four total dishes. For starters Greek feta salad, for the main dish chickpea soup with a side of roasted vegetables and lastly vegan apple crumble for dessert. We sat down, had a fun conversation and of course enjoyed the vegan, healthy sustainable and delicious food we had just made. Afterwards we had a break followed by meeting in Cologne at the Christmas market, where we could freely explore and enjoy the German traditions on the condition of meeting again in front of the concert building. After walking around a bit my friends and I found a really nice Ramen shop where we enjoyed a nice warm meal. At half past six we met as planned and went to watch the concert. The concert was related to Christmas and was interactive. It was truly spectacular and nothing short of breathtaking. Afterwards my host invited others to come to our house where we watched a funny documentary and had a good laugh. Then we said our goodbyes, and everybody went to sleep. (Levon, 7e)
Friday, which sadly was our last day at the project, consisted of visiting a farm, followed up by a free evening which we were allowed to spend however we liked. Said farm is the so called “Schiefelbusch” (https://www.bauerngut-schiefelbusch.de/). They greeted us with a delicious breakfast in a big hall above the shop they have on the first floor of the building. After we enjoyed the delicious food and the accommodating service, we got the privilege of being walked around and introduced to the farm by the owner, Albert Trimborn. We were able to see the chickens, cows, pigs, geese, crops and everything else that is kept and harvested at the farm and got introduced to the intricate details that the life of a farmer has to offer. After the program was finished, we walked back to the bus station for about an hour. By doing so, we passed through some of the beautiful rural areas of Nordrhein-Westfalen, which was quite relaxing even though it was cold. Now the free time had arrived, which was spent mostly by enjoying the last bit of time together with the friends we made in Germany and our amazing host families, to whom we are very grateful for having us. (Luka, 7e)
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