Stories

After participating in the 12th ASEF Classroom Conference themed “Coding for Education” organised by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) in November 2015 in Sofia, Bulgaria, my school, “Petru Maior” High School, initiated a series of projects and collaborations with schools from Asia and Europe. One of our partner countries in India was represented by the St. Mark’s Senior Secondary Public School, New Delhi.

The representatives of this school attended the International Conference of Young Scientists in Romania from 16 to 22 April 2016. Taking advantage of this occasion, I invited my friends Ms Geeta RAJAN and Ms Sudha CHAND along with the other students to visit our city and to get an idea of our educational system, our country and our citizens from 13 to 16 April 2016.

The meeting included a variety of events and workshops that focused on mutual understanding, sight visits and socio-cultural activities that established links between the students and teachers from India and Romania.

The first day of the programme was dedicated to the discovery of our city, Gherla, and we discovered its main historical and cultural sights. We also met with local officials and visited the most famous local landmark, the Armenian Church.

The visit of “Petru Maior” High School, another icon of the city, took place during the first part of the second day. The delegates together with our teachers and students took part in diverse artistic moments prepared by the Romanian students, and/or participated in various presentations and discussions. The local and international teachers discussed specific features of the education systems in India and Romania, as well as possible partnerships in the future.

The programme also included cultural visits to the most picturesque Hungarian village from Transylvania, Sic. The delegates were introduced to another universe as they experienced specific Hungarian traditions. In Sic, they explored the Ethnographic Museum, the local Reformat Church, tasted specific foods or listened to live Hungarian music. The day ended with Romanian and Indian folk rhythms that accompanied a festive dinner attended by students, teachers and officials of our city.

The third and final day was dedicated to promoting tourist and cultural values from Transylvania, with visits to two of the most beautiful cities from the region: Sighisoara and Sibiu.

This amazing international experience left behind multiple beautiful discoveries – such as that of an international language offering valuable insights which would otherwise be inaccessible, and that Asians and Europeans are fundamentally alike and friendships between them can be strengthened and long-lasting, regardless of the different backgrounds, cultures or personal beliefs.

All these inspiring discoveries make the world seem smaller and more connected.