FIRST SHORT TERM MEETING (Vinci, Italy)

I.D.E.A.L.`s first short term meeting took place from October 4-7, 2018 in Vinci, Italy. It was our first face to face meeting and had a huge impact on getting to know each other personally. I think it gave us all the realization that our team was hardworking, reliable and most important, we all enjoyed what we were doing!

Why in Vinci? As Leonardo da Vinci is our project `s idol, the meeting place had to be Vinci, his home town. While being in Vinci, we could feel his presence in every step of the way and see things through his eyes - literally see, because we were mesmerized by the landscape in Vinci which represents the deep bond between the master and his Tuscan land.

The days in Vinci were filled with different and interesting activities. We were on the footsteps of Leonardo, trying to understand Leonardo`s complex life and his history more vividly and deeply. We had a guided tour to the 13th century farm house where Leonardo da Vinci’s was born in Anchiano; a tour at the impossible exhibition of Leonardo which is the exhibition of very high-resolution digital reproductions of masterpieces; a tour in the Museum about Leonardo which covers the history of the master both as architect and scientist; a guided tour of Vinci old town gave us the opportunity to visit the places which were connected to Leonardo`s life.

Beside the interesting tours, we participated in a workshop which enlightened us Leonardo da Vinci’ s machines and codes. This workshop allowed us to put ourselves in the shoes of Leonardo the artists, the scientist and engineer, and may I say so- It was extremely challenging and cracked our brains.

The days in Vinci weren`t only about tours and workshops, we had active briefings concerning the project and its steps for the future activities. We had a detailed agreements about participants, who should they be and how should we choose them; we agreed on the dates of the LTTA, partners` tasks and responsibilities; the emphasis was on the policy of privacy and parental agreement before each mobility. In addition we discussed about further collaborative activities like My Maps, Logo and Mascot contest, dissemination week, newsletter, and updating our social media sources.

These four days were filled with work and pleasure at the same time. When it was time to work, we worked, and when it was time to enjoy and relax, we did that as well. It all happened due to our coordinators in Italy- so many thanks to Giuseppina, Luciana and Simonetta, and of course to the Istituto Comprensivo of Castel Frentano who paid our workshop and guided tours.