Blog Post – An Introduction to the Erasmus+ Program
I can recall very clearly the palpable feeling of apprehension on that first Monday morning in September. This feeling of unease was triggered by what turned out to be a timetable mishap. Our 9 o’clock class read “Music Technology”. As one would expect, this brought about confusion and intrigue. We were in fact taking part in the Erasmus + Programme.
This is the second year of the initiative, after a very successful first endeavour. Our school is twinned with CPI Progresso in the town of Catoira, Galicia in northwest Spain. After a brief introduction to the project, we were assigned the task of researching Galician food, native language and tourist attractions. Through this exercise we got a taste of what was ahead of us.
It was not difficult to learn of the customary foods cherished by Galicians. I read of the Pulpo a la Gallega, a Galician style octopus. It consists of a layer of thinly sliced potatoes topped with boiled octopus. It is sprinkled with paprika. I also discovered a Galician stew, caldo Gallego, containing various ingredients such as cabbage, potatoes, white beans, beef, sausage and chorizo.
I was amazed to learn that Galicia has its own native language. What I found very encouraging is that as of 2012, 2.4 million people speak Galician with 2 million of these stating it as their first language. It originates from Latin but also has Celtic roots. As one would expect because of the geographical location, it is closely linked with Portuguese. An example can be seen below:
English: I want to travel to Paris, the city of love
Spanish: Yo quiero viajar a París, la ciudad del amor
Galician: Eu quero viaxar a París, a cidade do amor
Portuguese: Eu quero viajar à Paris, a cidade do amor
Possibly because of its picturesque landscape, or maybe due to its rich cultural heritage, Galicia is a popular tourist destination. While researching I found many popular attractions. One is the Cathedral Santiago de Compostela. This building is architecturally stunning and is steeped in history, a place to which thousands of Christians walk the ‘Camino de Santiago’. I also read of the Cies Islands. Just off the coast of Pontevedra, the Cies Islands consist of three islands – Monteagudo, do Faro, and San Martino. These stunning islands feature the perfect combination of white powdery sand, clear turquoise waters and incredible landscapes.
Our second task was to complete a picture collage based on what we had learned previously. In this I had the opportunity to research Galician music. I was fascinated to hear of the similarities between Galician music and Irish traditional music. Galician’s have a 6/8 dance called a Muinera. I could easily find a likeness to the Irish jig. Both use simple phrases which are repeated and have the same time signature.
All in all, from the little exposure I have had, I am already fascinated by just how similar our heritage is. Yes, there are differences (Octopus – YUCK!!!), but our links run much deeper than I ever anticipated.

Donnchadh Hughes
TY B