Silvija Beti Mlinarić, employee of the department of MEV, stayed in Maribor at the University of Maribor, got to know the work of their department, participated in the promotion of graduated students and exchanged experiences with her Slovenian colleagues.

Our students are not only studying and fulfiling their obligations in Barcelos, Portugal, where they are on mobility within the Erasmus+ program, but have also visited the city of Braga and some of the sights of that Portuguese city.

The first week of work on the international project in which our students participated has passed. During the week, the students were divided into six international teams. Each team is composed of students from all faculties that participated in this project. The main task in the implementation of the project is the development and design of smart solutions for equipping modern apartments, based on IoT technologies. In addition to professional work and involvement in the project, students mingled with each other, created new friendships with the aim of creating a network of future European experts. In the second week of the project, students will work on project tasks through a virtual environment.

12 students of the Computing Department of the Međimurje Polytechnic did a trip to Lithuania where they participated in the Erasmus+ international project Smart House together with students from five European faculties. They stayed at Klaipeda University for a week, starting and designing their own   project. After returning to Croatia, they finished the project virtually. They were working together with colleagues from Greece, Germany, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

"Our time spent on Erasmus in Barcelos was wonderful. We visited numerous cities throughout Portugal, even some in Spain, we learned Portuguese, visited beautiful beaches and, of course, socialized with people from all over the world. IPCA will remain in our fond memories, as will all professors and students. Erasmus is a wonderful experience that we would recommend to everyone because there is no better way to get to know new cultures, people, languages and, of course, the academic system."

The question of what is the most special moment of our Erasmus semester in Porto is very difficult to answer. This is because there were countless of them. For example, a trip to the fairytale Sintra, a visit to Cabo da Roca - the westernmost point of Europe, learning Portuguese, watching sunsets on beautiful beaches along the coast, short trips to numerous Portuguese cities such as Lisbon, Aveiro, Guimarães, Nazare, unforgettable outings and socializing with people from all over the world, wine tastings in the area of Vila Nova de Gaia... Faculty of ISAG - European Business School will remain in our very fond memories. The professors are extremely friendly, the lectures were organized in English, a Portuguese course was organized for those who want to learn more, we had the opportunity to listen to and participate in seminars of people who come or work for various world organizations (Facebook, Microsoft, Olympic Games , SuperBowl, etc.). Changing the environment, getting to know new people, cultures, populations, languages, academic systems is the most beautiful way to create new solid international friendships. Erasmus is the best experience that can be made during student days and that's why we can only say: "Até a próxima Porto"!

In the past two weeks, as part of the Erasmus+ project, we were visited by Dr. sc. Valeria Kasianova and Ph.D. Irina Grynyova from the University of Technology in Odessa, Ukraine. During their stay at MEV, they got to know our institution and the work of individual departments. Further cooperation with their institution in Ukraine was agreed upon.

We were also visited by Mr. Ozgur Cevik from Bilecik University from Turkey, who stayed at MEV as a non-teaching staff member from his institution.

This semester at MEV, two students from Estoril, Portugal, Joanna and Adriana, who have moved into the student dormitory and are already actively involved in student life at MEV, will study at the Department of Tourism and Sports Management.

My short journey of one semester started on September 21, 2020, when the orientation day took place. I got to know the coordinators and other colleagues and visited the institution. Due to the corona virus, epidemiological measures were introduced (wearing masks indoors, keeping the prescribed distance and mandatory disinfection of hands when entering the institution), so we all kept the prescribed distance and approached each other with fear. However, after the introductory registration and signing of student contracts, we were all somewhat more relaxed, so we all got to know each other and started communicating. There were various students, from Germany, Slovenia, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, Brazil, Turkey, Spain, Singapore, etc. This was the first time I met so many different people, and yet we were all equal in a way and we all came with the same goal.

The coordinators who lead the exchange students are very kind, ready to help, they explained in the best possible way everything that needed to be completed, the measures that were currently in force in Austria and how we have to behave when we stay in the faculty building itself.

As for the lectures, they started on October 5, 2020 online because the professors were from different countries of the world, so they could not come to Graz. All lectures lasted from 9:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., with one short break of 20 minutes. The lectures were interactive, we were asked to express our opinions, we were given tasks that we often had to solve in pairs or groups. Of course, there are also assignments for each lecture. Although we didn't have the opportunity to meet the professors on site, they left a great impression on me through the screen. These are people who gave us different experiences, knowledge and gave us advice for the future, future employment and the like. They are always reachable on their email addresses, so if there were any ambiguities, they explained it via email or we talked during the lectures. The exams were also written online, and for a few I had to make a project in a couple of days and send it for evaluation.

Social life during this corona and Erasmus socializing of students were unfortunately rare. At the beginning, the lectures were both face-to-face and online, but the courses I chose were all online, so I didn't have the opportunity to interact with students in person. We only went to the city a few times when we had to do some task as a group, so it was easier for us to solve it on site, instead of online. Soon, Austria introduced a curfew, closed all catering establishments, museums, shopping centers and stable life. All that remains is the screen, the apartment and online socializing, and so on until the very end. I met wonderful people, and although online, I will have fond memories. Of course, this is not what I expected at the exchange, but we need to adapt to every situation. I even learned some German and Arabic during the tasks we did in groups.

In the end, I can conclude that Erasmus, even in these conditions during the corona, is a wonderful experience that I will certainly not forget. I must praise the excellent organization of lectures, exams and presentations. The technology worked great, which made it a lot easier for us to study in these difficult times. Maybe there is not much to say because there were no events, but again, every online meeting left a special impression on me, and since this was the first virtual Erasmus, it was a completely different experience from the student exchanges until now.