Cueva del Agua (Iznalloz)

“Cueva del Agua” is a natural wonder located at a height of 1,730 meters above the sea, in the peak of Sierra Harana, in Iznalloz (Granada). It was open to the tourists in 1960.

This cave is a huge net of subterranean galeries without a fixed direction, as the whole cave is a fault. The ground is covered by grinded dolomites, and there were discovered stalagmitic tubes. Since the 60s we can enjoy its mind-boggling rooms such us the Music Hall and the Glaciar Lagoon.

In short, it is a beautiful place full of nature, which contributes to eco-tourism. It is very unknown considering how astonishing it is, so you can’t lose the opportunity to visit this amazing natural area!

Check out more about Cueva del Agua region (Montes Orientales) at this blog!

Ruta del Gollizno (Moclín-Olivares)

Gollizno's Route is an eco-friendly trecking route at the region of Montes Orientales (Andalusia). This old path which connected several villages among them is a way to go through the History of the area, and a highlighted spot for tourists all across the country.

To begin with, the astonishing nature that surrounds the route is compound of many different botanical species, wild animals and types of rocks, so it has a biological and geological value. Along it you can find view points to admire the beauty of the valley, the river and the rear view of Moclin's castle. At the very beginning, after having gone across the forest, there is a stone wall with prehistorical paintings. Descending a staircase you can have a fresh break at the Corcuela fountain, which brings cool water and gather tourists and locals for a snack. Keep alert, you may see a mountain got any time! If you follow the path it will take you down to the "throat" of the river through the carved walls of the mountain. The route continues by the shore of the river, full of vegetation, until it reaches one of the main attractions: a suspension bridge to cross the river. In the final stretch there are several natural fountains of fresh water, viewpoints and fruit trees. Finally you will arrive to Olivares, where you can enjoy the best food of the region.

If you want to know more about this area, check out our posts about Montes Orientales!

Buonconsiglio Castle: opinion essay

On our first day in Trento we took a walk along that beautiful city. The visit had its last stop in the Buonconsiglio Castle. This monument, which was built in the 13^th century, was the residence of the Prince-Bishops of Trento for nearly six centuries and that's why it's full of history.

The Buonconsiglio Castle is the largest and most important monumental complex of the Trentino Alto Adige region.  One of the places we liked the most was the upper part, a gothic balcony made by a series of columns and arches from where we took a lot of beautiful pictures. Downstairs there was a nice garden with a fountain and plenty of gorgeous frescos that impressed us.

Despite the fact that we spent a short time there, it was enough to learn a bit more about this beautiful city. As we see it, it was one of the most enjoyable visits because they didn't focuse the visit on giving a lot of information but on a visual and interactive learning.

From our point of view, this monument is one of the most interesting and beautiful to visit in Trento. No one should miss the oportunity to visit the castle at least once in their lives.

History of Trento (III)

With Napoleon's defeat in 1814 , Trento was again annexed by the Hambsburg Empire. The church government was finally extinguished, so Trento was now being governed by the secular government of Tyrol. In the next decades Trento experienced a modernization of administration and economy with the first railroad in the Adige valley opening in 1859.

History of Trento (II)

In the 14^th century Trento became part of the Austrian rule, under the domain of the Habsburg family. This political status will continue for the following six centuries. 

A dark episode in the history of Trento was the Trent blood libel. A three-year-old Christian boy, Simonino, disappeared in the eve of Good Friday, and the Jewish small community of Trento was accused of killing him, for which eight Jews were burned in a stake and the boy was canonized. 

In the 16^th century the city became notable for the Council of Trent (1545-1563) which gave to the rise to the Counter-Reformation. The prince bishops Bernardo Clesio and Cristoforo Madruzzo, both great European politicians and Renaissance humanists, embellished and expanded the city. During this period, and as an expression of this Humanism, Trento was also known as the site of a Jewish printing press. 

Prince-bishops ruled Trento until the Napoleonic era, when it bounced around among various states. Under the reorganization of the Holy Roman Empire in 1802, the Bishopric was secularized and annexed to the Habsburg territories. The Treaty of Pressburg in 1805 ceded Trent to Bavaria, and the Treaty of Schönbrunn for years later to Napoleon's Kingdom of Italy. The population resisted French domination with gunfights. The resistance leader, Andreas Hofer, recovered Trento for the Austrias for a while, but 4000 volunteers from Trentino died and Hofer was executed on the express order of Napoleon.

History of Trento (I)

Hello everybody! As a part of our research work about Trento, in the following posts we will tell you the history of this awesome city, which played a relevant role in Europe's History.

The history of Trento is essential to understand its multicultural society and its relevance.

The foundation of the city of Trento goes back to the 4^th century BC, due to its privileged position on the river track to Bolzano and the low Alpine passes. It was a Celtic village, whose name derives from “Trent”, a tribute to the Celtic god of waters.

Trento was conquered by the Romans in the 1^st century BC. Because of its three mountains and the river Adige, the Romans gave it the name of “Tridentum” as a tribute to the god Neptune. During this period the city started to earn wealth as an important stop on the Roman road that led from Verona to Innsbruck. 

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the independent bishopric of Trento was ruled by Ostrogoths, Byzantines, Lombards and Franks, and it ended up as a part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1027, Emperor Conrad II created the Prince-Bishops of Trento, giving the region certain independence, although in the following centuries the power was always held between the Bishopric of Trento and the County of Tyrol (a sort of State of the Holy Roman Empire). Around 1200, Trento became a silver-mining center of some importance.

Family travel: Montes Orientales (1 weekend)

We will go by car to Moclín, where we will stay at a charming Hostal which also serves as a museum and as a restaurant. We will arrive late, so that evening we will just have time to visit the castle. We will go up the hill and look at the wonderful landscape, then we will walk through the castle. We will have dinner at the town's square, chatting with the locals and eating a delicious barbacue. 

Saturday morning we will move to Piñar.  In this traditional village we will visit the Cueva de las Ventanas, considered a Good of Cultural Interest. It is a place full of historical remains. After the visit we will meet with our friend Paco, who will be our guide at Piñar. We will have lunch with him at the restaurant “La Almazara”. 

Later we will move on to Iznalloz, a beautiful village just 20 minutes away. There we will visit the “Cueva del Agua”. Located in Sierra Harana, it is a huge net of subterranean galleries without a fixed direction, as the whole cave is a fault. After the cave we will pass by a supermarket and we will buy some food in order to do a picnic gazing at the stars.

After this exhausting day we will come back to the hotel and rest for our last day. After these two days of culture it is time to do some sport. Next morning we won't hurry to get up, because we want to be ready and energetic for the hiking. We will have a huge breakfast, like the British one, to gain strength. We will depart from the hermitage of Moclín, the starting point of the “Ruta del Gollizno”.This amazing route goes down to the “throat” (gollizno) of the river, and it connects Moclín, Tózar and Olivares. We will enjoy its beautiful landscapes, we will see prehistorical paintings, we will play at Corcuela's fountain and we will pass through the suspension bridge. Once we get to Olivares we will look for the restaurant “Los Lalos”, famous for its gorgeous barbacue. We will continue the route after the meal, going all the way up to Moclín. There we will have a shower and say goodbye to our friends at the hostal.

In our way back to Granada we will chat about the experience looking at the sunset. It would be a great experience that we would never forget.

Hostal with breakfast included (56x2x2) = 224€

Barbacue 1^st night = 36€

Cueva de las Ventanas (8x4) = 32€ 

“La Almazara” (invited by our friend)

Cueva del Agua (free)

Supermarket dinner = 11€

“Los Lalos” = 34€

Total Cost = 337€

Class travel: Montes Orientales (1 day)

We will take a  bus from the centre of Granada to Piñar. In this traditional village we will visit the Cueva de las Ventanas, considered a Good of Cultural Interest. There is a prehistorical cemetery as well as stalactites, stalagmites, paleontological and archaeological remains. After the visit we will take a walk around Piñar, and we will have lunch there. Once we finish the bus will carry us to Moclín, a key town in the history of Andalusia. There we will meet the mayor who will tell us about the history and culture of this beautiful area. To end up, we will follow the Gollizno Route, an ecological path which connects Moclín with Olivares. During the route we will enjoy its astonishing landscapes, several viewpoints, a suspension bridge and Corcuela's fountain; ideal places to take pictures. We will come back tired to Granada in the bus that departs from Olivares.

Cost (per person)

Bus 4€

Cueva de las Ventanas 8€

You will have to bring your own food.

Results comments

After the Italians had left we filled out a survey about our experience, and some conclusions could be drawn from the results.

Students have enjoyed being in group both for activities and the work. However, some people have some doubts about the effectiveness of working in groups as some people don't do their part of the work. Moreover, students thought that the assignments were not clear at all and they didn't feel confident presenting it in front of the Italians.

There were no communication problems with the Italians due to the fact that we are bilingual. They mostly used Spanish to communicate and sometimes English improving their vocabulary but they  learned some Italian as well. 

In conclusion, everybody has enjoyed the experience and they are satisfied with the results of the work. This European project is absolutely worth doing

Our expectations for this year are almost the same. We hope we will learn more about environmental-friendly tourism as well as having fun here working on the projects and in Italy learning about this beautiful country.

Welcome!

Hello, welcome back! We are here again for the next phase of the project STEP to Europe (Erasmus KA2). This is going to be a tough year as we are in the graduating class and we are going to work really hard on this project as well as gainning admition to University through PAU examinations. During this summer we have been thinking about our Italian friends and now we are looking fordward to seeing them again. We are planning the trip to Trento and most likely it will be on March, although it is a pitty that not all students will come.

The final post

This is the last post we are going to upload this year. We are already
thinking about caribbean beaches and long nights because summer is
near and we are fed up of exams. This blog has been a great
opportunity to learn more about ourselves, the educational process,
Granada and Europe. We hope that you have found useful this web as
well as interesting. Enjoy your holidays!

Advantages and disadvantages of STEP to Europe

We have discussed together some pros and cons of this project and we have decided the most important ones.

ADVANTAGES:
-We get to know another culture.
-We have the opportunity to visit places in our province.
-We met people from another country and could make new friends.
-This type of project arose our awareness about what Europe is.
-We realise how similar teenagers are.
-The effort we made to understand other people's perspective supposes learning.

DISADVANTAGES:
-You felt sad when people left.
-We had less time to study or do homework or sleep.
-We didn't practise English as much as expected.
-We found out they have more scholarships than we do.

STEP to Europe Review

Evaluation of our Erasmus+ Project:

This year we have been working on sustainable tourism due to the project “STEP to Europe”, which intended to explore the sustainable tourism of our area as well as promoting the intercultural exchange between schools from England, Italy and Spain. In particular we've been with Italian students from Trento.

The project has been very useful since we have learnt a lot about eco-friendly tourist attractions in Granada, specially at  the Comarca de los Montes Orientales. We could draw the conclusion that Granada is an ideal destination if you're looking for sustainable tourism, as we have demonstrated during the Italians' stay.

Being bilingual students, the exchange has been an outstanding opportunity to practise English and learning Italian. We have got to know different lifestyles and cultures, by which we have acquired a wider vision of the world.

Leaflet: Comarca de los Montes Orientales

Here it is the leaflet we have created to promote sustainable tourism at Montes Orientales. We hope you enjoy it!

Leaflet Montes Orientales

Interview: Sustainable Tourism in Granada

Granada Townhall, Junta de Andalucía and Diputación tourist delegation:

1.- Which are the most visited places in Granada and why do you think they are so?

2.- How much money is spend every year for improving the sustainability of Granada?

Hospitality and Tourism Businessmen Association:

1.- As entrepreneurs, how does tourism benefits your incomes? What is the average spending of a tourist in Granada?

2.- Is sustainable tourism more expensive than common tourism?

Alhambra Trust:

1.- What do tourists basically seek when they come to the Alhambra?

2.- The Alhambra is the most visited monument in Spain. How do you deal with the conservation of this historical heritage?

Sierra Nevada National Park:

1.- Apart from skiing,  do tourist visit natural areas or they just stay in their hotels?
2.- How do you decide which areas of the Park are used for winter sports and which ones are protected?

Friday, 20th February 2015

Today we have received the interview from our friend the mayor of Moclín. We've got a lot of information ready to translate. We have searched the contact telephones of some areas of Montes Orientales and we have found some information about Cueva del Agua in Iznalloz, which we plan to visit.

Cueva del Agua is located in the peak of the Sierra Harana, in Iznalloz (Granada). It is a huge net of subterranean galeries without a fixed direction, as the whole cave is a fault. The ground is covered by grinded dolomites, and there were discovered stalagmitic tubes. Since the 60s we can enjoy its mind-boggling rooms such us the Music Hall and the Glaciar Lagoon.


Telephone numbers:
958403051 - Town Hall of Moclín
958247384 - Cueva del Agua of Iznalloz

Friday, 13th February 2015

Today we have sent our interview to the Mayor of Moclín and we have looked for information about the places we are going to visit. This is the information we have found about La Cueva de las Ventanas:

La Cueva de las Ventanas is a beautiful place located in Piñar (Montes Orientales). It's considered a Good of Cultural Interest and natural monument of Andalusia.

During the tour we would find a prehistorical cemetery, plenty of stalactites and stalagmites, great stone columns and paleontological and archaeological remains.
It's an essential visit you can't miss.

Our route in Granada: Montes Orientales

We have chosen the Comarca de los Montes Orientales as the cultural and environmental-friendly area of Granada to create a route for our Italian students of Trento, who will be visiting not only the city but also the relevant countryside that forms part of Granada's culture and lifestyle.

Our route will go to Cueva de las Ventanas (Píñar), Iznalloz, Moclín and Route of Gollizno to finish the day with some hiking. We have already contacted the townhall of Moclín to look for someone who can explain us the history and nature of this village.

We will post about the development of our route soon!

Lucia's hobby: Athletics

I love all kind of sports but my favourite one is athletics. It was the first specialty of Olympics and it has been an important part of its history. It has a great variety of events divided into three categories; running, jumping and throwing.

At first sight, I know athletics may seems boring but when you try it, you can't stop. The category I practise six times a week with my team is running. There are three distance categories: sprints, middle-distance and long-distance. Inside them you can find a great variety of races: mountain, field, road.... Moreover, you can discover some strage long-distance races that you have never heard about such as the 100 kilometers or the 24-hour races. 

In my opinion, athletics is the best sport. Actually, it's more than a sport, it teaches you some values like the spirit of sacrifice, comradeship and perseverance. Furthermore, it keeps you healthy and it's a good way to meet new people. For me, it's a way of life.

Pedro's Hobby: Magic

Being a magician isn't easy. You need to be very disciplinated, because the base for a succesful trick is to try it until you get it and once you have achieved it you need to repeat it again and again and again.

My passion for magic began when I was a child. I used to do a very simple trick with a coin and everybody loved it.

One day, during a travel to Madrid, I discovered a magic store of a very famous magician who now sells very cool material for magic spectacles. I loved the atmosphere there and when he saw I was so little, he closed the shop, took me to back room and did an spectacle only for my parents and me. Once he had finished he taught me how to do all of those tricks and since then we became friends.

Later on, after having read many books about it and after hundreds of hours of practising, I went to a Magic competition in Granada. I was the youngest (11 years) and the jury gave me the 3rd prize. There were people at the competition from Granada's Magic Circle and they invited me to join them, so I became the youngest member.

Now, I do not practise it so much because I haven't got too much time, but I keep loving it.