A team of 24 Mandoulides Schools’ students, accompanied by 3 teachers, visited Strasbourg, France, to observe the work of the European Parliament. The students’ attendance at the plenary session of the European Parliament coincided with a major anniversary for Europe: the reunification of Germany. The students attended lectures by French President Francois Hollande and Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany Angela Merkel in the European Parliament. The joint visit of the two chiefs of state was held 25 years after the reunification of Germany, and 26 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. A comparable commemoration had not happened since November 1989 when then President Francois Mitterrand and Chancellor Helmut Kohl addressed a full session of the European Parliament.
Participants in this educational visit had the opportunity to meet with Greek Member of European Parliament (MEP) Giorgos Grammatikakis, to be informed and to discuss issues relating to the operation and activities of the European Parliament. They also toured historical monuments of the city of Strasbourg.
The help of Vasilis Kanaras, General Directorate of Communication (Department of Visits and Seminars) and his associate Mariannas Dala, as well as the contribution of Leonidas Antonakopoulos, Head of the European Parliament Office in Greece, was invaluable. Prior to this visit, former MEP Ioannis Gklavakis had visited Mandoulides Schools to provide information about the European Parliament and eagerly answered all the students’ questions.
