The Treasures Story written by e- twinning friends
Chapter One
A JOURNEY BETWEEN ART AND SOLIDARITY
Once upon a time there was an orphan child who lived in Sicily. One day he saw a castaway who was mooring his raft on the shore. The castaway was very good at playing the violin.
The child made friends with him and went to live together. Every day the old man taught the child to play the violin and told him that he had visited so many beautiful and important countries. Years passed, the old man died and the boy grew up. He had become a very good violinist and was able to get by himself. He imitated the castaway and decided to see the most famous art cities in Italy. He visited Matera, the city of stones. He was attracted by the wonderful rock churches and cave dwellings, typical dwellings of the Sassi.
He arrived in Naples which has the largest historical center of Europe and it is famous for the invention of pizza.
Following Rome, the city of art par excellence. He was fascinated by the ancient Rome represented by the Fori Imperiali and the Colosseum.
He also visited many other monuments such as the Pantheon, the Sistine Chapel of Michelangelo and the Basilica of San Pietro, the Barcaccia Fountain sculpted by Bernini,the Trevi Fountain, the Altar of the Fatherland and the TrinitĂ dei Monti staircase which overlooks Piazza di Spagna.
Sistine Chapel of Michelangelo
Basilica of San Pietro
Barcaccia Fountain
Trevi Fountain Altar of the Fatherland
Piazza di Spagna
TrinitĂ dei Monti staircase
Walking through the city he was intrigued by countless street artists including a group of musicians who approached. He made friends and started playing with them. The latter shared his passion for art and continued the journey with him.
They visited Assisi, a religious city where St. Francis lived. Attracted by the history of the saint, they gave a turn to their lives: they decided to play to raise funds to be given to charity to the poor.
They continued the journey and stopped in Perugia and Urbino, the ideal Renaissance city.
Perugia
Urbino
Continuing the journey, they were enchanted by the sight of Florence, cradle of the Italian Renaissance.
They found themselves in front of beautiful works: Brunelleschi's Dome of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Baptistery of San Giovanni of Ghiberti, Giotto's bell tower etc ... Baptistery of San Giovanni
Santa Maria del Fiore
Giotto’s bell tower
They also admired the most important masterpieces of Italian art in the Uffizi Museum and the statue of Michelangelo's David in the Accademia Gallery.
They continued their journey, stopping in the most famous italian cities (Lucca, Genova, Trento, Torino, Ferrara, Verona, Ravenna e Venezia) and european cities‌.
Venezia
Chapter Two
Unexpected Invitation
One day they found a small box in a church. There was a letter in the box.
Hi Friends, We are small creatures from Poland . We are called Barstuki . We like doing things for others, but nobody can see us. Here is a map and a few airplane tickets to Poland. We invite you to our country. Barstuki
The Italian group was very glad , because they like travelling. They took the plane and soon landed in Warsaw. They spent some days there, because Warsaw is very interesting and surprise city. First, they went to rest in Ĺ azienki KrĂłlewskie -a Palace-Garden complex which includes a park (76 hectares of nature, right in the city center) and numerous historical objects. Later they visited Royal Castle and Old Town.
In the evening they went to National Stadium because there was a very important football meeting. The late evening they looked at the map. There was a small sign next to Warsaw. They read : Ĺťelazowa Wola. - What ‘s that?- they asked each other. They decided to go there the next day.
When they came to Żelazowa Wola they heard piano music. Very quickly they reminded who is the composer of it . Fryderyk Chopin – a Polish pianist and composer famous all over the world , who was born in Żelazowa Wola. Click
After the concert they decided to travel to Cracow and two small cities Wieliczka and Zakopane. Cracow was absolutely magical - there was something interesting everywhere: churches, castles, monuments and a lot of artists. They spent all day walking.
In the evening they decided to rest next to the Vistula river. Suddenly they saw a big dragon breathing fire. They went to the hotel as fast as possible.
The next day they travelled to Wieliczka. The “Wieliczka� Salt Mine is one of the most valuable monuments of material and spiritual culture in Poland. Each year it is visited by more than one million tourists from all over the world.
Later they went to Zakopane. Zakopane is a lovely town situated at the foothills of the majestic Tatra mountains. They could admire Polish mountaineers’ music and culture.
The following they took a plane to Gdańsk . Gdańsk it is a beautiful city at the seaside. They rested on a wide sandy beach and spent time walking on the streets of the Old Town.
When they were sitting on the beach they decided to find Barstuki, but they didn’t know where they lived.
Maybe in the biggest forest on the east of Poland - Białowieşa Forest, the last natural forest in Europe , a home of 800 European bisons?
Maybe they live in Warmia and Masuria - The Land of Thousand Lakes?
The Italian group decided to visit Olsztyn. They went to the castle where Nicolaus Copernicus lived and in the corner of the biggest room they saw a small creature.
Chapter 3 A visit to England
The creature asked if he could go to the UK with the boy, as he loves to travel and see new places and cultures.
They hitched a lift on an old pirate ship and landed in Cornwall. When they got there they visited the pretty villages, surfed the waters and ate fish and chips on the beautiful beaches of the Cornish coast. They visited the coves and found pirate treasure with a metal detector that they had found.
With the gold coins that they found they bought train tickets to London because they wanted to take afternoon tea with the Queen at Buckingham Palace.
Whilst in London they visited Big Ben at the Houses of Parliament, and took a ride on the London Eye which enabled them to admire the views across London. They then went to Downing Street to meet Theresa May, the Prime Minister.
Whilst talking to Theresa May, she told them about a place called Coventry that had recently been named as the City of Culture for 2021, and they decided that it must be a really interesting place to visit, so off they went.
When they arrived in Coventry they went to the Ricoh Arena to watch a game of rugby which The Wasps were playing against the Leicester Tigers (Leicester being a town very close to Coventry).
Then they found 2 cathedrals in the City Centre and they wondered why there were 2 cathedrals next to each other, one of which was just a ruin. They were told that it was because the old cathedral been bombed in the 2nd World War and a new cathedral was built after the war had ended, when Coventry was named City of Peace and Reconciliation as the people who lived there forgave the troops who destroyed their heritage.
They decided that they wanted to visit a school and they were told the best was Alderman’s Green Community Primary School. The pair were very happy to meet new friends at school and to be able to explore.
In the playground they found a letter, written in Spanish, which said ‘¡Os necesitamos!’ (We need you)…
¡Os necesita mos!
They turned over the paper and they saw some letters which formed the word Alcoy. But they didn’t have enough money because they had spent all in London. So they decided to look for the Polish dragon and travel with him to Spain.
The dragon flied to the mountains of Bocairent. It is a small village, near Alcoy.
When they arrived to the school the kids and the dragon saw many children that were going to Valencia on a school trip. And they decided to go together and visit the city.
They visited the caves in Bocairent and there they found a magic door. They entered and they appeared suddenly in the Street Nicolas in Alcoy. Someone touched one of the kids and in the pocket he found a paper with the message Jose Arnauda School.
They visited the Cathedral called La Seu.
In the afternoon they went to the City of Arts and Science because they were going to sleep inside the Oceanografic.
When they were in the Shark Aquarium, during the night, they found a bottle with a mysterious message inside‌.
Chapter 5 A mystical journey through Turkiye
In the message it’s said that…..
There is a giant yatch called ‘Savarona’-which is the Presidential yatch of Turkish Republic-waiting for you at the marina. Get on it and come to find us..
As they want to travel and wonder the sender of the message,they got on the yatch and the cruise to Turkey began. In the yatch there was a room of M.Kemal Atatßrk,the founder of Turkish Republic. The room was full of history and‌.
In a box on the table, there was a map about a lost treasure.. The couple started to search for it..
The first destination was Çanakkale,the Dardanelles..
In Çanakkale they went to the ancient city Troya to see the legendary Trojan Horse.
After that, they went to Gallipoli Peninsula to visit the Çanakkale Martyrs Memorial where they found a piece of an old photograph..
The next destination was the Ancient city of Ephesus,located in İzmir. Ephesus is in the Unesco’s World Heritage list and includes the remains of the Temple of Artemis,one of the World’s Seven Wonders, and the House of the Virgin Mary, a major place of Christian pilgrimage. While walking around the site, they found another piece of the photo..
Then, they board on the yatch and went to following city,marked on the map.It was Istanbul,the legendary city of history and culture,of which the historic areas are also among The Unesco’s World Heritage. In the city there were lots of attractions belonging to the Ottoman and Roman Empires.
When they were visiting the Maiden Tower, there was a note saying “find the Medusa heads� and they went to Basilica Cistern and found another piece of photo.
The following city was in the Mediterranean coast,Antalya. It had many beautiful sandy beaches,natural and historical sites. They swam in the sea and enjoyed the sun. At the beach, the little creature found a tiny piece of photo.It looks like an air balloon which is famous in Cappadocia.
As it wasn’t possible to go to CappadocĹa by the yatch and they were broke,the violinist boy played with the street musicians and earned money to buy ticket.When they arrived at the city,it was early in the morning and the air balloons were about to fly.They joined the balloon tour and saw the deep canyons,valleys and the fairy chimneys from the air.
At that night, they slept in a cave hotel and in the room they noticed another piece of the mystical photo. They checked the map and saw that there was only one destination left,which is in the capital city,Ankara. They travelled to Ankara and took a ride around the city. They wanted to see the Anıtkabir “ Atatürk’s Mausoleum” first and they met a group of students and teachers of a school,named Kariyer Private School.While they were leaving to find the last destination on the map,one of the students put the last piece of the photo in the pocket of little creature...
A violinist tripped over something that peered from the ground. It was a small suitcase left by the Barstuks (dwarfs). The suitcase contained two plane tickets to Dubrovnik, a town in Croatia.
In Dubrovnik a legend is told about a golden ship; once upon a time, a beautiful ship with chains let down sailed. Aboard the ship was a king. The king ordered everybody around. Suddenly, the ship stopped. A ship’s chain was stuck on a chest. The chest was very heavy, filled with gold, necklaces, jewels, diamonds and other treasure.
The king was surprised by the heavy treasure chest. Everybody was happy and pleased. Because of their happiness and laughter, the ship turned to gold. It was the happiest day of their lives. The crew decided to find the boat and sail the Adriatic Sea.
In a small boat in the middle of the sea, a man was rowing. He told them an interesting story about his and life beneath the surface of the sea. One day he decided to explore the sea. He came close to the water. When he woke up, he saw that he is under the sea. Beautiful fish swam; some fast, some slow. Some very odd fish took them to an old ship.
They came to Zadar and saw St. Donatus, the Sea Organ, the Old Town , the ancient city walls and the Sun Salutation.
They played to the sounds of the Sea Organ. They really liked the Old Town.
All of a sudden a seagull flew on top of the violinist’s head and brought him a letter that said: “Behind you is your transportation to your next destination. Barstuki” Behind them stood a big ship that had “BARSTUKI TRANS” written on it.
BARSTUKI TRANS
A group of musicians continued their trip and arrived in Mountainous Dinaric region of Croatia. They decided to visit the Plitvice Lakes because it is the oldest National Park in Croatia and is under UNESCO protection. At the entrance, they were given instructions on what is allowed and forbidden. Everybody should follow the guide, stay on the track and take their rubbish with them. By following the marked tracks through the forrest they came to the most interesting part of the park - 16 great and several small lakes. They took a picture in front of the great waterfall.
PLITVICE LAKES National Park
With the guide and the rest of the group, they boarded the electrical boat and went for a ride on the lake. They saw many plants and animals like pheasants, snakes, deer and many kinds of butterflies.
After the boat ride, a tourist train took them to a restaurant called “The Lika House� where they tasted traditional meals. Afterwards they settled in the camp and spent the rest of their free time in nature walks on the tracks around the lakes and underground caves.
The group of musicians arrived in Zagreb. Zagreb is the capital of the Republic of Croatia. They saw the GriÄ? Cannon. It is one of the Zagreb landmarks. Everyday at noon the gun fires a shot. Everyday for the past 141 years in Zagreb, the gun splits the days in half.
The GriÄ? Cannon
The violinist heard the cannon fire right next to them. The cannon ball split in half. Inside there was a letter from the Barstuk, and it said: “Dear musicians, in the envelope you will find the whistle of the Grič Cannon. When you blow it, it summons the Gričvor, an old wizzard. He will take you to your next destination.”
The musicians took a train to Vukovar. They travelled past the old water tower, saw the Eltz Castle and visited the VuÄ?edol Culture Museum.
On the road they found an evelople with a note: “Here’s some money for your trip to Cerić. Take the bus! They went past the rivers Danube and Vuka and arrived on a bus to Cerić.
Our village is Cerić. Cerić is in The Vukovar-Srijem county in the very east of Croatia. Our municipality is in Nuštar.
In the centre of the village, there is a monument for all people who died or went missing in the Homeland war 1991.
Our school is big and beautiful.