The school started at 8. The Italians were told to take off their shoes in the mud room as is the custom in the school. Instead of the red carpet for VIPs the Italians were led to the auditorium along a traditional rag rug. We bid them welcome, gave them woolly socks that the host families had provided for them and gift bags from the municipality. Then we had music by the children's choir called the Rays of Light and two slide shows, one about the birth of the lake and another about the Geopark area. After that the science teacher Meri Kiri played two pieces on the accordion. We had a little break and then had some refreshments and icebreaker games.