Keeping a journal was a great way to store the memories of my trip. I was able to write down everything from where we went, to what I learned, and what I liked and didn't like about each place we visited and explored. Even though some people on my trip didn't like having to write everyday, I thought it was a great souvenir to bring home with me.
July 10
After some last minute packing and saying goodbye to my friends and family, my mom, dad, sister, and I headed to JFK airport for my flight. It only took about 45 minutes to get there and once we had found the correct terminal we waited for most of the other delegates to arrive. After everyone had gotten there our leaders handed out yellow ribbons for us to tie to our bags and we all got on line to check our luggage. After we had checked our luggage we said goodbye to our families and up the stairs to go through security. We were given some time to roam around the waiting area and get some food for the plane. Once we all got back to the gate we boarded the plane and realized that our seats were pretty scattered. Luckily I had nobody next to me, which made it much easier to sleep. Our 7 hour flight included many movies, decent food, and not nearly as much sleep as I had hoped but all together it was a lot of fun.
July 11
When the plane finally landed it was around 9:00 in England, but 4:00 am to us! After getting our bags and going through customs we met our delegation manager, Aisling. She was really nice and explained to us that her name was gaelic for dream. We all loaded our bags onto the coach and headed off to where we were going to have lunch. We all ate a pasti, which was this pastry filled with meat. We all sort of picked at it but were more curious as to why there was this bell on our table....long story. After our lunch we walked across the street to the beautiful Hampton Court Palace. After taking a group picture our front we split into groups and explored the grounds. We were informed that there was a life-size garden maze so most of us headed off to find it. After about 30 minutes of running through the maze we finally had found the exit and strolled through the many gardens and courtyards. Everything was so extravagant and detailed, the whole place was just amazing. Even the bedrooms and other estate rooms inside were beautiful. They were all lined with artwork, painting, and murals of different religious and historic scenes. After visiting the gift shop we got back onto the bus and headed off through London to our hotel. For dinner we all got to eat fish and chips!!! Then our leaders taught us this game involving pairs of socks, where we had to remember everyone's names in the same order by tossing the socks back and forth. Some of us played card games in the lounge before heading off to bed after an extremely long day.
July 12
After breakfast we got onto our double-decker coach bus and met our tour guide for the day, Mike. he got us through the heavily conjested streets and traffic. He explained about all the different 'towns' inside of London and told us that we were staying in the docklands, because thats were some of the main ports had been before WWII. We got a chance to stop at St. Paul's Cathedral and took many pictures of its amazing architecture. Back on the bus, we traveled past Big Ben and the London Eye to where we were going to be lectured and told all about the Parliamentary system of England by an actual Member of Parliament (MP). I found the briefing to be really interesting and he even went into detail about how he felt about our government in the US. It was really cool to hear a completely different point of view on our government system. We thanked him for his time with us and (after grabbing some lunch) headed off to the Tower of London. Along the way we got to see the Tower Bridge and more of the London Eye. The Tower of London was truely a piece of art and it was interesting to hear all the different legends and gruesome tales about the place. After our tour we got to see the Crown Jewels which were beautiful. We saw all of the different crowns and sceptors used by previous kings and queens. After meeting back up with everyone we went on a cruise boat down the River Thames, which is said to be the cleanist river in Europe even though it is brown (the mud at the bottom never settles so it appears to be brown when it is infact very clean). We walked down to Planet Hollywood for dinner which was a lot of fun. There were cool street performers outside promoting the Olympics for 2012. After getting to eat cheeseburgers (!!!) we headed to the Drury Lane (where the muffin man lives) Theater where we got to see The Producers. The show was absolutely hilarious and we all enjoyed it so much.
July 13
Today started out pretty interesting. Because we were told that our bus for the day was too small to fit all of us we had to send four people onto another bus with another delegation of kids from Indiana. I volunteered to go along with a leader and 2 other delegates. We saw the same tour we had the day before but we had a different guide so we learned some other stuff and got to see Fleet Street and learned about the more financial aspects of the city. We also got to walk across the Wibbily Wobbily Bridge which when it was first built was so wobbily that you couldn't stand while you walked across, but its fixed now and incredibly stable but still has its nickname. The people from my delegation left the others and we walked along the River Thames down to where the rest of our delegation was. After meeting up we were told that we had missed the changing of the guards which I was sort of dissappointed about but we were also told we were getting more shopping time so I was excited about that! We ate our lunches in a park and then headed off for some shopping. Before we were aloud to go off though we went to a Art Gallery where we saw many different statues and paintings from all different time periods with different mediums. Outside the museum some of us got refreshed from the hot weather by putting our feet in one of the fountains like many many other people around us were doing. I loved Trafalgar Square very much, the fountains were so beautiful. We were then taken to the Covent Gardens where we were given time to shop. My group managed to find an internet cafe where I got to email my friends and family. We went through many different flea markets and stores and bought so many souvenirs and gifts. After meeting up with everyone we went to dinner in a place which was sort of like a Friday's. As soon as we were all finished we headed across the River Thames to the London Eye. We were split into 2 different groups because we all didn't fit in the same capsule. Even though it had started to rain once we were on the eye it was still an amzing view and I got a lot of really great pictures (we even tried to play charades with the other capsule). When the ride had ended it wasn't raining anymore and we all boarded the bus to go back to the hotel after another very long day.
July 14
Around 8:15 we headed downstairs with our luggage to the lobby and loaded everything onto the bus. Unfortunately, it took us over four hours to get to Stonehenge but we had a lot of fun along the way. We watched some movies on the bus and we all played a lot of card games. When we arrived in Stonehenge I was amazed at how perfect and huge all of the stones were. We got to use audio guides to hear the theories on how the stones got there and what historians believe they were used for. When we got to Bath we could see so many villages from the bus and the landscaping ad scenery was phenomenal. We got to check out the Roman Baths, where they used to bathe during the Roman times and surprisingly all of the stones are still in place. In the Baths we could walk around with an audio guide and hear about each of the rooms we were in or the artifacts we were looking at. I saw many different baths and temple stones as well as natural hot spring waterfalls that were still in existence. The country house we’re staying at (Caer Llan) is really beautiful with amazing scenery and balconies and gardens everywhere. After dinner we checked out the grounds a little but then we went to start the team challenge activity. I was put onto Team #2 and we did awesome. From walking through newspaper, to constructing legos, doing math, and ‘herding sheep’ (even having to make a giraffe out of straws) we actually won and came in 1st place!
July 15
After waking up today to a beautiful view of the hills of Wales we got onto the new air conditioned bus and relaxed on our 2 hour journey to Cardiff Castle, in the capital of Wales. When we arrived at Cardiff I noticed that it had the set-up of an old fashion castle like the ones you see in movies where there is a square perimeter building and a center fort on a hill with a moat. After getting a punching lesson we got a tour of the perimeter building of Cardiff which is 2,000 years old. The guided tour I enjoyed very much because it was really interesting to discover how and why details were put into each room. The details and design work was amazing and climbing all of the spiral staircases was very fun. After the tour we walked over to the center tower and climbed all the way to the top! It was an amazing view, but the steps were very creepy and steep When we came out of the castle, there was a peacock on the lawn and we were determined for it to open its wings, but it didn’t work. Soon we got back on the bus and headed to the Museum of Welsh life. For lunch we ate pasta with chicken, rolls, potatoes, and these sugar cakes for desert. Walking around the outdoor village thing, it was pretty cool to see the sizes, set-up, and texture of the houses. We also saw the water wheels which powered the energy for the houses. We stopped at a grocery store in Monmouth so we could buy anything we needed. I walked around the place with Ken as we collected our water and sugar food items. The two of us climbed down this little stream but because of oversized bugs he wouldn’t go all the way down the hill. Once we had reached the hotel (Caer Llan) we all ran to put our bathing suits on and sprinted through the woods to the pool. Then Mr. G had us do relay races and stuff which was a lot of fun. We all went in the house and I got to use the internet just before we were entertained by ‘The Lovely Jublees’ who played some pretty awesome music. We all had a great time dancing. After the band had left we all went to get refreshed and then inside everyone was going to have a concert with use of the piano and anyone who could play or sing was performing for the rest of the group.
July 16
I woke up to my alarm clock this morning at 6:20 and immediately got ready for my day. We were told to go make lunch so we went inside the dining room to find a bunch of ingredients to use along with chips and chocolate. I went back to my room to finish packing and then got a bowl of cereal for breakfast. We soon boarded the bus and waved goodbye to the staff at Caer Llan. We arrived at a small beach/park where we could eat our lunch. We soon headed over to the port and boarded the ferry. We checked out the arcade and the gift shop and wandered around the decks. We went to the lounge, played some cards, ate some chocolate, and listened to some live music, which we found funny being every song was American. After 3 1/2/hours on the ship we finally pulled into the port in Ireland. I helped load the luggage onto the bus and then boarded for our half hour journey to dinner. Along the way we were taught different greetings in Irish (Craic = Fun) (Cead Mille Failte = One Thousand Welcomes). Quickly after boarding the bus we arrived in Waterford, where I was rooming with Briana and Gillian in our own bedrooms and we had 2 bathrooms.
July 17
I woke up today at 6:20 and quickly got packed and got dressed and then joined Briana in the living room to eat our breakfast. We were told to go bring our luggage downstairs so Keith and I caught the elevator and packed our luggage onto the bus. We arrived at Waterford Crystal and got a tour and saw how everything was turned from sand to crystal. I loved watching the molten liquid being molded and blown into the different shapes. We boarded the bus again for 2 hours on our way to Cork County for lunch and an Irish orientation. We had lunch at a restaurant inside a hotel in Cork. After lunch we got an orientation where the guy has us make a timeline of Irish history and explain pieces of Irish culture. We made our way back onto the bus for a 3 hour ride to Kerry County, to the Batt Burns village. We were divided into different bed & breakfasts, and I am in ‘The Grape Vine’. We sang songs on the bus and had a fun time. After getting off the bus we found our house and picked a bedroom (ours in purple) and we organized our luggage. At 6:30 we headed next door to this very nice french restaurant where we were served melon, garlic chicken, and the best chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream we’ve had so far. We headed down the road to the local elementary school for stories. Mr. & Mrs. Burns taught us a Gaelic song and we did pretty well with it. Then Mr. Burns told us a story that he heard when he was younger about the land of forever young. After the story, heading back to the houses it started to rain so we huddled as we ran. I tried to wash the stain out of my capris back at the house and it faded pretty well. Hopefully tomorrow will be fun, especially getting to meet our home stay families.
July 18
I woke up today at 7:30 and got ready. Around 8:30 we headed downstairs. We ate cornflakes and soda bread, which was very good. We chatted for a little while about NY with the owner of the house and then brought our luggage down the stairs. We walked down the road to where everyone else who had stayed in the North Village was and just as we had gotten there the bus pulled up. After about an hour of driving, the bus driver stopped at a small lookout place so we could take pictures of the scenery. We got back on the bus for a little while until we go to Killarney and we formed groups to ride the jaunty cars. However, my group was last so they split us up (2 people per car) to squeeze in because we were one car short. I got to sit in front next to the driver because there was no more room in the back which was so much fun. The jaunty cars left us at the side of the lake and we all had to put on life jackets and board the small boats. Our boat kept rocking back and forth and we were sure that water was going to pour in (even though it didn’t). We arrived at the Mock Ross house for lunch, but only after a very long hike that consisted of attempted tree climbing. After lunch we drove into the town of Killarney. We parked in the outlet center and we were told we had 2 hours to shop. We walked up and down the streets and I bought myself a sweatshirt and I got a shot glass too. On our way to the spot where our guest families were coming to pick us up we played a game where we had to find an item in our bags and get it to the back of the bus and then all the way to the front of the bus before the other side. When we arrived at the meeting spot we were called off the bus and introduced to our host families. We said goodbye to each other and got into our cars. It took a while to get all 3 suitcases into the back of the car but we eventually got it. The house is about 5 minutes away from where the bus was and it turns out they own 2 houses, one’s there daughters’. They have 6 children but only the youngest two still live at home. We brought our bags upstairs and then we went back downstairs to the sitting room and watched TV. Soon Adrien, Jan, and Ethia came in and the seven of us watched some TV before heading over to the other house for dinner. We ate spaghetti with meat on top of it and it was very good. After some tea and biscuits we walked back to the kitchen of the other house to play cards. We started off with BS which they called Liar and then we played spoons. After some more card games I headed upstairs and got ready for bed. Playing cards with everyone was so much fun.
July 19
I woke up at 8:00 this morning and quickly got dressed. We got our packed lunch together and then headed back to the bus. I heard about what everyone else had done yesterday. After a 40 minute drive we arrived in Lough Gur which was really really interesting, but twice as boring. We learned about the ancient stone circles and temples and we saw where the fairies live and such. We went into this park place to eat lunch (which most of us had already eaten), and sat along the stone wall to finish the rest. But before we were able to eat lunch we had to go inside to watch a film about Lough Gur and we were forced to complete a quiz on everything we had learned that day and we basically got the whole thing right, but all 39 of us had to work together. We got back on the bus and headed to the playing field to watch a demonstration of hurling. The girls were about 12 years old and showed us how to play the game of hurling. Then they split us into 2 teams and we learned and played Gaelic football. I tried my best to keep up and even got hold of the ball a few times. In the end we were all covered in grass stains and we had won 3-1. All sweaty and disgusting, we got back onto the bus and headed back to meet our host families. We said goodbye to everyone and Martina dropped the three of us off in Chareville which is the town in Cork near to them. I bought 2 Gaelic fairy statues and Manchester United sweatbands. At 6:30 we got picked up and went back to the house for dinner which was delicious. After dinner Pierce challenges is all to soccer so the 6 of us of us split into 2 teams: Pierce, Jen, and Gabby vs. Adrien, Jan, and myself. I thought I did well being I’ve never really played before and my khaki pants got filthy. In the middle of the game, my stomach started to bother me so I played goalie for the rest of the time. We walked back to the other house and they all went to go play cards bud I decided to go to bed because I felt dizzy. Tomorrow we get to dance!
This morning I woke up at 8:00. After getting dressed and eating breakfast, Martina drove us to the hall where we were supposed to meet. After everyone had arrived they made the evens go upstairs and the odds had to stay downstairs to learn 4 dances. Being number 20, I went upstairs, opened my tin whistle, and learned how to read music ‘by numbers’. The group as a whole was pretty squeaky, but individually we weren’t that terrible. Maggie and John even made up their own tunes. We learned two different songs, a lullaby, and The Minstrel. After an hour of tin whistling, we headed downstairs to be whipped into shape by Mira. We were split into rows of four for the first dance. After a bit of work at it we managed to understand what it was that we were trying to do. We also learned the military 2 step and another weird dance and then we did the bridge dance! I got to be partners with John and we skipped back and forth across the floor. Eventually our lesson came to an end and we all headed onto the bus and ate our lunch on the way to Blarney Castle. Once we got to Blarney Castle, we had to climb up 300 and something steps to get to the top. The staircase was so sold, made of stone, and it looked like it was about to collapse any minute I got sort of nervous at the top because the wind was so strong and we were ridiculously high. I finally made it to the front of the line, laid on my back and kissed the stone. But my camera spazzed out so I didn’t get my own picture of it, but I wound up buying the one that they took of me. Our way down out of the castle seemed a lot shorter then the way up. On our way out of the Blarney grounds we stopped at a pay phone, but no one was home at my house so I left a pretty long message. We went through a few gift shops and into the huge Blarney Mills store. We still had some time left so we found basically everyone else on this patch of grass dancing while Maggie was playing the tin whistle. Around 4:15 we started to board the bus and they made us play a game where we had to tell 2 truths and 1 lie about ourselves and the other team had to guess what the lie was. We arrived back at the bus stop and got picked up by Martina. We put our bags away in our room and then headed to the house for dinner. We had these pizza type things and weird pastries. After dinner we went back to the hall for the BBQ. We ate hamburgers and chicken and then they made us do the four by four dance and the military 2 step. Even a lot of the French and Spanish kids joined in. Then we did the bridge dance, Andrew and I were in the second group so we watched the first time. Mr. G and Peterson did the tango, Stephaine jumped on Keith’s back and Heather and Caity did a million line dances. When it was our turn to go, Andrew and I did the shopping cart dance and the ‘Zito’ on the way back. John pulled a feather out of his pocket and put it in his mouth to tango with Gillian and Veronica and Maggie played leap frog. In the third group, Amanda actually got Carl to do something and Rory and Wyllie acted like models and spun their jackets around. The ‘judges’ picked 6 finalist couples and they were Keith & Steph, John & Gillian, Andrew & I, Rory & Wylie, Amanda & Carl, and Heather & Caity! We were all given time to plan what we were gong to do while everyone else had to do another dance. Finally, the 6 groups were told to dance and Caity & Heather did more line dancing, Steph slid through Keith’s legs, Gillian & John did acrobatics and ballet, Amanda & Carl skipped back and forth, Andrew & I did cross jumps down, did a ‘Maggie Venti' to turn around and then did a funny walk on the way back and spun around, and Rory and Wylie just sat in chairs and stared at their watches. When it was time to announce the winners, Bernstein said that we won and threw a sheep at me but then she realized we didn’t win and I gave it back. Keith, Steph, John, & Gillian won, but Bernstein said she’ll buy Andrew & me something tomorrow. Then they made us sing the national anthem and I tried to harmonize the best I could. John and Caitlyn thought it sounded really good so I was happy about that. Our host families brought us home and we played cards with Pierce, Adrien, Jan, and Ethia. What a day!
July 21
I woke up at 11:00 today. It was so awesome to sleep in and after jumping in the shower I went into the kitchen for breakfast. I headed upstairs to squeeze everything into my suitcase. Jen and I got everything to fit which was a miracle and I put my gifts for the family on my bed. We loaded the car with our luggage (the hatch didn’t close though) and we made our way back to the bus. We said goodbye to Martina and Evelyn and got onto the bus. Our new bus driver, Joe, wouldn’t let us listen to our morning song and we weren’t allowed to stand on the bus either. After about an hour on the bus we got to the town of Limerick. Steph, Veronica, Maggie, John and I went on a serious hunt for an Internet Café. After about 20 minutes of asking random people we finally found one. At 4:00 I headed back to the bus and we took a 2 hour ride of relaxation to Lisdoonvarna, the matchmaking city of Ireland. The hotel looks like a castle but it’s so fake that it’s pretty funny. We wandered the grounds because we had a half hour until dinner and basically just chilled outside. We went in for dinner which was ok. We did some laundry in the tub and hung out outside and made Laura go up to our room so we could wave to her and see if we could see through the window. We said goodnight to everyone and finished packing up a little in our rooms. Fun Times!
July 22
At 6:20 my alarm clock went off. We got ready pretty quickly and headed downstairs and waited in the lobby until it was time for breakfast. We were assigned tables but I still got to sit with Gillian. We had toast, cornflakes, bacon, and sausages (that tasted like sweet and sour chicken). After breakfast we loaded our backpacks onto the bus and found seats. I We stopped at a very old tomb and got a taste of what hiking through the Burren was going to be like. We had so much fun jumping from rock to rock and exploring the grounds. After about an hours drive we arrived at the Ailwee Caves. We were split into 2 different groups, numbers 1-20 and numbers 21-39. My group was the yellow group and the other group was black. The caves were really dark and I stood behind Jackie because she happened to have a flashlight. It was cool to see calcite that was thousands of years old. After we finished our tour we waited for the other group to finish the tour. I got a really cute bracelet in the gift shop and then we went outside with everyone to take pictures. We even sort of rock climbed…then we realized that there were stairs. For lunch we went upstairs to the Potato Bar. We had a baked potato for lunch. We then got back on the bus for another hour until we got to the Burren Tour entrance. Our tour guide’s name was John and I was not pleasantly surprised to find out our hike was an hour and a half long. We grabbed walking sticks and we started our trek up the mountain. We all quickly learned not to step in cow dung and that the walking sticks were very fortunate to take. We headed through grassy areas and paths but when we got to the rocks it was everyman for himself and I slowly made my way upward. I felt like I was in a videogame, jumping from rock to rock (some with like fifteen foot drops between them). When we got as high as we were allowed to go we all layed down and stared at the sky in complete silence. That was definitely one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was so beautiful and relaxing. Our way back down was so much fun. John (the guide) showed us the sliding rock and I got to slide down a part of the mountain! We finally got back to the bus and got on for our 90 minute journey to the Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs were so beautiful and we took many pictures in front of them. We walked around for a little while, and when we got back to the bus I was presented with a stuffed sheep because they said that Andrew and I so beat John and Gillian. It was only about 15 minutes before we got back to the hotel and we went into the game room. After many games of pool we went outside. We played catch with the rugby ball but we soon went inside to eat dinner. After dinner we went back into the game room and we played pool. After some more haning out at the hotel we headed up to our rooms. I made myself tea and used a hair dryer to dry all of my clothes that were still wet. After we had made some phone calls we fell asleep after a very long and exhausting day.
July 23
I woke up at 6:15 today to the sound of my alarm clock. I got ready and packed all of my stuff and then brought our bags outside to the coach bus. We went back inside and went into the dining room for breakfast. After breakfast we went upstairs into our rooms to get our backpacks and then hung out in the parking lot until the bus driver let us onto the bus. When we finally got there we were all really hungry, but we weren’t going to have lunch for another hour or so, until after the tour of Birr Castle. Our tour guide didn’t really seem like she knew what she was doing because half of her speech about each room would be over by the time the entire group had entered the room. After a few art galleries we went through the gardens to eat our lunch. I had a ham and cheese sandwich with crisps, a muffin, an apple and orange juice but a lot of people wound up with different stuff. After lunch, we walked through the yard a little more and we got to see the biggest telescope in the world, which is 6x30 feet and it’s a reflecting telescope. We finally were done with our tour and we got back on the bus for another 3 hours until we got to the center of the City of Dublin. We were split into groups of 4 and we were given clues and a crossword puzzle and the first person back to the bus with the correct answers to the clues that were capitalized was the winner. So Vanessa, Carl, Mike, and I stopped in 2 stores to ask people questions but we got most of our answers by asking people on the corner that were waiting for the bus. The whole ordeal was a lot of fun and now that we know how to get answers tomorrow should be easier. My team came in 4th place and we waited for everyone to return. We all got back onto the bus and Aisling gave us a tour of O’Connell Street and she told us about the city in general as well. Because we were early for dinner, we went into a small general store and stocked up on water bottles and chocolate. We walked across the street to Kitty’s, where we were eating dinner. I had pasta in a really good cream sauce and vanilla & strawberry ice cream. After 15 minutes we got to the IMI Residence. Everyone pulled a chair over to the screen and we all watched Sleepy Hollow (I got to use the computer too) and then we made our way off to bed.
At 6:15 I woke up today, took a shower, got dressed, and I wrote in my journal a little because I didn’t have time to finish last night. After finishing my entry, I headed to the lounge for breakfast. Around 8:45 we got our luggage and then loaded it onto the bus. We had a 15 minute bus ride to St. Stephen’s Green and we got back into our groups to complete the rest of the Dublin Challenge. We were brought into the park and after 5 minutes of walking aimlessly, Carl found this map with history on it and we got all of our answers. We sprinted back to the base and we got first place! We waited for everyone to return and then Aisling walked us to Grafton Street where we were given 2 hours of shopping time. The only problem was it was 10:00 on a Sunday morning and nothing was open. So I went to an internet café. Then my group and I walked around a little more and went into McDonalds where we found a lot of other people. The McDonalds was humongous with a café, almost like a Starbucks, in it and upstairs there were couches and flat screen television’s and stuff. We all walked back to the meeting place and then Aisling walked us back a few blocks to where we were going to have lunch, The Bad Ass Café. The orders were sent in on a zip line like in Hooters which was pretty cool. After lunch we still had a half hour before we had to get back on the bus so I walked around. We watched many funny street performers that involved fire, limbo, small guys in jump suits, and people completely covered in a certain color of paint. We drove about a half hour until we got to the ferry where we had to wait for another hour before we could board. We eventually got onto the ferry and let me say that it was a bumpy ride. My stomach got really non-cooperative and nobody could walk straight. After the ride, which was only and hour and a half, we quickly got our luggage and made our way to bus. We pulle dinto the Bangor University where we were all very excited to have our own rooms and bathrooms. After dinner I explored the grounds and town with Rory, Wylie, Amanda, Caitlin, and Rebecca. I learned how to play taps with the Rugby ball, which is basically spastic volleyball. We went inside because it got really cold and we all just chilled in the loft above the staircase. I eventually put my pajamas on, and after some more talking we said goodnight to everyone and went back to our rooms to sleep.
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