Hey guys, sadly this is our last post from the lovely lands across the Atlantic. Today was a scenic end to an awesome trip. We all awoke...on time of course! We awoke to a lovely breakfast cooked by the hotel kitchen of either Bacon, Sausage, and a Tomato, or a vegitarian dish consisting of eggs and spinach. Both options were delicious and a good start to the morning.
We hopped on the bus and headed out of town to start our tour of the Ring of Kerry. Killarney is part of a peninsula and the Ring of Kerry is the outer layer of that peninsula. The Ring is 110 miles long and it took us the length of the day to tour it. The day consisted of multiple picture spots where we all got lovely pictures of the gorgeous Irish countryside. One of the stops wasn't a picture spot, but actually it was a small village, Kerry Peatbog Village. It was a quaint and peaceful place...then our bus arrived. We stormed the walls and torched the buildings in respect to the actual time period. By storming the walls and torching the buildings we mean we stopped at the gift shop and took a stormload of pictures. There was a live person in the exhibit, though, and she played the accordian. There were also these Irish Wolfhounds which are the size of a wolf, but are dogs. They were awesome looking. There were also miniature ponies that looked depressed, but we tried them smile. This was also the site of Robbie's purchase of his epic green Leprechaun Hat. It was nifty. Drew said this about the tour, "I slept alot." Most students slept some on the bus ride and missed some of the tour, but most enjoyed the beautiful scenery while they were awake. Another epic part of the tour was when Braveheart was playing, and epic battle music began playing while we came up through snow covered mountains.
Lunch was at a cliffside cafe overlooking one of the bays. The food was way overpriced, but since it was the last meal we would buy, and the only restaurant in the area, we ate there. Food was extremely delicious though, and the gift shop offered wonderful deals. We then finished our tour of the Ring of Kerry and got back to the city at around 4.
Eric gave us 2 hours and 45 minutes to explore the city. Mick spent the time listening to some sermons on cd; Drew walked around with Nick and actually met some locals. Ben and Evan found an army surplus store to shop in. Will, Lance, Ryan, and Daniel all stayed and chilled at the the hotel. Daniel said he actually watched Star Wars Episode III.
We met up at 6:45 for dinner. We went to a local hotel and dined at their restaurant. It was a vegetable soup and a beef dish. Dessert was a piece of apple pie with cinnamon on top. It was quite delicious. Eric gave a sweet message after dinner saying, "You guys reminded me why I love doing what I do."
We came back to the hotel and took a group picture, one with everyone including Byrnes, and another picture with just HCA'ers. We then presented gifts to our chaperones. Mr. K and Mr. Rob gave Irish Blessings to each parent that came. We gave Eric an HCA Football (aka soccer) shirt, right off Aaron Lucas' back, that each person in the group had signed. We gave Mr. K an Ireland Flag that everyone signed and a British flag that said "Class of 2010". Mr. Rob got an Irish Jersey that he can wear on casual days at school because it has a collar. We also gave Mrs. Klempner a scarf as a thanks for keeping Mr. K sane.
The students all stayed in the lobby and are hanging out for our last night together. Our wake up call comes at 3:30 tomorrow, and we leave the hotel at 4:30. We were told to pack tonight. Our bus ride to the airport will be two hours and we should fly out around 10. That is where your iteneraries come in handy to find out when to pick us up. Thank you again for reading everyone, and we hope this blog has been beneficial to your sanity on your kids being gone. We all miss you and look forward to seeing you soon!!!!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
Day 8-Bus rides, Bus rides, and Mono
This morning started off differently for lots of people than usual. From what we know, at least half of the group woke up late and had to rush. Made for a fast paced morning, but breakfast was delicious. Yogurts, bread, and fruit were the bulk of our selections. We all gobbled up the food and headed for our bus for an 8 o'clock departure.
The morning started off a bit slow, as we rode 2 hours to a restroom stop. We thought there might not be bathrooms at our first stop so we stopped at the loo just in case. We also followed regular tourist tradition, and raided the Subway for all of its cookies while we were at the restroom.
We hopped back on the bus to ride 30 minutes to Cahir Castle (pronounced "care"). We didn't get to go inside or really explore the grounds that much. The fifteen minutes for pictures and stretching our legs was greatly appreciated.
We hopped on the bus again for another hour and headed to Blarney Castle, home of the Blarney Stone. We got off and most of the group headed straight for the stone. For those of you who don't know why this is so important, according to legend, those who kiss the Blarney Stone will be granted with the gift of gab. Meaning their speech will be eloquent and it may increase the amount they talk. Mariah was so excited about kissing the Blarney stone, that even though she missed it by a foot, she feels she won't get mono like those who actually kissed the stone. Most of the group then headed out straight to lunch, but a few brave individuals actually went on a walk of the grounds, where Mariah got to see the lake, Robbie got to climb a tree, and Drew got chased by a car.
Most people headed to lunch though, and enjoyed the local cuisine. Nick Cannon said, "I tried to eat an Irish cow, topped with cheese and bacon with a side of fries, but it was just too big and I was unable to conquer the cow."
After lunch guess what we did? We got back on the bus and rode an hour to Cobh (pronounced Cove). Cobh wss a site where emigrants left the country during the potato famine and were subjected to grim situations while riding the boats. It was also the last port stop for the Titanic, and it was also the sinking place of the Lusitania. The exhibit consisted of lots of pictures, movies, and wax figurines. There were also these iron bars that our class decided would be fun to squeeze through. So one by one, we pushed through. Of course there was a gift shop at the end, and our group bought many souveneirs. At 4:45 our group did something very shocking...we got back on the bus.
We had a two hour busride to dinner and Killarney, which is where we are residing tonight. On the busride we had two epic events occur. We watched as much of Braveheart as we could, and the back of the bus decided that after 8 days we should get on a first name basis with the other school. We talked to them for the first 30 minutes and had a fun time getting to know them. Tomorrow will be fun touring with them.
Dinner was Irish Stew. It was lamb and 3 different kinds of potatoes. Lance Dutton had this to say about dinner, "It was tasty." Sammi Petro said her alternate choice, the vegetarian choice was "weird". Dessert was neopolitan ice cream and it was incredible. We have had cake or fruit for dessert all week, and the ice cream was a refresher.
The hotel we are at tonight is new, and there is an awesome layout area. Seth is taking a picture to upload at the moment. We also had something awesome happen tonight. We had two groups leave the hotel to look at the town for a little bit, and it was exciting. One group had a onion thrown at them at a very high speed. Lance said he was thankful they didn't play baseball. The other group also had something thrown at them, they had an orange thrown at them. It seems that the people of Killarney enjoy throwing fruits and veggies at tourists. Oh well, at least no one got hurt?
But we have an 11:30 curfew and leave for a tour of the Ring of Kerry tomorrow morning. But we get to stay in the same hotel!!! It's very exciting. Hope you all have an awesome night, and it's only 2 days till you will see us all again...
The morning started off a bit slow, as we rode 2 hours to a restroom stop. We thought there might not be bathrooms at our first stop so we stopped at the loo just in case. We also followed regular tourist tradition, and raided the Subway for all of its cookies while we were at the restroom.
We hopped back on the bus to ride 30 minutes to Cahir Castle (pronounced "care"). We didn't get to go inside or really explore the grounds that much. The fifteen minutes for pictures and stretching our legs was greatly appreciated.
We hopped on the bus again for another hour and headed to Blarney Castle, home of the Blarney Stone. We got off and most of the group headed straight for the stone. For those of you who don't know why this is so important, according to legend, those who kiss the Blarney Stone will be granted with the gift of gab. Meaning their speech will be eloquent and it may increase the amount they talk. Mariah was so excited about kissing the Blarney stone, that even though she missed it by a foot, she feels she won't get mono like those who actually kissed the stone. Most of the group then headed out straight to lunch, but a few brave individuals actually went on a walk of the grounds, where Mariah got to see the lake, Robbie got to climb a tree, and Drew got chased by a car.
Most people headed to lunch though, and enjoyed the local cuisine. Nick Cannon said, "I tried to eat an Irish cow, topped with cheese and bacon with a side of fries, but it was just too big and I was unable to conquer the cow."
After lunch guess what we did? We got back on the bus and rode an hour to Cobh (pronounced Cove). Cobh wss a site where emigrants left the country during the potato famine and were subjected to grim situations while riding the boats. It was also the last port stop for the Titanic, and it was also the sinking place of the Lusitania. The exhibit consisted of lots of pictures, movies, and wax figurines. There were also these iron bars that our class decided would be fun to squeeze through. So one by one, we pushed through. Of course there was a gift shop at the end, and our group bought many souveneirs. At 4:45 our group did something very shocking...we got back on the bus.
We had a two hour busride to dinner and Killarney, which is where we are residing tonight. On the busride we had two epic events occur. We watched as much of Braveheart as we could, and the back of the bus decided that after 8 days we should get on a first name basis with the other school. We talked to them for the first 30 minutes and had a fun time getting to know them. Tomorrow will be fun touring with them.
Dinner was Irish Stew. It was lamb and 3 different kinds of potatoes. Lance Dutton had this to say about dinner, "It was tasty." Sammi Petro said her alternate choice, the vegetarian choice was "weird". Dessert was neopolitan ice cream and it was incredible. We have had cake or fruit for dessert all week, and the ice cream was a refresher.
The hotel we are at tonight is new, and there is an awesome layout area. Seth is taking a picture to upload at the moment. We also had something awesome happen tonight. We had two groups leave the hotel to look at the town for a little bit, and it was exciting. One group had a onion thrown at them at a very high speed. Lance said he was thankful they didn't play baseball. The other group also had something thrown at them, they had an orange thrown at them. It seems that the people of Killarney enjoy throwing fruits and veggies at tourists. Oh well, at least no one got hurt?
But we have an 11:30 curfew and leave for a tour of the Ring of Kerry tomorrow morning. But we get to stay in the same hotel!!! It's very exciting. Hope you all have an awesome night, and it's only 2 days till you will see us all again...
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Day 7-Our Exit of the UK
We woke up this morning in our quaint hotel at the wonderful time of 6 am with a wakeup call. Well some people did, others didn't get one, but no one missed the bus. Breakfast was a choice between Country Ham, Eggs, Bread, Sausage, Beans, and a loaf of bread that had the consistency of a brick. It was tasty however, but parents prepare for dental work.
The bus left the hotel at 8 and we rode our 2 hours to the ferry. We did make 2 stops on the way there though. We made one stop at a little shop in order to use the facilities and stretch our legs very quickly. Can't remember the name of the shop, but we did make up for it with the name of the second shop. It was "The Church of Mary in the Hollow of the White Hazel Near the fierce whirlpool and the Church of Tysilio by the Red Cave." Yea, the Welsh for it was "LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH" anyone fluent in Welsh? One lady did come on the bus though and try to tell us the ferry wasn't running. It freaked Eric out, and he called just to make sure. But it was indeed still running.
We arrived at the ferry stop and boarded our bus that took us to the ferry port. We had the ferry described to us as a basic cruise ship. With shops, movies, and restaurants. Seth pictured a swimming pool and a shuffleboard court. Robbie pictured a bowling alley and a tennis court. This was not the case since the ship did not live up to our dreams. It was a nifty space however, with lots of seats and tables for us to eat at, and a movie actually was played, it was hilarious. The movie was the hilarious Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. Some students and faculty were unable to watch because they were knocked out on Dramamine. Robbie Crawford was one of those, and he enjoyed the loopiness for the next few hours. Other students went on the top deck and enjoyed the wind and waves. We also had a selection of hot sandwiches or cold sandwiches to eat on the boat. The monopolizing staff did raise the prices, but none of us are out of money yet.
After two hours on the boat, we landed in Dublin, got on our coach, and headed for a tour of the city. Eric took us around showing us different hotspots and telling us some more valuable info on the city. We were granted two hours of freedom to roam the city and visit all of the famous sites. Cody, Lance, and Taylor DeThomas went shopping on the town during their free time. Cody spent his money buying souvenirs for his mom, dad, and brother, whom he loves very much and looks forward to their warm embrace upon his arrival at the airport. :-) Pajette found a shamrock hoodie and a shamrock necklace for his friend. Seth, Robbie, Brandon, Mick, Ben, and Nick all went to Trinity College to try to get a look at the Book of Kells. They were unable to view it, because they arrived exactly when the exhibit closed. They tried to figure out other ways of sneaking in, including impersonating a pilgramige to the book, but all ideas failed. We got on the coach and headed to our hotel.
Our hotel is actually luxurious, and some rooms have queen size beds. It should be a good night of sleep. Dinner was at another hotel, in their hotel restaurant. It was a delicous chicken dish with two different potatoes and cauliflower. After dinner was a BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!! We celebrated the birthdays of Taylor DeThomas, Lance Dutton, Ben Mason, Andrew Lucas, and Aaron Lucas. All of them have a birthday in the vicinity of the trip. Taylor and Lance had their birthdays today. We had two cakes, one was chocolate and the other chocolate with a hint of orange, including orange slices on top. We also were given party blowers and Seth says, "We amused ourselves for an inordinant amount of time with them." They were awesome, and as Evan says "Several people suffered minor injuries from them."
After dinner half of the group went to the Hard Rock Cafe in Dublin. Allie Klaubert says, "The Hard Rock cafe, it rocked Hard!" Sammi says, "The Hard Rock Cafe was FREAKIN AWESOME!" (We are not responsible for the views and words of those we quote on our blog)
We came home and have an hour and a half till curfew. Tomorrow we travel to Killarney and have a scenic day traveling in Ireland. Look forward to talking to all of you tommorrrow!
The bus left the hotel at 8 and we rode our 2 hours to the ferry. We did make 2 stops on the way there though. We made one stop at a little shop in order to use the facilities and stretch our legs very quickly. Can't remember the name of the shop, but we did make up for it with the name of the second shop. It was "The Church of Mary in the Hollow of the White Hazel Near the fierce whirlpool and the Church of Tysilio by the Red Cave." Yea, the Welsh for it was "LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH" anyone fluent in Welsh? One lady did come on the bus though and try to tell us the ferry wasn't running. It freaked Eric out, and he called just to make sure. But it was indeed still running.
We arrived at the ferry stop and boarded our bus that took us to the ferry port. We had the ferry described to us as a basic cruise ship. With shops, movies, and restaurants. Seth pictured a swimming pool and a shuffleboard court. Robbie pictured a bowling alley and a tennis court. This was not the case since the ship did not live up to our dreams. It was a nifty space however, with lots of seats and tables for us to eat at, and a movie actually was played, it was hilarious. The movie was the hilarious Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. Some students and faculty were unable to watch because they were knocked out on Dramamine. Robbie Crawford was one of those, and he enjoyed the loopiness for the next few hours. Other students went on the top deck and enjoyed the wind and waves. We also had a selection of hot sandwiches or cold sandwiches to eat on the boat. The monopolizing staff did raise the prices, but none of us are out of money yet.
After two hours on the boat, we landed in Dublin, got on our coach, and headed for a tour of the city. Eric took us around showing us different hotspots and telling us some more valuable info on the city. We were granted two hours of freedom to roam the city and visit all of the famous sites. Cody, Lance, and Taylor DeThomas went shopping on the town during their free time. Cody spent his money buying souvenirs for his mom, dad, and brother, whom he loves very much and looks forward to their warm embrace upon his arrival at the airport. :-) Pajette found a shamrock hoodie and a shamrock necklace for his friend. Seth, Robbie, Brandon, Mick, Ben, and Nick all went to Trinity College to try to get a look at the Book of Kells. They were unable to view it, because they arrived exactly when the exhibit closed. They tried to figure out other ways of sneaking in, including impersonating a pilgramige to the book, but all ideas failed. We got on the coach and headed to our hotel.
Our hotel is actually luxurious, and some rooms have queen size beds. It should be a good night of sleep. Dinner was at another hotel, in their hotel restaurant. It was a delicous chicken dish with two different potatoes and cauliflower. After dinner was a BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!! We celebrated the birthdays of Taylor DeThomas, Lance Dutton, Ben Mason, Andrew Lucas, and Aaron Lucas. All of them have a birthday in the vicinity of the trip. Taylor and Lance had their birthdays today. We had two cakes, one was chocolate and the other chocolate with a hint of orange, including orange slices on top. We also were given party blowers and Seth says, "We amused ourselves for an inordinant amount of time with them." They were awesome, and as Evan says "Several people suffered minor injuries from them."
After dinner half of the group went to the Hard Rock Cafe in Dublin. Allie Klaubert says, "The Hard Rock cafe, it rocked Hard!" Sammi says, "The Hard Rock Cafe was FREAKIN AWESOME!" (We are not responsible for the views and words of those we quote on our blog)
We came home and have an hour and a half till curfew. Tomorrow we travel to Killarney and have a scenic day traveling in Ireland. Look forward to talking to all of you tommorrrow!
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