Ireland – our love forever

Our journey started at Bochum main station on 16 September at 8 p.m. After loading the bus, taking our seats and listening to the welcoming speech of our bus driver we got on the road. 5 hours later we took our first ferry from Calais (France) to Dover (England). Then we drove crosswise through England - at night - which was the most silent phase, because almost everyone was sleeping. When we arrived in Wales we stopped in the little town Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch,

which is the place with the longest name in the world. Then we went by ferry from Holyhead to Dublin. In Dublin we checked in the hostel and went to the city of Dublin.

On Sunday we arrived in Killarney. We moved into our houses – the Killarney Lakeland Cottages - which were really nice and comfortable. After exploring the area and our neighbors’ houses we fell asleep - exhausted.

The plan for Monday was a boat tour across the Lakes of Killarney and a walk through the Gap of Dunloe - a mountain pass. But Ireland´s welcome gift for us was the best heavy rain the land has to offer. So we changed the plan and did the Ring of Kerry tour – by bus. The Ring of Kerry is a route along the Irish coast which was really breathtaking, especially when, after a while, the weather god let the sun out and presented us a fantastic view of the Irish landscape. Our bus driver Wille told us a lot about the road, the surroundings and knew exactly where the best spots for photos were.                                                                                                                                                   

On Tuesday the weather was good enough to catch the boat across Killarney Lakes. At the beginning it was quite cold and rainy but after a while it got warmer and the 90 minutes on the water really were a pleasure. And then we began our 11 km Gap of Dunloe hike. It was absolutely incredible to walk the road amidst these mountains. Apart from the bituminized street you had the feeling that there is really untouched wild nature which is rare today on our planet. With lots of unforgettable impressions we went back to our cottages.

On Wednesday the group walked to Muckross House, a famous mansion built in 1843, with 65 rooms and a very huge garden. After visiting an adjacent graveyard we spent some time in the city of Killarney for shopping or buying souvenirs. In the evening the musicians of our group gave us a concert at the teachers’ cottage which was really amazing and they raised a cheer for it.

Thursday was the day for our last trip to the city of Killarney to buy souvenirs, postcards or other stuff. In the evening we had the unpopular tasks to clean up the cottages, take out the garbage and other things which nobody felt capable of. But at the end of the day our houses looked as if we had never been there ;)

On Friday morning we had to leave our cottages and Killarney after having a fantastic time there. We went back to Dublin and stayed in the hostel we already knew. In the evening a few members of our group went to the city of Dublin and rumors said that Mr. Bogers sang in a karaoke bar - no comment about that.

On Saturday morning we had a 90 minute guided tour through the city of Dublin. We learnt a lot about the city´s history and saw most of the important historical places like, for example, the Dublin Castle. Afterwards we had time to explore Dublin on our own and in the afternoon we had to leave Ireland. Back on the ferry from Dublin to Holyhead, back on the roads through Wales and England again, boarding the ferry from Dover to Calais, we arrived in Bochum on Sunday afternoon after having had 10 funny, interesting and most of all fantastic days with too many impressions for one head.

In the end we had to thank Mr. Bogers and Mrs. Hampel, our qualified English teachers and talented tour guides and of course, our bus driver Wille, who is the best in the world and a real expert of Ireland.

Stoney Mahoney, V4b