Saturday, 21st September 2019
The flight to Graz (via Frankfurt) took off on time. We wish all students a wonderful start back in Austria. It was nice to meet you all! Best wishes from all at the H2 Team: Lucy, Jackie, Brian, Michael, Gina, Mary and Lisa.
Friday, 20th September 2019
The group had to get up very early as the bus for Dublin was leaving at 7am (to avoid the morning traffic in Cork City and to maximise the time in Dublin). The students had to say good-bye to their host families. It was a nice experience to learn about Irish family life and to be part of a family in a different county.
When the group arrived in Dublin they went on a guided city bus tour to view St. Patrick’s Cathedral’s grounds, O’Connell Street and the Phoenix Park and many more famous sights (like the General Post Office, the „Millenium Spike“ and Oscar Wilde’s statue.) Afterwards they had about five hours of free time to stroll around Grafton Street and to get the last souvenirs. At 6pm they all met back at a pub to enjoy a typical Irish dinner (lamb stew, fish & chips, etc.). Later on they were driven to the accommodation where they enjoyed the evening relaxing and chatting about their language week in Ireland.
Thursday, 19th September 2019
It is the final day of English lessons today and the teachers have prepared a typical „Pub Quiz“ for our students with „Tayto“ chips and lemonade – a must-have during an Irish pub quiz. General questions will be asked but also Ireland-related questions to check how much attention the students paid during the English lessons :-). Who will be the winning team? At the end of today’s classes the teachers will hand out the certificates and student reports. Then, the English teachers Lucy, Jackie and Brian will wave good-bye to the group – the time flew so quickly!
In the afternoon the students will head to the beautiful cliffs at the Old Head of Kinsale – stunning view across the Atlanic Sea and onto the nearby beaches and coastal areas. The weather is ideal for a breathtaking view – with blue skies and sunshine. The next stop will be the sandy beach in Garrettstown. Some students have brought their swimming togs
Wednesday, 18th September 2019
It has been a lovely day so far – sunshine all day long! It is the perfect weather for Gaelic Sports. After the English lessons the students made their way over to the local Tracton GAA pitch. Three members of the club, Ryan, Aaron and Darragh, will teach them the typical Irish sports Hurling and Gaelic Football. Some fun facts: Gaelic Games are Ireland’s ancient national games, and both, Hurling and Gaelic football are unique to Ireland. They are distinctly amateur sports, governed by the Gaelic Athletic Association or GAA which has blossomed into the largest amateur sporting organisation in the world. The GAA was founded in 1884 by a Clare man Michael Cusack for the preservation and promotion of Gaelic Games, culture and pastimes. It has over 300,000 players and 800,000 members, with over 2,000 clubs in Ireland alone and another 300 outside of Ireland. (Source: gogaelic.ie)
Tuesday, 17th September 2019
A beautiful day it is today – with blue skies and sunshine all morning! The English lessons are well underway and our teachers are focussing on speaking skills and new vocabulary, engaging the students in lots of conversations, quizzes and discussions. In the afternoon they will go to Cobh to visit the Titanic Museum. Cobh, formerly called Queenstown, was the last port of call for the Titanic back in 1912. 123 passengers from Cork boarded Titanic then. Our students will travel back in time and will get a „Boarding Card“ stating the name of one of those passengers. They will learn a little about the conditions on board for third and first class passengers and will experience the sinking of the ship through acinematographic experience.Did they survive? The final element of the experience is located in the story room, where they will learn the fate of „their“ passenger and all the other Queenstown passengers. Later on they will have some time to stroll along the pier and to admire the huge cruising ship that is currently in today: Disney Magic with nearly 3,000 passengers!
Monday, 16th September 2019
It is the start of a new week – time for our English lessons with our native speakers Lucy, Jackie and Brian. They welcomed the students at the H2 school in Minane Bridge this morning and after a short placement test (multiple choice and a written assignment) the students were split into three smaller groups. The lessons went smoothly – the teachers rotated from class room to class room for each lesson, so all students got to know all of of our three teachers today. The lessons are now finished and the group is heading to Cork City for a guided tour and some free time afterwards. It just started raining, hopefully the weather will improve in the afternoon. If not, there are plenty of cafes and nice shops to go to for some shelter…
Sunday, 15th September 2019
A cloudy morning was greeting the students, but it was dry and the temperatures were around 20 degrees. Perfect weather to explore Blarney Castle. But firstly the students had some time to sleep in and to enjoy a nice breakfast. Some of them had a typical Irish Breakfast with toast, black pudding, beans and eggs. In the afternoon they were picked up by the H2 bus and off they went to the famous castle north of Cork City with the goal to kiss the „Blarney Stone“. It is situated in 60 metres height up on top of the castle and those who dare to kiss it will gain the gift of the gab (the ability to speak eloquently). We will check on Monday during the English lessons who has already improved their English skills! After a nice stroll around the park (with lots of nice trees, shrubs and flowers) they had some free time for themselves. The excusion to Blarney was a pleasant start to the school language trip to Ireland. In the evening the students joined our dance teacher Fionan for some fun Ceili dance lessons and St. Mary’s School. Ceili is a typical Irish dance and is danced along Irish Traditional Music. It is very challenging to keep up with the tempo but once the steps are learned it is easy and fun! …one, two, three, on the spot and one, two, three, on the spot… is the rhythm!
Saturday, 14th September 2019
41 students and their teachers arrived to Dublin aiport safe and sound and were picked up by our bus driver Michael. The journey down to Carrigaline in County Cork went smoothly. At around 10.15pm they were welcomed by the H2 team (Lisa, Gina and Mary) and the host families. Soon all students were settling in at their new homes for the week. After getting to know each other a little bit and a bite all went to bed to get some sleep for the day ahead.
