Coláiste Dún Iascaigh school tour to Barcelona, a student’s perspective
When we first found out that this year’s school trip was to Barcelona, we were beyond excited. Our minds immediately jumped to churros, cathedrals and sunny skies. To our relief, when we arrived, we found that it was exactly what we were hoping for. After a long night of travelling, our moods were immediately lifted once we stepped out into the Barcelona sun, and from there our tour began.
We were greeted by a very friendly Spanish tour guide who took us through the gothic quarter of Barcelona. We explored the beautiful architecture before continuing to the picturesque Parc Guell for a very different but equally fascinating experience. Later that day we were brought to sites such as Monserrat, with magnificent views of the city and an amazing group of local school boys who we were lucky enough to hear perform their traditional Gregorian chant.
During the following days we also visited a huge aquarium, the Cosmo Caixa science museum and Gaudi’s very famous Sagrada Familia. We then payed a visit to one of the biggest food markets in all of Europe, from seafood and fresh fruit to macaroons and pastries, there was no shortage of food to be bought. With Ms Shortall and Mr Byrne by their side, a brave group of students decided to try traditional Spanish food in a tapas bar. The students reluctantly tried baby eel, caviar and many other interesting foods but found they weren’t as bad as they seemed. After an evening stroll down Las Ramblas, we were only a short walk back to the hostel, right in the heart of the city. Each night the students and teachers met downstairs for a chat, some card games and played a few games of charades.
Nearing the end of our trip we paid a visit to Camp Nou, where the teachers treated us to ice cream. We then went on our final shopping trip to Las Arenas and made our way back to the bus. On the way back poor Ms Ryan was pressured into buying a fruit basket on the side of the road and took a life threatening journey across a fountain wall.
While on our trip we experienced many new things. We took a trip on the metro and admired the view from the cable cars as they moved through the sky. The weather throughout the whole trip was perfect and the atmosphere was incredible, especially on Las Ramblas. Las Ramblas was probably our favourite place we visited during our trip. Stalls and performers lined the streets, making for perfect photo opportunities – if you looked hard enough you could even pick up a “Quality Watch”.
And now our tour was finally over, as was Ms Shortall’s search for the perfect churros. The J Squad, The Magpies, The Orange Pickers and Mr O’Brien’s Posse had a last bittersweet team meeting at the airport before boarding our flight, away from sunny Spain. Sleepy students snoozed on the bus back to Cahir to the sweet sound of the teachers singing, reflecting on the memories that would last forever.
By Amy O’ Carroll, Katie Noonan and Aoife O’Brien
