SPC Tour of Ireland – Day 3

Despite the drizzle, our guides Paddy and Michael set off at cracking pace to lead our walking tour of all things Dublin. The highlight was clearly the Millennium Spire and Dublin Castle. The boys were fascinated to hear the history of the 1916 Easter uprising and the struggles the Irish people faced in their fight for independence.

Our gifted Trinity College student guides, Alex and Dominic, managed to disguise the teaching of history and the story of Trinity College in humour and wit. – The boys were surprised at how much they had learnt during this entertaining tour. Clearly the highlight of this tour was the Trinity College Library and the Book of Kells.

Following a rushed lunch, we were back on the bus heading to Croke Park where we were welcomed by Pat Daly. He showered us with warmth and generous hospitality while challenging the boys to answer the question -Is everybody going WeLL?- WeLL being the acronym for wellbeing and lifelong learning. Pat had many valuable messages to impart to the boys with the key ones being the importance of community, of giving to the community not just taking and the importance of lifelong involvement in sport for all not just elite players. We loved his take on KPIs -Keep People Involved. Following this inspirational speech we embarked on a tour of the stadium where the boys had the opportunity to see the changerooms, warmup rooms and the pitch. The gift shop and museum also proved to be popular. With the volume of shopping done today we are sure the Irish economy is booming.

For dinner the boys divided into two groups, the Bachelor boys and the Lotts larrikins. Regardless of the group, the boys experienced great food wrapped in warm Irish hospitality. By 9.00 the boys and staff were happy to seek refuge from the cold and rain back at our accommodation.

We thank Trinity College for our Irish lesson today. At the time we felt it was irrelevant but it was promptly put into practise at Croke Park!

Ná¾´ gabh ar na faichi, led’thoil<o:p></o:p>

Please keep off the grass!

See photos from today at- https://www.facebook.com/pg/spcoca/photos/?tab=album&album_id=3138155632876843