Croker and Howth!

On Monday, students were able to get a tour of Croke Park. Croke Park is a magnificent stadium-if your impressed by them is Ireland’s largest and fourth largest in Europe. Seating 82,000, Croker-as it’s lovingly known in Dublin-is the fabulous fortress that protects the sanctity and spirit of Gaelic games in Ireland, as well as the administrative HQ of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). The students learned that the GAA considers itself not just the governing body of a bunch of Irish games, but also the stout defender of a cultural identity that is ingrained in Ireland’s sense of self. Alyssa said it was especially interesting exploring the inside walls of the stadium after watching the Leinster Finals there the day before. Kelly said she enjoyed the locker room and seeing all of the jerseys from the different counties. The students were fascinated to learn that there are actually 34 counties in the GAA. Some of them were confused, since they know that there are only 32 counties in Ireland. Brendan, our fantastic tour guide, cleared up any confusion and told us that London and New York City are also included in the GAA. Kelsey said that she was impressed by the Waterford Crystal chandelier in the Player’s Lounge. The chandelier had 34 Gaelic footballs-representing each of the 34 counties and 70 slithers-which signifies the 70 minutes in a hurling game-hanging from the ceiling. There were also colors of red, orange, yellow, green, and blue-showing all of the different colors in flags and jerseys for each of the counties. After the tour, the group went to Howth for a hike. Howth is a pretty fishing village and a popular excursion from Dublin. The views from the top are magnificent. We started the hike at the summit and walked around the Ben of Howth-a headland near the village. Jenny said there were incredible views across Dublin Bay-right down to County Wicklow-and wished she had more time to explore. Taryn said we lucked out with the weather and managed to finish the hike right before it started lashing rain. Perfect timing. The day concluded with a Quiz Night, which involved the Alpha and Stagewise groups at King's Hospital. The "ILE Babes" had some great rounds and Prunes and Sasha Fierce were able to get a lot of points in the Theatre category. Even though they didn't win, Ryan said that he enjoyed getting to know the other students in different groups.

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