Welcome to Ireland

On February 28, 2013, 32 Mercyhurst students met at Buffalo International Airport to begin the trip of a lifetime....

I left my house at 4:45am to drive with my Dad to LaGuardia Airport, NY. From NY I flew to Buffalo to meet the rest of the group and then flew back to JFK, NY. We had a 7 hour layover there so I was able to sneak out of the airport to meet my Dad for some lunch. I also forgot my favorite teddy bear at home so he was able to bring it for me (everyone needs that one special reminder of home!). Once it was time, all 32 of us boarded the Delta plane and flew to Dublin!

It took 25 hours, but hearing the words "Welcome to Ireland" made the trip worth it! The students were greeted by Tom Keith, Damien Geoghegan and Heidi Hosey and they took us all to a real Irish breakfast which consisted of an egg, bacon, sausage, blood sausage (not appetizing) and a tomato. The best part about an Irish breakfast, by far, is all the tea!

Our group is living in Dungarvan, Waterford Co which is about 2 hours south of Dublin. On the way, we stopped in Kilkenny to St. Canice's Parish and Cathedral before having a tour of the Kilkenny Castle. All three places were beautiful!

St. Canice's Parish

Kilkenny Castle

St. Canice's Cathedral

Then finally we all made it to the Park Place Hotel in Dungarvan! The staff was so welcoming and gave us tea and crackers while they explained the campus and nearby facilities. Five students, including myself, will be sharing a two-story, three-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse! We even have our own backyard, fireplace, TV, laundry and dishwasher. Easy to say these are way better than dorms!

From the very first day, I can already tell this is going to be an incredible experience :)