It was four o’ clock in the morning on Tuesday 25^th of May when twelve of my classmates and I set out on a long and tiring journey across the Irish-Sea to the country of Wales. Our teacher and principal organised the journey so we could talk to students in other countries and learn about their traditions and so they could learn about our traditions.

In the dark of night my classmates and I met in our school car park, said a happy farewell to our parents and boarded the bus. Although it was in the very early hours of the morning none of us were tired. As a matter of fact some of us had even more energy than usual.

When all our luggage was safely put away and we had all found a seat we set off down the road merrily waving and cheering out the windows.

Even after and hour of jumping around and singing many of us were still bursting with energy and excitement. The excitement continued for a good length of time afterward and even though we quietened down I could still feel the excitement in the air. After a while some people began to feel sick and queasy so we stopped for a few seconds so they could get some air. Meanwhile the rest of us watched the sunrise from the comfort of the bus. Not long afterward we stopped in a shop that served hot food for some breakfast which made us all feel much better. Later on we arrived at the dock in Rosslare and joined the long queue of cars, caravans, busses and lorries carrying big loads of cargo. The excitement was building up rapidly again and it felt like an eternity before we finally boarded the ship.

We all gathered together in the seating area and then we went up on top deck to watch Irelands coastline fade away into the distance. When we went back down to the seating area we quickly grabbed our money and set off to the games-room and the shop. We spent quite a while in the shop but the games-room was where we had the real fun. Most of us blew, well a few pounds, on the dance machine and played it until we knew most of the dance routines off by heart. I think we all enjoyed the boat trip as it gave us a chance to sit down, talk and of course relax. We even watched some of the first Scooby-doo film but after a while we grew bored of it. Later we caught sight of some Dolphins which raised everyone’s spirits, even Shauna who had been sick for most of the boat journey, brightened up a bit. It wasn’t long after when we caught sight of the Welsh coastline and our dormant excitement became active again. As we drew into Pembroke we went up to top deck again and burst into the National Anthem and our version of " the fields of Athenry".

When we finally drove onto Welsh soil we were in high spirits and our journey was nearly complete. We drove for another few hours singing, laughing and joking until at last we reached our final destination.......................Llanarth!

By Carolann O’ Driscoll