In the merry month of June from our Mona Shores we started.
Saluted Father dear, kissed me darling mother.
Then off to Ireland, leave where I was born.
Cut a water bottle to banish ghosts and goblins
A brand new pair of brogues, rattlin’ o’er the bogs
Frightenin’ all the dogs on the rocky road to Dublin
One, two, three, four, five!
Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road
And all the way to Dublin, Whack fol lol le rah!

Dear Fellow Ireland Trip Travelers, 

Our summer break is almost over since our travels to the Emerald Isle but it feels like a only a week since we have been back. In our time back I spent a more than a few days catching up on some sleep, uploading pictures, editing pictures, visiting friends & families, editing pictures, taking kids to camps, recovering from Cadbury chocolate addiction, editing pictures, and enjoying summer.

Thank you to all the parents who help keep an eye on my not so little ones as I fell behind the group, who helped Mrs. DeRose, for helping me along, and just being a awesome group to travel with. I really enjoyed getting to know you all. 

Thank you students for being a great group of kids and making this a memorable trip. Your dedication to rehearsals gave us some truly amazing and memorable performances in such iconic historical locations. I really hope you all had as a great of a time as I did, watching you all perform. I look forward to see what you all do next!

I would also like to thank Eric from Guardian Travel for planning the trip, Joe our amazing Ireland tour guide for showing us his beautiful country, and our amazing bus driver Flan who sang to us, pointed stuff us out to us and kept us safe on some really narrow crazy roads.

Very special thank you to our good friend Mrs. Melissa Meyers from Grand Haven. Mrs. Meyers helped throughout out the year at rehearsals, chaperoning, playing, help tuning the cellos, and making the trip just a bit easier for my wife. Hopefully see you on the next trip in four years.

Since our trip I received many more photos from all of you, even some from a professional photographer from our time in the Rock of Cashel. I have many photos and videos that have not been shared with the group or on any of our web page/social media pages. In the next few days I will share these photos with our highlights of our trip. 

Finally, I want to thank the person who made this happened. Without her this trip would not have happened. So thank you to my friend, my wife, and your teacher Mrs. Kelly De Rose.

Sincerely,

Bob DeRose

MSOPA Web and Social Media Support

Day 1: Wednesday June 20, 2024

Day 1 was long traveling day. We set out from Mona Shores High School after lunch on a charter bus to Chicago’s O’Hare Airport on Aer Lingus airline to Dublin Ireland. We left Chicago at 9:30 PM CST and arrived 10:40 AM Irish time June 21, 2024.

Day 2: We met Eric (Guardian Travel) and Joe (Tour Guide) at Dublin airport. We gather the group for a nice sunny outdoor stretch of our legs to our charter bus where we met our driver Flan. Our first day in Ireland and we going to make our way to Galway, where we will stay for a few days. Galway. Galway in on the east side of Ireland and Dublin is on the west so we have a few hours in the bus till our final destination. Trying to stay awake on the bus to adjusted to the new time change is a challenge, so a few stops were planned. 

First stop was to get quick lunch and bathroom break. We stopped at what we might call a truck stop but this stop had many quick options from burgers to kebobs to curry to pastries to candy. I think for many of us, this stop began our addition to trying the many assortments of Cadbury chocolates. 

Halfway between Galway and Dublin we made a stop at Clonmacnoise. 

Because Clonmacnoise is located on the Shannon River halfway be Galway and Dublin it was a very import location and was the most important Irish monastery in the Golden Age. It was built around 580 AD, was attacked several times when the Normans arrived in 1150, and in 1552 the English soldiers stole everything that could be carried and smashed what they couldn’t. Today its one of Ireland’s best preserved monastic sites where many riverboat cruise tours dock on the Shannon River for some amazing views. 

We continued to make our way from Clonmacnoise to Galway where we checked in at the Galmont Hotel and Spa about 6 PM. We had enough time to drop off our bags in our rooms before we headed out for a walk in downtown Galway for dinner at the Hungry Eyes restaurant. After dinner, light shopping for snacks or needed items was included on the walk back to the hotel for a much needed sleep for day 3, our first full day in Ireland.