International Student Teaching Spring 2009

Friday I went on a field trip with the junior and senior infants to a local farm. This farm in particular raised only sheep and cattle. The kids were able to hold and pet many baby lambs. We missed seeing a sheep give birth by just twenty minutes. The owners of the farm had the first ever jet black lamb this past week. The kids were having a fabulous time even when we moved on to see the very, very smelly cows. I enjoyed the trip despite the smell.

I was able to teach PE to my students on Friday after the field trip. They were all very excited to see what games I could teach them. Many of the boys in the class want me to teach them American football; this idea was not going over well with the girls. I stuck with some simple tag games for the day's activity. I was a bit surprised that they knew what "stuck in the mud" was. They followed directions and rules well which helped them have a good time.

Saturday I got up bright and early (3 AM) to go on a tour of the Carrick-A-Rede Bridge, The Giant's Causeway, and Derry or Londonderry with Rachel, Rebecca, and Kathleen. First off the bus we need to take into town only went to the airport, but thankfully my host Mom was nice enough to give us a lift into town. Our bus from Dublin left for Belfast at 5:45. So we arrive in Belfast, hopped onto our tour bus and headed off for our first stop which was the Carrick-A-Rede Bridge along the north coast.

The weather at the time was not great; it was raining and windy. Due to these conditions the bridge was closed, and we could not see nearby Scotland. We still walked out to the bridge to see it and take some pictures. The next stop on our tour was The Giant's Causeway. All of the rocks in this formation are mostly hexagonal. It had stopped raining by this time but remained overcast.

On our way to Derry we stopped by one of the most photographed castles on the island, Dunluce Castle. This castle is literally right on the the ocean. The weather improved as we got closer to Derry. Once in Derry/Londonderry (goes by two names, something to do with Protestants and Catholics) we toured the ancient city walls and the nearby scenery. The sun was in full force. If only it could have been like that all day. On the return trip to Belfast we drove through the Sperrin mountains.

With all the sunshine it was easy to see why Ireland is called the Emerald Isle; everything is green. The island looks much like the rolling hills and plains of Montana, but green. The tour was over when we arrived back in Belfast. We hopped on a bus and headed back to Dublin. Back in Dublin we got a bite to eat and head back to our respective houses. I crashed immediately after arriving back at the house.

Monday I flew to Cardiff, Wales. I had not figured out what I wanted to see while there and decided to just fly by the seat of my pants. I did, however, do research into hotels. I did not want my first hostel experience to be a bad one.

After a short but bumpy plane ride from Dublin I arrived in Cardiff, Wales. I checked into The River House Hostel, which is located directly on the River Taff and across the Millennium Stadium. It is a very nice hostel and has been voted in the top 10 hostels in Europe.

I went into town looking for some coffee and some traditional Welsh food. I ate at little restaurant called Garland's, which is located in one of the city's many arcades. The dish I had was called Cawl and was pretty tasty. After my late lunch I headed off for Cardiff Castle. There are parts of the castle that date all the way back to the Roman Empire. I chose to do an audio tour of the castle and explore on my own. About halfway through my tour it started to pour rain, and I finished my tour as quickly as possible. I walked around town for a little while until I decide that it was time for some dinner.

I got up early Tuesday morning and made my way to the nearest train station. It only took an hour to get from downtown Cardiff to the mountains where Aberdare is located. Aberdare is a quaint village located in the valley. There were all sorts of shops and restaurants in town. Sadly there was no information or visitor center in the town. I went to the library to see if there was any information there, but there was not. The people at the library were not helpful. I took some pictures of the town square and a few of the surrounding area. Once I had seen enough I hopped back on the train for Cardiff. Hopefully, I will be able to come back here once I have conducted some research about my family history.

There was plenty of lovely weather to be had today. I made my way down to the renown Cardiff Bay. The Wales Millenium Centre, the Cardiff Barrage, and the National Assembly are located. The bay is where the River Taff and Ely empty. I walked around the bay so that I could see the bay and the Severn Estuary. The barrage acts like a dam, it keeps water from the estuary and the bay separate. All of the water in the bay is fresh water while the estuary is salt water. The barrage also serves as the only entrance into the bay. It was a lovely day to be outside and soak up the sunshine.

I headed back to Ireland Wednesday morning. Tuesday made my trip worth it. This was a good visit; it was nice to see where my family came from.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am headed to Lough Derg (Lake Derg) Friday with my host family. There is a regatta going on over the Easter weekend and it should be lots of fun. My nautical skills are pretty horrid but with a good weekend forecast and somebody telling me what to do, I should be able to keep myself from going swimming.

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