On Wednesday the 20th of September 2017, in the early hours of the morning, we departed from Portumna Community School with a bus full of bags, headed to the Delphi Resort in Connemara for the next three days.
When we reached our destination, we were greeted by many instructors who would grow to become our friends during the next couple of days. The instructors explained what activities would be taking place, the rules and so on. Our excitement grew as we were divided into groups. We were shown to our rooms and shown the usual meeting/social places, traumatized when figuring out that there was no reception anywhere! We unpacked our bags, eagerly awaiting the activities ahead.
Our first activities commenced at 2 o clock. Our group went high roping while the other group went surfing. We were all quiet nervous as none of us liked heights, but we weren't in that frame of mind for long. Before we knew it we were all harnessed up and ready to go. There were five obstacles to do. The obstacles were around 20 feet in the air! These obstacles included tests of our trust,balance and courage. All of which i feel were well built during this experience. After this, we went home for a meal. One thing i cannot give my ultimate praise for is the food. I'm not sure if it was chicken i was eating or not, but i didn't complain as i was starving after the high roping. Later on, we went to the tunnels nearby. These tunnels involved us having to wear helmets going through them in the pitch dark. I must admit that a few screams were heard when we entered, but what else would be the outcome with a bunch of us in tightly packed pitch dark tunnels? I think our reactions were accurate. We went for a walk afterwards and then went back to our rooms. We got supper - cookies and milk, and i thoroughly enjoyed them after our long day. We had an hour to chill out, so we went downstairs to 'the Den'. We met other schools which was fun, as we got to meet so many new people. We were then sent to bed at ten, only to be awoken the next morning at eight o clock..
The next day we had our Gaisce walk, something i was not looking forward to. We headed off at around nine o clock. If i said i didn't nearly die, i'd be lying. Halfway through, close to death, we took a break near a church on a huge hill. It was really interesting and the scenery was to die for, (literally to die for) and the walk was just really rewarding in the end. Talking to the instructors about their work really killed the time so the end wasn't too bad. We got the bus home and ate again. We all appreciated the weather we got, as rain managed to stay away for the day. After this, we had a campfire to mark our last night together in Delphi. We were kind of disappointed that it was our last night, it was so leisurely having the freedom along with some new friends. We sang a few songs and roasted marshmallows. We then came back and went to bed.
On our last day, our group were set to go surfing. It was cold, wet and just not the ideal time of year, but i think that made it all the better. We had such fun trying to get the hang of this new sport, but we enjoyed the experience with our friends. We went back to our rooms and got changed. We left Delphi at around 2 o clock.
Overall, i cannot fault our trip. It was an excellent team building experience and i feel that i can bring some good memories from it. So far, its the highlight of my year. If i said i didn't miss the comfort of home, the food, and the reception on my phone i'd be lying, but it was still one of the best experiences this year, and i hope the rest of the year will be this good.
When we reached our destination, we were greeted by many instructors who would grow to become our friends during the next couple of days. The instructors explained what activities would be taking place, the rules and so on. Our excitement grew as we were divided into groups. We were shown to our rooms and shown the usual meeting/social places, traumatized when figuring out that there was no reception anywhere! We unpacked our bags, eagerly awaiting the activities ahead.
Our first activities commenced at 2 o clock. Our group went high roping while the other group went surfing. We were all quiet nervous as none of us liked heights, but we weren't in that frame of mind for long. Before we knew it we were all harnessed up and ready to go. There were five obstacles to do. The obstacles were around 20 feet in the air! These obstacles included tests of our trust,balance and courage. All of which i feel were well built during this experience. After this, we went home for a meal. One thing i cannot give my ultimate praise for is the food. I'm not sure if it was chicken i was eating or not, but i didn't complain as i was starving after the high roping. Later on, we went to the tunnels nearby. These tunnels involved us having to wear helmets going through them in the pitch dark. I must admit that a few screams were heard when we entered, but what else would be the outcome with a bunch of us in tightly packed pitch dark tunnels? I think our reactions were accurate. We went for a walk afterwards and then went back to our rooms. We got supper - cookies and milk, and i thoroughly enjoyed them after our long day. We had an hour to chill out, so we went downstairs to 'the Den'. We met other schools which was fun, as we got to meet so many new people. We were then sent to bed at ten, only to be awoken the next morning at eight o clock..
The next day we had our Gaisce walk, something i was not looking forward to. We headed off at around nine o clock. If i said i didn't nearly die, i'd be lying. Halfway through, close to death, we took a break near a church on a huge hill. It was really interesting and the scenery was to die for, (literally to die for) and the walk was just really rewarding in the end. Talking to the instructors about their work really killed the time so the end wasn't too bad. We got the bus home and ate again. We all appreciated the weather we got, as rain managed to stay away for the day. After this, we had a campfire to mark our last night together in Delphi. We were kind of disappointed that it was our last night, it was so leisurely having the freedom along with some new friends. We sang a few songs and roasted marshmallows. We then came back and went to bed.
On our last day, our group were set to go surfing. It was cold, wet and just not the ideal time of year, but i think that made it all the better. We had such fun trying to get the hang of this new sport, but we enjoyed the experience with our friends. We went back to our rooms and got changed. We left Delphi at around 2 o clock.
Overall, i cannot fault our trip. It was an excellent team building experience and i feel that i can bring some good memories from it. So far, its the highlight of my year. If i said i didn't miss the comfort of home, the food, and the reception on my phone i'd be lying, but it was still one of the best experiences this year, and i hope the rest of the year will be this good.