This week was very busy because it was the week of the Wesley Shield Debating Competition for which I am convener. There was a lot of preparation to be done, such as organising rooms, food and a reception for our special guest. On Wednesday, however, I had an evening off from organising because I went, along with the cast of Les Mis, to see the new Les Mis film in Dundrum. It was an incredible film and seeing it with the cast made it all the more atmospheric. I really am missing rehearsals and the cast so going out to see the film with all of them was a nice little reunion.
This weekend was one of the most stressful two days of my life! The Wesley Shield was on Friday and Saturday and we had sixteen teams of two speakers from over twelve different schools from Dublin, Cork and Wexford. I was in charge of running the competition, adjudicating some of the rooms and I also had to come up with the motions for the four rounds of debate.
It was very challenging and stressful to try and run such a large competition, especially because the snow meant a lot of teams cancelled, but it was definitely a positive experience. On the Saturday I also had the pleasuring of welcoming the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence, Alan Shatter to chair the final of the Wesley Shield. I had to meet him at the front steps of the school and bring him to a reception with Mr Woods and Mr Bredin and then I had to sit with him in the final and tell him what to say.
I was exhausted by the end but it was definitely a good experience and, although it was definitely stressful, it was loads of fun!
Sunday, 24 March 2013
Week 16
This was the first week back after the Christmas Holidays so it was quite a calm week. On the Monday I had Amnesty and Debating, as per usual and on Tuesday I had Senior Choir. Wednesday was a big day because I had trials for the Oxford University Schools Debating Competition. Unfortunately, I was not one of the two teams that made it through but it was great experience and I really enjoyed it a lot.
It was a pretty normal week and I was just getting things ready for the TY Play. After posting the Cast List, it was difficult to face my friends who didn't get the parts they'd wanted and it was definitely a challenge to remain professional but I managed to just focus on the organising of the play.
I had a meeting with our staff supervisor, Mr Wallace on Friday and it was great to finally get some plans laid down, it was exciting to finally feel like the play is going ahead!
It was a pretty normal week and I was just getting things ready for the TY Play. After posting the Cast List, it was difficult to face my friends who didn't get the parts they'd wanted and it was definitely a challenge to remain professional but I managed to just focus on the organising of the play.
I had a meeting with our staff supervisor, Mr Wallace on Friday and it was great to finally get some plans laid down, it was exciting to finally feel like the play is going ahead!
Saturday, 26 January 2013
Week 15
This week was pretty hectic, as usual! On the Monday evening, I had the Callbacks for the TY Play, for which I am music director. It was a very long and gruelling process because it took hours and hours to decide on the cast list! Luckily Alex (the director) and I had the help of Joyce, Tommy, Aaron and Simon Blay but it was still extremely difficult to decide!
The next evening was the Senior Carol service. I sang once again with Chamber Choir and I also performed with Senior Choir. We sang 'O Holy Night' and 'Gaudete'.
We had another school trip on the Wednesday to the ice rink in Dundrum. This was brilliant fun, despite my lack of skating skills! We then went into town to see a bilingual play in the Smock Alley Theatre. That evening was a reunion of the cast of Les Mis to watch the video of our performance. It was great fun but I did sink down into my seat when I had to watch myself as the Old Woman!!
The next evening was the Senior Carol service. I sang once again with Chamber Choir and I also performed with Senior Choir. We sang 'O Holy Night' and 'Gaudete'.
We had another school trip on the Wednesday to the ice rink in Dundrum. This was brilliant fun, despite my lack of skating skills! We then went into town to see a bilingual play in the Smock Alley Theatre. That evening was a reunion of the cast of Les Mis to watch the video of our performance. It was great fun but I did sink down into my seat when I had to watch myself as the Old Woman!!
Week 14
My trip to Paris didn't slow down my busy schedule and the day I came back to school we were on a trip into the city centre, collecting for the ISPCC. I really enjoyed selling the pieces of holly and I managed to sell all of mine! It was quite a mean feat as I was on Harcourt Street mid-morning which meant there weren't many people around! The Friday was the Junior Carol Service. I was performing at this with Chamber Choir. We performed the Shepherd's Pipe Carol for the Preps, First and Second Years.
I had attended my second Comhairle na nOg meeting this week. I am one of two Wesley delegates for the Dun Laoighare-Rathdown Comhairle. We were discussing the 'lost years' campaign they have been working on. We were discussing the fact that teenagers between the ages of 16-18 are charged adult prices on public transport and in the cinemas, even though they cannot learn the same amount of money as adults.
This week has been quite festive and I am feeling very Christmassy!!
Week 13
This week of school was rather insignificant as I couldn't concentrate all week. The reason being I was going on the Senior Choir trip to Paris at the weekend!
It honestly was one of the best weekends of my life and definitely in Fourth Year!
We were all told to meet in the school at 3.45 a.m. to get a bus to the airport for our flight at 7. It was extremely early but I was far too excited to be tired!! We flew into Paris and were at our hotel at 11 o'clock. I was sharing a room with Ella and so I knew I wasn't going to get much sleep! We then went out to the Arc de Triomphe on our first excursion. This was incredible but the stairs to the top and down were very, very, very narrow and twisted around all the way up......my claustrophobia was not happy! It was worth it though as we had an amazing view right across Paris!
Then we walked to the Eiffel Tower and walked around that area. Unfortunately, I didn't think the Eiffel Tower lived up to its reputation and I was quite unimpressed! The surrounding area was incredible though and we were allowed go off on our own to look around and get something to eat. I managed to convince my friends not to go to McDonalds because I wanted an authentic Parisien meal! We ended up going to a gorgeous little creperie down one of the side streets......very authentic and Parisien!
We then met the rest of the choir and the teachers for a boat cruise down the River Seine. This was one of the highlights of the trip for me because it was an amazing way to see the sights of Paris, despite the freezing temperatures. In the evening we went to a little Italian restaurant in the heart of Paris which was beautiful inside and had incredible food! To end the first day we went to a workshop in the chapel of the Irish Cultural Institute with a soprano named Lena. This was fun at the beginning but we were all exhausted after out early start and busy day so we all just wanted to go back to our hotel!!
The second day began with a trip to the L'Orangerie Gallery to see Monet's waterlillies. I absolutely loved them!! They were incredible! We then crossed the park to the Louvre Museum where we were given four hours of free time to look around the Louvre and to make our way to Notre Dame. I loved the Louvre, mostly because of the stunning architecture! Myself and a few others went shopping after a few hours and, after Aaron got us very lost, we made it to the Notre Dame which, again, had breathtaking architecture.
We then returned to the Irish Cultural Institute for a Carol Service in the Chapel which was really fun and very festive.
The best part of the trip for me was that evening when we went to see the West End production of West Side Story! I had never seen it live and it is now my second favourite musical (just behind The Phantom of the Opera!).
The next day was really sad because it was our last day in Paris. However, we definitely made the most of our final 12 hours. We spent the morning in Monmatre on a guided walking tour and in Sacre Coeur Cathedral. This was incredible and made me want to live in Monmatre in the future! After that culturally enriching morning, we then made the two and a half hour bus trip to Disneyland! I thought this would be the best part but it's not really my thing! I was too scared to go on Space Mountain and Indiana Jones with the boys so I sat outside! I then made them come up the Princess Castle with me and go on the Carousel so it was alright in the end!!
We then flew back to Dublin and got back to Wesley late that night.
It was an absolutely incredible weekend and definitely one of the highlights of Fourth Year so far!!
It honestly was one of the best weekends of my life and definitely in Fourth Year!
We were all told to meet in the school at 3.45 a.m. to get a bus to the airport for our flight at 7. It was extremely early but I was far too excited to be tired!! We flew into Paris and were at our hotel at 11 o'clock. I was sharing a room with Ella and so I knew I wasn't going to get much sleep! We then went out to the Arc de Triomphe on our first excursion. This was incredible but the stairs to the top and down were very, very, very narrow and twisted around all the way up......my claustrophobia was not happy! It was worth it though as we had an amazing view right across Paris!
Then we walked to the Eiffel Tower and walked around that area. Unfortunately, I didn't think the Eiffel Tower lived up to its reputation and I was quite unimpressed! The surrounding area was incredible though and we were allowed go off on our own to look around and get something to eat. I managed to convince my friends not to go to McDonalds because I wanted an authentic Parisien meal! We ended up going to a gorgeous little creperie down one of the side streets......very authentic and Parisien!
We then met the rest of the choir and the teachers for a boat cruise down the River Seine. This was one of the highlights of the trip for me because it was an amazing way to see the sights of Paris, despite the freezing temperatures. In the evening we went to a little Italian restaurant in the heart of Paris which was beautiful inside and had incredible food! To end the first day we went to a workshop in the chapel of the Irish Cultural Institute with a soprano named Lena. This was fun at the beginning but we were all exhausted after out early start and busy day so we all just wanted to go back to our hotel!!
The second day began with a trip to the L'Orangerie Gallery to see Monet's waterlillies. I absolutely loved them!! They were incredible! We then crossed the park to the Louvre Museum where we were given four hours of free time to look around the Louvre and to make our way to Notre Dame. I loved the Louvre, mostly because of the stunning architecture! Myself and a few others went shopping after a few hours and, after Aaron got us very lost, we made it to the Notre Dame which, again, had breathtaking architecture.
We then returned to the Irish Cultural Institute for a Carol Service in the Chapel which was really fun and very festive.
The best part of the trip for me was that evening when we went to see the West End production of West Side Story! I had never seen it live and it is now my second favourite musical (just behind The Phantom of the Opera!).
The next day was really sad because it was our last day in Paris. However, we definitely made the most of our final 12 hours. We spent the morning in Monmatre on a guided walking tour and in Sacre Coeur Cathedral. This was incredible and made me want to live in Monmatre in the future! After that culturally enriching morning, we then made the two and a half hour bus trip to Disneyland! I thought this would be the best part but it's not really my thing! I was too scared to go on Space Mountain and Indiana Jones with the boys so I sat outside! I then made them come up the Princess Castle with me and go on the Carousel so it was alright in the end!!
We then flew back to Dublin and got back to Wesley late that night.
It was an absolutely incredible weekend and definitely one of the highlights of Fourth Year so far!!
Week 12
This week was the week of the Aptitude Tests. It felt like the tests we took at the end of sixth class to sort us into classes. We also had a hockey match which was the quarter final of the cup. Unfortunately, we lost to Alex 2-1 which was really disappointing as it meant we were out of the cup.
The Saturday was the Salvation Army concert in St Anne's Church on Dawson Street. I was performing there with Senior Choir which was really fun and festive as well! We all went out for dinner in Little Caesar's restaurant beforehand which was great fun and really tasty!
This week was very Christmassy and I was very excited for the festive season to kick off, as I love carol services!
The Saturday was the Salvation Army concert in St Anne's Church on Dawson Street. I was performing there with Senior Choir which was really fun and festive as well! We all went out for dinner in Little Caesar's restaurant beforehand which was great fun and really tasty!
This week was very Christmassy and I was very excited for the festive season to kick off, as I love carol services!
Week 11
This week was quite a contrast to the previous two. It was very normal and very uneventful.I did all my usual extra-curriculars like Amnesty, Debating, Senior Choir, Chamber Choir and Hockey. It was very weird not having rehearsals for Les Mis but I began to start on the organising of the Fourth Year Play with Nadia and Alex; High School Musical. On the Saturday I was adjudicating at the Castleknock Community College Junior Debating Mace, along with some of the other Wesley debaters.
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