You can order what you'd like with your own credit card.
Enjoy! Leigh
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Photos available
All my photos are now available on Snapfish.com. The user name is: lwko@roadrunner.com and the password is: PTPpics
Friday, July 24, 2009
Reunion picnic
Hope everyone has rested up, has the clothes washed, has eaten everything they missed, and is back on eastern standard time.
Here is the information on the reunion picnic. Hope everyone can come and enjoy a day at Waldameer. We in Erie are hoping that many can come from Harrisburg for the weekend. There will be lots of places to stay. Waldameer is a great water/amusement park for its size and we would love to see everyone. Thanks to Amanda Jay's dad for arranging everything! Leigh
Sunday, August 23 from 11:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. Our pavillion will be
Middle 2 Grove Picnic Area, behind the dodgems
Call Andrew @814-882-7417 or Amanda @ 814-882-6191 to let them know what you will bring for lunch. We will eat between 2-4 and there will be snacks all day. Please bring your own beverages and place settings. Discount combo passes will be available for $17.00 at the pavillion. Water World opens at 11 and the amusement park opens at 1:00.
SEE EVERYONE THERE....BRING YOUR PHOTO ALBUMS TO SHARE!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
On the way home
At the airport and all checked in. This is the first there has been computer access in ages! Last wrote about the collies which were fascinating...too bad it was raining again so we all got soaked watching, but it didn't fuss the dogs at all, of course.
Now the white water rafting was something else. To say that we all got wet is an understatement. Everyone was pulled in, pushed in, battled in, or just fell in. There were a few bumps and bruises, but no major incidents. The rapids weren't nearly as dangerous as we were, and everyone loved it. We don't have any photos because it would have been impossible to take any cameras, but just wait until you hear all the descriptions at home.
Blair Castle was beautiful and the students had a scavenger hunt and 4 students won and were treated to a special dessert or lunch. The Scottish countryside looks a lot like the farm country in PA with the hills working their way into mountains. They are actually losing population because there isn't much work.
We didn't have a very good hotel in Pitlocary, but it was a charming town and we enjoyed the parade we were in. We were right behind the pipe and drum band that went throught the 1 street tourist town and into a performance area. There we listened to local singers and saw local Scottish dancers perform. It was a great cultural evening and gave the students an insight into the culture. The night before we saw a fantastic Braveheart guy who demonstrated the weapons and kilt. Travis' was dressed up and the photo will be in the 2010 yearbook for sure!
Edinburgh was a city of hills, but we all made it. The castle was at the top and we had an hour to look around and take photos. We had a great lunch of roast beef and then spent the afternoon shopping. There aren't any pounds left.
We are 100% for rain every day; setting a new personal record for a PTP trip. We woke up at 4:00 today and everyone will be happy to get home, even if many will want to return. Keep checking the blog for reunion updates. See you all soon!! Your leaders, Leigh, Doug, Brenda and John
Now the white water rafting was something else. To say that we all got wet is an understatement. Everyone was pulled in, pushed in, battled in, or just fell in. There were a few bumps and bruises, but no major incidents. The rapids weren't nearly as dangerous as we were, and everyone loved it. We don't have any photos because it would have been impossible to take any cameras, but just wait until you hear all the descriptions at home.
Blair Castle was beautiful and the students had a scavenger hunt and 4 students won and were treated to a special dessert or lunch. The Scottish countryside looks a lot like the farm country in PA with the hills working their way into mountains. They are actually losing population because there isn't much work.
We didn't have a very good hotel in Pitlocary, but it was a charming town and we enjoyed the parade we were in. We were right behind the pipe and drum band that went throught the 1 street tourist town and into a performance area. There we listened to local singers and saw local Scottish dancers perform. It was a great cultural evening and gave the students an insight into the culture. The night before we saw a fantastic Braveheart guy who demonstrated the weapons and kilt. Travis' was dressed up and the photo will be in the 2010 yearbook for sure!
Edinburgh was a city of hills, but we all made it. The castle was at the top and we had an hour to look around and take photos. We had a great lunch of roast beef and then spent the afternoon shopping. There aren't any pounds left.
We are 100% for rain every day; setting a new personal record for a PTP trip. We woke up at 4:00 today and everyone will be happy to get home, even if many will want to return. Keep checking the blog for reunion updates. See you all soon!! Your leaders, Leigh, Doug, Brenda and John
Friday, July 17, 2009
Scotland
Sorry we haven't been on in awhile. Computers have been hard to find. I have 13 minutes and no more change, so here goes. We had a very interesting time in Northern Ireland. Belfast is a growing, changing small size city. The students spent a lot of time walking around, as it is very safe. We did have the opportunity to ride around and get a big tour...saw the Titanic building site, the major buildings, etc., but the most interesting was riding through the working class Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods. These are very close to the center and definitely poorer areas. They often border each other and there are walls in places the reminded me of former Berlin. There used to be checkpoints, but the gates are always open now, although the residents don't venture into each other's neighborhoods very often. There are flags up and lots of "in your face" murals in each area that make the opposite "side" unwelcome. We heard 2 young women speak about their experiences; one was just a small girl when her uncle was killed. They are both determined to have a better future for their country. Rather than a religious strife now, both explained that it is much more complicated and comes down to civil rights and economics. The Good Friday accords are working and they have had almost 11 years of peace.
After Belfast we went to the farthest northern point and the students went over the rope bridge. It wasn't as long as most of them thought it would be. We started off in wonderful weather getting a lot of sun, but a sudden shower took care of that! We then walked on the Giant's Causeway which was a fascinating geological feature caused by volcanic eruptions. We got lots of good photos there.
Today we took another ferry ride to Scotland and rode on the coach a lot. We actually spent an extra hour because the driver and our delegation manager couldn't find the restaurant and we ended up going past the same places a couple of times. We had a brief tour of Stirling, which deserves more time, but we don't have time to see everything. Tonight we are in a large resort where the students can walk around outside. Tomorrow we are off to find Nessie and see Collie puppies herding ducks to prepare for a lifetime of sheep herding. The next day we go white water rafting.
Everyone is great and spirits are high despite the rain...we are going for the record now of 19 for 19! You have given us great students. Time is up....Leigh
After Belfast we went to the farthest northern point and the students went over the rope bridge. It wasn't as long as most of them thought it would be. We started off in wonderful weather getting a lot of sun, but a sudden shower took care of that! We then walked on the Giant's Causeway which was a fascinating geological feature caused by volcanic eruptions. We got lots of good photos there.
Today we took another ferry ride to Scotland and rode on the coach a lot. We actually spent an extra hour because the driver and our delegation manager couldn't find the restaurant and we ended up going past the same places a couple of times. We had a brief tour of Stirling, which deserves more time, but we don't have time to see everything. Tonight we are in a large resort where the students can walk around outside. Tomorrow we are off to find Nessie and see Collie puppies herding ducks to prepare for a lifetime of sheep herding. The next day we go white water rafting.
Everyone is great and spirits are high despite the rain...we are going for the record now of 19 for 19! You have given us great students. Time is up....Leigh
Monday, July 13, 2009
Killarny
Well, we left the homestay yesterday morning. Everyone has a FANTASTIC time. They ate well and slept well and want to come back and visit. All the presents were a tremendous hit. We spent a long time riding in the morning and people caught up in their journals. At lunch time we arrived at Bunratty Castle. This castle was built in the 1400's and has furnishings typical of the period. Many of the students climbed up to the tower and took pictures of the area. There is a folk park adjacent and we walked around in the rain, of course, but by now we are all good swimmers! Many students with Irish heritage were able to find out about their names. The best part of the day for many came after that as we had almost 2 hours of shopping and helped Ireland out of their recession! We then had another drive to our hotel in Killarny. It took us awhile to get to our quaint hotel in town because of the horse and buggies that go slowly. John said he looked just like home in Lancaster. We had a late dinner, did some wash, and hit the hay.
Today we had an early breakfast and hit the road again for the Ring of Kerry. This isn't an actual "ring" but the name given to the road in County Kerry that circles the peninsula. We didn't go all the way around, which is good, because we might have lost some "cookies" like the last time I was here. We spent the day in a small Irish village with a lot of history about Michael O'Connell, who was instrumental in peacefully separating most of the counties of the island from the British. We had a lovely morning of Irish students playing their instruments of drum, accordion, guitar, hand organ, and fiddle. Some of our students also sang, danced, and played the instruments. There was also dancing and to keep the record straight, Leigh's line won the contest. We had a quick Celtic language lesson because the peat bog was flooded so we couldn't go and cut peat. After a boxed lunch the students all participated in Galic football. There were some young men in short shorts to teach the students. There is a soccer ball, but you kick it, pass it, and punch it to each other. There are scrums, too, which the students definitely enjoyed. Leader John started out as a coach and ended up knocking students down in the excitment of the competition. No, no one was hurt. After an historical walk through town and a ice cream treat, we came back town. After dinner, where we passed out the letters from home (more than a few tears!), we came into Killarny to shop and walk around.
Tomorrow we are off on the jaunty carts (holding up traffic) and a boat ride. Then we go to Limerck for overnight. The next day we are off to Belfast. This will be a highlight for many of us. This is a fantastic group of students; not a minute of trouble.
Leigh, Brenda, John and Doug
Today we had an early breakfast and hit the road again for the Ring of Kerry. This isn't an actual "ring" but the name given to the road in County Kerry that circles the peninsula. We didn't go all the way around, which is good, because we might have lost some "cookies" like the last time I was here. We spent the day in a small Irish village with a lot of history about Michael O'Connell, who was instrumental in peacefully separating most of the counties of the island from the British. We had a lovely morning of Irish students playing their instruments of drum, accordion, guitar, hand organ, and fiddle. Some of our students also sang, danced, and played the instruments. There was also dancing and to keep the record straight, Leigh's line won the contest. We had a quick Celtic language lesson because the peat bog was flooded so we couldn't go and cut peat. After a boxed lunch the students all participated in Galic football. There were some young men in short shorts to teach the students. There is a soccer ball, but you kick it, pass it, and punch it to each other. There are scrums, too, which the students definitely enjoyed. Leader John started out as a coach and ended up knocking students down in the excitment of the competition. No, no one was hurt. After an historical walk through town and a ice cream treat, we came back town. After dinner, where we passed out the letters from home (more than a few tears!), we came into Killarny to shop and walk around.
Tomorrow we are off on the jaunty carts (holding up traffic) and a boat ride. Then we go to Limerck for overnight. The next day we are off to Belfast. This will be a highlight for many of us. This is a fantastic group of students; not a minute of trouble.
Leigh, Brenda, John and Doug
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Home and Farm Stay Day
Doug here now, figuring it's my time to take a stab at the blog. But I don't have an account so I'm logged in as Leigh. We're all enjoying our home stay experiences, especially the sudden availability of internet access.
We all met at the bus this morning, and the students had lots of great experiences to share from their first night at their homestay. Reports of wonderful pizza and spaghetti dinners, time spent playing with their new siblings, and unlimited Xbox live sessions filled the morning ride to the Causey Farm.
Our coach ride took about an hour and a half, passing through the towns of Navan and Kells, original home of the Book of Kells, now housed at Dublin's Trinity College. Causey Farm is a working farm in the rolling hills outside of Kells. The students were promptly greeted by Patch and Cinder, a pair of rambunctious border collies, as well as a host of puppies and kitties. We made our way over to a barn space where we participated in some traditional Irish folk dances. Luckily we all participated in the dancing, which meant no one was able to film the results. I believe Leigh snapped a picture or two though.
Impending rain sent us out to the fields next to learn the traditional Irish amateur sport of hurling. Students each got a hurley and a sliother (a little smaller than a baseball) and practiced lifting the ball off the ground with their hurleys and passing the balls down field. There were a few similarities between hitting the sliother with the hurley and hitting a baseball with a bat, so some of our baseball playing delegates started to pick it up fairly quickly. After fifteen minutes, though, everybody was getting the hang of it, and we had a competition to see who could hit the ball furthest down the field. Travis won for the boys and Capri beat all the girls. Joe and Katie were close seconds. Finally the kids broke into small groups and competed with each other. Needless to say the earlier successes didn't translate into any actual skill in playing the game, but everyone had a great time anyway. Our home stay father, Vincent, found me some hurling footage to share so everyone can see what we're talking about here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyfEyKTM2Qo&feature=related
After our time hurling we took some time to mix up some traditional Irish soda bread batter, which would be baking while we got involved in some other activities. One of those would be milking a cow. We'll just sum that one up by saying that those weren't rain drops wetting everyone's shirts. Our fearless delegation manager Ben attempted to spray some milk directly into his mouth, with mixed results. I guess he landed some in there, but not nearly as much as he got everywhere else. Getting dirty from cow's milk was the least of our worries, though, as our next activity would prove.
We rode a covered wagon to a nearby peat bog, where we learned a little about the creation and maintence of the peat bog ecosystems throughout the Republic of Ireland. But that was just the beginning. We worked our way to an obstacle course where any failures ended up with a delegate in the bog. Luckily the anaerobic environment in the peat bog means it's sterile. So it's the cleanest dirt you're likely to find. Which is a good thing, because the next thing we did was jump straight into a huge peat bog bit. It was a unique experience, to say the least. You can jump into the bog just as you'd dive into a pool, but instead of going under you get sucked about half way in and then stuck. The ambassadors were a little tentative at first, but Ben got things going when he suddenly popped out of the bog, covered with peat, surprising everyone. He had gone ahead and camouflaged himself in the bog. After tossing Sarah Mejia in, everyone else followed suit. Canonballs, jacknives, group jumps, the students tried it all. It was pretty tough getting back out of the bog, but once out virtually everyone tried and second, third, or tenth jump. I got stuck a couple of times, but luckily Travis and Andrew were there to help pull me out. Needless to say, when it was all said an done, I had peat in places I didn't even know I had. Our attempts at cleanup weren't too effective. I had to soak it out in the bath and then shower off before I could come down for dinner this evening. I've never seen the water going down the drain quite that shade of brown.
So everyone was pretty exhausted and we had a fairly quiet ride home. Students returned to their homestays for a final night in Knocklyne. We'll be leaving first thing in the morning for our trip to Bunratty Castle and points west. Everyone had a great time today, and spirits are high. We'll be spending the next two nights in Killarney, where hopefully our hotel will have a working pay phone and maybe some students will get a chance to call home and report back for themselves.
best,
Doug
We all met at the bus this morning, and the students had lots of great experiences to share from their first night at their homestay. Reports of wonderful pizza and spaghetti dinners, time spent playing with their new siblings, and unlimited Xbox live sessions filled the morning ride to the Causey Farm.
Our coach ride took about an hour and a half, passing through the towns of Navan and Kells, original home of the Book of Kells, now housed at Dublin's Trinity College. Causey Farm is a working farm in the rolling hills outside of Kells. The students were promptly greeted by Patch and Cinder, a pair of rambunctious border collies, as well as a host of puppies and kitties. We made our way over to a barn space where we participated in some traditional Irish folk dances. Luckily we all participated in the dancing, which meant no one was able to film the results. I believe Leigh snapped a picture or two though.
Impending rain sent us out to the fields next to learn the traditional Irish amateur sport of hurling. Students each got a hurley and a sliother (a little smaller than a baseball) and practiced lifting the ball off the ground with their hurleys and passing the balls down field. There were a few similarities between hitting the sliother with the hurley and hitting a baseball with a bat, so some of our baseball playing delegates started to pick it up fairly quickly. After fifteen minutes, though, everybody was getting the hang of it, and we had a competition to see who could hit the ball furthest down the field. Travis won for the boys and Capri beat all the girls. Joe and Katie were close seconds. Finally the kids broke into small groups and competed with each other. Needless to say the earlier successes didn't translate into any actual skill in playing the game, but everyone had a great time anyway. Our home stay father, Vincent, found me some hurling footage to share so everyone can see what we're talking about here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyfEyKTM2Qo&feature=related
After our time hurling we took some time to mix up some traditional Irish soda bread batter, which would be baking while we got involved in some other activities. One of those would be milking a cow. We'll just sum that one up by saying that those weren't rain drops wetting everyone's shirts. Our fearless delegation manager Ben attempted to spray some milk directly into his mouth, with mixed results. I guess he landed some in there, but not nearly as much as he got everywhere else. Getting dirty from cow's milk was the least of our worries, though, as our next activity would prove.
We rode a covered wagon to a nearby peat bog, where we learned a little about the creation and maintence of the peat bog ecosystems throughout the Republic of Ireland. But that was just the beginning. We worked our way to an obstacle course where any failures ended up with a delegate in the bog. Luckily the anaerobic environment in the peat bog means it's sterile. So it's the cleanest dirt you're likely to find. Which is a good thing, because the next thing we did was jump straight into a huge peat bog bit. It was a unique experience, to say the least. You can jump into the bog just as you'd dive into a pool, but instead of going under you get sucked about half way in and then stuck. The ambassadors were a little tentative at first, but Ben got things going when he suddenly popped out of the bog, covered with peat, surprising everyone. He had gone ahead and camouflaged himself in the bog. After tossing Sarah Mejia in, everyone else followed suit. Canonballs, jacknives, group jumps, the students tried it all. It was pretty tough getting back out of the bog, but once out virtually everyone tried and second, third, or tenth jump. I got stuck a couple of times, but luckily Travis and Andrew were there to help pull me out. Needless to say, when it was all said an done, I had peat in places I didn't even know I had. Our attempts at cleanup weren't too effective. I had to soak it out in the bath and then shower off before I could come down for dinner this evening. I've never seen the water going down the drain quite that shade of brown.
So everyone was pretty exhausted and we had a fairly quiet ride home. Students returned to their homestays for a final night in Knocklyne. We'll be leaving first thing in the morning for our trip to Bunratty Castle and points west. Everyone had a great time today, and spirits are high. We'll be spending the next two nights in Killarney, where hopefully our hotel will have a working pay phone and maybe some students will get a chance to call home and report back for themselves.
best,
Doug
On to Ireland
Hello all. This is John updating this time. I don't know that I can keep up with Leigh's great updates though!!!
On our way to the Conwy Youth Hostel, the delegates had a great time in the TESCO grocery store buying food for our lunches. Each group was given a list of what to buy with a certain amount of money. They were not told how much of everything to buy except enough for everyone...including the leaders. They did an outstanding job. They even had some change to give to Ben. Hopefully we can carry that money over and use it for our next Supermarket Sweep to buy some extra treats. We had some free time after dinner and some of us took a walking trip into the town of Conwy with John and Doug, while others stayed back at the hostel and played some football (soccer) and caught up on the computer and journaling, and meeting new friends.
Thursday was an extremely eventful day. It was our Full-On day. This is a day full of stretching your limits and stepping out of your comfort zone. The Full-On staff works with the students all day talking about positive attitude and state. You will have to ask the students about their RAS. Everyone was coached on how to get into a positive state and we were each able to break a board with our hand...what an awesome experience. It is amazing what a positive attitude will do for you. Then it was off to Penrhyn Castle. Interestingly, it is not really a castle, but a vacation home with 300 rooms. We enjoyed our picnic lunches on the grounds while we looked up at the 70' high Ice Tower that we would be abseiling down. What an amazing view and experience from the top. There were quite a few delegates who were not so sure about their feelings on heights...or down right scared of heights. During this activity, this fear was broken!!!
Thursday night was a bit relaxing. We had a Welsh lesson and were taught how to count to 10 and to say a few common words. Our teacher tried to get us to say the name of the longest train station...we had mixed results with that. After dinner, we had some more free time at the hostel. There was a group of Year 6 students (equivalent to 5th grade) also staying at the hostel. We decided to go out into the field and spend some time with them. A very challenging game of soccer took place with around 25 little Brits and 12-13 US delegates. What a great time. The Brits definitely taught us a thing or 2 about soccer. At one point it turned into a mix between soccer, rugby, and American football. Delegate were given an opportunity to go into town again with Doug.
Friday morning we headed off to Holyhead to pick up our ferry for the trip to Ireland. On the way we stopped at Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyllllantysiliogogogoch, the world's longest train station name, and everyone got their passports stamped there. Once we arrived in Dublin, after the 2 hour ferry ride, we headed to the Gaelic Athletic Association Museum. This is located at Croke Park, an 82,000 seat stadium that holds amateur games of hurling and Gaelic football. Everyone had a chance to test there hand at hurling and Gaelic football. They walked us out of the lockerroom and had corwd noise pumping through the sound system so that we could feel what it must be like to walk out of a tunnel to 82,000 cheering fans. We had a great bus tour of Dublin and were able to see the US Embassy in Phoenix Park. We all enjoyed a quick time for some shopping on Grafton Street before heading to Knocklyn, a suburb of Dublin. The families were there to greet us with open arms. The delegates were all looking forward to this time.
Saturday will be a day at Cossy (sp?) Farm. Included in the day is soda bread making , music, dancing, sports, and getting a bit dirty in the bog...well maybe ALOT dirty!!!
We hope to be able to update again tonight before we head to Killarney tomorrow.
Until next time,
John, Doug, Leigh, and Brenda
On our way to the Conwy Youth Hostel, the delegates had a great time in the TESCO grocery store buying food for our lunches. Each group was given a list of what to buy with a certain amount of money. They were not told how much of everything to buy except enough for everyone...including the leaders. They did an outstanding job. They even had some change to give to Ben. Hopefully we can carry that money over and use it for our next Supermarket Sweep to buy some extra treats. We had some free time after dinner and some of us took a walking trip into the town of Conwy with John and Doug, while others stayed back at the hostel and played some football (soccer) and caught up on the computer and journaling, and meeting new friends.
Thursday was an extremely eventful day. It was our Full-On day. This is a day full of stretching your limits and stepping out of your comfort zone. The Full-On staff works with the students all day talking about positive attitude and state. You will have to ask the students about their RAS. Everyone was coached on how to get into a positive state and we were each able to break a board with our hand...what an awesome experience. It is amazing what a positive attitude will do for you. Then it was off to Penrhyn Castle. Interestingly, it is not really a castle, but a vacation home with 300 rooms. We enjoyed our picnic lunches on the grounds while we looked up at the 70' high Ice Tower that we would be abseiling down. What an amazing view and experience from the top. There were quite a few delegates who were not so sure about their feelings on heights...or down right scared of heights. During this activity, this fear was broken!!!
Thursday night was a bit relaxing. We had a Welsh lesson and were taught how to count to 10 and to say a few common words. Our teacher tried to get us to say the name of the longest train station...we had mixed results with that. After dinner, we had some more free time at the hostel. There was a group of Year 6 students (equivalent to 5th grade) also staying at the hostel. We decided to go out into the field and spend some time with them. A very challenging game of soccer took place with around 25 little Brits and 12-13 US delegates. What a great time. The Brits definitely taught us a thing or 2 about soccer. At one point it turned into a mix between soccer, rugby, and American football. Delegate were given an opportunity to go into town again with Doug.
Friday morning we headed off to Holyhead to pick up our ferry for the trip to Ireland. On the way we stopped at Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyllllantysiliogogogoch, the world's longest train station name, and everyone got their passports stamped there. Once we arrived in Dublin, after the 2 hour ferry ride, we headed to the Gaelic Athletic Association Museum. This is located at Croke Park, an 82,000 seat stadium that holds amateur games of hurling and Gaelic football. Everyone had a chance to test there hand at hurling and Gaelic football. They walked us out of the lockerroom and had corwd noise pumping through the sound system so that we could feel what it must be like to walk out of a tunnel to 82,000 cheering fans. We had a great bus tour of Dublin and were able to see the US Embassy in Phoenix Park. We all enjoyed a quick time for some shopping on Grafton Street before heading to Knocklyn, a suburb of Dublin. The families were there to greet us with open arms. The delegates were all looking forward to this time.
Saturday will be a day at Cossy (sp?) Farm. Included in the day is soda bread making , music, dancing, sports, and getting a bit dirty in the bog...well maybe ALOT dirty!!!
We hope to be able to update again tonight before we head to Killarney tomorrow.
Until next time,
John, Doug, Leigh, and Brenda
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