Day 5

Today we had a great day traveling from Kilkenny through Waterford and Cork to Blarney Castle. Our guide Barabara said, "you know when you're being cheeky to your mom and dad and you say, 'bla, bla, bla...'? Well, that can from Blarney!" Nearly all of us kissed the Blarney Stone today so we all have the gift of gab! The castle of Blarney is in ruins, but it is very cool to explore. The stone is at the top! The grounds of the castle are great. There are so many interesting art installations and gardens to look at and everything is beautiful, even in the rain! Our morning at Waterford Crystal was amazing. We got to stand right with all the craftsmen and artists to watch them blow, cut, and etch the crystal. The tour guides were very cool and answered tons of questions. We all got to hold a $10,000 "reject" vase (Waterford smashes and recycles all pieces that are not perfect after 6 different inspections along the process) and the NCAA Football Championship trophy! All the kids wanted to buy their parents lovely gifts, but, naturally, most them were way out of the price range for all of us! You'll see lots of pictures, I'm sure and I'll post some on the Facebook page today. We are having a blast and you should know that our students are complimented on their behavior in many places! They ask great, thoughtful questions and are quite respectful of the tour guides. Everything is going wonderfully and the kids are tired, but excited at the end of the day!