The School Tour

Wichita Lineman

Looks like it's been a while since there was a school tour thread. I'm from Wicklow and at an age when travelling to Dublin was a lot harder when I was a young lad than it is these days.

I remember we were taken on a school tour to the cinema to see 'Superman' the first Christopher Reeve one but we got stuck in really heavy traffic and we missed about the first half hour or more. After the film ended we were told to stay in our seats and the projectionist restarted the movie and we got to watch the bit we had missed before being ushered back onto the bus!

Any other school tour memories?

katydid

Wichita Lineman wrote: »

Looks like it's been a while since there was a school tour thread. I'm from Wicklow and at an age when travelling to Dublin was a lot harder when I was a young lad than it is these days.

I remember we were taken on a school tour to the cinema to see 'Superman' the first Christopher Reeve one but we got stuck in really heavy traffic and we missed about the first half hour or more. After the film ended we were told to stay in our seats and the projectionist restarted the movie and we got to watch the bit we had missed before being ushered back onto the bus!

Any other school tour memories?

I remember going on a primary school tour from Cork to somewhere in Waterford. No idea where, but what I remember as clear as day was stopping the bus near a wood, and being allowed to have a run around for a bit. Suddenly the teachers hunted us onto the bus; but one girl was missing. She turned up eventually with one of the teachers. It was strange at the time and has stuck in my mind. Looking back I reckon she was approached or attacked by someone - the tension amongst the teachers was so obvious.

Sorry, not a happy memory, but something that has always made me wonder...

Happier memories are singing "Stop the bus, we want to wee wee"...

chakotha

We had some good primary school tours.

One year we packed a lot into one day. A tour of the Faber Castell factory in Fermoy (got a free pencil and biro) followed by Mitchelstown Caves followed by Cahir Castle and then over the Vee to Admore to see the round tower and swim at the beach before home.

The following year we got the train to Dublin and went to the national museum, Trinity to see the Book of Kells and then to the zoo. I cut my hand and bled everywhere on the train back while bending/tearing a coke can in half.

The following year was a trip to Sherkin Island.

The best secondary tour was in 4th year we flew to Brussels, then bus to Koblenz, Cologne and Rhine valley, then to Amsterdam. Because soft drinks were so expensive on the continent it had been pre-agreed with teachers and parents that we'd be allowed a beer with meals which meant several. Great trip.

darkdubh

I remember we went on a tour of Fota Island wildlife park in 89 and one of my abiding memories was the class messer throwing a lighting cigarette butt into one of the monkey enclosures,it might have been baboons not sure but they kind of big monkeys.Anyway one of them picked it up and put into his mouth,straightaway got burnt and threw it away in shock.

lord lucan

2 words......... Clara Lara.:)

katydid

lord lucan wrote: »

2 words......... Clara Lara.:)

One word; WET

Ruu

Posted this a few times but my older brother got a Coca Cola factory tour.

Stephen15

The bangers of buses they used to use our school tour got postponed a few times because the bus broke down.

shedweller

One school tour we were in christchurch cathedral and i remember being hauled back to the main group by the principal after being entranced by the dead shtuff everywhere! Haha!
I bought my sister one of those massive plastic paperclips there. Wow. Thirty years just went zoom.
She might still have it...

L1011

Annamoe Adventure Centre (which is now a fishing lake I believe), Mosney, Coke factory were the three done in 6th class in my school. Annamoe was a replacement for Armagh planetarium and Carlingford after a car bomb

Secondary didn't do tours as such bar going overboard in transition year - main one was to Switzerland and otherwise every major cultural venue on the east coast. Although we were dragged on a tour of non-catholic religious venues (orthodox church, Jewish museum, mosque) for free in second year...

stick-dan

Back in '98, I think I was ten.

There was commemorations everywhere for 1798 and our primary school took us to Wexford to the heritage park and then to Vinegar Hill and the 1798 visitor center.

One of the lads bumped into a Pikemen's Pikes that was on show and nearly killed the teacher when it hurtled towards his face. I still to this day remember the look of horror.

Good Times. Jesus the years flew by.

An Riabhach

School tours were almost a yearly arrangement in our primary school-I say almost because some years we would just go to the Heritage Centre in Nenagh for the day(we went to a rural school),and after that we would go to Loughmore to see where the McCormack Brothers were re-interred.I missed most of the tours-to be honest we could rarerly afford them.But I do remember going to visit the crannógs and going to Bunratty Castle when I was in 6th class.

And in secondary school I remember a school tour to The Square in Tallaght.It absolutely pissed raining all day,and on the bus back to Nenagh one of the lads fired a catapult at another lad sittin in the back of the bus but he missed,and hit the window instead and made sheit of it.The bus stopped for about 3/4 an hour,and lads at the back said they saw a few blackguards runnin after the bus and one of them threw a rock,and the driver eventually believed them.The teachers weren't too convinced,though....

mud

In Primary school we went to the Viking experience in 1988. I can still remember it vividly even though I was only 9.

Yay Dvblinia!

katydid

Seasan wrote: »

School tours were almost a yearly arrangement in our primary school-I say almost because some years we would just go to the Heritage Centre in Nenagh for the day(we went to a rural school),and after that we would go to Loughmore to see where the McCormack Brothers were re-interred.
..

Who were the McCormack Brothers?

An Riabhach

katydid wrote: »

Who were the McCormack Brothers?

Daniel and William McCormack.
They were wrongly accused of murdering an English landlord named Ellis,they were found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging in Nenagh Jail,and were also buried there.I don't know exactly the year this happened.
Years later,when the truth came out and when the true murderer was found,the bodies of the McCormack Brothers,now proven innocent,were exhumed and reburied in Loughmore Graveyard.

katydid

Seasan wrote: »

Daniel and William McCormack.
They were wrongly accused of murdering an English landlord named Ellis,they were found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging in Nenagh Jail,and were also buried there.I don't know exactly the year this happened.
Years later,when the truth came out and when the true murderer was found,the bodies of the McCormack Brothers,now proven innocent,were exhumed and reburied in Loughmore Graveyard.

Oh ok. Thanks. Never heard of them

An Riabhach

katydid wrote: »

Oh ok. Thanks. Never heard of them

Remembering it now,that was one of the reasons why we were brought to the Heritage Centre,because back in the 1800s that same building,or part of it,was Nenagh Jail.We were taken down to the cell where the brothers were held and it nearly brought tears to our eyes.

kerry4sam

We went to Bunratty Castle more than once and even had to sit through a talk in the 'Auld School' that was re-created on the grounds there!

A cousin of mine a few years ago was brought the same distance -> Limerick and instead brought up to spend a day in the UL Sport Adventure Centre.

How times have changed now
Thanks,
kerry4sam

Del.Monte

I went to primary school in Bray (mid 1960s) - before school tours became the norm - and instead we had an annual event 'the school picnic'. My first was to Lough Dan in 1967 and was exciting but a bit scary - still have memories of it 48 years later! I think the school authorities must have found it 'difficult' too as after that the school picnic always went to Silver Strand - just south of Wicklow. An unspoilt, series of empty beaches, cliffs and smugglers caves. The school provided the picnic too. Happy days.

Herpes Cineplex

chakotha wrote: »

The best secondary tour was in 4th year we flew to Brussels, then bus to Koblenz, Cologne and Rhine valley, then to Amsterdam. Because soft drinks were so expensive on the continent it had been pre-agreed with teachers and parents that we'd be allowed a beer with meals which meant several. Great trip.

I remember my school tour to Amsterdam back in 4th year. There were no parents present and strangely enough, several of our teachers seemed to disappear for several hours.

Winty

I went to a rural national school.
Beside the school we had a big field and an ever bigger lake.
Our 6th year school trip back in 1990 should have been to a big city like Sligo (our nearest) or Dublin to see the magic of traffic lights or the cinema but no our teachers took us to lough key forest park to see a field beside a big lake

Great Times

Summer wind

We went to the Viking experience in Dublin and I really loved it. We went to the museum and I remember seeing the book of Kells. Then we went to the zoo and my bag fell into the seal enclosure and a few of the seals came up and started nosing it around. Then a man jumped over the fence and got it back for me. I was delighted because my lunch was inside.

On the way home we stopped at the Virgin megastore and we all bought vinyl albums. I was so happy because I got the new 5 Star album:) Then my best friend and I bought 2 house plants for our mams and when I got home I found out my mam had bought the seeds to grow the same plant I'd bought:).

The Princess Bride

We went to Lambert's Puppet Theatre in 6th class- after a visit to the zoo.
It was the first school tour we'd ever had as the previous Principal was ancient and, perhaps, never considered it.

In secondary school, we went to Avonmore creamery in Ballyragget- seeing all that butter wasn't appetising - the smell was awful.
Another time went to Trinity College followed by a picnic in Stephen's Green.Also headed down to Ardnacrusha and Bunratty Folk park one year.
Such simple tours really.

FatherTed

One tour in Primary school we went to Connemara. A few of us lads had been saving our money for months on end for a big plan one of them came up with for a bit of fun on trip. In Leenane we made our move. In one of the shops selling touristy things we bought all the keyrings with the miniature bottles of Guinness thinking we'd get a bit sloshed on the way home on the bus. After spending ages to pry open the little bottles we discovered it was only water.

Still devastated thinking about it. More than 30 years ago and that's about the only thing I remember about it:)

mud

FatherTed wrote: »

One tour in Primary school we went to Connemara. A few of us lads had been saving our money for months on end for a big plan one of them came up with for a bit of fun on trip. In Leenane we made our move. In one of the shops selling touristy things we bought all the keyrings with the miniature bottles of Guinness thinking we'd get a bit sloshed on the way home on the bus. After spending ages to pry open the little bottles we discovered it was only water.

Still devastated thinking about it. More than 30 years ago and that's about the only thing I remember about it:)

I wish I could thank this more than once. Bravo!

The Princess Bride

FatherTed wrote: »

In one of the shops selling touristy things we bought all the keyrings with the miniature bottles of Guinness thinking we'd get a bit sloshed on the way home on the bus. After spending ages to pry open the little bottles we discovered it was only water.

Still devastated thinking about it. More than 30 years ago and that's about the only thing I remember about it:)

Post of the year- don't know whether to laugh or cry for ye.:P

jimmycrackcorm

We got a tour of the local slaughterhouse and meat factory. If it wasn't for the free packet of sausages we got I'd be a vegetarian now after watching them electrocute cattle

katydid

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

We got a tour of the local slaughterhouse and meat factory. If it wasn't for the free packet of sausages we got I'd be a vegetarian now after watching them electrocute cattle

Jeez, that was a bit tough.

L1011

katydid wrote: »

Jeez, that was a bit tough.

Some vegan friends insist that watching any slaughterhouse procedures would turn you vegan. Doesn't work at all on me cause my grandfather's entire family (except him actually) were butchers, saw it all before the age of 5 :pac:

Some of the other posts are reminding me of the younger primary tours, though I might also be confusing some of them with the "big trip out" on the Summer Project some years (nearly always Clara Lara, though).

Morrel Farm and the Butterfly Museum in Straffan, Lamberts Puppet Theatre, this woeful play in the Riverbank in Dublin, and constant jammed together attempts to make the tour "educational" with something along the lines of a random museum coupled with being allowed run around St Annes Park or similar for hours on end afterwards.

On reflection we did a lot of tours for the early 1990s - middle class enough area and a local bus company probably helped.

katydid

L1011 wrote: »

Some vegan friends insist that watching any slaughterhouse procedures would turn you vegan. Doesn't work at all on me cause my grandfather's entire family (except him actually) were butchers, saw it all before the age of 5 :pac:
.

I think there would be war nowadays if a group of kids were taken to a slaughterhouse on a school tour. They would have to have teams of counsellors available for months afterwards, and parents suing the school left, right and centre for the trauma caused to their kids.

A bit OTT, I know, but I think casually taking a bunch of kids to watch cattle being killed was a bit extreme in the other direction.

We went to see cheese being made in Mitchelstown. It was that gooey stuff you get in triangles. The smell put me off cheese for years.

L1011

katydid wrote: »

We went to see cheese being made in Mitchelstown. It was that gooey stuff you get in triangles. The smell put me off cheese for years.

I couldn't eat chocolate for months after the smell at Cadbury World so this might be a common theme!

whiskeyman

Went to Clonmacnoise when in primary school and part of the trip was to be a cruise on a boat down part of the Shannon.
Drove around looking for the river boat, but couldn't find it.
Finally found what we though was our boat... we all bailed on board, then noticed the fecking thing starting to sink!! It was a boat docked up for repairs, and we all had to run and jump off it as the water started to gush on! The work lads ran out from a shed nearby and were going mental! told us our boat was up the road
Fun times...

Wichita Lineman

The year after I left Primary School I was asked to go back and help the teachers on the school tour and it was to Clonmacnoise. Riveting. Actually riveting would have been more fun!