Four Schools Today

Today was a big day. I needed to get to four schools, two of which I had never been to before. I decided to start at the two that were furthest from the city, St. Patricks and Ballyroan Boys School. I walked to Trinity and caught the 15B around 8:20. Since I was on the 15B on Monday, to the end of the line, I was able to scope out the schools to refresh my memory. Also, there was a young woman sitting in the very front on the top floor of the bus whom I remember from last year. On Monday she got off at the St. Patricks stop, and that is when I remembered that she teaches at that school. So, I decided to stalk her and make sure I was getting off at the right place. :) As I got off the bus I noticed it had started to rain, a lot. I also noticed that my umbrella was a piece of junk and that I needed to buy a new one. As it turned inside and out, and flapped on one side, I trekked up the hill to St. Patricks. Once inside I found Lauren in the hall (gym). She will be teaching all 17 classes in the building, a variety of activities, but mostly gymnastics. I met the principal and chatted with her for a few minutes. Since Lauren has an adapted minor she plans on having her assist with a new program for students with gross motor difficulities and other limitations. It should be a great experience for Lauren and hopefully she can help them with their program.

As I left St. Pat's it became very apparent that I needed a new umbrella. I was in suburbia and put up my hood as I walked down the hill, around the corner and finally arrived at Ballyroan Boys School. I found Jenna and Brooke and went to the teachers room where we chatted over a cup of tea. Both of their co-ops were individuals that we used last year, so it was nice to see some familiar faces. As I was leaving Ballyroan I saw bus 15B go by as I was going out the gate to walk 300 feet or so to the stop. I knew it would be awhile before another one would come by. As luck would have it, John, the school caretaker, was getting in his car and asked where I was heading. He offered to give me a ride and I graciously accepted. He was running some errands for the school and needed to go to the shopping center, which he passed by to deliver me to the gates of Terenure College. John was a kind older gentleman who asked what part of Spain I was from during our drive. I said I was from America and so we chatted a bit about the weather in the southeast. He has never been to the US. He was so kind to give me a ride. I must take him something next week when I return to Ballyroan.

Terenure College was an incredible secondary school for boys on 44 acres on the outskirts of the city. I had never been there before and was greatly impressed. It is rich in history as they are celebrating 150 years. The chapel is used for alumni weddings and funerals, and sons and grandsons attend the school. I met the assistant principal, Frank, who had called me on Monday with some questions. He is a very nice man who actually married a woman from Pittsburgh. There are 16 monks who live and work at the school, including the principal whom I also met. He is 42 and has been at the school for 20 years, the last nine as principal. I shared a cup of tea with Kendra, Frank and Father ? (I didn't catch the name - they talk so fast) and had a great conversation. They are men of great personality and humor. Kendra is enjoying Terenure, despite a bit of uncertainty with her teaching schedule. That should be resolved soon.

I walked out the gates of Terenure and found the bus stop. Most bus stops just have a yellow pole with the bus symbol at the top. There is no shelter, no bus schedule, no bus numbers. Just a pole. I waited in the rain about 10 minutes for bus 15B. I knew I had to get off the bus at the giant clock tower in Rathmines, but had never gotten off at that location before. Well, I jumped the gun a bit and rang the bell a bit too soon. Not to appear like a tourist and say to the busdriver, "Sorry, my bad." I just got off. That meant I had to walk a bit farther than was necessary, but it actually worked out ok. I was able to stop at a hardware store and pick up a new umbrella. Mine was in pieces at that point. If you are interested, it is currently in a rubbish bin outside of a dry cleaners on Rathmines Road, across from the McDonalds.  I continued on my search of St. Louis Community Girls School. Fortunately Tara had emailed me good directions and after a 20 minute walk, I found the school. I declined an offer of tea, but did spend some time chatting with Tara in the teachers room. She is a Social Studies / History major, as is Kendra, so this is a secondary school for girls.

I caught another bus back into city centre and decided to check out the Laus (pronounced Lewis), the high speed rain line that I had to take this evening. I found the stop at St. Stephens Green and figured out the ticket kiosh system, which came in handy when I had to return at 6 to ride the rail. I stopped for lunch and got back to the flat around 3pm.

I was beat, so I ended up taking a nap and then doing some school work before I left again at 5:30. I hiked to St. Stephens Green to pick up the Luas and rode it eight stops to Dundrums. It was crowded, but pretty slick. I got there in about 20 minutes. I found my way to the middle of town and then found the Dundrums shopping center. It was a huge mall, 5 stories high, with lots of stores I had never heard of before. I went into Harvey Nichols. I went to that store in London in March. And I wandered around until 7, when I met John Nolen, Lydia, and his sister Carmel, who I had met last year. We had a cup of tea/coffee at a Starbucks nearby and then we saw a wonderful play, "Many Young Men of Twenty" by the great Irish playwright John B Keane. It was very good. Nothing wrong with a little culture. John drove me back to the flat so I didn't have to take the Luas or walk back so late at night. It was a good night.

Tomorrow I have two more schools to visit. One is another new one, so hopefully I can get there without incident. I'm glad it's Friday!