The Travel Day that Seemed as If It Would Never End...in a Good Way - By Gabbi VanLooyen and Harris Petch

We began our day at the wonderful, cheery hour of four in the morning. Many of us, not having slept a wink the previous night thanks to our decision to watch The Women in Black, were ready to start our eleven-odd hour trip to Galway. Our bus driving team loaded our bags efficiently into the vast trunk space of our coach. Awaiting our promised bagged breakfast, all thirty two of us settled in, claiming our turf with various and sundry purses and backpacks that were not travelling in economy class in the trunk.  Suzann boarded the bus and bore the bad news; the staff had made us food but it had vanished without a trace. How the heck do forty bagged meals just disappear? It made no sense.

            Thankfully, we got the chance to pop in at a road-stop and grab our replacement breakfast. Costa makes really good food. Satisfied and filled with the goodness that is yoghurt parfait, I sunk into my leather chair and blasted my IPod for the rest of the bus ride.  

            I do not know what it is about Northern England and Wales but they are probably the most beautiful places I have ever had the privilege to drive through. The rising mountains surrounded the road, their rocky faces and green backsides resembling the forms of sleeping giants. The sea, shimmering and crystal blue, crashed against the ragged shore. Little houses and lighthouses dotted the coastline and the rolling hills, nestled in like hatchlings in their nests. The looming forms of ancient castles were tucked amongst the mountain ridges. Flocks of sheep and various herds of horses and cows shared the paddocks with many of these ancient ruins, making their homes within to escape the rain.   I would live there in an instant!

            The city of Holyhead came into view before in no time at all. The old buildings with their age and charm seemed to greet us, welcoming GeorgiaHardy Tours to their little corner of the world. A mother and her young son jogged in front of the bus as we turned into the parking lot of the port. The white-washed building contained a coffee shop, claw machine, seats and a check in desk. Our wait lasted for about an hour and a half, our lot spending the time indulging in the free wifi-a rare blessing-and playing President with a well loved deck of cards. I read a book. Just as I was about to pay for a smoothie and a pack of lozenges, Suzann told us we were about to check our luggage. With a groan, I put my almost-purchase back on the shelf and returned to my suitcases. As soon as we bid our bags goodbye, we navigated our way up to the lounge. It was a room with quite the decorating theme, blue carpet chairs, blue walls and brace yourself, blue carpet! Out of habit, I whipped my music device out from my backpack ad sat back. We boarded about twenty minutes later.

            I have never been on a ferry as big as the one we travelled on. The vessel was about the size of a small cruise ship! I picked a comfortable seat with my friends by the window. As we left the port, the familiar grumble of my stomach alerted me that it was way past lunch time. For a ferry boat, the food was excellent!  I had a delightful yellow curry. The shopping was excellent if you liked kooky things or books. Thankfully, sheep crossed with emoticons and literature is right up my alley! My friend Shelagh and I sat beside the cutest family for the entire ride. They were returning to Belfast after vacationing in Wales for a week. There youngest, a three year old girl with fire truck red hair, fell into my lap multiple times as she attempted to get onto the chairs. It was entertaining to watch her, her brother and cousins war over who coloured the best. Little kids are so funny!

            When it came time to disembark, we ran into a bit of a mix-up. Nobody knew how to get off the boat! It took almost twenty minutes to get off and another twenty minutes to franticly get our bags off the carousel. With our bags in hand, we flooded into the parking lot and found our bus driver, an adorable middle aged Irishman who believed strongly that the boys should take our luggage. I was not complaining!
 - Gabbi


Hey folks, Harris Petch here to report on the latter half of our trip to Ireland, which was, put bluntly, rather boring. After we disembarked from the boat and got our baggage sorted out, we boarded a coach to Galway. What little of the scenery I did see was quite nice, but I didn’t see very much, as I will freely admit to having my nose buried in a book for ninety-nine percent of the three-hour trip across the Emerald Isle. We arrived at the residences at around 9 p.m., and after some room key mix-ups everyone, to the extent of my knowledge, went to there rooms and passed out. Overall not a very exciting day, but fun, and its nice to have a break now and then.


- Harris