Our first Weekend Trip of the semester will be to amazing City of Galway on the West Coast of Ireland. Galway is one of the most beautiful and friendly cities in Ireland, and there are plenty of things to see and do while you’re there! There hostel we will stay at offers the three most popular Day-Trips, which are to The Cliffs on Moher/Burren Tour, the Connemara Day Tour, and The Aran Islands Day Tour. You can sign-up for these great day-trips right at the reception desk of our hostel!

The cost of the trip is 70 Euro. This includes the cost of the bus to Galway and back, and 2 nights in the best hostel in Ireland! The hostel has breakfast included in the price! This breaks down to 10 Euro for the bus each way (10+10=20), and 25 Euro per-night in the hostel (25X2=50). We will leave for Galway from in front of the Student’s Union on Friday, October 16, sometime in the afternoon, between 3:00 & 4:00 pm. I will announce the definate departure time closer to the trip. It will take approximately 3 hours to travel to Galway. We will then leave Galway at approximately 6:30 pm, and arrive back to Maynooth around 9:00-9:30 pm on Sunday evening, October 18.

Sign-ups for the trip to Galway will also begin this Sunday evening at 7PM in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block. Please bring the money to pay for the trip with you when you sign-up!

Here are some links that will tell you sbout what there is to see and do in Galway City and on the Day Tours:

Galway City:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galway

http://www.photos4webs.com/showallimages2.php?ID=Galway&ID2=Galway&ID3=0&ID4=36

Cliffs of Moher/The Burren:

http://www.cliffsofmoher.ie/

http://images.google.ie/images?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENIE335&q=Cliffs+of+Moher&um=1&ie=UTF-

http://images.google.ie/images?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENIE335&q=The+Burren&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=hizGSv6qOZe5jAe966lF&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=5

http://www.burrenpage.com/

Connemara:

http://www.connemara.ie/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connemara

http://images.google.ie/images?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENIE335&q=Connemara&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=9SzGSvOoGNmgjAfpxNBD&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=15

The Aran Islands:

http://images.google.ie/images?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENIE335&q=Aran+Islands&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=bS3GSpW4NszajQeO-LVO&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aran_Islands

Well, I hope that this will tell you all the information you want to know about the upcoming trips, and I hope to see you all at the sign-ups and film this Sunday! That’s how we do it in the International Society– we do the work, you have the fun! All the arrangements are made for you– all you have to do is sign-up and get on the bus when we go! I’m looking forward to a great year with you all! I’m sure it’ll be a great one! If you ever have any questions or problems, please feel free to ask me! I’m usually around and available! You can e-mail me at this address, send me an SMS on my mobile, 087 6761959, or contact me on Facebook! Thank you all to those who signed-up with us on Clubs & Socs Day! And be sure to tell your friends about us! If you know someone interested in joining us that didn’t get to on Clubs & Socs Day, have them contact us or come along to one of our meetings, and we can put them on our mailing list!

Thanks to all of the people who went to Belfast this past weekend, and thanks for staying out of trouble! I’m sure you have all heard about what happened up there this weekend with the attack on the British soldiers. In light of this, we’ve decided to show the film In The Name of The Father, starring Daniel Day Lewis.

The film will be this Sunday at 7:30 in the Arts Block, in either Theatre 1 or 2; the projector in Theatre 1 was having problems, but may be it’s fixed now. If not, it will be in Theatre 2.

Upcoming Trips: I’ve been making some calls about our planned upcoming trips, and because the proposed trip to the Ring of Kerry/Killarney will no doubt have alot of people interested in going, I’ve begun to check if we can actually do 2 different weekends to this destination, as we will probably only be able to get a maximum of 54 people (1 full bus) down there at a time, and it has come to my attention that some people my have scheduling conflicts with the dates we originally proposed. I’ve contacted the hostel in order to ask about availabilities and to make provisional bookings for April 3–5, 17–19, and the originally proposed dates, 24–26. I am hoping to make booking for 2 out of these three weekends. I will be in touch about this possibility, and hopefully this will be able to accommodate everyone that wants to go with us!!

Also, I’ve begun making inquiries into another day trip-for the semester, and possibly making it our first ever multi-stop day trip!! If we do this, the primary stop we will have will be to Clonmacnoise, the old monastic site! Here are some links to read about it and the photo link is the last one (1, 2, 3).

We can/will also make another stop somewhere else, possibly to the Kilbeggan Whiskey Distillery or somewhere else. I will be in touch with you all about this possible trip, and I will tell you that the tentative date for this will be Saturday, March 28. I will see about the arrangements that need to be made and figure out what kind of prices we can get! I’ll let you all know soon!

That’s all for now; hope everyone is doing well, and hope to see you all for the film this weekend!

Ed

We still have some places available for Belfast, so if you’re still interested in going, please contact me at 087 6761959. I will be contacting those of you who are going to discuss our transportation arrangements in the next few days. And here are a few things to know brfore we go on our trip there:

First, remember that they use Sterling (British Pounds) up there! If you have a bank account from either an Irish bank or most other European banks, you should be able to use your bank card in the ATM machines up there with no problems. If you do not have a bank account from either an Irish or other European bank, you might want to stop into one of the local banks to exchange some money.

Second, since we are technically going into another country, and although there are no border checks anymore, I would remind you all to bring along your passports or other documents with you, just to make sure, especially for anyone from outside the European Union.

Third, please be sure not to go anywhere in the city alone. Stay in small groups, or at least in pairs.

Fourth, the hostel provides bed sheets and duvets, so you don’t need to bring them. Also, the hostel has a kitchen for you to cook your own meals. There is a Tesco shop about 5 minutes walk from the hostel.

And finally, you can sign-up for the Giant’s Causeway Tours or the Black Taxi tour from right at the Reception Desk at the hostel.

I hope everyone is doing well, and thanks to all the volunteers and for the willingness to help out with things in light of recent events. It reminds me that my efforts have never been in vain, not for a single moment.

Dziękujemy za solidarność.

Αυτός που είναι κοινός για το μέγιστο αριθμό παραχωρεί τη λιγότερη προσοχή επάνω σε το. Καθένας σκέφτεται κυρίως δικούς του δικοί, μετά βίας σε όλο το κοινό ενδιαφέρον και μόνο όταν έχει σχέση ο ίδιος ως άτομο. Για εκτός από άλλες εκτιμήσεις, καθεμία τείνει για να παραμελήσει το καθήκον που αναμένει άλλο για να εκπληρώσει
— Αριστοτέλης

All the best, and hope to see you all soon.

Ed

Film: The film for this weekend will be the Irish film The Wind That Shakes The Barley, about Ireland during the War of Independence and Civil War era, 1919–1924. The film will begin at 7:30 PM, this Sunday evening in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block.

Belfast: I’m glad to announce the second semester trip to Belfast! The trip will be held Friday March 6 to March Sunday March 8. This is one week later than we had originally planned it, but this next week is better for the hostel, and will give a bit more time to handle sign-ups and all the arrangements. Also, the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge on the Giant’s Causeway tour should be open again! The cost for the trip is 55 EUR per person, and sign-ups will begin this Sunday evening at 7PM in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block! But please, have the money with you when you sign-up! Or if you can’t make it there to sign-up, you can give the money to a friend and have them pay and put your name on the list. Also, here are some useful links that tell can you all about what there is to see and do in Belfast (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).

Football/Soccer: Some of our members have set up a time for playing football here on campus! They have booked one of the pitches this Sunday at 12 noon! All are welcome to come out and play, and they ask that you show up a bit early to help get everything set up for playing!!

That’s all for now! Hope to see you at the film this weekend!

All the best,

Ed

We apologise that the following will sound very dry, but there are certain legal things we need to take care off / protect ourselves from. The following disclaimer can also be found on the disclaimer page.

Best regards, and see you tomorrow,

Florian

* * * *

The following concerns both members and non-members — independent of whether they are registered students or staff of NUI Maynooth or not — that partake in any event/trip/activity organised by the International Students’ Society.

By participating in any of our events/trips/activities you tacitly acknowledge and agree to the Clubs and Societies Safety Statement of the NUI Maynooth, a copy of which can be found here.

In particular, we would like to point to Paragraphs 1.3 and 3 of Section 1. You must read the document in its entirety and note and observe your responsibilities.

Furthermore:

To all those who are not registered students or staff of NUIM:

We hereby inform you that you are not covered by the insurance policy for accident and injury of NUI Maynooth University. By agreeing to participate in an activity/trip/event, you are hereby informed that you are not covered by the NUI Maynooth insurance policy, and thus assume any and all risk and personal liability for theft, accident, or injury. By participating in an event/trip/activity, you also hereby agree to release NUI Maynooth University as well as representatives/organizers/committee members of the NUIM International Students’ Society from any and all responsibility or liability for accident, injury, or theft. Any who find this objectionable or unacceptable must desist from participation in any event/trip/activity immediately (but will be given a full refund for any cost/fees paid for said event/trip/activity).

 
Thus, if you still would like to participate in any of our events/trips/activities, we highly recommend additional, private insurance cover.

Once again, if you do not agree to any of the above, you may not partake in events/trips/activities organised by us. If you have paid for any events/trips/activities in advance, you will be, of course, fully refunded.

— The Committee

First, I want to say welcome to all our new members, and thank you deciding to join the International Society! We hope to have a great semester, and we hope that you can be a part of it!

Our film this weekend will be the Christopher Nola thriller Memento, starring Guy Pierce, Carrie Ann Moss, and Joe Pantoliano. The film will be at 7:30 PM, this Sunday evening in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block. Hope you can be there!

And to let everyone know, we still have some places available for the trip to Cork. The trip is From Friday Feb 13 to Sunday Feb 15. We will leave from Maynooth in the afternoon (time to be announced next week), and leave from Cork back to Maynooth around 5PM, arriving back around 8PM. The cost is 60 Euro per- person, and this covers the round trip and 2 nights accomodation, breakfast included. Here are some of the information websites for our new members to look at so they can have an idea about what there is to see and do in Cork (1, 2, 3, 4).

We are still not sure yet about whether we will have enough people to justify getting 2 buses for the trip or not. We will see how many people we get for the trip as of this weekend, and let you all know. But just to be safe, I will ask for people to volunteer to go to Cork by train! Remember, only if you have the Student Travel Card can you go by train for the trip! If we do have some people go by train, we will need around 20 volunteers, so talk to your friends and see what they want to do. We will see how this weekend goes and let you all know! If you’re interested in coming on the trip, please come to the film this Sunday to sign-up! We will be there from 7:00 PM!

An finally, we still have International Society T-shirts available in all sizes and in Black and Green — here is what they look like. Please contact us if you’re interested in buying one!

That’s all for now! Hope to see you all soon,

Ed

The film this weekend will be Waking Ned Devine. It’s an Irish comedy about a man from a small Irish village who dies when he discovers that he has won the lottery, and his friends try to collect the lottery winnings for the village … The film will start at 7:30PM in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block, this Sunday evening.

And just so everyone knows, we still have places available for the weekend trip to Cork! The cost is 60 EUR per person, and the trip is from Friday Feb 13 to Sunday, Feb 15. You can sign-up for the trip this Sunday before the film, or con tact me directly by text/ringing me at 087 6761959.

That’s all for now! Hope to see you all out tonight at the Roost to meet the new Internationals, and then at the film on Sunday!

All the best,

Ed

As I mentioned last week, there will be a film this weekend! We will show the film Transsiberian, starring Ben Kingsley, Woody Harellson, and Emily Mortimer. As usual, the film will be in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block, starting at 7:30 PM, this Sunday evening.

And, as many of you know, our first trip of the semester will be to Cork! We have all the arrangements made, and we will begin sign-ups this Sunday evening before the film. We will be in Theatre 1 from 7 pm on for you to come by and sign-up! The trip will be from Friday to Sunday, 13–15 February. We will announce departure times closer to the day of the trip. The cost of the trip is 60 EUR in total, and this covers 2 nights in the hostel with breakfast, as well as the return trip in our bus(es). And just to mention it, depending on how many people sign-up, we might have some people go there by train, so keep this in mind in case you would be willing to volunteer to go there by train. We will let you know then if we need some volunteers for this!

Here are some links tralking about what there is to do and see in and around Cork (1, 2, 3, 4). I definitely recommend that everyone go to Blarney Castle, as it is only 20 minutes by bus from the city, and you can get the bus to go there from right in front of the hostel! Also, the small town of Kinsale on the south coast is very nice, and you can get the bus to there from the city bus station, just 10 minutes walk from the hostel.

That’s all for now! Hope you’re all doing well and hope to see you this weekend for the film and trip sign-up!!

Ed

Welcome back to Maynooth, my friends, and what will (hopefully) be another great semester for the International Society! I trust everyone had a great holiday and got to go home and enjoy them with friends and family.

I’ve heard from a few people that I’ve run into on campus that they were going crazy without getting their weekly email from the International Society! It was only 3 weeks — did you miss us that much? And a few others have been asking when will we begin showing films again; we don’t technically have the room booked for showing films during the semester break, but enough people were asking that I went to the Conference Centre yesterday to see if I could get the room booked, and they agreed to let us have the room on Sunday, Jan 25, but not this weekend, because they use all the class halls in the Arts Block for people to study. But since exams end before Sunday the 25th, we can have the room then. So, this means: There will be no film this weekend (Sunday, Jan 18), but there will be a film on the following Sunday, Jan. 25. We will make an announcement next week to let you know what film we will show.

Also, we wanted to tell you all that our first trip of the second semester is provisionally booked! We will be going on a weekend trip to Cork! The trip will be from Friday to Sunday 13–15 February. We don’t have the final prices for the trip worked out yet, but we will let you know soon!

That’s all for now; I hope everyone is doing well, and we’ll be in touch again soon! All the best!

Ed

Quite a few things to talk about in this email

Belfast

First, we just wanted to say thanks to everyone that went on the trip to Belfast!  It was the largest weekend trip that we’ve ever done, and we hope that everyone had a good time there.  Also, we wanted to say sorry to the people who were in the two rooms with the broken heating; I’ll get you some drinks to make up for it!  Also, with regards to the Giants Causeway day tour — we did call the hostel in advance to tell them that (the majority of the people in) our group was interested in doing that tour on Saturday and that they should let the bus company know about this. I rang the hostel about this more than a week before we arrived, but either the hostel did not forward our request or the tour company ignored it.

We are now considering writing a formal complaint to the owner of the hostel about both problems.  As we’ve never had any problems with them before (we’ve been staying at the same hostel for several years now) we were very surprised to encounter these issues.  Hopefully everyone that wanted to see Giant’s Causeway got to go, even if it was on the express tour on Sunday.

Newgrange

Just as a reminder, the details for the two trips to Newgrange are as follows:

Saturday-group

Our booking is for 11:00am.  We will leave from Maynooth at 9:45am.  The tour lasts about 2 hours, so we will return to Maynooth at about 2:30 in the afternoon.

Sunday-group

Our booking is for 10:00am.  We will leave from Maynooth at 8:45am.    The tours is 2 hours, so we’ll be back to Maynooth at about 1:30 in the afternoon.

We still have spaces available for both days, so if you’re interested in signing-up, you can e-mail us, or text me at 087 6761959.  Also, we will hold a second chance to sign-up this Thursday evening in the Arts Block.  I will be in the corridor by the computers between 6 and 7 PM for anyone that still wants to go!

Film

Our film this weekend, due to ‘popular demand’, will be the film In Bruges, starring Colin Farrel. The film will be, as usual, in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block, this Sunday evening, starting at 7:30 pm.

That’s all for now; hope to see you all soon!

Ed

And here… comes the Belfast trip! There are a few things that people need to know when going to Belfast, just some basic information that I should bring to your attention.

1. For those of you from outside the European Union (like myself), please remember to bring your passport or other documents with you, as we are technically going into another country.
2. Remember that they use British Pounds up there (Sterling), not Euros! If you have a bank card from a bank here in the Republic of Ireland or another EU country, you should be able to use that card in the cash machines up there to withdraw pounds with no problems.
3. Please remember to stay together with other people when you are there; don’t go wondering out alone! I don’t imagine there will not be any problems, but please remember that Belfast is not a place you want to start trouble in! And please, whatever you do, do not go into West Belfast by yourself!! The people there won’t necessarily be happy to see you!
4. Our hostel does not provide breakfast, but there is a Tesco and several other shops close to the hostel. There is a kitchen at the hostel for you to cook something!
5. The buses to go to Belfast will leave from in front of the Student’s Union building, this Friday 3:00pm. We will leave from the hostel in Belfast to come back to Maynooth between 4:00 and 5:00pm. We will decide as the weekend goes!
6. If you decide to go on the Giant’s Causeway day tour, which I’m sure most of you will, please go on the Saturday! The tour does not finish until around 6pm, so you won’t make it back in time go home on our bus if you do this tour on the Sunday! Remember, you can sign-up for The Giant’s Causeway and Black Taxi Tours right at the reception desk of our hostel!

Here’s a few of those links again for you to look at about the city and other things (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).

That’s all for now! See you all tomorrow for the film!

Ed

The facts again:

Where to

Belfast City

Date

Friday to Sunday, 28—30 November 2008

Departure

3:00 pm on Friday from Student’s Union

Important

Do not forget to bring your passport!

Return

Leave Belfast on Sunday at 4 pm

Cost

55 EUR per person

Includes

Transport & accommodation

I should have sent this information to all of you in the last email, but I forgot to do it! It must be my old age catching-up with me…

Anyway, I want to announce sign ups for our last trip of the semester, to Newgrange! Since I’m really bad at explaining exactly what Newgrange is, here are several links that will tell you all about it (1, 2, 3, 4).

We have 2 bookings for Newgrange; each booking allows only a maximum of 48 people per visit! The 2 bookings are for Saturday, December 6 at 11:00am, and Sunday, December 7 at 10:00am. This means we will have to leave Maynooth early to get there!! I will let you all know next week when we will have to leave for each trip. The cost for the trip is 12 EUR per person, and this covers the bus and admission into Newgrange.

Sign-ups will begin tomorrow evening before the film! I’ll be in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block from 7pm! Remember the cost is 12 Euro per-person for everything!

For everyone going on the trip to Kilkenny, the bus will be leaving at 11:00 AM from in front of the Students Union Building on campus this Saturday. Please be there by 10:45, so we can get the buses loaded and get underway on time! The journey to Kilkenny is approx. 1 hour and 15 minutes. The bus will leave from Kilkenny to come back to Maynooth at 5:00 PM. Please don’t be late! I hope you’ve all taken a moment to look at at least some of the websites talking about what there is to do in Kilkenny, but if not, here’s some that you should look at for sure (1, 2). These links are to the town map, so you’ll have an idea about what there is to see and how to get there! Please take a moment to look at them! Remember to bring your Student ID’s, so you can get the student price for admission to the castle, if you decide to take the tour!

That’s all for now; hope you all had a good week, and I’ll see you all soon!

Ed

First off, I’d like to thank everyone that went on the trip to Glendalough! It was a great sucess, and a great day over all! We had excellent weather, and everyone seemed to have a good time! It was also a new record for the International Society: we had 129 people attend the trip, making it officially the largest trip we’ve ever had! Thank you all for participating (and for coming back safely)! There are already plenty of peoples’ photos of the trip on Facebook, so be sure to have a look there! Also, don’t forget to add us all to your Facebook friends lists!

Galway and Train volunteers: As for the trip to Galway, we still need a few more volunteers to go there by train. I will set-up a meeting time tomorrow evening (Tuesday October 14) from 6 to 7pm in the Arts Block for anyone willing to go to Galway by train. I will be in the corridor by the circle of computers in the Arts Block to answer any questions you have about the arrangements and other details, and to give back some of the money if you decide to go by train. If you can’t be there at that time, please e-mail, or ring/text message me at 087 6761959 to make other arrangements for a time and place to meet.

As many of you know, I will give you some of your money back to pay for you travel costs, so you won’t have to pay any extra money! I know there were a few people that I spoke with who said they are interested, so please let me know! Here are the train times timetable for going to Galway on Friday and then coming back to Dublin on Sunday:

Dublin (Heuston) => Galway, 17.10.2008

Leaving: 11:10, 14:35, 16:50 and 17:50
   Arriving: 13:51, 17:15, 19:16 and 20:31

Galway => Dublin (Heuston), 19.10.2008

Leaving: 16:15 and 18:15
   Arriving: 19:10 and 20:57

Please get in touch soon or come to the meeting tomorrow if you’re willing to go by train; I still need about 10 more volunteers! It will really help us all!

That’s all for now; please get in touch if you’re willing to go to Galway by train, or have any questions about it!

Ed

First off, the film this weekend will be Scoop, starring Scarlett Johannson and Hugh Jackman. This suggested by one of you last week. As usual, the film will be shown in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block, this Sunday evening, starting-time 7:30 PM!

As for the trip to Glendalough, I’m glad to say that we are completely full! Sorry to anyone who won’t be able to go along with us; if there are any cancellations, I can give you a call and get you in! Just a reminder, if there are any problems or anything happens while we’re on the trip, please ring me at 087 6761959.

Update: Since there were so many people ringing and e-mailing about the trip to Glendalough, I just called the bus company and asked what else they had available, so we could get some extra seats, and what they told me is this: They have available for this weekend a double-decker bus that fits 80 people! This will be in addition to the 54 seat bus that we already have! So this means, there are extra spaces now for the trip to Glendalough!! So if you had texted or e-mailed me today or yesterday, and I told you that the buses were full, there are now extra seats available!! Hence, if you are still interested, we can arrange to meet for signing-up! What I will do is this: I will be in the Society ‘Office’ (which is just my apartment on campus, Avoca Hall, Apt 7), tomorrow evening from 5:30 PM. You can come by then and sign-up for the trip, or text me at 087 6761959 if you need to make other arrangements! So everyone that wants to go to Glendalough will now be able to!

And, some details to work out for the trip to Galway. Our issue is this: we will have 1 bus (maximum 54 people) going to Galway. But we’ve also got more people than this going on the trip (over 75), so what we will do is have some people go by train! We’ve done this with other trips in the past, and it always works out fine! If you have gotten yourself a Student Travel Card (which I strongly recommend that everyone gets), we can get very good prices for the train, and we can give you back some of the money you paid to us for the trip to cover the costs of the train and the bus to Huston Station and back. And so, I put out a call for volunteers to go to Galway by train! I will give the full details about going by train to anyone interested; just e-mail or text message me about it! For example, if you have lectures that go later than when the bus is leaving (2:30) that you must attend, you can get a later train! I personally will be going on the train a bit earlier in the day, so that I can be in Galway before the bus arrives. Anyone interested in going at the same time as me on the train can let me know! Remember: only people with a Student Travel Card can volunteer to go by train (otherwise it would be too expensive).

If you don’t have a Student Travel Card, it’s very easy to get one! All you have to do to get one is go to the Students Union Office, fill-in a very small application, they take your photo, and you have your card! It takes less than 10 minutes, and only costs 15 Euro! The card gives you discounts not only on the train, but also many different shops all over the place. I can tell you for sure that if you go on any other long journeys by train while you are here in Ireland, you will save more than enough money to justify buying the card!

That’s all for now! Let me know by e-mail or text if you’re interested in going to Galway by train, and I’ll work out all the details with you individually! And I’ll see those of you going to Glendalough on Saturday! Remember to be prepared in case there’s rain! Dress warm, and bring a lunch with you if you like! There is also a hotel with a restaraunt/pub there, as well as a few snack stands that have food and tea/coffee. And don’t forget about the film on Sunday! ‘Scoop’, 7:30 PM, Theatre 1 in the Arts Block this Sunday Evening!

All the best and hope to see you all soon,

Ed

Well, as you can see, we’ve got everything up and running, and so we are finally able to get down to the fun stuff!  As many of you know, we will begin the sign-ups for our first two trips of the semester this Sunday evening at 7:00 PM in the Arts Block, Theatre 1. The trips will be Glendalough and Galway. Please be advised that you must pay for each trip at sign-up! Please try to have the exact amount of money with you.

We will also be showing a film, but we haven’t had time to decide what we will show yet.  Sorry about that!  It’s been a really busy week for us.  We will let you know on Sunday evening. Surprise, surprise

All the best to everyone,  and we look forward to getting another great year for the International Society underway!

Ed

Also, there are three really great day-trips that you can sign-up for once we arrive at the hostel in Galway: The Aran Islands, Connemara, or The Cliffs of Moher/Burren.  You can sign-up for these excellent day-trips right at the reception desk of the hostel that we will stay at after we arrive.

The facts again:

Where to

Galway

Date

Friday to Sunday, 17—19 October 2008

Departure (bus people)

2:30 pm on Friday from Student’s Union

Departure (train people)

See this post

Return

Leave Galway on Sunday about 7:00 pm

Cost

70 EUR per person

Includes

Transport, accommodation & breakfasts

Here are some websites to give you an idea about Gledalough and what it looks like (1, 2, 3).

Also be sure to take a look at the photos from the last trip!

Where to

Glendalough

Date

Saturday, 11 October 2008

Departure

10:00 pm from Student’s Union

Return

Leave Glendalough about 4:30 pm

Cost

10 EUR per person

Includes

Transport

Important

Don’t forget to bring warm and rain proof clothing, and possibly some lunch! Trip will take place no matter what the weather.

The film this weekend will be Road Trip, the American comedy about a group of university students who travel half way across the country to keep a video tape from getting to one of the guy’s girlfriends! Here’s a link to read about the film. The film will be at 8:00pm, Theatre 2 in the Arts Block, this Sunday evening!

And to answer all the questions about the trip to the botanic gardens, YES, we still have places! You can come to the film this weekend to sign-up! Or, if that’s not a good time for you, you can e-mail or text me at 087 6761959 to meet sometime to sign-up!

That’s all for now! See you at the film!

Ed

I just wanted to let you all know that we were able to get a bit of extra money from the Student’s Union, so we will be able to have our own bus for the Galway trip! I’ve made the booking for it, and it will leave at 2:00 pm this Friday from in front of the Student’s Union Building! Also, I wanted to mention that we have 2 or 3 spaces still available, so if you’d like to sign-up, let me know very soon!

And one more thing: I hate to bring up money, but there are about 12 people who still need to pay for the Galway trip; I have to collect that money and get it in the bank by Friday morning, or we won’t be able to pay for our bus! Please get in contact with me tomorrow and have the money ready if you haven’t paid yet! If not, I’ll have to cancel your beds at the hostel, and I don’t want to have to do that! I won’t be around tonight because I’m going to a show, but get in touch with me tomorrow! You can ring or text me at 087 6761959.

As for the trip to the botanic gardens, we still have some places left for it. If you’d like to sign-up, contact us and we can arrange a time to meet so you can get on the list and pay!

That’s all for now! If you still need to pay for the trip, get in touch with me as soon as you can on Wednesday!

Ed

The facts again:

Where to

Galway City

Date

Friday to Sunday, 18—20 April 2008

Departure

2:00 pm on Friday from Student’s Union

Return

Back in Maynooth on Sunday about 8:00 pm

Cost

60 EUR per person

Includes

Transport & accommodation

Sorry for only getting back to you so late. We have good news for you — the numbers work out and we can financially afford to hire our own bus for the trip up to Belfast (whoo-hoo!). So here are the final details:

We’ll be leaving tomorrow (Friday, 4 April 2008) at 2:00 pm from in front of the SU Bar.

As usual, please be there a bit earlier than that so we can leave on time. Don’t forget to bring your passports or official ID as we will be crossing a border…

Let’s keep our fingers crossed for more great weather this week-end and see you all tomorrow,

Floz

The facts again:

Where to

Belfast City

Date

Friday to Sunday, 4—6 April 2008

Departure

2:00 pm on Friday from Student’s Union

Important

Do not forget to bring your passport!

Return

Back in Maynooth on Sunday about 8:30 pm

Cost

55 EUR per person

Includes

Transport & accommodation

The film for this weekend will be The Last King of Scotland. Have a look &mbdash; it’s a really good film! It will begin as usual at 8:00 in Theatre 1 (or 2) in the Arts Block, this Sunday!

And, we’d like to announce some tentative dates for a day trip to the botanic gardens at Powerscourt in Enniskerry in Co. Wicklow! In addition to having some of the nicest gardens and park areas in all of Ireland, there is also access to Ireland’s highest waterfall! We are planning a trip there for either May 3 or 4 (Saturday or Sunday), and we will let you all know when we’ve set a definate date! Here’s some sites to look at to see what’s there (1, 2). Click around on these links to see what they have there– it’ll be great time for our last trip of the year! The price will be 10 EUR per person for round trip transportation from Maynooth to there and back. There are different price options for entry at the Gardens, as you can pay to see just the gardens, or the gardens and the waterfall! We’ll let you decide what you want to pay for once we arrive!

That’s all for now! Hope to see you all at the film this Sunday! And there’s still a few places for the Belfast and Galway trips, so please come by to sign-up or pay for them if you’re planning on going!

All the best,

Ed

Four things in this post: Film announcement, St. Patricks Day, Belfast Trip, Galway Trip.

First off, the film for this weekend will be Superbad. It’s a hilarious American comedy, well worth watching! Bit of a change from last week… The film will begin, as usual, at 8:00 PM, this Sunday evening in the Arts Block, Theatre 1 (or 2, depending on wether the projector plug works).

Next: St. Patrick’s Day! As every year, we arrange a meeting time to get the train into Dublin so you can all get good spots for the parade! It is important to be in town early to get good spots for the parade! The timetable says there is a train 10:30 AM from Maynooth train station going to Connolly Station, and this is the best time to go in! I’ll be working my security job all day starting at 12:00, but please come by to say hi! I’ll be at The Bailey, just off of Grafton Street! I’d love to see you there! But dress nice, otherwise I can’t let you in! Haha! Here’s a little map to help you locate the place (link).

As for the trips: we will begin sign-ups for both the Belfast and Galway trips this Sunday evening! We will be there in Theatre 1 from 7:30 pm for sign-ups!

The Belfast trip will be from 4—6 April (Fri. to Sun.), and costs 55 EUR per person. Links: 1, 2, 3

The Galway trip will be from 18—20 April (again Fri. to Sun.) and costs 60 EUR per person. Links: 1, 2, 3.

I would like to mention that each of the hostels has trips on offer that you can sign-up for right at the reception desks! The hostel in Belfast offers the Giant’s Causeway and Black Taxi Tours (Floz’ photos from last year), and the hostel in Galway offers the Connemara, Aran Islands (more photos), and Burren / Cliffs of Moher Tours! So, if you are interested in doing any of these great day trips while visiting Belfast or Galway, you can sign-up and pay for them right at the reception desks of the hostels when we arrive there!

That’s all for now! Hope to see you all this Sunday for the film and sign-ups, and also out in Dublin on St Patrick’s Day!

Ed

The film for this weekend is The Wind that Shakes the Barley, the Irish film about the struggle for Irish independence in the 1920’s. This is a very serious film, and we have to advise everyone that it has some very graphic and violent scenes in it, so just know this if you decide to come to the film on Sunday. We will begin as usual at 8:00 pm in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block.

And, we’re glad to announce that we’ve already made provisional bookings at the hostels for both of the upcoming weekend trips!

1. We will be running a trip to Belfast on the first weekend of April, from Friday April 4th to Sunday April 6th! Here’s some information about what there is to do in Belfast (1, 2).
2. Also, we will hold a trip to Galway from Friday April 18th to Sunday April 20th! This will give at least 3 weeks before the end of the semester, so that you will all have time to finish up your essays and assignments! So we hope to get good numbers turn out for both trips! Here’s some information on what there is to do in Galway (1, 2).

We will begin sign-ups for both trips very soon, once we get final prices for everything sorted out; the costs will most likely be around 60 Euro per person for each trip, and that will include round-trip transportation and 2 nights accomodation on each trip. We will let you all know very soon!

That’s all for now! See you all this Sunday at the film!

Ed

What I mean by this: please follow this guide and email us the public link to your photo albums that could be of interest to other members (for instance, of the Kerry Trip).

Thanks a million,

Florian

I hope all of you have had a nice time at home during the holidays! I also never had the opportunity to say thank you all for making it such a great semester! It was one of the best we’ve ever had, and I’m so glad that everything went so well and that so many people participated in Society events. Thank you all for making it such a great success and an excellent semester; without your participation, the Society wouldn’t have been the great success that it has been. It has made all the work worth it, and I thank you all for making it so great.

As for this semester, we’ve got the first trip planned and booked! We’re just waiting to hear back from the Bus company so we can announce the final prices! The trip is the Ring of Kerry Tour, and the dates are Feb 22-24! We will leave in the early afternoon of Friday 22 and return in the late evening on Sunday 24. Here are some websites that will show you what there is to see and do down there (1, 2, 3).

What our trip will include is this: 2 nights in a very good hostel in Killarney, free breakfast and wireless internet included! Our bus driver will also be staying with us to take us on the actual Ring of Kerry Tour on Saturday! The Ring tour lasts all day Saturday, and is one of the best and most breathtaking places in all of Ireland, and is probably the best bus tour in the country. We will then have most of the day in Killarney on Sunday, and start to make our way back to Maynooth in the late afternoon.

The tentative price for the trip is 75 Euro per person for everything! This includes the return bus trip there and back, as well as the actual Ring of Kerry tour on Saturday, and the 2 nights in the hostel with breakfast! A pretty good deal if you ask me! Take a look at Florian’s photos from the trip last year!

We will know the final price very soon, and we will begin sign-ups very soon! And also, for those of you who are here for the full year, I will be giving you the first opportunity to sign-up for the trip! Remember that we can only have a maximum of 54 on the trip, as we will only have 1 bus going on the trip!

That’s all for now, we’ll be in touch again very soon! Thanks again to all that participated in the Society last semester and made it such a great success. And to those who are not coming back for the second semester, thank you for letting us be a part of your experience of Ireland, and it was a pleasure to meet you all; our hope is that we’ve been able to make your time here more memorable, and hopefully your memories of the trips and the friends you’ve made will be some of your best that you have from your time here. Remember us, remember me, and always remember what I hope you will all come to think of as one of the best experiences of your life. Thanks…

Ed

I just want to tell you all that there will be only one bus to Newgrange on Saturday. We filled the first booking, but we only go 5 people for the second. So there will be 54 of us going to Newgrange. Everyone that signed up before Sunday can still go on the trip, but there will only be the one bus, so we all must go at the same time. I’ll contact everyone that signed up for the seond booking individually to explain what will happen.

As for the trip itself, we will be getting the bus at 8:30am from in front of the Student’s Union building this Saturday morning. Don’t be late!! We will be leaving at 8:30am exactly! Our booking begins at 10:00, so we have to be there on time! Let me know if there are any questions then!

As for the film this Sunday evening, we are still open to suggestions! We’re hoping to show a comedy, so let us know what you’d like to see (or if you have the DVD), and we’ll see what we can do!

That’s it for now! All the best!

Ed

Just to let you all know, we still have some spaces left for the trip to Newgrange next Saturday 8 Dec! If you’d still like to sign-up, you can come over to the film this Sunday to put your name down, or you can contact me at 087 6761959 to arrange to meet sometime if you can’t make it to the film then! Remember, the 15 EUR covers the round trip on the bus as well as admission to Newgrange.

As for the film this Sunday, we will be showing “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”. Here is a link to tell you what the film is about if you’ve never seen it.

I hope to see you all there! Be sure to come out to the film on Sunday to sign-up for the Newgrange trip! The film will start as usual at 8:00 pm in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block!

That’s all for now; see you there!

Ed

I want to sent out a very special thank you to all of you who went to Belfast, and made it one of the best Society trips we’ve ever had! This was the largest trip we’ve ever done; we had 85 people on the trip, including the 8 from the Volleyball Club! I had a really good time myself, and I hope that everyone one had a great and very memorable time as well! Between Giant’s Causeway, The Black Taxi Tour, and the Christmas Market, I’d say everyone had lots of fun!

And now, for the details about out next trip:

We will be holding our last (half) day trip of the semester on Saturday, 8th of December, and we will be going to Newgrange, which is an old passage tomb in County Louth. Older than the Pyramids in Egypt, as well as Stonehenge in the U.K., the site at Newgrange was also used as an ancient ‘calendar’, as the tomb was built so that the sun would light up the inner chamber on only one day of the year. It is one of the most important historic sites and (thus) one Ireland’s top tourist attraction! Here are some really good websites that will tell you all about Newgrange 1, 2, 3.

We have two group bookings for Newgrange on Saturday, December 8th: the first group begins the tour at 10:00, and the second group will begin at 11:00. Each tour will last about two hours, and Newgrange is only about 1 hour away from here, so we will all return to Maynooth by 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon. We know that many of you will have assignments and essays to finish, so we booked early times to give you the rest of the day to study! The final cost for Newgrange will be 15 EUR per person. This price includes the round-trip on the bus and the admission cost into Newgrange!

Sign-ups for Newgrange will begin tomorrow, Tuesday Nov 27th. We will be at the Arts Block 6 – 7 pm as usual in the corridor by the computers. We will also be there 6 – 7 pm on Wednesday as well for sign-ups!

That’s all for now! Thanks again so much to everyone that made the trip to Belfast such a success! And one more thing: We’d like to get some photos of the trip to post or link to on our site! If you are willing to share some or all of your photos with us, please send them to us so we can publish them on our web page. Let us know! We’d love to put up some great photos!

All the best and see you all soon,

Ed

The facts again:

Where to

Newgrange

Date

Saturday, 8 December 2007

Departure

8:30 and 9:30 am from Student’s Union

Return

About 2 and 3 pm

Cost

15 EUR per person

Includes

Transport & admission cost

There are a few things to mention, so I’ll start with the easiest thing, that is important for everyone to know:

About money: I’m sure no one really needs to be told this, but just to make sure, please remember that Belfast is in Northern Ireland, and is technically considered part of the U.K. This means that they have the Pound and not the Euro for money. But not to worry! If you have a bank card (it shouldn’t matter if it’s from an Irish account or from another country), you can use your card in the bank machines when we are there to withdraw Pounds. You don’t need to worry about changing money before you get there. The banks here will charge higher fees to change the money than it will cost to just get the money from the cash machines, so just wait until you get there to get out some money.

About the train: Just like for Cork, we will need some volunteers to go to Belfast by train. The good news is that you can get the train from Maynooth into Connolly Station, and the train to Belfast goes directly from there! You can also buy your ticket for the entire journey right from Maynooth! All you have to do is ask at the station here in Maynooth for a Belfast return ticket, and the price of the trip from Maynooth to Connolly and then back on Sunday will be included in the price of the ticket! I will discuss financial details with those of you who choose to sign-up for the train in person. I’ll be in the Arts Block by the circle of computers from 6-7 pm today(Tuesday) and Wednesday to take sign-ups for the train and give you back some of the money for your tickets! The train times to Belfast from Connolly are 13:20, 15:20, and 16:50. Journey time from Conolly to Belfast is listed as 2 hours 10 minutes. I’ll come to the station to meet all of the people who come up by train. Please don’t hesitate to come by the Arts Block to sign-up! Or give me a ring or text at 087 6761959 to let me know if you’d like to go by train!

About day trips and activities As I mentioned in the first e-mail about Belfast, the two main attractions are the Giant’s Causeway and Black Taxi tours. You can sign-up for either of these trips at the reception desk at our hostel! If I remember correctly, and the prices have not changed, the Giant’s Causway Tour costs 15 Pounds and the Black Taxi Tour costs 8 Pounds. Also remember that the Christmas Market will be going on right at the City Hall, which is less than 10 minutes walk from our hostel! Queens’ University is also very nice, and has great botanical gardens to walk through! You can get details about all of these activities at these websites:

— For the city and Christmas Market: http://www.gotobelfast.com

— For the Black Taxi Tour: http://www.belfasttours.com

— For Giant’s Causeway: http://www.northantrim.com

— … or check out Floz’ photos from last year.

About safety: While there is little risk in going to Belfast, please remember that the city has earned its reputation as being ‘rough’ for a reason. I must advise all of you that if you go out, please don’t go out alone. Now this is the same as I’d tell you all for any trip we would go on, but please take extra care when we are on this trip. And, most importantly, please don’t go into West Belfast (the area where the Black Taxi Tour takes you) by yourselves, even in a large group. Only go there if you’re with the Black Taxi Tour guides! If you’d like to know why I ask this, please ask me in person! I don’t want to scare anyone, I just want to remind you all to BE SAFE!

That’s all for now! I hope you’re all well, and I’m really looking forward to getting a BRATWURST when I get there!

All the best and see you soon!

PS: Since we have the trip on, there won’t be any movie this Sunday. However, a much more cheerful movie will be shown the week after

As you all (may or may not) know, Ed is away right now, but he’ll be back by Friday. He says hi and misses you all very much. Sorry you have to put up with me in the meantime

First of all, thank you very much for coming along to Cork and making it such a smooth and fun trip! Nobody got hurt [hang-overs not included], or missing, or in trouble, that’s awesome I just finished uploading the pictures I took – as usual you can find them on my flickr account. If you want to download some of the pictures, please make sure you follow these instructions.

Regarding the Belfast trip sign-ups — no, it is not to late yet. The last opportunity for signing up as well as paying (if you haven’t payed yet!) will be …

… The next movie night is going to be this coming Sunday, 18 November, and we will show “Hotel Rwanda”. That’s a bit of a more serious film this time, but absolutely worthwhile watching. Thank you all for your suggestions for movies, keep those coming!

All right, that’s it for now, enjoy the rest of the week and talk to you soon about some more activities that we are planning right now!

What’s there to see and do in Belfast? Well, apart from its historical importance, there will be a Christmas Market at Belfast City Hall starting the week that we are there. There will be foods from all over the world! For instance, lots of German food, like Bratwurst and Krakauer (and salami!), not to mention your good ol’ Glühwein! There will be Spanish paella, a French fourmagerie, Dutch cheese, and lots of other things as well! It’s one of the best times to go to the city!

Please check out this website or consult your favourite travel guide to find out about all the things there is to do in Belfast! The two main activities are the Giant’s Causeway Tour and the Black Taxi tour, both of which you can sign-up for at our hostel’s reception desk (see Floz’ pictures from last year to get an idea). These are very popular and I highly recommend both of them!

I look forward to seeing all of you soon! All the best!

The facts again:

Where to

Belfast

Date

Friday to Sunday, 23—25 November 2007

Departure

2:30 pm on Friday from Student’s Union (people on bus), or later … (people on bus/trains from Dublin)

Return

Back in Maynooth on Sunday about 7:30 pm

Cost

50 EUR per person

Includes

Transport & accommodation

And thank you very much to all the people who have agreed to go to Cork by train. We still need at least 3 more volunteers, so if you’re interested, please let us know!

I will be in the Arts Block this Wed. & Thurs., 6—7 pm by the circle of computers in the corridor to give back some of the money to those of you who are going by train (there will also be the Belfast trip sign-ups as well). Remember that the train goes from Hueston Station in Dublin, and there is one every hour, so you can go when it’s convenient for you! I will make sure to be there before everyone else, so just give me a ring or text when you are almost in the city, and I will come down to the station and take you to the hostel!

As for Cork, thank you very much to everyone that has signed up for the trip! We have 75 people booked for the trip right now! If you are still interested in going to Cork but have not signed-up yet, please contact me as soon as possible! We need to give the hostel the final numbers for our booking very soon, so please don’t wait to contact us! We will have to cut-off the sign-ups Sunday evening!

And also, because there are so many people going on the trip to Cork, we will have to get some of our people to go there by train (advantages: you can leave later than 1 pm. If you are willing to volunteer to go to Cork by train, please contact us about this. We ask that only people that already have a Student Travel Card volunteer for this, as it’s too expensive without it. We will sort out all the details about travel times and prices individually with each person who volunteers to go by train. More details on Sunday at the movie.

Thanks everyone! We’ll see you this weekend!

PS: If you have any photos from the Glendalough trip publicly accessible, please send us the link so we can add it to the Photos page. Thanks!

As most of you know, the trip will be held from Friday 9 until Sunday 11 November. We will leave from in front of the Student’s Union at 1:00 pm in the afternoon on Friday, and the bus will pick us up again in Cork on Sunday at 5:00 pm. The bus trip there should take about 3 1/2 hours. The final cost for the trip is 60 EUR, and includes transport, accommodation and breakfasts.

Here are some websites (1, 2) that talk about Cork city and what there is to do there. Spend a few minutes looking at these websites and you’ll have plenty of ideas about how to keep yourself busy while we are there! I highly recommend Blarney Castle and the old City Gaol. There are also lots of pubs with traditional music, and the university is also very nice!

That’s all for now. I look forward to the trip! See you all soon!

The facts again:

Where to

Cork city

Date

Friday to Sunday, 9—11 November 2007

Departure

1:00 pm on Friday from Student’s Union (people on bus), or later … (people on trains)

Return

Back in Maynooth on Sunday about 8:30 pm

Cost

60 EUR per person

Includes

Transport, accommodation & breakfasts

Please be sure to check out the Photos tab to see all the great pics that Floz took! You’ll also find the group picture there.

If you have any pictures yourself that are publicly available on the web and you would like to share them, please send us a link so we can put it on the photos page as well.

Concerning the trip to Cork, the final price has been set at 60 EUR per person. As mentioned before, the dates are Nov. 9 to Nov. 11. We will post when sign-ups will begin and all the details about the trip here in the next couple of days. Please be sure to check back to this awesome web page We would like to use it as the main way to get information out to you.

 
Last, we will be showing the film L’Auberge Espagnole as our first film of the semester. It will be in Theatre 1 in the Arts Block, 8:00 PM start-time on Sunday evening, after the trip. All film related announcements will be posted here on the Activities page.

Thanks to everyone who has signed up for the trip to Glendalough! It should be a really good time! Pray for good weather! See you all there!

We will hold the trip from Friday, Nov. 9 to Sunday, Nov. 11.  The price for the trip has not been determined yet, but we will let you know the final cost within the next few days.  We estimate that it will be around 60 Euro per person, and this will include the round- trip on the bus and two nights accommodation in the hostel (breakfast is included).

As usual, the bus will pick us up from in front of the Students’ Union Building on the North Campus (that’s in front if Juicee Lucee, for those who don’t know) sometime in the early afternoon on Friday, usually around 1 o’clock.  The bus trip then will take about 3 1/2 hours, giving us most of the evening in Cork on friday to relax, have dinner, and go out on the town for a few drinks!

We will return to Maynooth on Sunday evening.  The bus will pick us up again in Cork sometime in the early evening.  The exact details, departure times and price will be set and announced later when all final arrangements are made.  We will also post some websites you can visit to show you what there is to see and do while visiting Cork!  More to come later!

It’s an old Monastic site with several walking trails to go on around the lakes and up into the hills surrounding them, so it’s a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

The date for this trip will be Sunday, 21 October. The bus will pick us up from in front of the Student’s Union building at 10:00 A.M. There is no admission fee to Glendalough, so the only cost for the trip will be for the bus, which will be only 10 EUR per person!

The facts again:

Where to

Glendalough

Date

Sunday, 21 October 2007

Time

Departure:  10:00 am ~  Back to Maynooth by: approx 6 pm

From

In front of Student’s Union

Cost

10 EUR per person