Senior School Tour

The Senior Tour for 2nd to 6th classes took place today, and it was a fantastic event! We got our bus to Dublin and stopped off first at the Zoo. After some snacks, we split into groups and went to see all of the animals. We had maps and trails to follow, and we got to play on so many playgrounds that we were nearly dizzy!

​Some of the animals were getting new enclosures, and it was really cool to see how the zoo plans and builds for them. We talked to a few zookeepers too, who told us all about the lions, tigers, gorillas and hippos. We got to see the new baby gorilla and it is so cute and tiny! Another gorilla really loved to show off for us and tried to get our attention by banging on the window and chasing some smaller monkeys. We saw a hippo swimming around her pool, and learned that she can hold her breath for at least 38 seconds! We tried to talk to an Abyssinian Ground Hornbill, some pigs and some painted dogs, but they had all just been fed and we think we put them to sleep instead! Besides the gorillas, the seals were really active, and we got to see them performing all sorts of stunts under the water. It was amazing!

After the Zoo, we hopped on the bus again and drove through Phoenix Park. We passed Áras an Uachtaráin and the obelisk, and we saw a few herds of deer in the fields! We also saw the polo grounds, which sounds very interesting... We passed through the area where Bloom festival was just held, and we made our way past the Victorian Walled Gardens, through the little maze at Ashtown Castle to our picnic area for lunch. When we finished our food, we got to play on a really cool playground! There were so many different things to play with - slides, hoops, climbing ropes and frames, telephones, spinny bowls and see-saws.

​On the way back through Phoenix Park we stopped outside Áras an Uachtaráin. It had started to pour rain, so we stayed cosy inside the bus, but we waved hard in case the president was looking out to see us!

From there, we carried on to Liffey Valley Shopping Centre, and we practically shopped til we dropped. We were so busy, we barely had time to grab a snack, but we loved looking at all the interesting things that everyone bought!

We were so excited that we sang and played and chatted the whole way home on the bus. It was such an exciting day, we can't wait to tell everyone about it!