Ireland
Trip 2012
March 11 - 19, 2012
I hope you all had a great time in Ireland and really enjoyed
yourselves! We want to see your pictures and videos! We are
putting
together an 2012 Ireland Trip DVD and we would also like to see your
pictures on the band website. You can either upload pictures to
our
flickr group by going to http://www.flickr.com/groups/kennedyband/
or if you have a lot of pictures you can submit a CD. Videos
should be
submitted on DVD. The
deadline for submitting pictures and video will be March
31st. It
will be a 6 week process to complete the final Trip DVD from April
1-May 15. Then we plan to have a big Movie Premiere of the 2012
Ireland Trip either at a movie theater or our very own Kennedy
Performing Arts Center in late May or early June. If you
haven’t
ordered your trip DVD and would like to do so, go to http://www.kennedyband.org/DVDIreland2012OrderForm.pdf.
Orders received one week prior to the Movie Premiere, will have their
DVDs presented to them at the movie premiere.
On 17 March 2012 St. Patrick’s Day after the Band and Colorguard board
their buses to their assigned area for the parade, the parents who want
to watch the parade are taken to a specific drop off area. You
are dropped off soon enough that you can be right in the first position
on the ropes because the crowds really start coming as the time for the
parade approaches. By the time the parade starts on both sides of
the street, the crowds are 15-20 deep. Our land tour
operator Grand Tours has let us know there is a limited number of
grandstand seating available. The seats are located in the Christ
Church/St. Patricks Cathedral grandstands which are located towards the
latter end of the Parade Route. They sell for 60 Euros each which
equals $83. THESE ARE SELLING OUT FAST. So if you think you
would like a grandstand seat, we have to order from the St.Patrick’s
Festival Office ASAP.
Just a reminder we have our All Hands meeting for Ireland Travelers on
Thursday, February 23rd at 6:30pm in the band room. I have
received emails from some parents asking if they can come and yes we
would encourage parents coming. If my daughter was going on the
trip, I would be there. Then you get the information first
hand. When you arrive at the band room you will need
to check in to receive your manila envelope with travel materials and
also your travel shirt. Handing them out at the start will save
time at the end. Foreign currency though will be handed out at
the conclusion of the meeting. A parent must receive the
foreign currency. It will not be distributed to a
student. One new development is we might have to refund all
of the money collected for the customized luggage tags.
Regrettably our trip logo’s colors do not look well on a white
background which the luggage tag is. We are trying to make
some changes that hopefully will be agreeable to the luggage tag vendor
and ourselves. If not, there if you paid using your Family
Savings Account, I will put the money back and if you paid via check or
cash, you will receive a refund. If you haven’t ordered your
foreign currency or would like to order more, I can accommodate your
request. I would order through Bank of America’s online
website. The exchange rate on the website isn’t as good as
the one we received when we exchanged the $40,000, but it will be far
better than anything you would receive if you waited to exchange at the
airport, etc.
To make a payment toward the Ireland Trip, click here. 
Please note there is a
3.5% convenience fee for payment by Credit Card.
Shamrock
Gazette -
February 1, 2011*
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Shamrock
Gazette -
February 15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - March
1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - March
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - April
1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - April
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - May
1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - May
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - June
1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - June
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - July
1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - July
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - August
31, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette -
September
15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - October
13, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - October
20, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette -
November 1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette -
November 15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - December 1, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - December 15, 2011* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette - December 31, 2011* |
Shamrock
Gazette - January 15, 2012* |
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| Shamrock
Gazette -
February 1, 2012* |
Shamrock
Gazette -
February 15, 2012* |
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Important Update May 22, 2011
To maintain the same trip cost and not pass through a $400 increase due
to increased air fare cost and the exchange rate, we asked our tour
operators to come up with a solution. We knew the two days in
London were very expensive. The suggestion was to cancel the two
days in London and add a day in Ireland. Doing this meant we could keep
the same trip cost with no increase to the travelers. Also, we adjusted
the exchange rate from 1.30 to 1.44 which reflects the current currency
exchange. We have built in a fluctuation factor that if we our
tour operators can buy the Euro at less than 1.44, they will pass the
savings on to us. If lower airline fares become available, that savings
will be passed onto you also. We viewed this as the best decision
to make considering the circumstances.
One cost that has not been included in your trip cost is the instrument
baggage fees and rental of instruments. We did an analysis in
January and we are projecting that cost at approximately $60 per
person. Grand Tours is working our list of instruments to rent
because it would be too expensive to transport them because of the
weight and linear inches. Now that we are fairly stable we will
be going back to our freight company to get a quote to transport the
other instruments, uniforms, supplies, Colorguard Flags from Kennedy to
Dublin and then from Dublin to Kennedy. Using them to perform this
statement of work rather than bringing it on the airlines with your
suitcases, is only $7 more per person. The best money we will
ever spend. To just have to worry about suitcases checking into the
airlines and everything else is transported and there when we arrive,
is such a relief.
Check out the adjusted itinerary based on an Ireland Only trip from
March 11-19, 2012 (see link above "Itinerary as of 5/13/2011).
You will see what we have added for the extra day in Ireland. We
have provided two exceptional choices on that day. I have also
attached pictures with all of the highlights of the trip (see link
above "Pictures - Highlights.") These pictures are also in the
Band Room on a poster board. I wanted to provide a very clear vision of
how magical the trip to Ireland will be.
One thing not shown on the itinerary because it was just confirmed
yesterday was that we have requested our land operator Grand Tours to
add shopping at Blarney Woollen Mills on Friday, March 16, 2012 after
seeing Bunratty Castle. The Blarney Woollen Mills is right across the
street. It is the premier department store in all of
Ireland. It has everything you could imagine. It will
probably be the one place to make the vast majority of your purchases
especially for souvenirs. Also, on the 2nd floor is a restaurant
with the best Irish Stew.
Norman Travel International our air operator also let us know that
Virgin Atlantic Airlines is in play as a possible replacement for
Continental. Norman Travel International will continue to seek
the best possible airfares and fight schedules right up until we are
ticketed in January 2012. We are in constant contact with them
and Grand Tours our land operator seeking the best for you. Both
companies have 30+ years experience in the travel business. They
are experts on Ireland. Stay tuned for further information!
Click
on the banner below for memories of our 2008 trip:
Click
on the banner below for memories of our 2004 trip:
St.
Patrick’s Day Parade 2004 -
Dublin, Ireland
Celtic
tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen
that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian
BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th
century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle
marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter
Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in
1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six
northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the UK. In 1949, Ireland
withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European
Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful
unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against
terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland is gradually
being implemented despite some difficulties. In 2006, the Irish and
British governments developed and began to implement the St. Andrews
Agreement, building on the Good Friday Agreement approved in
1998.
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