5th Year Italy Trip

5th year Italy trip. Friday 31st of March - Tuesday 4th of April 2023

Day 1 - Friday airport and Pompeii

It was an early start for the fifth years on the 31st of March 2023. They came to school 2.30 am which is the earliest anyone has ever been in school. Everyone loaded onto the busses and wasted no time in catching the 6.15 flight to Naples, Italia.

The flight landed at roughly 10.30 am local time and the activities began at Pompei which was en-route to Sorrento. They spent the afternoon exploring the village of Pompei before a guided tour of the ancient Roman ruins.

Day 2 - Saturday theme park and shopping.

It was another early start as the fifth years had a two and a half hour drive ahead of them to Rainbow Magicland theme park, just outside of Rome. They were extremely lucky with the weather and enjoyed water rides, the drop tower and the favourite, the stomach churning twister.

After a long day of roller coasters, they headed to the outlets just across the road where they enjoyed some evening shopping and a quick meal before heading back to the hotel in Sorrento.

Day 3 - Capri.

The rollercoasters continued with the boat trip to Capri where the fifth years enjoyed a tour of the island by boat and free time to explore the breathtaking scenery.

In the afternoon they headed back to Sorrento where they experienced the traditional methods of mozzarella making and the right way to make some authentic Italian pizza with Maria. They then sampled a three course tasting menu which was an antipasti and capri salad to start, the traditional pizza and finally some lemon drizzle cake made with lemons grown on the farm.

Day 4 - Mt Vesuvius.

The fifth years enjoyed a lie in this morning until 7.45 before loading onto the bus for the hike up Mt. Vesuvius. Unfortunately the hike didn’t last very long as when they had made it to the car park they were told that the trail was closed due to high winds. There was a mixture of disappointment and relief as although this was an exciting activity, a hike in 8 degrees and high winds in a T-shirt and shorts didn’t sound appealing to anyone.

They then had a quick bite to eat at a local restaurant before heading to an Italian olive oil farm where they saw the modern processes of olive oil making and tasted some fresh oil too.

Later on, the fifth years ventured into Sorrento and had a gelato making masterclass with David at David’s gelateria. They then spent their last afternoon doing some last minute shopping and experienced the Italian culture.

They then headed back to the hotel and enjoyed their final evening having a relaxing dinner before a general knowledge quiz to put the cherry on top of a fantastic trip!

Day 5 - Home time!

It was another early start for the trip home and everyone was exhausted from the past few days.

Thank you so much to Ms Noone and Mr Doyle for organising the trip and Ms O’Sullivan, Ms Brosnan, Mr Timlin, Ms Matthews, Mr Douglas and Ms Courtney for making this trip so special.

Matthew Lawless (5th Year)