Where do I start when telling you all about my Barretstown adventure. Jammed packed with activities, laughter, friendships and lots of amazing fun.

It all started on the 7th of August 2018 at Glasgow Airport. My nerves were really starting to kick in but it calmed down when I met my first friend. When everyone arrived at the airport we left our parents and we headed for the plane. At the airport I started talking to one of the girls I was traveling with she was 15 and we hit it off straight away. When we arrived at Dublin airport almost everyone was already waiting, we just had to wait for the Manchester flight to land and then we set off to Barretstown. When we arrived at Barretstown Camp we got separated into our cottage groups and thankfully I was in the same cottage as the girls from the plane. There were also two Irish girls and six Spanish girls. After dinner the activity leaders put on a welcome show and it was amazing. We sat in our cottage groups for the shows so it let us all get to know one another. Before we all went to sleep the Caras (an Irish word for friends) who stayed in the cottage with us came in for “cottage chat” which was just a way to wind down after a great, energetic day. 🎉

On Wednesday morning it felt strange to wake up and not be in my own bed but I was happy. We all got up and got ready and then we went over for breakfast. When I arrived at the dining hall it all got a bit to much and overwhelming. It was the first time I had been away from home. I got a bit upset but the Caras calmed me down and I was fine. That morning I went horse to the stables but I didn’t get on the horse but I loved being around them and grooming them. Then we had lunch. The food was very nice. After lunch we went back to the cottage for rest hour where we could rest or sleep. In the afternoon we to the “Discovery” section and made a ball out of rice and balloons which was great. Then we all went to arts and crafts and we got to do whatever we wanted. Next it was dinner and then cottage chat and bed.❤️

Thursday morning I woke up and I wasn’t feeling very well so I went over to the Med Shed, which was the place that kept all your medicines and as soon as I got there I was sick so that was not the best start to that day. They told me to just stay there and get some rest and sleep which really did help. After lunch I was feeling a lot better so I went out and joined my group for afternoon activities which was fishing and music. Fishing was great, even though I didn’t catch anything, it was just very relaxing. Music was very good because we got to try different instruments. We had a great time. They did music challenges and we just laughed through it all. We went for dinner and afterwards we had cottage night which meant we did something with our cottage group. Our Caras took us over to the hall and we did some colouring and some crafts which was a great way to wind down. After that it was teen chat which was great because all cottages went into the dining hall for teen chat and we could just chat to anyone. Then we had cottage chat and bed.

Friday was probably the best day. After breakfast we had what they called “a special morning”. Our group started in the music area and played the bongos which was a lot of fun, then we went to make a sign. My sign said ‘LET ME NAP’ because at rest hour I needed to sleep and sometimes it was quite noisy. After, we went through to the big sports hall and we were told that we had to build a sturdy den. It had the be strong enough so that when the ‘monster’ came he could not destroy it which was extremely funny. Then we went over to the dining hall to learn a new dance for after dinner because they always did three dances after dinner and this was the new one we all had to learn. Next we went over to the castle to make a tie-dye headband which we had to wear that night. Lunch was good and so was rest hour that day because I actually got to sleep. We went over to the dark room to make a picture and then create it and then we did canoeing which was the best thing, I loved it and no one fell in the lake which was very good. After dinner that night we saw camper vans and old style cars driving around the camp and they were there to take us to the disco. When we arrived there was a red carpet lying out and all the activity leaders were out on it pretending to be paparazzi and treating us all like celebrities which was fun. It was the best night. Then when we got back to the cottage we realised that Johnny Mogo had been and left presents for everyone. Johnny Mogo was the Santa of Barretstown. He left us T-shirts and special bags. I got a good sleep that night after all the dancing I’d been doing.

On the Saturday after breakfast we were doing practice for the show that was going on that night. Every cottage had to put on a mini show and each cottage had to show a special skill. Next we went to do some baking and we made the most delicious cookie which we all got to try after lunch. In the afternoon we did photography and art. After dinner that night we preformed our piece and each cottage did an incredible job. After that we were all shattered so we were all ready to get to bed.

Sunday was bitter-sweet because yes we had had an amazing week but we were heading home the next day so we were going to miss everyone. That morning we went to do archery and I loved it because it was fun and I was quite good at it. After lunch we went to do the high ropes but I have problems with balancing at the moment so I didn’t manage that. We all went back to our cottages to get packed before dinner. We had a special dinner that night, as we got a special performance from the activity leaders and a special dinner. That night we went to the theatre to watch a slideshow of photos that had been taken throughout the week. It was a great way to remember the fun we had all week and all the amazing friends that we had met. Emotions were running high after as that night was going to be the last time everyone was together. We headed back to the cottage for our last cottage chat. We had to say our goodbyes to the Spanish girls at that point because they’re flight was very early the following morning. It was hard to say goodbye because we had become really close and we didn’t want to leave. It was a great week and I will never ever forget it.