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Study/Travel Program: Ireland 2004

We begin a separate section of this catalog for STUDY/TRAVEL opportunities and related course offerings.

There are a few "special rules or regulations" to be a traveler.

1. You must be an ILEAD member.
2. Most of the trips involve considerable walking and climbing. To make the most of your trip, get yourself in shape so that you will enjoy it.
3. You must participate in a certain number of related course offerings. If there are two pre-travel courses offered, both are mandatory. If there are more than two pre-travel courses offered, you may skip one. Courses are open only to those planning to travel. Why this constraint and why required courses?

Courses are restricted to travelers only since a) they are large to start with; 35 is a minimum for group travel and this is considerably larger than the normal ILEAD course; and b) we aim to make you part of a group that you know well and with whom you are very comfortable traveling for a couple of weeks. Studying together will help.

Why required courses? ILEAD is a study organization. It's study first, travel later. Further, our courses will better prepare you for your trip. We know that most of you go away for a period during the year, and that is difficult or impossible for you to take all of the related courses for any trip. We URGE you to take as many as you can. If you plan to be away for two or three weeks, sign up anyway. Do the reading and go to as many of the classes as possible. You will appreciate them.

The Emerald Isle: A Tour Of Ireland
May 4-17, 2004

Group Leader: Susie Gray

ILEAD will offer an exceptional tour of Ireland in the spring of 2004.

Travelers will leave from Boston's Logan International Airport on May 3rd and arrive at Shannon Airport the following day to be greeted by Cornelius Webber, a member of Richard Barran's London Theater Arts Discovery's staff. Richard is a long-time friend of ILEAD's and the organizer of two marvelous ILEAD tours to England in previous years.

The Irish itinerary, subject to minor changes, will take the tour to the most colorful, culturally rich, and charming corners of Ireland. Stops are planned at such spots as the Dingle Peninsula, in Cork, Waterford, Connermara, Galway, and, of course, Dublin. Those who wish to visit Belfast may do so at an additional cost.

Several days are planned in Dublin to enjoy its theater, museums, universities, churches, music, pubs, and restaurants. Plans are also made to visit, among other memorable spots, the famed Irish Stud Farm for a private tour, to enjoy Leixlip Castle as the guest of the Hon. Desmond and Mrs. Guinness, and to see the great monastic city of St. Ciaran in Clonmacnoise, the Stokestown House Famine Museum in Connaught, and lovely Kylemore Abbey in Connemara. Other excursions, visits, and lectures are in the advanced planning stages. "Free days" (time to wander, explore, shop, and dine) are planned throughout the stay in Ireland.

The tour will return to Boston on May 17th. Bus travel to and from Logan Airport is included in the price of the trip.

Prior to leaving on this trip, ILEAD has organized course work for the autumn, winter, and spring terms. All participants are urged to take the three courses. Two courses are considered minimum. ILEAD members who took "Who Were the Celts" and "Conversational Gaelic" in 2003 will be given credit for their work. Courses beginning in the autumn term include early and modern Irish history, conversational Gaelic (for those who have not taken the course previously), and a spring term focusing on Irish art, literature, and theater.

In brief:

1. DATES: May 4-17, 2004
2. COURSES: Course work in each of the three terms prior to the trip.
3. LIMITATIONS: The tour will be limited to no more than 35 persons. Participants will be chosen on a first come-first serve d basis. All travelers should be in active good health as the trip can be arduous: walking, climbing stairs, carrying one's own luggage, etc. A non-returnable deposit of $250 per person (checks make out to "ILEAD") is required from those who wish to travel.
4. COSTS: The estimated cost is $4,500-5,000 per person (with a single supplement of $750). The cost is all-inclusive and covers airfare to and from Boston, bus travel to and from the airport, travel insurance, and allowances for incidental expenses.
5. MEALS, LODGING AND ENTERTAINMENT: Six (6) dinners, seven (7) lunches, breakfasts every day; two (2) theater performances (in Dublin and Galaway; one (1) traditional music performance; three (3) nights on the Dingle Peninsula, two (2) nights in Cork, five (5) nights in Dublin, and three (3) nights in Galway; after-theater discussions with casts and lectures.

Further information and a detailed itinerary are available at ILEAD headquarters, 10 Hilton Field Road, Hanover, NH 03755. Call Lisa or Jill at (603) 653-0154.