Is brea liom Moontour. Is maith liom mo chairde nua. Is breá liom ag seaschéaslóireacht agus ag cadhcáil. Bhí an spórt go deas! Go raibh maith agat!

Holly

Newpark College

It’s a very good way to learn Irish. I’ve learned so much more Irish. The kayaking and photography were really interesting. The céilís were good craic as well.

Kate

Rockford

I liked doing kayaking and paddleboarding. I made new friends and I did things I hadn’t done. I learnt more Irish and it really improved. It was really fun.

Daragh

Newpark College

I loved this camp because of all the people and the instructors. They are extremely experienced and helpful. I have improved my Irish a lot, which I thought would not happen and I have made many new friends.

Joe

Blackrock College

I definitely improved my Irish a lot, and I also learned stuff like kayaking, paddleboarding and a lot more. I have loads of new friends too! I really think people would like this course because you learn Irish by having fun and not by sitting in a classroom.

Isabelle

Loreto Abbey Dalkey

I think that this course was really good because you learn Irish through fun sports. I really enjoyed the water sports, especially paddleboarding. I’ve made a lot of new friends and experienced new sports.

Amy

Coláiste Chraobh Abhann

I really liked this course. I was speaking a lot of Irish at home during my time on this course. I’ve never done water sports before but I really enjoyed them. I really loved it!

Caia

Newpark College

The course was proper good. The instructors were all really positive and made everything really fun. We had a good range of activities. I would recommend this course.

Mel

Loreto Foxrock

I really liked the course and the stuff we did in the water and everything we did indoors. I find it will really help me in learning Irish.

Rian

St Conleth’s College

Moontour is hiring Irish teachers

How to include a bit of Irish in your day to day

For all of us who are sorry that Seachtain na Gaeilge 2015 has come to an end, Moontour has a couple of ideas on how to include a bit of Irish in your daily life. Using a bit of Gaeilge every day will help you improve your Irish, increase the number of services available in Irish and most importantly, it will be fun too!

Let us know if you have any more suggestions by leaving us a comment below!

Last week Moontour packed our bags and headed down to the annual Oireachtas na Gaeilge celebrations. The Oireachtas is a week long event, which is focused on celebrating and enjoying Irish culture. The weekend is always penciled into my calender long in advance and it is my favourite time of year.

It is the biggest gathering of its kind and it has an interesting history. Oireachtas na Gaeilge started as a half day event in 1897, based in Dublin’s Rotunda. However, since the 1970’s it has moved from Dublin and now takes place in towns and cities all over Ireland. This year the throngs of Gaeilgeoirí descended on Killarney, in the Kingdom of Kerry.

It draws a diverse crowd of all ages and backgrounds, who share a love for the Irish language and culture. There are competitions for sean-nós singing and dancing, prose and poetry competition and debating “as Gaeilge”. We stumbled upon competitions for various musical instruments and storytelling as we wandered the halls of the Gleneagle and Brehon hotels. We saw the Aisteoirí Bulfin take to the stage to perform Cruachás before heading over to see some Irish language comedians make a mockery of things. With such a variety of events, it’s no surprise that the Oireachtas was the setting for the first Irish language opera in 1909.

Most importantly, the Oireachtas is great fun, and it is a real pleasure to see that the Irish language is alive and well. Young children could silence a room with their beautiful singing of some of the Gaeltacht classics. College students were flirting in Irish, and old men at the bar shared opinions on football or the quality of the sean-nós. Four generations would sit at the same table watching over the ceilí dancing in the middle of the room. There was a strong sense of community among all in attendance.

For those that have not been, I would strongly recommend it. Oireachtas na Gaeilge offers a vibrant perspective on our traditions and language, which are ours for all to enjoy.