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The Shamrock Dublin Gazette- Issue #07
Kennedy High School, La Palma, California 90623
 
Friday, January 23, 2004    
Countdown to Departure: 47 Days
 
Current Email Subscribers: 102
 
Current Temperatures & Time 4:00am Here & 12:00pm There
Dublin: 50 Degrees - Rain - (Wind at 4mph) 
Limerick: 50 Degrees - Rain - (Wind at 8mph) 
London: 45 Degrees - Overcast - (Wind at 7mph) 
 
Henri Soucy, Editor 
http://www.kennedyband.org
 
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IN THIS ISSUE
 
(1) A Word from Henri
(2) Daily Currency Roller Coaster
(3) Tower of London Ghost Stories 
(4) The Legend of the Ravens
(5) St. Patricks Day Festival March 17th
(6) Passports and Visas
(7) Back by Popular Demand
(8) Fund-Raising Review
(9) Frequently Asked Questions
(10) Show me the Money
 
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A WORD FROM HENRI:
 
Just for your information, I've listed the current
traveling group breakdown. 
 
Band: 108
Chaperones: 19 
Adults, Children, Staff: 28 
Grand Total: 155
 
We've had five cancellations since the holiday break. I
have provided to Norman Travel International all of the
airline, hotel and chaperone assignments. The information
has been provided to the airlines and hotels. 
 
I will be providing hard copies for all airline, hotel and
chaperone assignments in the band room by next Monday.
Please have your son or daughter, pick up a copy from Mr.
Anthony or Mr. Dudek. Copies will be mailed to the
travelers that do not have a student in the band. If you
have any questions, please feel free to call me. 
 
 
 
 
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DAILY CURRENCY ROLLER COASTER:
 
You probably have received your final bill by now. The
price is based on our best estimate of the final exchange
rates as of Feb 1st. The dollars exchange rate against the
Euro and Pound Sterling has continued to fluctuate. This
past week though the dollar seemed to strengthen. Now it's
losing ground. The quicker you pay your final bill, the
sooner I can pay Norman Travel International so the vendors
can be paid. Until Norman Travel International can convert
our US Dollars into Euros and Pound Sterling to pay the
vendors, we will be subject to this daily currency roller
coaster. 
 
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TOWER OF LONDON GHOST STORIES:
 
There are many stories of ghosts, poltergeists and other
malevolent spirits connected to the Tower of London. Who
hasn't heard the one about the headless apparition of Anne
Boleyn stalking the Tower grounds at night? Who for
instance, hasn't heard stories of the chained and headless
Sir Walter Raleigh being seen on the ramparts close to
where he was kept prisoner. The Tower of London with its
900 years of history has earned itself a multitude of spine
tingling stories, mainly due to its infamous reputation as
a place of execution. 
 
If you have a nervous disposition, I advise you to read
among friends in the daylight the next three issues stories
on the "Seven Tower Green", "The Ghost of Anne Boleyn" and
"Traitors Gate". It's going to be spooky. 
 
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THE LEGEND OF THE RAVENS:
 
Legend has it that should the ravens ever leave the Tower
of London the White Tower will crumble and a great disaster
shall befall England. For many centuries ravens have been
known to be residents of the Tower of London and are now an
integral feature protected by royal decree. It is not clear
at what point in history the ravens became an accepted
occupant of the Tower of London but there seems to be
evidence dating back to King Charles 11 during the
seventeenth century. It is said that while Charles was
star gazing from the White Tower he found his view obscured
by bird droppings on the telescope. Flying into a rage the
king gave orders for the ravens to be immediately destroyed
only to be told of the legend that without the ravens the
Tower, the monarchy and indeed the kingdom itself would
fall. During the delicate times following the English
civil war, superstition or not Charles was not prepared to
take the chance of any further disruption in England and
spared the ravens but had the observatory moved to
Greenwich.
 
A strange point in fact is that the only recorded time that
there were no ravens at the Tower was in 1946. As this was
just after World War II and England has come perilously
close to falling. Maybe the legend carries some weight
after all. 
 
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ST. PATRICKS DAY FESTIVAL MARCH 17TH:
 
As usual the festival will be reaching its high point on
the day itself. This year the St. Patrick's Festival
parade starts at 12pm and will be attended by over half a
million people lining the streets of Dublin, and millions
worldwide tune in to watch Ireland's most spectacular
parade on TV. This year will bring you a fantastic array
of colourful and creative pageants, marching bands, pomp,
ceremony and celebration. 
 
The parade is followed by the Ceili Mor at St. Stephens
Green, from 2:30pm-6pm. Join in the biggest annual
celebration of Irish dance, a foot-stepping family
celebration with music by Irish trad brands. 
 
Find out more about the festival on the St. Patricks Day site
(www.stpatricksday.ie) 
 
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PASSPORTS AND VISAS:
 
I hope everybody has applied for your passport if needed.
Please provide me a copy in the Band Room lockbox as soon
as possible. 
 
If you are a foreign national, depending upon the country
you are from, you will need a visa. Please call me at (310)
332-3239 to find out if you fall into that category. I
have the information that you will need to apply for the
visa to go on the trip. 
 
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BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND:
 
Here's another batch of that popular Irish Slang. 
 
Baby Power: Miniature bottle of Powers Irish Whiskey
Bang On: Perfectly Correct
Bazzer: Haircut
Black: Very Crowded
Blarney: Nonsense
Cacks: Trousers
Chipper: Fish or Chip Shop
Chucker-Out: Doorman
Cooker: Stove
Gas: Funny
 
Get on like a house on fire: To get on real well with
somebody
 
Lashing: Raining Hard
Nunny Bunny: Five pounds in money
Rabbit On: Talk a lot
 
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FUND-RAISING REVIEW:
 
Regrettably, it's time for the final payment. I wish we
had more time to fundraise to offset the cost of that final
check you have to write. At this point if you haven't
already, my recommendation is to send out the donation
letters to all relatives, friends and professionals
(doctor, dentist, etc.). Even though the final payment is
due on Feb 1st, there nothing to prevent you from continuing
to solicit donations until you depart on the trip. 
 
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
 
(Q1) I just wanted to know if we should bring converters
for our tech stuff (i.e. cameras, camcorders, and so on)
and if we should, what kind of converter do you recommend?
(A1) You have to use a converter that would reduce 220 to
110. Luggage shops usually have them. 
 
(Q2) Can we make the final payment using a credit card?
(A2) I'm sorry but that is not an option. Trips are
specifically excluded from our agreement with the Merchant
Bank handling our account for Visa and Mastercard charges. 
 
Normally questions will be answered in the weekly
newsletter. If the questions require an immediate response,
I'll send out a special email. 
 
mailto:henri.soucy@ngc.com?subject=questions
 
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SHOW ME THE MONEY:
 
$100 US Dollars = $54 Pound Sterling (Great Britain)
$100 US Dollars = $79 Euro (Ireland) 
Rate valid as of: 01/23/2004 
 
Currency conversions are based on Yahoo and CNN Currency
Conversion data. 
 
If this trip had happened in March of 2003, you'd have
gotten a lot more bang for your buck. The Euro to the
Dollar was approximately 1.07 to the current 1.27 and the
Pound Sterling to the Dollar was approximately 1.57 to the
current 1.84. 
 
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Thank You For Your Readership!
  
 Henri Soucy, Editor
 12903 Belcher Street
 Norwalk, CA 90650-3329 
 Telephone: 310-332-3239
 Pager: 310-232-4458  
 http://www.kennedyband.org
 Email Address: henri.soucy@ngc.com
 
 Bob Anthony, Kennedy Band Director
 Telephone: 714-220-4119
 
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