Waterfall in Room 105

Last weekend our Loyola group attended a University of Cork weekend trip to the Ring of Kerry. The Ring of Kerry is a tourist attraction located on the southwestern tip of Ireland. It is a circular route composed of coastal landscapes and quaint villages. However, the most unique characteristic of the Ring of Kerry are the waterfalls-- both outside and inside! Yes, inside. Let me explain…

After a long day of touring forts and castles my friends and I were exhausted. We arrived back to the hotel and had a few hours of free time before dinner. The girls and I planned to have a movie afternoon with snacks. So, we walked across the street to the convenient store. Naturally, we each bought a box of cookies and a Cadbury chocolate bar. The excitement of indulging in our treats led us to happily skip back to the hotel. We agreed to meet back in my room in a few minutes.

I walked down the hallway with my roomates, Lauren and Colleen. We stopped infront of our door as I fumbled through my backpack to find our key. As I am searching, I hear a sound coming from inside the room. Similar to the waterfall I saw earlier that day. 

The outdoor waterfall (Torc waterfall)

I press my ear up to the door and say, "Do you guys hear that?"

Colleen hears and follows with, "OPEN THE DOOR!" 

The door swings open and we are greeted with a wave of steam. The middle of the ceiling has collapsed as water pours through the shattered light fixture. The three of our mouths dropped as we stood frozen for seconds. I rush in the room to retrieve our belongings. I hop around the puddles while hot water drips on the top of my head. 

As we are moving our clothes to the hallway, Lauren shouts, "THE COMPUTERS!" My heart immediately sinks. In all the frantics, it slipped my mind that I brought my laptop. I scury back through the steam to find my laptop by my bed. It was fully submerged in a pool of water. I yank it from the floor and head towards the hallway. Water pours from every end of the laptop, it's fried. RIP. 

Colleen and I wait in the hallway as Lauren runs to get a hotel staff member. Anxiously awaiting the help we began to laugh... probably not the appropriate reaction. But it was better than crying. The manager peeks inside the room only able to get out the F word. Can't blame him. In fact, no one who witnessed the scene managed to go without exclaiming one or two inappropriate phrases. Within minutes ten buckets are placed in the room and the plumber is on his way. 

I lost all the notes I have taken this semester, along with other assignments and pictures. Although I was very stressed about this (and still am) there is nothing I can do. These things happen! And it could have been a lot worse. I have to accept the things I can't change. It all worked out. The hotel's insurance will provide new computers to us by the end of the week. The staff handled the situation graciously as their main concern was our safety. 

The weekend definitely did not go as I thought it would. However, the indoor waterfall gave my friends and me a memory to laugh about forever.