Comforting the fear: Polar Express mystery tour proves to be a cosy night in Cork

Sorcha Ní Cheallaigh overcomes her fear of mystery tours to experience the infamous annual Ents event

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“Having arrived frantically to Heuston, I was greeted by a massive queue of onesie clad young people.”

I have managed to survive 20 years of Irish existence without ever being subjected to a mystery tour. I said no to the Potter Express; ney to Masquerail. The idea has always terrified me; trapped for hours in a cramped space with hundreds of drunken strangers, and on a vehicle that is moving and you don’t know where to? This year I decided differently and I am somewhat confident in that decision.

Having arrived frantically to Heuston, I was greeted by a massive queue of onesie clad young people. After a brief moment of thinking this night would be terrifying and awful, I had bumped into two groups of friends and felt myself settling into the idea of a being hurtled to a random town in Ireland for a couple of hours of sesh and madness.

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“the TFM party carriage was filled with students clambering into the baggage storage space to get a better view of the DJ booth action.”

After forty minutes of trying to find seats together, I had sat down and prepared myself for organised fun. And it was fun, which really surprised me. Even with all the jostling and pushing to get from carriage to carriage, I found myself chilling out and enjoying drinking in an exceptionally small space with many people. I was even standing and dancing on train seats in the TFM party carriage which was filled with students clambering into the baggage storage space to get a better view of the DJ booth action.

Cork turned out to be our destination, not the North Pole. My childhood visions of the Polar Express were quashed by guys in flannel pyjamas throwing drinks over girls who wouldn’t get with them. I was impressed with how Voodoo and Ents handled these instances, empowering people to come forward to them with other inappropriate behaviour knowing it would be approached with confidence and the issue resolved.  

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I ended my night in Hillbillies after a bop in Voodoo and have never been happier to be out in cosy pyjamas and slippers. The train home was long, but perfect for a kip. Thank you Trinity Ents for helping me finally succeed in drinking on a train.

   

   

Sorcha Ní Cheallaigh

Sorcha is a Junior Sophister English student. She is currently managing editor for tn2, and a staff writer for Trinity News.