Seven of the students, including Manuela, were to attend Galway Language Centre at Bridge Mills on Mill Street. Each student is introduced to their host family and Manuela is taken to the home of Carol and Martin Tierney in the Renmore Park estate and stays there on Saturday night.

Sunday: On her first full day in Ireland, Manuela, an only child, starts to explore the new city with her friends. One of her friends takes a picture of her at the Spanish Arch . . . the same picture is on newspaper front pages a few days later. She goes to the King's Head bar on Shop St on Sunday night with some of her friends.

Monday: Manuela attends class at the language centre from 9am until 12.30pm as students at the language centre get a half day on Mondays and Fridays. A meeting is organised where students can talk to their leaders and teachers about any problems they may have such as homesickness, not being happy in their host house or being in an English class that is too advanced or not advanced enough. Manuela does not attend the meeting or a gathering of the group in the popular King's Head bar later in the evening.

She returns to her host house in Renmore Park in the early evening and is last seen leaving her host family's house at around 7.30pm.

She is due to meet her friends in the city between 8.30 and 9pm but does not turn up.

Tuesday: A man out walking his dog along a pathway connecting Renmore to the city along Lough Atalia discovers a body at 9.30am.

Manuela's absence from class is noticed and her friends become concerned that she has not answered her mobile phone or responded to their text messages by 12.30pm.

Later in the afternoon the language centre staff alert gardai that Manuela did not return to her host house and has not attended classes. By 7pm, the gardai ask some of the tour leaders to go to a morgue to identify Manuela's body and gardai launch a murder hunt.

Gardai begin to interview school staff, students and the host family while the HSE and gardai organise counselling and support services forthe Swiss students.

Wednesday: The distraught students are taken to a Galway hotel for further counselling.

Thursday: Hundreds . . . including students, residents, and some of Manuela's teachers and friends . . . attend a poignant memorial service for Manuela in St Augustine's Church.

Friday: The remaining 42 Swiss students who came to Ireland with Manuela cut short their stay and return home.

Saturday: Gardai continue their hunt for Manuela's killer as arrangements are made for the return of her body to her parents who are too emotionally distraught to make the journey to Ireland.