Monday, September 29, 2008
Deportation?
After another dreadful trip to immigration, I can't be 100% sure I won't be deported by the end of the week (before I got to Venice, I might add). Everytime I show up there, we find out another piece of information that delays the process. First, we find out that we needed to have more money in our bank accounts than we were told, AND we had to have an official statement from our banks proving we had this money. "Official" means no copies, no faxes, but a mailed letter from the US. So I'm crossing my fingers that the statement my parents sent will be here by Wednesday afternoon, at the latest. Tomorrow would be better. Today, my new piece of information was that I needed to have documentation proving I'm actually taking residence in the apartment where I'm paying rent. Whattttt? It was easy to get, but it seems a little ridiculous. Anyway, I take comfort in knowing that I'm not the only student having problems getting registered, but if you find out that I'm suddenly back in the States, you'll know why.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Limerick day trip
I went to Limerick today with the three Germans, Carolin, Stephanie, and Stephan. We caught a bus there at 10:30 this morning, arriving just before lunch. We immediately headed across town to St. Mary's Cathedral (built in 1168), which ended up being closed to the general public on Sundays. Oops. But after that we headed to King John's Castle, this amazing castle/ museum on the Shannon River. It was really gorgeous, and we had great weather, making the exploration that much more pleasant. They had even opened the archaeological dig site underneath the castle. Archaeologists excavated the area under the east (?) wall back in the 90s, uncovering old houses and such. It was incredibly exciting,at least to me. The excitement was soon overtaken by hunger. Our stomachs were eating themselves by the time we went through the castle, so we headed back towards the center of town. Just as we approached the bridge over the river, we noticed a pub that had outdoor seating. Since it was such a nice day, we thought we would like to sit outside. Turns out, they had an incredible lunch special, piles of Irish food for 5 euro. We were very happy eaters. We moseyed around town some more, watching street performers and looking at churches and art museums, and we made our way back to Galway around 6. I really liked Limerick. The town itself has a different feel than Galway, but it was really... easy. Almost comfortable. Is it possible that I'm getting used to life in Ireland?
Friday, September 26, 2008
Finally!
I knew the day had to come at some point. Yes, I finally had Chinese food. After a few nights of not getting much sleep (I'm having these absolutely awful dreams), I finally gave in and headed to Shop Street to get some beloved Chinese to make me "feel better." Haha. I have to say, though different and a little pricier, it was really really good. Nick, Derek, and Stephen came with me, and I think we all enjoyed it. I wouldn't be surprised if we ended up there again. Anyway, I thought that was note-worthy. Tonight our friend Stephanie from Germany is making dinner for all of us from WCU and two other Germans, and then my apartment is having a little house party. That should be fun. :)
Monday, September 22, 2008
Here's how I know
Here's how I know that my life must be a dream... I just planned a last minute trip to Venice! In two weeks, six people and I will fly from Shannon, Ireland to Venice, Italy for a four-day exploration! Who DOES that?! The airfare wasn't even expensive because I booked through Ryanair.com, a super cheap airline in Europe. Not only am I going to Venice, but plans are in the works to go to Germany at the end of November, and possibly to Portugal or France or Spain at the end of October (we have a long weekend that we are trying to exploit). I am absolutely exploding with excitement! Before I left home, I imagined jet-setting for another country for the weekend, but now I actually have the luxury of doing that!!! We have yet to decide where we're going to stay, but it doesn't really matter, as long as we sleep at some point. The only hesitation for me is that I only know one of these other six people- my friend Tiffany from the States. The others are her friends from Castlebar. But I am going to be taking my day off (Wednesday) and heading up there to see her, so maybe I'll meet some of them then. Anyway, if anyone's been to Venice, let me know!
Sunday, September 21, 2008
17 days in...
So, anyway, I promised to answer some of the questions I had been asked from all of you... here goes.
1. Is the Irish drinking reputation really true? Yes, yes it is. It's not out of the ordinary to go out every night to a bar or pub or club (or all three). In fact, drinking may start around 3 pm and extend way into the night. The drinking age is 18, and most Irish youths "pre-game" before going out, that is, they have a mini house party and they drink and chat before leaving for town. There are numerous bars, pubs, and clubs in Galway city. Most students say they come here for university because it's considered to be the best city in the country for partying and student life. I assure you, I believe that to be true. When students come back in the fall, the Galway city population swells; 20% of the people are students. Therefore, much of the life around here is focused on making students happy, meaning the clubs and parties and whatnot. The alcohol is expensive, but the longer you're here, you get used to the schedule of specials and who has the better prices which night and so on. I think most new students go crazy without initially realizing how much money they're spending. I'm not used to going out that much, so I've been trying to play it cool, which means I've also not been spending as much money. But I have to say, the Guinness is much better here than in the States.
2. How are the accents? At first, the accents were impossible to understand. But after making considerable effort to hear it as much as I could, it's normal now. Most of the international students agree that we are no longer surprised when someone starts talking in an Irish accent. Ladies, the Irish brogue is only attractive when the guy is 1) attractive and 2) saying something attractive. If he's cursing up a storm or drunk or whatever, not as hot as you'd think.
3. Does everyone have red hair? Actually, we aren't seeing an odd amount of redheads here. Most women dye their hair, so what might naturally be red is now no longer. Two of my classmates explained the Irish look like this- there are three types: the tall and red haired, the shorter, thinner, and dark haired, and the short squat folk who probably aren't 100% Irish. So far, this is generally true. A sub-question here would be: Are the guys cute? Some are, some aren't. It's just like in every other country; there are some amazingly cute guys, but more aren't particularly eye-catching. What is attractive about the Irish is that they are so friendly and helpful, which makes walking up to that one cute Irish guy much easier. :)
4. What are some of the first names? My family joked about meeting people with traditional Irish names like Liam, Ian, Conor, Ronan, Patrick, etc. And though the older people might still be named like that, the younger men and women have been named differently. Now they're Sean, David, Tom, Andrew, James, Patrick, Maureen, Bridget, Ray, Alex, Kathleen. However, I finally met my first Ronan in class the other day!
5. What's the weather like? The Irish have been plagued with their second unusually-wet summer. So since I've been here, it's been pretty overcast and rainy. The temperature hovers around 55-60 degrees. And the wind can be pretty fierce, considering we're right on the water. Every once in a while, like yesterday and today, we get sun.
6. How is school? Classes here are in full swing. I have four- one literature class, one Irish linguistics class, and two archaeology classes. The mentality here is much more laid-back, almost to the point of apathy. So when my professor didn't show up to teach one day, without notice, none of the students seemed to mind. But the lectures have been interesting so far, and I think the work load will be manageable.
7. How is the food? Meat and potatoes is, like you would think, very commonplace here. But the Irish put spins on things so that you don't realize you're eating meat and potatoes, like cooking everything as a stew, or offering fries (what they call "chips") or chips (what they call "crisps") or even mashed potatoes ("potato smash" or "mash"). But most food here is good. We've been trying new things and have liked what we've had so far.
This week will mark the third week of living in Ireland. It's had its ups and downs, but mainly its ups. I'm learning a lot about other people, and also about myself. The last time I was traveling in Europe, I was about to begin eigth grade. I was gone for about three weeks then, too; about this time, I was so ready to go home. Ruben asked me last night if I missed home. The truth is, yes I do miss home. Mainly I miss my family and all the busyness of life. There, I craved alone time with nothing to do; here I'm struggling to appreciate all the time I'm getting. At home, I was never bothered for not going out at night; here you are tormented if you decide to stay home. I miss family dinners and playing games and going to see my aunt at work and stopping at my gramma's for a cup of coffee. It will continue to be hard as the weeks wear on, but let me assure you, I have little pieces of home everywhere, here. I made rice pilaf within three days of being here. I put together the paper chain my little sister helped me cut. As much as I miss the mountains, nature is still surrounding me. I even had a soda the other day that tastes exactly like Fresca! Haha. And I have so many wonderful friends here. Even though those of us whose native tongue is English are a minority, we are so enjoying teaching and learning from the others around us. We are very fortunate to have each other. I think that's good for now. If there are more questions, or you want to share something with me, just drop me a comment! Thanks!
1. Is the Irish drinking reputation really true? Yes, yes it is. It's not out of the ordinary to go out every night to a bar or pub or club (or all three). In fact, drinking may start around 3 pm and extend way into the night. The drinking age is 18, and most Irish youths "pre-game" before going out, that is, they have a mini house party and they drink and chat before leaving for town. There are numerous bars, pubs, and clubs in Galway city. Most students say they come here for university because it's considered to be the best city in the country for partying and student life. I assure you, I believe that to be true. When students come back in the fall, the Galway city population swells; 20% of the people are students. Therefore, much of the life around here is focused on making students happy, meaning the clubs and parties and whatnot. The alcohol is expensive, but the longer you're here, you get used to the schedule of specials and who has the better prices which night and so on. I think most new students go crazy without initially realizing how much money they're spending. I'm not used to going out that much, so I've been trying to play it cool, which means I've also not been spending as much money. But I have to say, the Guinness is much better here than in the States.
2. How are the accents? At first, the accents were impossible to understand. But after making considerable effort to hear it as much as I could, it's normal now. Most of the international students agree that we are no longer surprised when someone starts talking in an Irish accent. Ladies, the Irish brogue is only attractive when the guy is 1) attractive and 2) saying something attractive. If he's cursing up a storm or drunk or whatever, not as hot as you'd think.
3. Does everyone have red hair? Actually, we aren't seeing an odd amount of redheads here. Most women dye their hair, so what might naturally be red is now no longer. Two of my classmates explained the Irish look like this- there are three types: the tall and red haired, the shorter, thinner, and dark haired, and the short squat folk who probably aren't 100% Irish. So far, this is generally true. A sub-question here would be: Are the guys cute? Some are, some aren't. It's just like in every other country; there are some amazingly cute guys, but more aren't particularly eye-catching. What is attractive about the Irish is that they are so friendly and helpful, which makes walking up to that one cute Irish guy much easier. :)
4. What are some of the first names? My family joked about meeting people with traditional Irish names like Liam, Ian, Conor, Ronan, Patrick, etc. And though the older people might still be named like that, the younger men and women have been named differently. Now they're Sean, David, Tom, Andrew, James, Patrick, Maureen, Bridget, Ray, Alex, Kathleen. However, I finally met my first Ronan in class the other day!
5. What's the weather like? The Irish have been plagued with their second unusually-wet summer. So since I've been here, it's been pretty overcast and rainy. The temperature hovers around 55-60 degrees. And the wind can be pretty fierce, considering we're right on the water. Every once in a while, like yesterday and today, we get sun.
6. How is school? Classes here are in full swing. I have four- one literature class, one Irish linguistics class, and two archaeology classes. The mentality here is much more laid-back, almost to the point of apathy. So when my professor didn't show up to teach one day, without notice, none of the students seemed to mind. But the lectures have been interesting so far, and I think the work load will be manageable.
7. How is the food? Meat and potatoes is, like you would think, very commonplace here. But the Irish put spins on things so that you don't realize you're eating meat and potatoes, like cooking everything as a stew, or offering fries (what they call "chips") or chips (what they call "crisps") or even mashed potatoes ("potato smash" or "mash"). But most food here is good. We've been trying new things and have liked what we've had so far.
This week will mark the third week of living in Ireland. It's had its ups and downs, but mainly its ups. I'm learning a lot about other people, and also about myself. The last time I was traveling in Europe, I was about to begin eigth grade. I was gone for about three weeks then, too; about this time, I was so ready to go home. Ruben asked me last night if I missed home. The truth is, yes I do miss home. Mainly I miss my family and all the busyness of life. There, I craved alone time with nothing to do; here I'm struggling to appreciate all the time I'm getting. At home, I was never bothered for not going out at night; here you are tormented if you decide to stay home. I miss family dinners and playing games and going to see my aunt at work and stopping at my gramma's for a cup of coffee. It will continue to be hard as the weeks wear on, but let me assure you, I have little pieces of home everywhere, here. I made rice pilaf within three days of being here. I put together the paper chain my little sister helped me cut. As much as I miss the mountains, nature is still surrounding me. I even had a soda the other day that tastes exactly like Fresca! Haha. And I have so many wonderful friends here. Even though those of us whose native tongue is English are a minority, we are so enjoying teaching and learning from the others around us. We are very fortunate to have each other. I think that's good for now. If there are more questions, or you want to share something with me, just drop me a comment! Thanks!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Pictures
There are new pictures on the slideshow on the left side of this page. To see them bigger, just click on the show and it will open the actual photo album.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Dilemma
I can't quite figure out how I'm supposed to do my laundry here without spending 9 euro (around $14) for one load. Hmm. Apparently there is another laundrette down the road that could be cheaper, so I'll just have to see.
Monday, September 15, 2008
"Do they sell sunshine in Ireland?"
Today was the first official day of classes for all students at GMIT. As exciting as that sounds, it was pretty uneventful. However, it was another great day in Galway, Ireland. I walked out of my front door, only to run into Darin, my neighbor and classmate. He said he didn't have class at nine like I did, but he had to go in anyway to talk to a professor. So on we went. We got outside, and lo and behold, the SUN WAS SHINING! "Quick, take a picture!" "Do they sell sunshine in Ireland?" "And package it for tourists?" "Can we keep it?" As silly as our exclamations were as they rang out over the parking lot, we were surprised to see solar rays. It's been raining so much here, it's depressing. But the natural light set the mood for a pleasant day.
As it turns out, my professor for both my 9 and 11 o'clock classes was out today (incidentally, we didn't find this out until 9:45). So even though I had technically gone to class, I didn't exactly have class. I did find out my schedule for my other classes, so the trip wasn't a total bust. As promised, I have nothing on Wednesday (as it is reserved for "field" trips). My other classes are a little spread out, but that will give me a chance to do some studying and get coffee or lunch in between lectures. I have two two-hour classes; the rest are one hour. Four classes total, three hours each per week = 12 hours of classtime total. Not too shabby. This semester will have the fewest number of hours I've ever taken in a semester. I'm a little nervous about keeping busy, but I also realize that I don't have to be busy. This is vacation, after all.
I came home and ate a little something before heading out for another run. I went farther this time, confident of my route. Turns out that my path heads straight out into the country- sheep, pastures, and all. It was very different from running in Clemmons, or even in Cullowhee. But I liked it. Except that I ran about a quarter mile too far; towards the end, I did something to my knee that forced me to stop running and to walk back. It's pretty sore, but I don't know what I did. I didn't twist it or anything. Oh well, it'll be fine. I'll just take an anti-inflammatory- that's what my mom would tell me to do. :) Two classes tomorrow, playing cards tonight with the WCU guys.
As it turns out, my professor for both my 9 and 11 o'clock classes was out today (incidentally, we didn't find this out until 9:45). So even though I had technically gone to class, I didn't exactly have class. I did find out my schedule for my other classes, so the trip wasn't a total bust. As promised, I have nothing on Wednesday (as it is reserved for "field" trips). My other classes are a little spread out, but that will give me a chance to do some studying and get coffee or lunch in between lectures. I have two two-hour classes; the rest are one hour. Four classes total, three hours each per week = 12 hours of classtime total. Not too shabby. This semester will have the fewest number of hours I've ever taken in a semester. I'm a little nervous about keeping busy, but I also realize that I don't have to be busy. This is vacation, after all.
I came home and ate a little something before heading out for another run. I went farther this time, confident of my route. Turns out that my path heads straight out into the country- sheep, pastures, and all. It was very different from running in Clemmons, or even in Cullowhee. But I liked it. Except that I ran about a quarter mile too far; towards the end, I did something to my knee that forced me to stop running and to walk back. It's pretty sore, but I don't know what I did. I didn't twist it or anything. Oh well, it'll be fine. I'll just take an anti-inflammatory- that's what my mom would tell me to do. :) Two classes tomorrow, playing cards tonight with the WCU guys.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Best day ever...
So today was probably the best day I've had so far in this great Emerald Isle. I'm going to lump last night into it, too, because it really started around 9 pm last night. I was a little tired of going out on the town so often, so I decided to stay in. Immediately, I was contacted by four people on Skype- Chelsea, my friend Andrew from home, Tiffany, and my parents (okay, so that makes five people). It was SOOO good to talk to all of them. I hadn't talked to my mom at all since I got here, and it was good to hear her voice. Dad even got the dog to bark into the microphone! Haha.
So I went to bed really happy that I had heard from those folks. I woke up today and decided to go downtown in order to buy everything I need. I've been putting off getting things, but I had to make a trip to get my school books anyway, so I figured it was then or never. So I spent four hours running around a town that I only semi-know, searching for things like a rain jacket and a hair straightener. I got "lost" a few times- lost only in the sense that I went down streets with which I wasn't familiar. But I got to where I needed to go, AND I found a lot of cool shops in the meantime. For example, the ritzy boutique where I found the perfect rain jacket, or the freetrade coffee shop where I bought incense and was given a brochure for this really cool arts festival in October. Or how about stumbling across the open air market outside of the boys' school? Or turning the corner and bumping into an outdoor store that made my heart leap with the familiarity of the mountains and home? I found everything I needed, including an obscure book for class about Irish slang and the hair straightener I've been searching for since I got here. Plus, taking time to myself, with no agenda, was brilliant. I needed to settle back into my own skin for a little while, especially because of all of the cultural pressure I'm facing to be someone I'm not.
After catching the bus back to my apartment, I spent some time with my roommates and took a shower. Then I went to a get-together at another French girl's place. At first, there weren't many people there, but after about an hour, the place was packed with international students. My WCU friend Garrett and I taught people how to play the card game Bullsh*t, and we played an international version of Uno (international meaning we made up new rules because everyone plays it differently). Apparently, the security guard wasn't happy with all the noise, so eventually the party got shut down, but we just moved to another place and kept hanging out. I met so many new people and had a lot of great conversations. Plus, we weren't at a bar or club spending tons of money on booze. It was a lot of fun, and now I have 20 more friends than I had before tonight. So really, it was probably the best day I've had yet. Tomorrow I think we are all going down to a pub where they play traditional Irish music. I also want to see if I can download a podcast of the sermons back at Pinedale. The general Irish population is Catholic, and nondenominational Christian churches aren't really around. And I don't think I can go three and a half months without church. So we'll see.
I want to thank everyone again for reading this blog. I have a mailing address too, if you wanted to mail something. I'm not going to publically post it, but if you email me at rathkatie@gmail.com, then I'll send you the info! Thanks!
So I went to bed really happy that I had heard from those folks. I woke up today and decided to go downtown in order to buy everything I need. I've been putting off getting things, but I had to make a trip to get my school books anyway, so I figured it was then or never. So I spent four hours running around a town that I only semi-know, searching for things like a rain jacket and a hair straightener. I got "lost" a few times- lost only in the sense that I went down streets with which I wasn't familiar. But I got to where I needed to go, AND I found a lot of cool shops in the meantime. For example, the ritzy boutique where I found the perfect rain jacket, or the freetrade coffee shop where I bought incense and was given a brochure for this really cool arts festival in October. Or how about stumbling across the open air market outside of the boys' school? Or turning the corner and bumping into an outdoor store that made my heart leap with the familiarity of the mountains and home? I found everything I needed, including an obscure book for class about Irish slang and the hair straightener I've been searching for since I got here. Plus, taking time to myself, with no agenda, was brilliant. I needed to settle back into my own skin for a little while, especially because of all of the cultural pressure I'm facing to be someone I'm not.
After catching the bus back to my apartment, I spent some time with my roommates and took a shower. Then I went to a get-together at another French girl's place. At first, there weren't many people there, but after about an hour, the place was packed with international students. My WCU friend Garrett and I taught people how to play the card game Bullsh*t, and we played an international version of Uno (international meaning we made up new rules because everyone plays it differently). Apparently, the security guard wasn't happy with all the noise, so eventually the party got shut down, but we just moved to another place and kept hanging out. I met so many new people and had a lot of great conversations. Plus, we weren't at a bar or club spending tons of money on booze. It was a lot of fun, and now I have 20 more friends than I had before tonight. So really, it was probably the best day I've had yet. Tomorrow I think we are all going down to a pub where they play traditional Irish music. I also want to see if I can download a podcast of the sermons back at Pinedale. The general Irish population is Catholic, and nondenominational Christian churches aren't really around. And I don't think I can go three and a half months without church. So we'll see.
I want to thank everyone again for reading this blog. I have a mailing address too, if you wanted to mail something. I'm not going to publically post it, but if you email me at rathkatie@gmail.com, then I'll send you the info! Thanks!
Friday, September 12, 2008
Is it already Friday?
Wow, this has been such a whirlwind week! I started "classes," basically meaning that I'm going through orientation and the basic overview classes for all of the courses. Tomorrow, I'm headed downtown to the Galway Museum as part of class. It's like a fieldtrip, I guess. According to our lecturers, we will be going on fieldwork trips often. (::smile::) That makes me very happy. It's a cool way to explore what's going on around us in Ireland.
So today, I didn't have class, so some guys from WCU and I went to Salthill, which is the town next to/part of Galway. It's right on the water, and the Aran Islands are in that bay too, and you can see them on the horizon. The day started off as a typical, dreary, Irish summer day. After some rain and high-powered winds, the evening cleared up and the sun actually peeked out! I took full advantage of this and went for a run. I found this great little route that isn't too hilly or off-road or next to the highway. In fact, this route was so close to perfect, I almost cried. As close as I can tell, it's about 2.5 or 3 miles, roundtrip. After the run, I showered and the guys and I made Irish burgers for dinner. The meat here is good, but definitely different. It almost tastes a hint like pepperoni. But I seasoned them up like Gramma does and they were really tasty. Tonight I took one of my apartment-mates to the student bar, The Library, to meet some of my friends, mainly guys from my program. Well, none of the Irish guys showed up, so it ended up being us and a bunch of American guys. Haha. But we made the most of it and eventually just started talking to everyone else around us.
OH! Speaking of roommates. I have two now! They got here last night. One is named Ensophie (I don't know how to spell it) and she is from France. She's a third year studying business. The other is a guy named Ruben from the Netherlands. He's a third year studying European construction management. He'll actually probably be taking classes with a lot of the guys from WCU. Both of them said that they chose Ireland to work on their English, so how perfect is it that they were stuck with an English speaker who loves to talk?! Ha. It'll be fun I think. I already like them and we seem to be getting along okay. It will be different living with internationals, but also living with a guy. But I think it will be fine. We all have our own rooms. Ha. So anyway, about getting up tomorrow for class. It's time to sleep in my lovely Irish bed. Night!
So today, I didn't have class, so some guys from WCU and I went to Salthill, which is the town next to/part of Galway. It's right on the water, and the Aran Islands are in that bay too, and you can see them on the horizon. The day started off as a typical, dreary, Irish summer day. After some rain and high-powered winds, the evening cleared up and the sun actually peeked out! I took full advantage of this and went for a run. I found this great little route that isn't too hilly or off-road or next to the highway. In fact, this route was so close to perfect, I almost cried. As close as I can tell, it's about 2.5 or 3 miles, roundtrip. After the run, I showered and the guys and I made Irish burgers for dinner. The meat here is good, but definitely different. It almost tastes a hint like pepperoni. But I seasoned them up like Gramma does and they were really tasty. Tonight I took one of my apartment-mates to the student bar, The Library, to meet some of my friends, mainly guys from my program. Well, none of the Irish guys showed up, so it ended up being us and a bunch of American guys. Haha. But we made the most of it and eventually just started talking to everyone else around us.
OH! Speaking of roommates. I have two now! They got here last night. One is named Ensophie (I don't know how to spell it) and she is from France. She's a third year studying business. The other is a guy named Ruben from the Netherlands. He's a third year studying European construction management. He'll actually probably be taking classes with a lot of the guys from WCU. Both of them said that they chose Ireland to work on their English, so how perfect is it that they were stuck with an English speaker who loves to talk?! Ha. It'll be fun I think. I already like them and we seem to be getting along okay. It will be different living with internationals, but also living with a guy. But I think it will be fine. We all have our own rooms. Ha. So anyway, about getting up tomorrow for class. It's time to sleep in my lovely Irish bed. Night!
Monday, September 8, 2008
Questions? Comments? Concerns?
I'm getting emails from a bunch of people asking me specific questions, so I thought I'd open it up for you all to ask too. Then I'm going to post one huge entry with all of my answers and comments about Ireland. So, ask away! Thanks!
Comment settings
Hello all. I have changed the comment settings so that anyone can comment, instead of only blog users. Thanks for bringing it to my attention, and thanks for wanting to comment!
"What's the crack?"...
... he asked Tiffany and me. We were sitting there in the bus station yesterday, minding our own business, and out of nowhere an older gentleman inquired about our.. crack? Well, not one to jump to conclusions, I asked him to repeat himself, thinking maybe I had heard him incorrectly. "What's the crack?" he asked again. Noticing the puzzled looks on our faces, he asked us, "What's the crack? Are you familiar with the Irish expression? You're American, right?" He went on to explain that he was just asking how we were, what's up (and it's spelled CRAIC, it means "fun"). We immediately began laughing at our blunder, thanking him for teaching us something new. He wished us well, and we soon boarded the bus to Castlebar where Tiffany is attending college.
On the busride over, I began to ponder the peculiarities of this new country. Some of the most interesting, and obvious, differences, lie with the people. Firstly, Irish idioms and words are different. Most people know this. The trunk of a car is a boot, a party is a revelry, liquors are spirits, shopping carts are trolleys, etc. "Cheers" is the official goodbye, and cursing in public is as en vogue as skinny jeans. Speaking of fashion, it is so different here. Black is worn with brown (my younger sister would hate this), girls wear heels everywhere and dress to the nines all the time (I am completely uncomfortable with this, and therefore I stick out like a sore thumb), and guys have the chic "I'm too cool for fashion but I look good anyway" thing going on. You can't really tell what's in or not in style here. The only conclusion I have made about clothing is that layering is the most fashionable, and it's incredibly practical; you never know what the weather will do, except it's bound to rain at least every other day. Despite the precipitation, men and women of all ages straighten their hair (not good for my stubbornly curly head) and girls as young as eight wear makeup. If older women go out without makeup on, prepare to suffer public scrutiny. That one makes me feel completely comfortable too.. not.
Besides fashion, personalities are different. People generally keep to themselves. They are all very friendly, but they won't strike up a conversation first. The culture is a little more reserved than the cocky Americans who are stereotyped as being too bold and rude. And though I'm not completely sure of this, it seems from observation that men and women do not hang out with each other unless they're dating or married. Mixed gender hangouts appear to be lacking.
One of the most frustrating things I've found here hit me upside the head within the first ten minutes of being in the country. Everyone here has a cell phone. That's no shock, cellular technology is everywhere. BUT because everyone has a phone, no one wears a watch and clocks are hard to find. And it's nearly impossible to find watches for sale in stores. Because my cell doesn't get signal here, I've been without a time piece since Thursday. I've been asking around, only to get different answers every time. If it's 4:30 pm, I might hear "4:30" or "16:30" or "Half four" or any number of other slang phrasings. My head is readjusting. Finally, today in Castlebar I found a watch at a grocery store. It might have been the highlight of my day.
So, people talk, dress, act, and tell time differently. They also keep up with American politics and television. I've seen two news reports and three different newspapers in two days giving their opinions on the race. Let's just say McCain isn't regarded fondly. Hmm, what else? Everyone smokes. Everyone drinks. There are no street signs. I have yet to see one bad looking car, almost all are luxury vehicles. I saw a guy washing his BMW today in the 55 degree weather....
I PROMISE I thought of more on the bus. I'll have to start carrying a notepad around with me and jotting everything down. For now, I have to get to sleep. It's almost half past one here, and I have to meet with my department head in the morning to lay out my class schedule. Cheers!
On the busride over, I began to ponder the peculiarities of this new country. Some of the most interesting, and obvious, differences, lie with the people. Firstly, Irish idioms and words are different. Most people know this. The trunk of a car is a boot, a party is a revelry, liquors are spirits, shopping carts are trolleys, etc. "Cheers" is the official goodbye, and cursing in public is as en vogue as skinny jeans. Speaking of fashion, it is so different here. Black is worn with brown (my younger sister would hate this), girls wear heels everywhere and dress to the nines all the time (I am completely uncomfortable with this, and therefore I stick out like a sore thumb), and guys have the chic "I'm too cool for fashion but I look good anyway" thing going on. You can't really tell what's in or not in style here. The only conclusion I have made about clothing is that layering is the most fashionable, and it's incredibly practical; you never know what the weather will do, except it's bound to rain at least every other day. Despite the precipitation, men and women of all ages straighten their hair (not good for my stubbornly curly head) and girls as young as eight wear makeup. If older women go out without makeup on, prepare to suffer public scrutiny. That one makes me feel completely comfortable too.. not.
Besides fashion, personalities are different. People generally keep to themselves. They are all very friendly, but they won't strike up a conversation first. The culture is a little more reserved than the cocky Americans who are stereotyped as being too bold and rude. And though I'm not completely sure of this, it seems from observation that men and women do not hang out with each other unless they're dating or married. Mixed gender hangouts appear to be lacking.
One of the most frustrating things I've found here hit me upside the head within the first ten minutes of being in the country. Everyone here has a cell phone. That's no shock, cellular technology is everywhere. BUT because everyone has a phone, no one wears a watch and clocks are hard to find. And it's nearly impossible to find watches for sale in stores. Because my cell doesn't get signal here, I've been without a time piece since Thursday. I've been asking around, only to get different answers every time. If it's 4:30 pm, I might hear "4:30" or "16:30" or "Half four" or any number of other slang phrasings. My head is readjusting. Finally, today in Castlebar I found a watch at a grocery store. It might have been the highlight of my day.
So, people talk, dress, act, and tell time differently. They also keep up with American politics and television. I've seen two news reports and three different newspapers in two days giving their opinions on the race. Let's just say McCain isn't regarded fondly. Hmm, what else? Everyone smokes. Everyone drinks. There are no street signs. I have yet to see one bad looking car, almost all are luxury vehicles. I saw a guy washing his BMW today in the 55 degree weather....
I PROMISE I thought of more on the bus. I'll have to start carrying a notepad around with me and jotting everything down. For now, I have to get to sleep. It's almost half past one here, and I have to meet with my department head in the morning to lay out my class schedule. Cheers!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
My saving grace
As I'm sure you could imagine, I was ridiculously tired after getting settled in to my apartment two days ago. I ended up sleeping until 1 pm yesterday, something I'm not sure I've ever done. Well, it helped, a little.
Not long after I woke up to a grey, dreary, rainy afternoon, I got a phone call on my apartment phone. At first I had no idea what that strange ringing was. You'd think I'd forgotten what a phone sounded like. I followed my ears to the kitchen and gently lifted the receiver. Maybe I thought a bomb would go off, who knows. "Hello?" On the other end I recognized two voices, one of the receptionist at GMIT who so kindly gave me directions the other day, and the other of my American friend Tiffany. The receptionist handed the phone to Tiffany, who was calling to make sure I was at my apartment. She was here! In Galway! To see me!! Oh, the heavens rejoiced and the rain immediately stopped and I could hear birds singing for miles! OK, not really, but it sure felt like it. My friend was alive and well, and taking a taxi to my apartment right now!
When she stepped foot in my door, soaking wet and smiling from cute ear to cute ear, I felt my spirits lift. She pulled in two monstrous bags behind her... they were wet too, but not smiling so much. I had her pull her stuff in the living room and I turned on the heaters so we could dry everything. After catching up on what happened (we thought we were getting there on the same day, but she got in the day after; she doesn't have an apartment yet in Castlebar, so she came to Galway), we hit the town for dinner and grocery shopping. The grocery stores here charge a fee for using plastic bags; I, fortunately, had read about this in the news a few years ago when it started, so I advised Tiffany to bring her pack and I had mine, so we filled them with food and headed back later. Side note: Mom, I saw zero bananas at the grocery store! Mhmm... But they did have these amazing mangos for 49c. Bought me one of those.
After an evening of watching both American TV ("America's Got Talent" and "Sex and the City") and Irish TV (the news mainly, but we were also introduced to the sport of hurling), we goofed off, taking pictures and chit chatting.
This morning, I'll be taking Tiffany up to Castlebar, a campus about an hour and a half busride north. She's supposed to meet her landlord at the apartment at 4 o'clock. Both of us are praying she likes the apartment and she decides to live there because we'll be carting her bags around with us until she finds a place to permanently keep them. Since she will be staying in Ireland for a year, she brought double what I did. I'll crash at her place tonight- late bus transportation on the weekend are a little shady, from what we can tell. So I'll ride the bus back here tomorrow and ready myself for school to begin! For now, I need to go make sure she's awake...
Not long after I woke up to a grey, dreary, rainy afternoon, I got a phone call on my apartment phone. At first I had no idea what that strange ringing was. You'd think I'd forgotten what a phone sounded like. I followed my ears to the kitchen and gently lifted the receiver. Maybe I thought a bomb would go off, who knows. "Hello?" On the other end I recognized two voices, one of the receptionist at GMIT who so kindly gave me directions the other day, and the other of my American friend Tiffany. The receptionist handed the phone to Tiffany, who was calling to make sure I was at my apartment. She was here! In Galway! To see me!! Oh, the heavens rejoiced and the rain immediately stopped and I could hear birds singing for miles! OK, not really, but it sure felt like it. My friend was alive and well, and taking a taxi to my apartment right now!
When she stepped foot in my door, soaking wet and smiling from cute ear to cute ear, I felt my spirits lift. She pulled in two monstrous bags behind her... they were wet too, but not smiling so much. I had her pull her stuff in the living room and I turned on the heaters so we could dry everything. After catching up on what happened (we thought we were getting there on the same day, but she got in the day after; she doesn't have an apartment yet in Castlebar, so she came to Galway), we hit the town for dinner and grocery shopping. The grocery stores here charge a fee for using plastic bags; I, fortunately, had read about this in the news a few years ago when it started, so I advised Tiffany to bring her pack and I had mine, so we filled them with food and headed back later. Side note: Mom, I saw zero bananas at the grocery store! Mhmm... But they did have these amazing mangos for 49c. Bought me one of those.
After an evening of watching both American TV ("America's Got Talent" and "Sex and the City") and Irish TV (the news mainly, but we were also introduced to the sport of hurling), we goofed off, taking pictures and chit chatting.
Another side note: Dad- On the news, all of a sudden they were intereviewing an Irish Elvis impersonator? Haha it was pretty goofy. Naturally, I thought of you.
This morning, I'll be taking Tiffany up to Castlebar, a campus about an hour and a half busride north. She's supposed to meet her landlord at the apartment at 4 o'clock. Both of us are praying she likes the apartment and she decides to live there because we'll be carting her bags around with us until she finds a place to permanently keep them. Since she will be staying in Ireland for a year, she brought double what I did. I'll crash at her place tonight- late bus transportation on the weekend are a little shady, from what we can tell. So I'll ride the bus back here tomorrow and ready myself for school to begin! For now, I need to go make sure she's awake...
Thursday, September 4, 2008
31 hours later...
Man, have things happened since my first post. To start things off the right way, thanks to everyone who prayed or wished me well on the trip over here- I got in safely and I am currently typing from the comfort of my apartment in Galway. But I don't wan't to jump the gun, I'd rather tell you about my trip over here!
In case the nerves didn't shine through in the last post, I'll just outright tell you that I was very anxious about coming to Ireland. Those nerves ate me alive during my 5-hour layover at JFK airport in New York. I bounced around the airport trying to dispel the nervous energy that clouded my mind, but no success. I tried to eat, I tried to watch a movie, I tried talking on the phone, I tried just being still. No matter what I did, I wasn't feeling better. I couldn't even get online and write it out! Oh well. We'll skip forward a bit, to the actual departure from JFK. I was seated with a very nice young many named Henry, a student at SUNY-Buffalo who was traveling to study business in Dublin for a few months. Henry started up a conversation, and before I knew it, his excitement rubbed off and I stopped freaking out so much. Among many fun things on that 7-hour plane ride, I woke up just in time to join Henry in eating breakfast while watching the sun rise over Ireland. It was amazing. I know I've seen the sun set while on a plane, but I've never seen a sunrise from the air. Truly beautiful. And before we knew it, we were in Dublin! Not a lot of sleep on the plane, but I was ready to go!
After being held up momentarily at the passport station (I had to be registered as a student), I grabbed my bag from baggage claim and began to inspect my surroundings. I said bye to Henry, promised to keep in touch, and settled down to wait for my friend Tiffany. Over two hours later, she hadn't shown up yet. Sadly, I had to leave if I wanted to get to the college before the offices closed for the day. I pulled my bags into the cool morning Irish air, took a deep breath, and continued on to the bus parking lot, the coach park. I found my bus, paid my fare, and spent the next four hours alternating staring at the beautiful landscape and staring at the inside of my eyelids. If there's one thing to be said about Ireland, it's so beautiful. Gorgeous green pastures, charming farm manors and homemade stone fences. The fierce gray cumulous clouds rounded out the picturesque scene and touched the painted land with a sense of foreboding; I should have known then...
When I arrived at GMIT and eventually found Helen O'Reilly, she informed me that I really don't have much to do for the next week except to meet my advisors and the other exchange students. Whoo hoo. So here I am, a little depressed, pulling my heavier-than-I-remember bags (I swear someone put rocks in there) up to my apartment complex, where I'm praying that someone will hand me a key to the hotel suite of my dreams. No such luck. I got a key, yeah, but not exactly the mansion of my dreams. For what I'm paying, I wasn't sure what to expect. It's not bad by any stretch, just... different. Don't you love when people use that word? Normally it's a euphemism for something bad, but I really mean that this apartment is just different. For instance, no AC, but that's not necessary for Galway in September. There are no carpets, but beautiful hardwoods. The TV is small, but at least we have one, and it has full Irish cable. There's minimal furniture but a sizeable bathroom. So far, no neighbors. And it was in desperate need of supplies. With the help of about five Irish men and women, I got into Eyre Square in town and did some shopping. Towels, sheets, shampoo, trash bags, toilet paper, cereal. Eyre Square is probably one of the most important places to figure out as far as any type of shopping goes. I'll head back in tomorrow to get a student bus pass and to go grocery shopping. But for tonight, I'm fine. I grabbed a burger from the food joint in our apartment complex and jammed to my iTunes shuffle as I unpacked and arranged the apartment. It's going to be a challenge to entertain myself for the next three days until more students arrive, but I'll figure something out. I always have this blog!
As always, thanks for keeping up with me! I look forward to sharing more of my Irish adventure with you!
In case the nerves didn't shine through in the last post, I'll just outright tell you that I was very anxious about coming to Ireland. Those nerves ate me alive during my 5-hour layover at JFK airport in New York. I bounced around the airport trying to dispel the nervous energy that clouded my mind, but no success. I tried to eat, I tried to watch a movie, I tried talking on the phone, I tried just being still. No matter what I did, I wasn't feeling better. I couldn't even get online and write it out! Oh well. We'll skip forward a bit, to the actual departure from JFK. I was seated with a very nice young many named Henry, a student at SUNY-Buffalo who was traveling to study business in Dublin for a few months. Henry started up a conversation, and before I knew it, his excitement rubbed off and I stopped freaking out so much. Among many fun things on that 7-hour plane ride, I woke up just in time to join Henry in eating breakfast while watching the sun rise over Ireland. It was amazing. I know I've seen the sun set while on a plane, but I've never seen a sunrise from the air. Truly beautiful. And before we knew it, we were in Dublin! Not a lot of sleep on the plane, but I was ready to go!
After being held up momentarily at the passport station (I had to be registered as a student), I grabbed my bag from baggage claim and began to inspect my surroundings. I said bye to Henry, promised to keep in touch, and settled down to wait for my friend Tiffany. Over two hours later, she hadn't shown up yet. Sadly, I had to leave if I wanted to get to the college before the offices closed for the day. I pulled my bags into the cool morning Irish air, took a deep breath, and continued on to the bus parking lot, the coach park. I found my bus, paid my fare, and spent the next four hours alternating staring at the beautiful landscape and staring at the inside of my eyelids. If there's one thing to be said about Ireland, it's so beautiful. Gorgeous green pastures, charming farm manors and homemade stone fences. The fierce gray cumulous clouds rounded out the picturesque scene and touched the painted land with a sense of foreboding; I should have known then...
When I arrived at GMIT and eventually found Helen O'Reilly, she informed me that I really don't have much to do for the next week except to meet my advisors and the other exchange students. Whoo hoo. So here I am, a little depressed, pulling my heavier-than-I-remember bags (I swear someone put rocks in there) up to my apartment complex, where I'm praying that someone will hand me a key to the hotel suite of my dreams. No such luck. I got a key, yeah, but not exactly the mansion of my dreams. For what I'm paying, I wasn't sure what to expect. It's not bad by any stretch, just... different. Don't you love when people use that word? Normally it's a euphemism for something bad, but I really mean that this apartment is just different. For instance, no AC, but that's not necessary for Galway in September. There are no carpets, but beautiful hardwoods. The TV is small, but at least we have one, and it has full Irish cable. There's minimal furniture but a sizeable bathroom. So far, no neighbors. And it was in desperate need of supplies. With the help of about five Irish men and women, I got into Eyre Square in town and did some shopping. Towels, sheets, shampoo, trash bags, toilet paper, cereal. Eyre Square is probably one of the most important places to figure out as far as any type of shopping goes. I'll head back in tomorrow to get a student bus pass and to go grocery shopping. But for tonight, I'm fine. I grabbed a burger from the food joint in our apartment complex and jammed to my iTunes shuffle as I unpacked and arranged the apartment. It's going to be a challenge to entertain myself for the next three days until more students arrive, but I'll figure something out. I always have this blog!
As always, thanks for keeping up with me! I look forward to sharing more of my Irish adventure with you!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Here...we...go!
So, here I go. I leave today for Ireland. Just to fill everyone in, I am studying at Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology in Galway, Ireland for the three and a half months before I graduate from Western Carolina University. I am not taking any classes necessary for either of my degrees (B.S. in Communication/Public Relations and a B.A. in Philosophy and Religion), but I will be taking classes. Two Irish lit classes and two archaeology classes. Ha, yeah, I know. Not even CLOSE to what I'm studying, but oh well. Gotta get your kicks somehow. I know a few people that will be coming too. In fact, allow me to introduce them, my "cast of characters," if you will.
Stephen: my long-time friend, one of my best friends, from WCU. He's a construction management major and will be attending the same campus and living in the same apartment complex as I am.
Tiffany- another good friend from WCU. She is arriving at Dublin one hour after I am and we will be traveling together today. She will be at a different campus, about 45 minutes away.
Helen O'Reilly- the international student officer at GMIT. She is basically the liason between Ireland and WCU, and will be a huge resource, I'm sure.
Katie- my old roomie from WCU. She is living and working as a nanny in Spain. I think she and I will be meeting up more than once.
Elyse- a close friend from WCU. She is working with Habitat for Humanity in Romania for a few weeks, and then will be traveling Europe, ending in Ireland in November. Read her blog:
http://europeplusme.blogspot.com/
Actually, that may be it for now. Hopefully it will expand.
So anyway, you're reading this blog, hopefully, because you want to share my adventure! For that, I am thankful. Knowing I have a network of friends behind me comforts my heart and somehow motivates me to explore and learn and grow and have as much fun as possible. Again, I say thank you. I'm sure my parents would be thankful too. My little sister Chelsea just left for college a week and a half ago, and I know that my leaving is like removing all traces of intelligent life from the house. (Let's face it, our dog Jack doesn't exactly fit the bill.) And I'm sad to go, to leave Mom and Dad alone, without any kids, for the first time in 23 years. Whew, that's a long time. they'll be fine, and I will be too. Speaking of being fine...
Though I'm not sure Charlotte-Douglas International deserves my tears, that won't make me feel any better about soaking my collar at the checkpoint, not thirty seconds after leaving my mom. I tried to make myself feel better by recalling one of my fave movies, Love Actually; Hugh Grant starts the film with a very beautiful point about the hope that can found at an airport when one realizes the amount of love that departs and arrives with passengers. It's one of the best moments of the movie, in my opinion. And thinking about it this morning didn't help me one bit. As fervently as I tried to suppress them, I couldn't keep the tears from welling up. I will be fine, of that I am sure. But I think the anxiety has finally caught up with me.
For now, I am desperately trying to distract myself. In fact, I'm on sensory overload at this point. I'm obviously typing this post, and I am also chewing a very tasty piece of gum, listening to my mp3 player in one ear and listening to airport traffic with the other. Not to mention the random text messages and the phone calls from Mom and Luann wanting to pray with me. And also my inability to focus on any one thing... I've always enjoyed watching people in airports, and right now I find myself making up stories about these people and where they're going and where they've been, whom they just left and those they'll greet at their destinations. I think it's working. Again, I repeat, I'll be fine.
I apologize for beginning this blog with such a stressful post. Well, it seems stressful to me. One day, we'll all look back on this and laugh. Hopefully that day will be sometime next week. For now, I'll be boarding my fligh to JFK soon, and then it's on to Dublin. Stay tuned!
Stephen: my long-time friend, one of my best friends, from WCU. He's a construction management major and will be attending the same campus and living in the same apartment complex as I am.
Tiffany- another good friend from WCU. She is arriving at Dublin one hour after I am and we will be traveling together today. She will be at a different campus, about 45 minutes away.
Helen O'Reilly- the international student officer at GMIT. She is basically the liason between Ireland and WCU, and will be a huge resource, I'm sure.
Katie- my old roomie from WCU. She is living and working as a nanny in Spain. I think she and I will be meeting up more than once.
Elyse- a close friend from WCU. She is working with Habitat for Humanity in Romania for a few weeks, and then will be traveling Europe, ending in Ireland in November. Read her blog:
http://europeplusme.blogspot.com/
Actually, that may be it for now. Hopefully it will expand.
So anyway, you're reading this blog, hopefully, because you want to share my adventure! For that, I am thankful. Knowing I have a network of friends behind me comforts my heart and somehow motivates me to explore and learn and grow and have as much fun as possible. Again, I say thank you. I'm sure my parents would be thankful too. My little sister Chelsea just left for college a week and a half ago, and I know that my leaving is like removing all traces of intelligent life from the house. (Let's face it, our dog Jack doesn't exactly fit the bill.) And I'm sad to go, to leave Mom and Dad alone, without any kids, for the first time in 23 years. Whew, that's a long time. they'll be fine, and I will be too. Speaking of being fine...
Though I'm not sure Charlotte-Douglas International deserves my tears, that won't make me feel any better about soaking my collar at the checkpoint, not thirty seconds after leaving my mom. I tried to make myself feel better by recalling one of my fave movies, Love Actually; Hugh Grant starts the film with a very beautiful point about the hope that can found at an airport when one realizes the amount of love that departs and arrives with passengers. It's one of the best moments of the movie, in my opinion. And thinking about it this morning didn't help me one bit. As fervently as I tried to suppress them, I couldn't keep the tears from welling up. I will be fine, of that I am sure. But I think the anxiety has finally caught up with me.
For now, I am desperately trying to distract myself. In fact, I'm on sensory overload at this point. I'm obviously typing this post, and I am also chewing a very tasty piece of gum, listening to my mp3 player in one ear and listening to airport traffic with the other. Not to mention the random text messages and the phone calls from Mom and Luann wanting to pray with me. And also my inability to focus on any one thing... I've always enjoyed watching people in airports, and right now I find myself making up stories about these people and where they're going and where they've been, whom they just left and those they'll greet at their destinations. I think it's working. Again, I repeat, I'll be fine.
I apologize for beginning this blog with such a stressful post. Well, it seems stressful to me. One day, we'll all look back on this and laugh. Hopefully that day will be sometime next week. For now, I'll be boarding my fligh to JFK soon, and then it's on to Dublin. Stay tuned!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
