This isn't going to be negative by anymeans; however, after being in ireland for one week now, there are a few things that i'm finding very hard to adjust to. For example:
1. Coins. The Euro and 2 Euro's are coins...so im constantly having heaving, clinky coins in my pocket and its weighing down my jeans. And, seeing as how i have to walk a LOT, i'm getting frustraited from having to pull up my pants all the time.
2. The sinks here in all bathrooms have to separate spigots; one for the hot water and one for the cold water. So, you have to either burn your hands when you wash them, or suffer with freezing water and no loss of bacteria. I'm becoming fairly good at turning the two on and maneuvering luke warm water, but i usually just end up with one burning hand and one freezing one. Grrrrr...
3. The coffee here, just is not as good. However, im adjusting as the baristas are usually really friendly, cute irish men. :)
4. I thought the weather in Virginia was difficult but im finding Ireland to be much worse. When i leave my apartment, the weather is completely different two hours later. And since i live twenty minutes away from everything else, i end up carrying my rain-coat (very CUTE raincoat i might add) or freezing cold.
5. Everything is so expensive here. :( Even the "euro" menu at McDonalds isnt really the dollar menu. A double cheesburger is 2 euros or $3.00. Crazy!
6. They only heat their water between the hours of 8ish am till 4ish pm. So...forget the idea of taking a shower before bed. Annndd...you have to pull a string for hot water which makes a really loud noise.
7. It doesnt get dark until 10:00pm. Did i say this already...i feel like im probalby repeating myself a lot. But its very strange, and hard to fall asleep at night because its too bright outside.
8. Allergies = crazy sinus headaches and dizzyness all day.
Thats all i can think of for right now. But i do love it here, despite all the difficulties adjusting. I'm about ready to walk down to the ocean and "kick" the wall that is believed to prolong your life, which will hopefully mean ill get into law school one day. Especially since im going to kick it twice so i live forever!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Its clearly June...and NOT july.
Why has nobody told me that my dates are WAY wrong? I've even been writing in my Journal using July. Apparently i lost my commonsense on the flight here.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Does this blog have spell check?
If so, i can't find it. So, Mom, deal with my bad spelling. I have to time to post, but i dont have the time to go back and re-read everything i've written. That, and i really just dont care.
So...my first week here is over. It's sad, but not really because i've done SO much and had such a good time that it feels accomplishing. Firstly, I made a friend, Michelle. :) We are spending the majority of the time together but we're with the rest of the group sometimes too. I suppose the easiest way to do this, is tell you what happened each day. So here goes...
Tuesday, July 23, 2009: We arrived (did i already talk about this?). Had dinner at some place that i dont remember what the name was. It was nice, but an exhausting day because we had to hike our luggage around the entire city of Galway, literally miles. It wasnt fun.
Wednesday, July 24, 2009: Classes started and we had a "reception" for all the people here on the summer Irish Studies program. So the group and I hung out there for a little bit until we decided to head downtown to Shop Street. It was maybe 5 or 6 of us. The first pub we went to, i think was called the craine?, and it was like 5 old guys in thier 70's. In walk a bunch of American college kids and they just went crazy about trying to tell us stories and talk to us about Ireland, etc. They would overhear what we were talking about and just come in and tell us how it "really was".
There was this one guy at the bar who told me a joke. He said (in his drunkin irish accent that was very hard to understand) "Are you good with numbers, ya?" (the irish say "ya" after every sentence...its adorable) "im so-so, why"-me. "if you take two away from three how many do you have?" "one"-me. He looked perplexed, then grabs three guiness coasters off the bar and holds them out to me and repeats his question and tells me to take two away from three. "How many do you have?", as I'm standing there with two guiness coasters. Finally i get his joke and he just erupts with laughter at how he had fooled me. It was adorable. Then he looked at us four ladies standing at the bar trying to order drinks and says "not a single one of ya is prettier than the other". This is what the Irish people are like. It makes me smile :)
Long story short, we ended up going to several Pubs, and for some reason...I have absolutely no introversion to my personality here, whatsoever. Me and Michelle are meeting so many people because i just kept walking up to people and saying hi or talking to them. It's awesome! So that is how we met Suibhne (pronounced Sev-na...and i have NO idea how they pronounce that from the spelling...strange) who is Irish, and Stig who is from Denmark. I just walked up to this group of boys and asked them where we should go and they said they were heading to this club. And off to the club we went! We exchanged names so we could be friends on facebook, and the next thing ya know....
Thursday, July 25, 2009: We meet the boys with our group at what they call "The Spanish Arch". Here is a picture:
Its exactly what it looks like. A bunch of people sitting on this little grassy spot right next to the bay. Its what they do in Galway when the weather is nice. Its fun. Below is the group:
So we met these boys and ended up hanging out with them the whole night (just me and michelle, the rest of the group went elsewhere). We hung out on the grass for a long time and then went to a pub called Kings Head. Here is a picture from there!
So...yeah, thats how that night went! Oh! Isnt this the day Michael Jackson dies? If so....Suibhne was making jokes about MJ the whole time. It was hilarious! Oh x2! The "sweater" Sev is wearing isnt a sweater...its called a "jumper". He was making fun of us for that too. :)
Friday, July 26, 2009: More school....more walking, etc. Michelle and I went shopping, which is an experience in and of itself here. Thier style is so different/strange! I cant even explain it. Their shoes are hooker shoes, and the girls dress like prostitutes to go out clubbing. Its crazy. So i didnt get anything cute yet. :( Except a jacket for 10euro that is WAY cute. :) Later we met up with the boys again and hung out by the arch for a while. We bought 10eruo bottle of cheap pinot and drank it by the bay. It was super classy. We even kept the paper bag on just to make it that much more adorable. After hanging out there, we went to this place for drinks called The Front Door. Michelle and I had dinner their earlier that day and had the BEST Turkey, mashed potates, stuffing and gravy ive ever had (sorry mom). And the bartender was very pleasent to look at. So we went back there for a while. And then funny story, when it was time to leave, I somehow got separated from the group (aka abandonded lol). I was wating for Suibhne to get out of the bathroom...except he never came out! And i ended up talking to this girl Mary (irish) and her two guy friends and she insisted i share a cab home with them to my apartment. She refused to let me look around for Michelle, etc. It was funny. So i ended up back at my apartment at 2am, got my phone and call Sev and walked the 25 minutes back home to try and find them. (Mom...dont freak out. You have NO idea how safe/not bad it is here). Long story short...i found them. :) Note to self: Dont leave michelle...ever! And try not to get sucked into the irish's extreme friendliness!
.
Okay...i'm super tired of bloggin.....and this is long enough! So i'll have to give you saturdays update later.
So...my first week here is over. It's sad, but not really because i've done SO much and had such a good time that it feels accomplishing. Firstly, I made a friend, Michelle. :) We are spending the majority of the time together but we're with the rest of the group sometimes too. I suppose the easiest way to do this, is tell you what happened each day. So here goes...
Tuesday, July 23, 2009: We arrived (did i already talk about this?). Had dinner at some place that i dont remember what the name was. It was nice, but an exhausting day because we had to hike our luggage around the entire city of Galway, literally miles. It wasnt fun.
Wednesday, July 24, 2009: Classes started and we had a "reception" for all the people here on the summer Irish Studies program. So the group and I hung out there for a little bit until we decided to head downtown to Shop Street. It was maybe 5 or 6 of us. The first pub we went to, i think was called the craine?, and it was like 5 old guys in thier 70's. In walk a bunch of American college kids and they just went crazy about trying to tell us stories and talk to us about Ireland, etc. They would overhear what we were talking about and just come in and tell us how it "really was".
There was this one guy at the bar who told me a joke. He said (in his drunkin irish accent that was very hard to understand) "Are you good with numbers, ya?" (the irish say "ya" after every sentence...its adorable) "im so-so, why"-me. "if you take two away from three how many do you have?" "one"-me. He looked perplexed, then grabs three guiness coasters off the bar and holds them out to me and repeats his question and tells me to take two away from three. "How many do you have?", as I'm standing there with two guiness coasters. Finally i get his joke and he just erupts with laughter at how he had fooled me. It was adorable. Then he looked at us four ladies standing at the bar trying to order drinks and says "not a single one of ya is prettier than the other". This is what the Irish people are like. It makes me smile :)
Long story short, we ended up going to several Pubs, and for some reason...I have absolutely no introversion to my personality here, whatsoever. Me and Michelle are meeting so many people because i just kept walking up to people and saying hi or talking to them. It's awesome! So that is how we met Suibhne (pronounced Sev-na...and i have NO idea how they pronounce that from the spelling...strange) who is Irish, and Stig who is from Denmark. I just walked up to this group of boys and asked them where we should go and they said they were heading to this club. And off to the club we went! We exchanged names so we could be friends on facebook, and the next thing ya know....
Thursday, July 25, 2009: We meet the boys with our group at what they call "The Spanish Arch". Here is a picture:
Its exactly what it looks like. A bunch of people sitting on this little grassy spot right next to the bay. Its what they do in Galway when the weather is nice. Its fun. Below is the group:
So we met these boys and ended up hanging out with them the whole night (just me and michelle, the rest of the group went elsewhere). We hung out on the grass for a long time and then went to a pub called Kings Head. Here is a picture from there!
So...yeah, thats how that night went! Oh! Isnt this the day Michael Jackson dies? If so....Suibhne was making jokes about MJ the whole time. It was hilarious! Oh x2! The "sweater" Sev is wearing isnt a sweater...its called a "jumper". He was making fun of us for that too. :)
Friday, July 26, 2009: More school....more walking, etc. Michelle and I went shopping, which is an experience in and of itself here. Thier style is so different/strange! I cant even explain it. Their shoes are hooker shoes, and the girls dress like prostitutes to go out clubbing. Its crazy. So i didnt get anything cute yet. :( Except a jacket for 10euro that is WAY cute. :) Later we met up with the boys again and hung out by the arch for a while. We bought 10eruo bottle of cheap pinot and drank it by the bay. It was super classy. We even kept the paper bag on just to make it that much more adorable. After hanging out there, we went to this place for drinks called The Front Door. Michelle and I had dinner their earlier that day and had the BEST Turkey, mashed potates, stuffing and gravy ive ever had (sorry mom). And the bartender was very pleasent to look at. So we went back there for a while. And then funny story, when it was time to leave, I somehow got separated from the group (aka abandonded lol). I was wating for Suibhne to get out of the bathroom...except he never came out! And i ended up talking to this girl Mary (irish) and her two guy friends and she insisted i share a cab home with them to my apartment. She refused to let me look around for Michelle, etc. It was funny. So i ended up back at my apartment at 2am, got my phone and call Sev and walked the 25 minutes back home to try and find them. (Mom...dont freak out. You have NO idea how safe/not bad it is here). Long story short...i found them. :) Note to self: Dont leave michelle...ever! And try not to get sucked into the irish's extreme friendliness!
.
Okay...i'm super tired of bloggin.....and this is long enough! So i'll have to give you saturdays update later.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Galway Pictures
This is a horrible picture of downtown Galway.
A Hostel downtown :)
This is some....ruin or something that i walk by everyday to get to school. It's right off the side of the road. They dont have a sign near it or anything. Its sitting right next to a river.
Right after this sign is the path into the bushes. The apartments i live in a right on the other side of the trees.
This is the entrance to my apartment complex. Its Gort na coribie (pronounced gort-na care-a-bee)
This is my apartment! Its the second door from the right, and the window right above the white part is my room. Its nice... :)
I'll take more and better ones soon. I'm taking my camera out tonight so i can get some good pictures of downtown.
Grocery shopping in Ireland is my LEAST favorite thing
It was a miserable experience. First of all, in Ireland, their grocery store is called "Dunnes", which is kind of like a Super Walmart with clothes and stuff. Its intense though. So not only do they hardly have ANY american brands (it took me forever to find Oreos), but even the stuff they do have comes in wierd packaging with different labels. Apparently they dont have an FDA-type organization because their nutritional facts are ....non exisitent. It just says "<2>8 grams protien" and other completely usless and ambiguous information.
When i mentioned this store is like Walmart, i really ment it. It was chaotic and people were everywhere and they had maybe 3 cashiers. And it seems like whenever an American uses a card, they have to verify your signature with another ID and then go get it signed by some "head" person. It takes forever and the people behind got really mad.
One thing that sucks (but is a cool idea actually) is you have to pay for plastic bags, everywhere. Ya know...the cheap little foodlion grocery bags that Americans collect? Yes...you have to pay to get one. I havent noticed the price but i think its like 10cents ($.17ish?) for one. So everyone buys and uses those cloth bags they started selling in America. Its a cool idea but i doubt it would ever work in the states. ANNND they charge you to use a grocery cart. Which is just ludicrous. So...moral of the story is....im not going grocery shopping again....it was awful. (except they sell half loaves of bread....which were adorable)
Other than that, i have been doing good. Adjusting to the culture, etc. has been a little difficult. It is a lot more diffent here than i thought it would be. Things are just strange. And its definately an underdeveloped country; like the example with not having an FDA. Here is a list of some really strange things:
1. the trash cans are all the type with the thing you step on that opens the lid. I mean..ALL of the trash cans are like that.
2. The "strip malls" here are what every single shopping center is like, except its like a regular mall would be in the states. You walk in the front doors and have to pass several jewelery and clothing stores just to get to the grocery store. Its intersting.
3. You have to pull a string to get hot water for a shower.
4. I dont think they have any sort of "adopt-a-highway" program, because there is litter all over on the side of the roads. It's sad.
5. The exit signs dont say "exit". Its a green sign with an arrow and a stick figure of a guy running. Its not at all what you think an exit sign should be.
Thats all the weird things i can think of for right now. I'm super tired :( But i'll put some pictures up really quick!
This is the famous Guiness factory.
The front door to the guiness factory. It reminded me of Willy Wonka. They had this huge gate surrounding the whole place but you could kind of see the factory inside. This was in Dublin, right by the train station we were waiting at.
This is Dublin as seen from the double decker bus i was on. There is a river that runs through the main part and they have cute little bridges that go across ever 50 yards. You can kind of see the river on the bottom right and the bridge going across. All of the buildings in the cities of Ireland are laid out like this.
Getting on the bus from the airport in Dublin to the train station. These are some of the people in my group.
Dublin airport.
When i mentioned this store is like Walmart, i really ment it. It was chaotic and people were everywhere and they had maybe 3 cashiers. And it seems like whenever an American uses a card, they have to verify your signature with another ID and then go get it signed by some "head" person. It takes forever and the people behind got really mad.
One thing that sucks (but is a cool idea actually) is you have to pay for plastic bags, everywhere. Ya know...the cheap little foodlion grocery bags that Americans collect? Yes...you have to pay to get one. I havent noticed the price but i think its like 10cents ($.17ish?) for one. So everyone buys and uses those cloth bags they started selling in America. Its a cool idea but i doubt it would ever work in the states. ANNND they charge you to use a grocery cart. Which is just ludicrous. So...moral of the story is....im not going grocery shopping again....it was awful. (except they sell half loaves of bread....which were adorable)
Other than that, i have been doing good. Adjusting to the culture, etc. has been a little difficult. It is a lot more diffent here than i thought it would be. Things are just strange. And its definately an underdeveloped country; like the example with not having an FDA. Here is a list of some really strange things:
1. the trash cans are all the type with the thing you step on that opens the lid. I mean..ALL of the trash cans are like that.
2. The "strip malls" here are what every single shopping center is like, except its like a regular mall would be in the states. You walk in the front doors and have to pass several jewelery and clothing stores just to get to the grocery store. Its intersting.
3. You have to pull a string to get hot water for a shower.
4. I dont think they have any sort of "adopt-a-highway" program, because there is litter all over on the side of the roads. It's sad.
5. The exit signs dont say "exit". Its a green sign with an arrow and a stick figure of a guy running. Its not at all what you think an exit sign should be.
Thats all the weird things i can think of for right now. I'm super tired :( But i'll put some pictures up really quick!
This is the famous Guiness factory.
The front door to the guiness factory. It reminded me of Willy Wonka. They had this huge gate surrounding the whole place but you could kind of see the factory inside. This was in Dublin, right by the train station we were waiting at.
This is Dublin as seen from the double decker bus i was on. There is a river that runs through the main part and they have cute little bridges that go across ever 50 yards. You can kind of see the river on the bottom right and the bridge going across. All of the buildings in the cities of Ireland are laid out like this. 
Getting on the bus from the airport in Dublin to the train station. These are some of the people in my group.
Dublin airport.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
I paid 30cents to pee
Yes. I never thought I would ever pay to have to enter a restroom, but i paid 30 cents (about 50 american cents) to pee at the train station in Dublin! In a country whose wealth is determined by the amount of Guiness they export, the total number of sheep and cattle grazing their endless amounts of land, and whose only means of drying clothing is to hang it outside (most often in the rain), I paid to pee. It was crazy!
I will have pictures up as soon as i get internet in my room where my cable is, but for now ill just explain a little bit about my experiences so far. I'm staying in an apartment which is pretty cool, except i have yet to mean my 5 other roomates. Except for one who i breifly saw this morning when i was walking out the door. She was at the table eating her cereal, so i stopped to say hi. She looked at me like she had a knife behind her back and was trying to determine which room number was mine. When she hadnt responded to my hello after 5 seconds, i turned around a left. Not a good sign. :( Maybe she doesnt speak english? Eitherway...i hope she doesnt figure out when room im in.
The drivers here are crazy, and they all drive compact cars. I have yet to see a 250 or even a SUV. They drive on the wrong side of the road and the lines painted on the road are all white, so i have a hard time crossing the road because i cant figure out which way to look. And they speed and honk incesently. Its a little overwhelming and definately isnt helping my anxiety.
Overall, it looks just like Virginia (as far as landscape wise) when you are in the city. Other than the arcitecture of the buildings. There are trees everywhere and the weather has been very similar to that of winchester; but its apparently been the best summer they have had in years. So im waiting for it to return to the "real" Irish weather because i packed a lOT of jeans and my rain coat is VERY cute :)
The Irish are very funny. The way the public (like the bus driver and waiters) interact with other people is hilarious. Sarcasim and teasing are very common and even seen as "friendly". As soon as i can figure out what they are saying, ill fit right in!
The classes im taking are Arcaeology and Irish Society. I get to go on tons of fieldtrips and stuff, so im excited. No, i haven't meet my new boyfriend yet, but i havent been out to a pub yet. That is on tonights agenda!
Well, i suppose that is all for now. My battery is dying....and i really want to go get some nasty irish coffee. Its like...flavored water....not even coffee-flavored water. Its crazy.
I could really go for some daily grind right now!
<3
I will have pictures up as soon as i get internet in my room where my cable is, but for now ill just explain a little bit about my experiences so far. I'm staying in an apartment which is pretty cool, except i have yet to mean my 5 other roomates. Except for one who i breifly saw this morning when i was walking out the door. She was at the table eating her cereal, so i stopped to say hi. She looked at me like she had a knife behind her back and was trying to determine which room number was mine. When she hadnt responded to my hello after 5 seconds, i turned around a left. Not a good sign. :( Maybe she doesnt speak english? Eitherway...i hope she doesnt figure out when room im in.
The drivers here are crazy, and they all drive compact cars. I have yet to see a 250 or even a SUV. They drive on the wrong side of the road and the lines painted on the road are all white, so i have a hard time crossing the road because i cant figure out which way to look. And they speed and honk incesently. Its a little overwhelming and definately isnt helping my anxiety.
Overall, it looks just like Virginia (as far as landscape wise) when you are in the city. Other than the arcitecture of the buildings. There are trees everywhere and the weather has been very similar to that of winchester; but its apparently been the best summer they have had in years. So im waiting for it to return to the "real" Irish weather because i packed a lOT of jeans and my rain coat is VERY cute :)
The Irish are very funny. The way the public (like the bus driver and waiters) interact with other people is hilarious. Sarcasim and teasing are very common and even seen as "friendly". As soon as i can figure out what they are saying, ill fit right in!
The classes im taking are Arcaeology and Irish Society. I get to go on tons of fieldtrips and stuff, so im excited. No, i haven't meet my new boyfriend yet, but i havent been out to a pub yet. That is on tonights agenda!
Well, i suppose that is all for now. My battery is dying....and i really want to go get some nasty irish coffee. Its like...flavored water....not even coffee-flavored water. Its crazy.
I could really go for some daily grind right now!
<3
I'm here!
And im going to be late for class, so i will post after class gets out. But i'm finally here and im totally overwhelmed!
P.S....the irish accent is unbelievably sexy :)
P.S....the irish accent is unbelievably sexy :)
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Pre Departure Pictures
No...i didnt take these. But here is just a few pictures of my new home :)
This is a picture of Kilmore Abbey (i think?) that is right in County Galway (where i'll be living). 
This is the city of Galway. I think you can see the University i'll be studying at!
50 Cents a Text message!
It's very sad when you're so poor that 50cents seems expensive, but that is what it is going to cost me everytime someone sends me a text message :( So before you text...just think about how many pints of Guiness you're keeping me from purchasing! Kidding....i wont be drinking guinesss......do they have good wine in Ireland? :) I guess ill find out!
So i leave on Monday....and im nowhere close to being done packing. Rather...i havent even started. And i have Ms. Soon-to-be-Tresidder's wedding tomorrow in Maryland...so i cant pack tomorrow! Ahhh! im such a procrastinator. Oh well....the Irish are free-spirited aren't they? So ill fit right in.
It really hasn't quite hit me yet, that for the next 5 weeks....ill be in Ireland. Ya know? THE Ireland. The country where the hot boys in "Boondock Saints" came from. I've never been out of the country (Canada and Mexico dont count...they are wannabes). I hope i dont get culture shock...but in a way i do. I want it to be completely different from America to the point where i have to adjust to it. It seems like i'll have a better experience if i do. Or at least a more...drastic one. But then again...they still speak English. Its not like i'm going to Japan. So....Moral of this lame story is........ No texting me....and....email me your address if you want a postcard! (or a pint of authentic irish whiskey :) chelseasherm@aol.com
So i leave on Monday....and im nowhere close to being done packing. Rather...i havent even started. And i have Ms. Soon-to-be-Tresidder's wedding tomorrow in Maryland...so i cant pack tomorrow! Ahhh! im such a procrastinator. Oh well....the Irish are free-spirited aren't they? So ill fit right in.
It really hasn't quite hit me yet, that for the next 5 weeks....ill be in Ireland. Ya know? THE Ireland. The country where the hot boys in "Boondock Saints" came from. I've never been out of the country (Canada and Mexico dont count...they are wannabes). I hope i dont get culture shock...but in a way i do. I want it to be completely different from America to the point where i have to adjust to it. It seems like i'll have a better experience if i do. Or at least a more...drastic one. But then again...they still speak English. Its not like i'm going to Japan. So....Moral of this lame story is........ No texting me....and....email me your address if you want a postcard! (or a pint of authentic irish whiskey :) chelseasherm@aol.com
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
