A few important lessons from my first couple of weeks...

Irish life is taking a little getting used to, but once I figured out the following things it all got easier:

1. Craic (said crack) means story or fun.  So when people say "What's the craic?" Or "That was craic!" it has nothing to do with drugs!

2. Instead of most buildings on campus beginning on floor 1 and working up to the top numerically, the first floor is G, then O, then M, then 1,2,3... and so on.  It makes it terribly confusing to find your classes!

3. Just because I technically speak the same language as the Irish students and professors doesn't mean I have any idea what they are saying!

4. Not only is it possible for Catholic mass to be less than an hour... it can be less than 30 minutes!  If you show up 10 minutes late you miss communion.

5. I will never take ISU's smoke free campus or free busses or wifi for granted again...

6. Irish students don't care that it is Sunday night, or Monday night, or Tuesday night... they are always up for a good party!

7. All the Americans that told me that nobody here would wear sweats, sweatshirts, and tennis shoes lied!  Many of the female students here on campus do dress very nicely, but many also dress for comfort and warmth... And so do I now!

8. Tea is consumed almost constantly... mostly because people are cold, not because they like it!  I have taken to this habit as well, but luckily I love tea!

I'll keep you posted as more oddities show up in my life here across the pond!

the Cliffs of Moher!

Yesterday was a true adventure... one of the reasons I decided to study abroad!

After missing a school planned day trip to the Cliffs of Moher last weekend, a group of my friends and I decided that we were going to take the trip planning into our own hands.  My friends Sebastian and Paul (both German) left yesterday morning for the Shannon airport to rent a car for the day.  After coming back to campus to pick up the very excited (and slightly nervous) ISU girls (Sydney, Steph, and myself) we headed off to the cliffs!

It was a day of excitement for sure!  We made it to the cliffs by lunch time.  After we had had our fill of the breathtaking views, and the rain, we headed for a little town to eat... Fish and chips and vinegar!

Here are a few photos from the first half of the trip:

 

For the rest of the day, we drove around in search of some of the interesting things we had read about in our Irish guide book.  While we failed repeatedly to find a specific town or sight, we had an amazing time seeing the countryside!

We stopped in a few small towns on our way home to walk around and se a few sights.  While it had begun to get too dark for pictures I did manage to snag one good one.

I don't know the details of the town or the water, but I plan to ask around and will let you know what I find out!

My first pub night!

Last night I went out to the more quite pub on campus (The Scholar's Club) with a few Americans for our first taste of Irish traditional music!  Every Wednesday night students from the music academy, or anyone with musical talent, here at UL meet up to play and enjoy a few beers.

The atmosphere was amazing!  All the musicians sat in a circle in the corner of the pub, many with their backs to the room, and just played!  The instruments ranged from the flute to the banjo and could not have sounded more perfect together.  The rhythms and beats are amazing!

I can't wait to hear and learn more about the music here in my county. I am taking a course this semester called Traditional Irish Music and will have the opportunity to learn how each region of Ireland has created their own sounds and how music has evolved here over the years.  I will also have the opportunity to take a tutorial focused on a specific area of music culture here.  I can learn the tin whistle, the bodhran (a type of drum), Gaelic and english song, or social dancing!  I'm torn on which area to study... but I'll let you know when I make a decision!

I posted a video of the music to flickr if you want to check it out!

PS.... Despite the cold and the rain, the sun came out long enough today to provide this view out my bedroom window! I tried to find the leprechaun, but had no luck!

A multicultural evening

Last night I went to an informational meeting for a weekend trip to the Ring of Kerry.  I have decided to join many of my international friends on the excursion for a weekend of dance classes, gaelic football, and traditional Irish food!  The trip is in March so i'll post the details as the date approaches.

The real fun of the night began after the meeting however... I decided to join a few friends for dinner at one of there apartments.  The crowd consisted of myself, Steph (my friend form ISU), 4 German guys (Thomas, Paul, Sebastian, and Stefan), and 1 Italian guy (Daniele)!  Thomas, our host decided to make spaghetti and Bolognese sauce... I offered to help along with Daniele.  This made for an interesting experience as Daniele is actually from Bologna!

After about 2 hours of cooking with language and cultural barriers we were able to enjoy a great meal together!  I can't wait for more experiences like this in the future!

Here a a few pictures to show the progression of the meal:

Thomas (left) and Daniele work to cut the 2lb block of frozen beef in half so it can fit in a pot!

Our pot was too small for the spaghetti and we kept having to add water as the noodles soaked it up...

...Which resulted in a lot of spaghetti being stuck to the bottom of the pan!

Limerick city milk market

Saturday morning the international society offered a bus to the city center to see the milk market (farmers market) and learn a little about what the city has to offer.  I'm glad I was able to join!  I finally got my hands on some some fresh fruit and other groceries in town.  The students from the society also showed us the hot spots in town fro food, drinks, and shopping.

Siblings+Dani+Liz+Justin - The "highlight" to my visit to the milk market was finding a litter of Chichi's Irish cousins:

I'm surprised that nobody working at this booth had punted one of them!

Big red bus

Yesterday, the international society sponsored a bus tour of Limerick city for all the international students.  I was able to get a spot on the top of the bus for better pictures... the trade was being cold for the next 2 hours!  I posted my pictures from the bus tour to my flickr, so click the link above to see them all.

Although I can't really complain to you Midwesterners about being cold, I have been chilled most of the time I have been here.  It's a different cold than at home though.  The wind blowing from the river is wet and with the on and off drizzle I feel like I can't dry out.  It will take a little getting used to.

I'm off to an Irish movie night with the international club... I'll post again soon!

My new home...

I feel like I am finally settling into my new home here in Ireland.  I live in Thomond Village, which is across the river from campus, but is still only about a 10 minute walk to the main campus.  In the picture below, you can see the river and my village.  I live in the building and the right side of the picture in Wren house (each house is a different bird).

I have five roommates, 1 American and 4 Irish, I have not met any of them however.  Although it has been lonely in my building, I have met a few girls in village.  Not many of the Irish students are back from break, so there are really only international students around.  Right now, I hang out with a few Americans, a Greek girl, and a few German guys.  It's amazing how well everyone speaks English! I can't wait to see what other students I will met in the coming weeks!

Today I have a double decker bus tour of Limerick, hopefully I'll have some good pictures to post!

One long day of travels later, I'm here!

The first day of my Irish adventure proved to hold some interesting twists...

After saying goodbye to my parents in Minneapolis (sad no matter how many times I've done it) I met up with Sydney and Steph, my fellow ISU travelers, for the first leg of our trip from minneapolis to Newark. The flight only had 20 people on it, including the flight crew!  We each got our own row and were able to sit back and enjoy the flight.  The empty seats also allowed me an amazing view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline as we landed.

In Newark, we had to endure a 4 hour layover before finally boarding our flight to Ireland.  As we waited (and watched the wild life (gross!)) the gate began to fill with college students.  In total, about 50 

additional US students also studying at UL were on our flight.  It was great to be able to get to know a few people's faces, and I was even able to recognize a few in the city center this afternoon!

As I continue to figure out the lay of the land tomorrow I'll post some information about my new friends, the campus, and the city center.  For now though, despite the fact that it is only 7pm here, I think it's about time to catch up on some sleep.

'Night!

Laura

PS... The sun came out for a bit this afternoon and made the green of Ireland even more breathtaking! I'll get pictures next time to prove that it has happened!

the details.

Hi all!
I'm excited that you have decided to follow my Ireland blog, or at least were interested enough to have clicked the link in your email!

As many of you already know, I am going to Ireland for the spring semester to study at the University of Limerick (www.ul.ie).  The university is in the city of Limerick in the south-west of Ireland.  My apartment and the university are right on the Shannon River and close to the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.

I will be living in Thomond Village, a university owned apartment complex;I have been assigned to a 6 bedroom, co-ed apartment.  I can't wait to meet my roommates, whom I am told should be a mix of Irish and other international students.

I leave on Monday, January 16th and return to the US on Tuesday, May 15th.  I can hardly wait to get across the pond and see how my adventure will unfold.  I hope you will enjoy my future post to see where my travels will bring me.

Love to all!
Laura