An Open Letter to my New-found Family

It is often said that it's not really about where you travel, but the company you keep. I came into this study abroad experience with my eyes half open I suppose, so excited to get going on the journey but so comfortable in the daily patterns of my home life. Let's be real: I know we all Facebook stalked each other before arriving on the trip, but how much can you really learn about someone from their Facebook page? Maybe their home town or college. Perhaps if their single or dating. Let me tell you what you can't learn. You can't learn how a person lights up when talking about the things they're truly passionate about, whether it's sailing or llama training or ice hockey. You can't learn how real the hanger truly is after getting lost in a foreign city for hours. You can't learn how it feels to just sit in a hotel room with someone after a really long night and talk about everything that's running through each other's minds. But all of these things and so much more are what I've learned through the past few months with yous. Yes, YOUS. Over our time here I've not only fallen in love with our city but all of you have become my family.

I think that life unfolds before you in a series of revelations. Your friendship has revealed to me things about myself I didn't even know existed. You all have opened my eyes fully to the point where I'm no longer concerned about what is happening at home or if the patterns are changing, but to just live in the moment because we are never going to get these days back. The memories I've made here will never leave my mind. When we go home, things are going to be different. There's absolutely no denying that. Our friends and family will never be able to fully grasp the things that happened to us here. That is a bond that only we will share and to me that's so powerful. Yes, we live scattered all over the United States, distances farther that the width of Ireland, but I can only hope that the distance will mean nothing when it comes to our friendship. Of course there will always be the college nights of getting far too drunk and acting a fool and then fondly reminiscing about it the next morning, but none of those nights will hold the same gravity as making it home from Dicey's at 4am before a bus trip the next day. The endless pregame selfies will never measure up to those taken as a tourist on the selfie-stick. For a while at least I'll look back on everything from study abroad and wish I was back again.

I cannot thank all of yous enough for being my friend over the past few months. Whether it was a night I was conducting the hot mess express or being there for me through the death of my friend, it was never a question of if I'd be able to turn to any of you for help. Thank you for being my travelling companions on this whirlwind adventure. Thank you for sharing your pizza with me, a most valued treasure. Thank you for listening to me complain about the same things over and over and always having a sympathetic ear. Thank you, thank you, thanks a mil.

Our time together in this amazing country is coming quickly to a close but hey, we don't talk about it right? I hope that none of us come out of this thinking YOU BLEW IT. I'm already counting the days until we are reunited.

I started writing this post weeks ago, long before I even considered writing our final papers, because i knew I would never be able to find the words I wanted to fully express my love and appreciation for all of you, but just know this: you've helped me live the life I've always imagined. You have taught me more than any of our professors in school. I've always thought that friends are there to help you become more of who you are. I came to Ireland looking for myself and found you guys along the way; and that's worth more than any other moment in my entire life.

One last time....
From Dublin, With Love.

The Long Walk Home

Have you ever taken the long way home just to think about things? That's what I did today. After finishing my exams I stayed at the IPA to finish my final paper on Irish elections. By the time I finished and started home it had just barely gotten dark. I took a step outside and felt the crisp winter air hit my face. I knew this was my last walk home. In the distance I heard the shouting of the water protesters and felt as if I was in Cathleen Ni Houlihan hearing the shouting over the hill. I started down Lansdowne Road, but something was different this time. I didn't pick up my quick pace as normal but instead found myself strolling along taking everything in, not worried about my face going numb from the wind. I walked by the Clydecourt and Ballsbridge Hotel. I crossed the inconvenient intersection on the Pembroke Road. I noticed the green glow on the wall of The Den Bar. I walked by the knock-off Chipotle and stopped at the ATM for hopefully the last time in Ireland. I turned left at the Wellington and began my journey down the canal. I watched the water lap against the bank through the reeds. I noticed someone had picked up most of the trash in the reeds. I watched the ducks float leisurely around. I watched the water flow over the lock, which I never actually got to see in action. I criss-crossed through traffic to avoid the missing piece of sidewalk. I watched the bikers fight the wind as they went by the Barge. I walked all the way home, noticing the paint on the houses and lack of leaves on the trees. It's crazy how much goes unnoticed on the roads you walk every day. Finally I turned towards home on Rathmines Road.

I'm going to miss this home of mine.


From Dublin, With Love.

The Week of Lasts

Hey everyone!

I know I missed Monday-Blogday but you'll have to forgive me as I was in the middle of taking a final! This past week has really flown by. This post is just going to be a quick recap, but I promised to keep you updated so here we go. On Saturday I got a tattoo! Surprise! I hadn't really told anyone at home about it but all my friends here were on board. Kelly and Anne were supposed to come watch it go down since they both have been at least considering some ink but they were a bit too hungover to make it down to the shop. Instead John came with me. I knew he'd be fine because he has some pretty big tattoos himself. I just got a triskele on my foot. The triskele is the Celtic symbol for personal growth and development. The three spirals represent your past, present, and future. I think it's a sick piece and it's healing pretty well! This started the long week of lasts. On our last Sunday, we decided to go back to where it all began, Dun Laoghaire. We had spent our first Sunday there and thought it would be a great way to bring it full circle. We did a little shopping and walked out to the end of the pier one last time. Riding the DART past all the beautiful scenery was a solemn reminder that we wouldn't be seeing it again anytime soon :( Sunday night was spent studying for our Politics, Society, and European Union finals which took place on Monday. Then on Monday night Arcadia took us out for our farewell meal. It was three courses and mighty tasty, but there was no free alcohol so we hit the pub afterwards. Instead of Blackbird we opted for the Bleeding Horse, another local place. The ManU soccer match was on so we kicked back with a few pints and enjoyed the game. Tuesday was spent studying for our history and literature finals. Today after finishing my finals I stayed at school to finish up my last paper and turn it in. I never have to make the long walk to the IPA again! It's a bittersweet feeling. Now, I'm just relaxing and trying to strategize how I'm going to pack. See you soon America. Only a few posts left.


From Dublin, With Love.

A Weekend in Bruss(ILL)s

Here we are. The second to last Monday blog-day! Woah! It's absolutely absurd to thing that in less that two weeks I'll be back on American soil. Who's excited?! Anywhoooo... This Monday is dedicated to recapping my weekend in Brussels with my boyfriend John. Yes, you read that correctly. I have been dating an Irishman. His name is John and we met at Blackbird, the local bar, where he's a bartender. But this isn't about that story. 

As an early Christmas present he flew me out to Belgium with him for a weekend of exploring the sites and shopping. We left on Friday morning, or was it Thursday night? Who knows because neither of us had slept. Both of us were absolutely wrecked (Irish for exhausted) but off we went. It was actually ballin to watch the sunrise from above the clouds. Check out my insta! When we got to Brussels we decided to take the train to the B&B that we were staying in. It was only one stop away so we figured it couldn't be that hard. After roaming the streets with a flimsy map for a little we finally found the place. We tried the door code several times but it didn't work! We later realized that we weren't supposed to check in until 2, but a lovely cleaning lady let us in. It was grand! It seems to just be my luck that every place I stay in is a fifth floor freakin walk up, so up we hiked. It was well worth the walk though. It was essentially a mini apartment. I loved it. After a quick nap we decided to go grab some food. This is where my trouble started. Most of you probably don't know but I have ridiculously low blood pressure and sometimes it acts up making me really sick. Of course it happened on this vacation. After almost passing out at dinner we decided it would probably be best to just go back to the apartment. I tried sleeping it off and we wound up watching Total Recall and Mean Girls. Overall not a totallll waste of a day but I was still annoyed with myself for being sick. John, as always, was very supportive and told me not to worry about it. The next morning we woke up to breakfast in bed! The B&B people even emailed us saying sorry for not being able to get in the day before. I was still feeling hella sick but didn't want to waste another day of our vacation. I put on my toughest face and off to the train station we went. We wanted to go to Brugge which is about an hour outside Brussels to visit the famous Christmas markets! I slept most of the train ride but even once we got to Brugge I thought I might pass out. Luckily just as we were trying to make a decision about whether or not we should just go home I finally perked up. John thought I was lying just to make him happy but I swear I was reborn! Hahah. Anyway we spent some time shopping and taking in the beautiful architecture. I grabbed some Christmas ornaments for some of the girls back in Dublin and of course my signature post cards. Instead of climbing the tall bell tower we elected to take in the views of the cities from the giant Christmas Ferris Wheel. I nearly died laughing while John clung on for dear life and just kept freakingg out that he wasn't strapped in. Amidst all that nonsense we really were surrounded by spectacular views of Brugge. We got back on the train shortly after. When we got back to Brussels we ended up stumbling upon the biggest tourist attractions by accident! While looking for somewhere to eat dinner we wandered by the Mannequin Pis, which has become the city's adopted mascot. I think it's a little creepy because it's literally just this little boy peeing into a fountain. The original statue is housed in the King's rooms of one of the two castles in Brussels. Yes two. One for living and one for showing off. Way to go Belgian Royal Family. Then we came upon the Grand Place and saw a breathtaking light show. Even though we were absolutely freezing we had a great time. John stopped at this Belgian beer shop to pick up a few new ones to try. Believe it or not I stayed absolutely sober this weekend! I didn't want to mess with the blood pressure any more than needed. We headed back to the apartment and took turns trying the big box of Belgian chocolates we bought in Brugge. We had told the chocolatier to jus give us an assortment of milk chocolate so we had no idea what we were getting into. Kinda like the movie The Vow if you've seen that haha. After absolutely stuffing ourselves with chocolate we watched a few British game shows on TV and a comedy special. Great Craic. John and I had a hilarious FaceTime session with my best friend at home, Bri. She said John passes the test so don't worry family! We turned in early to be rested for our last day on vacation. After another breakfast in bed we grabbed our bags and headed out to do everything we hadn't seen yet. Luckily I was feeling better. Neither of us were prepared for how arctic cold it would be! It was about freezing air and the wind was brutal. After blundering blindly for a while we finally found the hop-on hop-off tour and got on. We headed out to the Atomium first. It's a huge building that is modeled after an atom of iron magnified billions of times. Each orb on it is to commemorate a Belgian scientist who made some sort of significant contribution to the scientific community. After shaking and shivering for a while we got back on the bus and saw some crazy monuments and churches. On the second half of the tour we drove by the European Parliament and I got some interesting and helpful information for my final next week on the EU! John was bored to tears but knew I was into it hahah he's not big on political science. After the tour was over we grabbed some lunch and headed to the airport. Poor john lost his phone in the last few hours of the trip and was pretty pissed off but we successfully got on the plane and made it home to Dublin (even with some wicked turbulence) It's so sad for me to think that the next time I'll be in the airport I'll be going home! I am beyond excited to see everyone though. 

Overall it was a hot mess of a weekend but me and john both agreed that it was just nice to have a vacation before I go home. I can't thank him enough ( I know he's reading this) for everything he's done for me over the past few months. He's kept me sane and safe and taken very good care of me. I'm gonna miss him a lot but that's why I'm booking a trip back here over spring break! Woohoo! 

Anyway, enough blogging. I have three papers to write and a turkey to cook for friendsgiving tonight! 

From Dublin with Love 

Capes, Cops, and Cocktails: The Berlin Chronicles

Prost! 

How's it going everyone?! First off prost is German for cheers so you now know another new language. Anyway this weekend I headed off for my second to last trip of study abroad (crying as I type that). Early on Friday morning, aka 4am, my friends and I traveled by taxi to Dublin airport. I might as well rent a bed there for the month of November considering how often I've been there! We discovered the Aer Lingus app had mobile check-in so we had boarding passes on our iPhones and breezed through security. After the mandatory coffee stop (I travel with a gang of caffeine addicts) it was finally time to board. I managed to catch some z's on the plane. If I hadn't, day 1 would have been struggle city. Berlin, like most other European cities has a ballin' metro system so we decided to be truly adventurous and navigate it blindly to our AirBnB. For those of you who don't know what an AirBnB is, it's basically someone privately owns an apartment and rents it out to travelers through the website. It's much nicer than a hostel and about the same price! We ended up having a penthouse type set up in one of the nicest apartments I've ever seen! Here's a link if you wanna check it out. If you're ever in Berlin and need a place to stay I highly recommend it. The only downside was the lack of elevator. It felt like we were climbing a mountain every time we got home. Our friend Catherine had flown in from Paris a little earlier than us and was waiting for our arrival. After regrouping for a few minutes we ventured to this market to meet up with Catherine's friends who were studying in Berlin. It was sweet to have our own tour guide who knew his way around and even spoke a little German. We went to the local grocery store and grabbed some beers. The beautiful part about Berlin is there are no open container laws (more on this later) so we casually strolled along the river drinking our Schofferhoffer admiring the city. You may be wondering if it was cold in Berlin? Well it was. About 35-40 degrees Fahrenheit while we were there but for the most part we didn't notice. For a late lunch we grabbed some burgers because, let's be real I'm essentially trying one in every country. The boys offered to cook us dinner at their apartment so we had those plans ironed out but wanted to get a little culture in on the first day. One of the girls I was with is a history major and we were totally geeking out over being in Germany. I've always had a strange fascination with WWII and Holocaust history. Anyway we headed over the Jewish History Museum which is designed with very deliberate architecture and exhibits. It was full of artifacts from actual people involved in the holocaust and persecution. It was so powerful. Everywhere you looked there was another art exhibit with a deep meaning linking to anti-Semitic themes. My favorite part was the garden of exile where there are these tall stones on slanted ground that make you feel dizzy and disoriented. It's hard to explain but it certainly is representative of the way Jews felt in Nazi Germany. After exploring the rest of the halls we headed to the boys' apartment where they had laid out quite the luxurious spread from a cheese tray with wine and a bangin stir fry. We certainly were living the high life this weekend. The plan was originally to have dinner and then head to a bar or club. Well that didn't happen. Our host ended getting a little too drunk and somehow took us to a random house party in the middle of Berlin. The best part was we thought that he knew the people but a few minutes in we learned that we were completely alone! We evacuated from there fairly quickly but still hilarious. We stopped at one more place before cabbing it back to our place. Speaking of cabbing it, god bless all the kind Germans who called big vans for us since we were a group of five and couldn't fit in a standard cab. The next morning we woke up determined to get a lot done. We had breakfast and coffee and this bagel place which was sweet because we don't get a lot of bagels in Dublin or Paris. From there we tried to take the metro to the Berlin Wall which was where our first and only bit of trouble happened. So in Berlin you have to validate your metro ticket before boarding but apparently one of us did it wrong and the secret metro police who were so shady and undercover made us get off and charged our poor friend Madeline 40euro! So lame, but again one for the record books. We ended up making it to the wall which is really intense. All along the top at various points there's these ghoul like statues but the wall itself is cool covered in interesting art pieces and messages. 

From the wall we found this really cool store full of handmade rings and retro things. The girl working there had just moved to Berlin from Maine and gave us great advice on how to get to Checkpoint Charlie. Off we went! After stopping at Starbucks (caffeine addicts I swear!) we saw the checkpoint which is actually just a little booth in the middle of the street. We got kinda annoyed when we realized the "American" soldiers were actually German totally mocking our servicemen and taking some risqué photos with tourists with our flag. We stopped at the souvenir shop so I could get some postcards and headed back to the apartment to plan the rest of the evening. We eventually formulated an itinerary that started off at the Kadawe, the largest department store in Europe. This place was massive. The whole bottom floor was all luxury stores that I could never even dream of affording but we worked our way through and ended up at the restaurant at the top and ate dinner overlooking the street. Then we decided we wanted to go to the top of the Television Tower. It's one of the biggest landmarks in Berlin and was built by the soviets. When we got off the metro though we stumbled upon a 5 euro cocktail place which is just too good to pass up. After enjoying the first mojito we realized we could get one to go. Literally we were five American girls strolling the streets of Berlin with Mojitos! So euro! The tower itself wasn't too hard to navigate to as you can see it from almost everywhere. The elevator takes you 260 meters up in about 40 seconds and the top is a 360 panoramic view of the city. So breathtaking. There was a bar up there so we hung out for a while just hanging out and talking about life. 

After that we were gonna go home to get an early jump on our last day but ended up in a club for a little bit which was an experience no doubt. It was mostly older people ordering bottle service of Absolut. Seriously go big or go home folks, but we had a great time dancing and enjoying life. 

One our last morning in the apartment we all packed up our backpacks and headed out to explore Museums and the bigger tourist attractions. We had the most questionable breakfasts known to man ranging from an Irish breakfast to pizza. We're an eclectic bunch no doubt. From the breakfast place it was only a short walk to museum island which is where the national art gallery and all that jazz is. Honestly it was nothing special so we moved on. Once on the other side of the river some of the group stopped in the German History Museum to utilize the coat check for their bags. I just had one backpack (I'm becoming a really efficient packer!) so I carried it with me all day. We continued down the road to the Brandenburg Gate and took some obligatory tourist pics. Then we hung a left and ended up at the Holocaust Memorial which was awesome. There was a free museum underneath so of course we explored it. I could have stayed there all day reading the stories of those poor souls. Definitely a moving experience. A pit stop was need after that so we grabbed coffee. I finally found a Dunkin in Europe so of course I had iced coffee. I don't care how cold it was outside, you don't understand the struggle of trying to find ice anywhere in Europe. It's just not a thing. After the delicious DD break we walked down to the Reichstag which is the German parliament building. It was crazy to think we were looking at places that Adolf Hitler had been, as well as thinking how different the city would have looked even 25 years ago. The building itself is huge and imposing, a true must see. We knew we had to start heading to the airport soon so we hiked back to the German History Museum where the bags were checked. We had time to kill so we explored in there a little. I went and saw a killer exhibit called The Eyes of War which told the story of around 40 people who had been blinded in the war or shortly after from ammunition left around by troops fleeing. The stories were really sad as all of the blindings were just accidents. Most of the time when these people were kids they just didn't know that their "toys" were actually deadly weapons. It was truly heartbreaking. Finally we headed via metro back to the airport. I broke the tradition of having McDonald's in every country but did end up with some ballin Burger King. Let me just take this time to say how horrifying the Berlin airport is. It's a thousand degrees inside with no where to sit. Literally people just sprawled on the floor everywhere you looked. It was torturous to have to sit in there for a few hours. Thankfully though I got on the plane and sat next to a lovely Irish woman who gave me gum and offered me lots of snack. She wanted to hear all about studying in Ireland and what I thought about it. It was just another reminder of why I love this country so much. You won't find friendlier people or a more warm atmosphere. As the last days of my semester are winding down I'm full of so many conflicting emotions. I'm going to miss it here more than I could ever express in words on this blog. But I try not to think about the little countdown ticking away at the right of the screen. I still have plenty of time to love it up. I'll be back. 

From Dublin with Love. 

I fought the top bunk and the top bunk won.

Hey friends, family, and acquaintances,

So I CZECHED another country off the list this weekend when I visited Prague in the Czech Republic. ****PARENTAL WARNING- things got a little messy this trip and I will be nothing but brutally honest in this post hahah**** On Friday I woke up early and hopped on the Dublin Bus to take me into city center where I was catching the Aircoach. The Aircoach is an awesome service here in Dublin where a shuttle bus will pick you up and take you to the airport for around 6 euro. I was meeting my friend Paige from home and her roommate who are studying at UCD. Because we had checked in using the Aer Lingus app we could bypass all the typical waiting around and head straight to security. The flight itself was a little over two hours long. Upon arriving in Prague there were immediate signs of the communist and soviet era. Everything seemed a little colder and there was certainly a feeling that the country was playing catch-up in their post-communist state. I continued my tradition of tasting the McDonald's in every country before hopping in the cab towards the hostel. One of the biggest difference in the Czech Republic is their currency; they aren't members of the European Union and therefore don't use the Euro. Instead, they use the Czech Koruna. I took out about 2000 koruna which equates to about $97 US dollars. We got to our hostel, The Czech Inn, which is on the newer side of Prague. Ironically the newer part is not as nice as Old Town because it was built up during the Soviet Era. After settling in we tried to venture out to find food. There wasn't much around but we found a Chinese place. Even that was a struggle though. The shop owners first language was Chinese and her second language was Czech, so we ended up pointing to the menu and hoping for the best. We got back to the hostel and met up with our nine other roommates who were on the trip with us to get ready for the Clock Tower Bar Crawl. Prague is the nightlife capital of Europe and the thing to do on Fridays is crawl. This is where the trouble started. This crawl was 18 euro and included a four hour open bar. I felt like I was back in an international frat party. We played beer pong with people from Spain and Liverpool among other places. By the end of the night was had the whole bar chanting USA as we dominated every opponent in pong. They also just carry around trays and trays of free shots for you to grab as you party. We left the first bar and walked across the street to stop number two. Did I mention that at every bar they give you a welcome shot? This one was an underground dance club type experience where everyone was on the stage dancing around enjoying their 3 for 2 euro Jager bombs... The third bar was about a 20 minute walk. Along the way we almost got hit by the tram; that was the first near death experience. The third place got really weird, really quickly so we didn't stay long. We decided it would be best to hop off the crawl before the last stop so we wouldn't be too hungover for the next day. After cabbing it back to the hostel I attempted to get back into the top bunk but missed a step on the ladder, kicked the bed HARD, and fell, injuring myself pretty badly. In all honesty I probably should have gotten stitches but they aren't so easily accessible in a foreign country where you don't speak the language. I went to bed and dealt with it in the morning . Everyone woke up around 9 to go to breakfast and get ready for the walking tour. My injuries forced me to walk a little slower but I toughed it out and made it through the day. We went down to the water and viewed the city, saw the Charles Bridge, and even made a stop at the John Lennon Wall. The wall was my favorite part. During the Velvet Revolution, which was the movement to pull away from communism and eventually allowed the country to become a republic, young activists and students would come to this wall and write secret messages about protests and meetings. Every day the communist forces would come to the wall and paint over them. If you were caught writing on the wall you would be arrested and tortured. Today though, the wall serves as a symbol of the country's progress and people come from all over the world to leave messages. Our trip leaders brought some spray paint for us to write our own messages. Paige and I decided to leave an Irish message and wrote Slainte. I also put #NBLB on the wall in memory of Sara. For lunch we had a traditional three-course Czech meal which was, well, interesting. The first course was a weird soup, followed by beef goulash. Not horrible but not my favorite European meal. For dessert we had apple strudel. After lunch we traveled by tram up the hill to Prague castle. The castle itself is pretty small and is really just a group of building surrounding what people thing is Prague Castle, St. Vicar's Cathedral. St. Vicar's is a huge Gothic building and is actually the second largest cathedral in the world. We explored there a little bit and had Starbucks on the side of the cliff. Then we headed back to the hostel for a rest. For dinner we found a place by the metro where some of us had burgers and other had more traditional Czech food like pork knuckles and cheek. Very bizarre. On the last day in Prague we woke up and headed to Old Town Square to see the Astrological Clock which was voted the second most disappointing tourist attraction in Europe, next to the Mona Lisa, While beautiful, the clock doesn't do much except the parts move on the hour for a small show. Each piece of the clock represents something which was interesting to learn about. We stopped at a place called the Bakeshop for a light lunch before heading off to the airport. One interesting fact about the Prague airport is that there is no security until you get to your individual gate. Each gate has its own mini security check. While I had a very fun time in Prague I am always excited to go home. It's actually starting to scare me that when I think of home I think of Dublin instead of America. It is just such an overwhelming feeling every time I get off the plane in Dublin knowing that I am back in a place that brings me so much happiness. I have had very few bad days here and I'm not ready to come home. I wish I could just come home for Christmas time and come back for the spring. In any case I am going to live it up for the rest of my time here and I know I will be back as soon as possible. Berlin next weekend!


From Dublin with Love.

Fly High Shaquita

Hello everyone,

I told myself that this blog would be a representation of my time abroad: the good, the bad, and the ugly. I'm sad to say that today is one of the saddest days in my life. One of my good friends has passed away. Sara Sawick was an infectious spirit so full of love and life. From volleyball to softball, royal masque to kairos, parking lot dance parties, to late night conversations we used to be inseperable. You always were there to make everyone around you laugh. No matter how mad I was at you, you would always make me laugh and everything would be fine. Our relationship was a unique one: the definition of love/hate. I'll never be able to look at a squirrel or sing Baby It's Cold Outside without thinking of you. Your death was a tragic reminder of the fragility of life. I only wish I could be home to say goodbye to you one last time. You lived a life full of laughter and YOLO-ing where you always told every one around you "why blend in when you can stand out". You certainly did that and no one will forget you. Sara, you stayed k&k until the very end. So much untapped talent and potential and love. May angels lead you in. NBLB. BSC. BBs. 

A dull weekend in Ireland is better than an average weekend anywhere else

Greetings friends!

I don't have to much to report this week. It was relatively quiet, but much needed. The work week was grueling as always, but I did get to work on some secret projects on Thursday which made things a little more interesting. The world of Irish politics is currently dominated by the water charges being put in place to deal with the EU Bail-out. The debates have been very interesting and I'd say I have gained a better understanding of what grinds the gears of the average Irish citizen. If you are interested in seeing all the things I am working on you can check out this website: Irish Independent
The party I work for is the party in power, Fine Gael. On the weekend, I fully intended on starting to work on my final papers. Crazy to think that I already have to start thinking about finals! Instead, I slept a lot and recovered from the constant running that study abroad has caused. On Saturday night I went and saw the movie Gone Girl with Kelly. What a phenomenal movie, I definitely recommend it! One weird thing about the cinema, as it's referred to here, is that you have assigned seating! Luckily we had good seats right in the middle. Of course afterwards we headed to the pub for a pint or two. My friend James asked me if I'd go to church with him on Sunday and I don't know if it was the beer talking but I agreed. Those of you who know me well enough know that I'm not really a religious person and don't even go to church at home, but I actually enjoyed the mass! It was at 6pm so I still got to sleep in, plus there is a folk music group that does the cantering! They even sang Let It Be for the Communion hymn. It was a little piece of home since Catholic masses are the same no matter where you go in the world. We even brought our friend Kelly along which was hilarious because she is a Baptist and was totally lost. She seemed to think we were in an aerobics class rather than mass with all the standing, sitting, and kneeling! We also got to see the upcoming candidates for Confirmation as it was their enrollment mass. Fifty adorable little Irish lads and lasses, reminding us how old we actually are these days.....Oh well, afterwards we went, you guessed it, to the pub for some post-church pints of Guinness and a chat with the bartenders where we really confess our sins.

Only a few weeks left!

From Dublin, With Love.

Halloweekend

Halloween has always been a fun time of year for me as long as I can remember. I love watching the leaves change color and fall to the earth. The rich reds, oranges, and yellows of autumn slowly transform into the oranges, purple, and black of the Halloween season. Things were a little different this year. At home, my friends and I spend weeks planning our Halloween festivities. Whether it's decorations, or costumes, or what parties we're going to, every thing gets planned down to the tiniest detail. In Ireland, though, Halloween is not nearly as big of a deal. The only place you actually see decorations is at the airport. I didn't even have a costume until the day of! Our weekend started on Wednesday with a small party hosted by my friends Susan and Kelly. We all had work the next day so it was a small get together. Up until about an hour before the event I still didn't know what I was going to dress up as, but I eventually scrounged through my bedroom and pulled the pieces together for a tourist costume, selfie stick included. It was great craic going around the party taking ridiculous pictures of everyone. On Thursday, we decided to take it easy and hang out at James and Dev's place playing one of our favorite games, Cardboard. Some people went out afterwards but I was dead tired after a long work week, so I turned in early. Halloween finally rolled around and I had not idea what to wear. I headed down to EuroGiant where nothing is more than 2euro and purchased some face-paint. I decided to go with the most unoriginal costume of the year: a sugar skull. I was pretty pleased with the finished product and headed out to Blackbird for some drinks. The original plan was to hop around a little bit but as always I ended up staying at Blackbird for the rest of the night. James' girlfriend was in for the week and had a flight to catch the next morning so we were supposed to keep it a quiet night, supposed to being the key phrase here. The next day, after a few pints of water and a long nap, Dev and I headed to Dracula's Castle, which is half haunted house, half magic show. It was a cool way to have a chill night that wasn't just sitting around. We even got involved in the show, getting called on stage to be a part of the act. Afterwards we headed back to Rathmines by bus, grabbed some Chinese, and spent the rest of the night watching Sherlock on the AppleTV. Sunday was a lazy day filled with half-hearted attempts at cleaning the flat. I grabbed an early dinner with John and hung out with friends for a while before heading back to, you guessed it, Blackbird to grab a drink with Kelly and her parents who are in for the week. They even invited me and Anne to a later dinner so we headed into city centre for a nice relaxing night. Currently, I'm back in class, obviously diligently taking notes.....Sorry mom. SO I guess I'll get back to that.


From Dublin, With Love.

Paris: infinity; Real Housewives of Rathmines: 0

Bonjour!
You may be wondering what is going on with the title of this post? Well let me tell you: Paris won. Anything that could have gone wrong on the week in Paris did, but I think the silver lining of it all was that we all still had a really amazing experience.

It all started early on Monday morning. Up before the sun we had to trek from our home sweet home in Rathmines to the United States embassy which is about a 40 minute walk. I took a cab. Everyone was ungodly groggy as we made our way by chartered bus to Dublin International Airport. We got checked in and made it to the gate with about five minutes to spare before boarding. Then we see it. We'll be flying in a small plane. Now, I typically love flying but the whole turbulence thing freaks me out, so I was not too excited to see the contraption we going to be soaring in. In the end, it wasn't too bad of a flight and I slept for most of it. Even the landing was pretty smooth. Silver lining. Once we arrived at Charles de Gaulle we had to wait around for a little until our bus showed up. It was probably the nicest bus I've ever seen! Mercedes, leather interior, it even had tables in the back! We finally were experiencing our first looks at Paris. I immediately noticed major differences from Dublin. It was really dirty with lots of graffiti all around. The traffic was much heavier and they drive on the road like we do in America, which was kind of confusing because I finally got used to looking the opposite way when crossing the street!

The hotel we stayed in was really nice! I got lucky with my roommates and got to spend the week with Anne and Kelly ( SISTAHS!). The large window swung all the way open and looked out over the Rue de Berne, a quaint little Parisian street. It was raining our first day so we suited up and went down to the lobby to meet with Michael, our program director, for a speedy tour of the city. What actually ended up happening was Michael speeding ahead, chastising us for being too slow, and then dropping us in the Place de Concorde with no real idea of how to do anything! The language barrier was what threw me off the most at first. The stereotype is true and Parisians hate english for the most part, especially American english. I felt really awkward trying to communicate considering that my french goes about as far as bonjour, merci, and au revoir! A few of us ended up wandering down the river until the fatigue and hunger got the best of us. I had a very delicious crepe with Nutella and we headed back to the hotel via metro! That metro is absolutely insane. There are multiple lines with hundreds of transfers; it's pretty daunting the first time you try to decipher the map. In actuality it's very easy though and by the second day we were masters.

We got back to the hotel and power napped while we waited for Kelly's friend Catherine. Catherine is studying in Paris and had come to visit Dublin a few weeks back, so she was gonna take us out for a little bit. We found a nice spot in the Latin Quarter and had a phenomenal burger and lots of mojitos! Then we wandered down to this bar called ZeBar and the waiter was very nice considering it was a slow Monday night. They even put sparklers in our drinks! After the stress and confusion of the day it was nice to sit and unwind with some friends.

Day two began in Paris with a lovely breakfast provided by the hotel. We headed downstairs to the basement of the hotel and, in true Parisian fashion, indulged in unlimited croissants and various other snacks. We decided to get out of the main city for the day and found a train that could take us out to Versailles! This had some mishaps though. A bunch of us had purchased a pack of Metro tickets and as far as we could tell, those would work for the Versailles train. Well....we were wrong haha We got to the Versailles stop and tried using our tickets to get through the turnstile to no avail. Kelly and I had snuck through the gates by following someone else and squeezing through before it closed, but the others we were with weren't so lucky. Fortunately the transport officer had pity on us foolish Americans and let them through, while giving us directions on how to properly purchase tickets for the ride home. After that debacle, we took the short walk from the train station to the Palace itself. The queues were uncharacteristically long but it was worth every second of waiting! Versailles was absolutely unreal, the opulence of it all! Everything covered in gold, and detailed paintings, it was easy to get absorbed in one room for a long time examining every artwork! This led to another little problem because our group got separated. One of the many benefits of Dublin is that even when we aren't in a wifi zone, everyone in our group can easily communicate using our Irish cell phones. The problem with getting separated in Paris was that those Irish phones didn't work there, for the most part. After some stressful searching the group I was with decided that it would just be best to meet them back at the hotel in Paris. In a moment of pure joy, we ran into them on the train; what a reunion! Once back at the hotel it was 100% time for a nap. Once we woke up, a large group of the interns headed down to the Italian restaurant on our street (I swear we ate at every Italian place in Paris). Dinner was delicious and the wine was flowing! We headed back to the hotel to continue drinking and let's just say none of us made it out that night. Classic.

The third day in Paris arrived before we knew it! There was still so much on our to-do list, so we decided to make the day productive. Our first stop was Notre Dame. The cathedral was amazing inside and out. The stained glass windows were my favorite part as they were all so unique and ornate. There were so many little chapels within Notre Dame and I stopped at the one dedicated to Saint Anne to say a prayer for Nanny. The whole experience was very powerful for everyone I think. Once we got out of there we decided to head down towards the Arc de Triumph. Along the way we passed the infamous Lock Bridge. There are so many locks on the bridge that it is actually starting to collapse, so the city is in the process of taking most of the panels down. This has cause locks to start popping up on Bridges all along the river. Also on the way to the Arc was the Champs de Elysee, a street after my own family's name! I took some time to take pictures and try to take it all in. On both sides of this road are multiple luxury stores such as Louis Vuitton. My friends stopped at this famous macaroon place, while James and I swung into the Irish pub next door for a quick pint while they were shopping. It was great craic! Finally we reached the end of the Champs de Elysee and were greated by the Arc de Triumph, and impressive site no doubt. We took our photo op and moved on quickly to continue down our extensive list of sites to see. The next stop on our trip was the Eiffel Tower of course! We were meeting up with Catherine again to have dinner under the tower. After mulling around for a little we grabbed some pizzas (typical) and a few bottles of wine and laid in the grass watching the Eiffel Tower light show

After our grand dinner under the Tower, we headed down to the river, as we had planned to take a river tour of the city. The whole gang got on board and had a glass of champagne while cruising through the water. It was a nice relaxing end to our day and an absolute treat to get to see Paris at night.

On the morning of day 4 we realized our time in France was almost up! We had breakfast once again at the hotel and hopped on the metro to take us to the section of the city that holds the Catacombs, Then the waiting game began. We waited over two hours to enter that Catacombs, but we were committed. We passed the time by playing Guess the Emoji on the iPhone, as well as some other games; When we finally got into the Catacombs we went down a narrow winding staircase that took us far under the streets of Paris. The bones of 6 million Parisians are down there and it is a very sombering place. Upon the entrance of the crypt was engraved a saying in french that roughly translates to, "Stop. This is the empire of the dead," and that it was. Seeing all those bones that once were people made me acutely aware of my own mortality, something that often gets forgotten on this wild adventure. We went through all the caverns and halls in almost silence. When we eventually made our way out the other side, we were all hungry and stopped where else but McDonald's. I've made it my mission to get McDonald's in every country I go through. Mind you the McDonald's here is much better than in the states. From there we headed to the Louvre, the home of the Mona Lisa! As students we got in for free and headed right to the main attraction, Mona herself. We snapped a couple selfies and decided to head back to the hotel to rest up for our last night out in Paris. Over the course of the trip we got very good at not paying for the metro by either going under the turnstile or going in groups through the gate. Sorry Paris, I don't like you anyway! After a power nap and banging dinner, we made our way back to the Latin Quarter. Here we bought drinks by the liter and had a great time. On the way home we stopped at this club that ended up being full of Brazilian strippers who didn't speak English or French. It was an experience that I don't wish to experience again and we didn't stay very long. Our time in Paris was almost over and all of us could not wait to get back to Dublin. The struggle of our last evening was our taxi driver having no idea where he was going. Surprisingly, we were able to direct him well enough to get us close, and then we walked the rest of the way.

Our final morning in Paris consisted of breakfast and packing our stuff up. The bus ride to the airport seemed to stretch on forever as the anticipation of going home built up. I think my favorite part about travelling is the feeling of home every time I get back to Dublin. I never thought I would be able to feel truly at home anywhere but Philadelphia until I came here. Not to scare anyone at home, but I could certainly see myself living here for an extended period of time, quite happily. I love America as most of you know, but this whole experience has opened up my mind to a whole new world of possibilities for my life. Upon arrival back in Dublin we headed straight to our local pub for some pints. They were needed and well deserved after the hot mess express that was Paris. I even had a new beer that is about as close to chocolate milk as a beer can be. It's a new favorite: Left Hand Brewing Company Nitro Milk Stout if you're interested in checking it out.

I guess all in all Paris was just grand, but there's nothing that compares to being home; home in Dublin.


From Dublin, with love.

Come to Ireland for the Craic

So we've officially passed the halfway point in this whirlwind adventure! Unbelievable! Luckily for me, this occasion was marked with a visit from my lovely grandparents. After a quick crash course on Irish slang, we grabbed dinner and a pint when I was done work. The first two days of their visit we did the Dublin Hop-on Hop-Off tour! It was a great way for us to see a lot of things very quickly. I tried to throw in my own tidbits of knowledge of things along the way. The first day we took a trip out to the Phoenix Park on the hunt to find Cuminsky's Bar for a friend of my pop-pop's. After walking up what I'm sure was the biggest hill in Ireland, we gave in and called a cab to help us find it. It was a journey but we made it! We also checked out the Jameson Distillery which was awesome! The second day, we saw Christ Church and St. Patrick's Cathedral. I personally liked Christ Church better but St. Patrick's had some wicked cool stained glass! We ended the day at the Guinness Factory for a few pints and some delicious stew! We also got a bit of shopping done and haven't taken my Guinness hoodie off since. It's so comfy! We called it a day early because on Saturday my grandparents were taking me and my friend Kelly on a day trip to County Cork! We woke up early and headed out. The first stop was a town called Cobh, pronounced Cove. This was the last port of call for the Titanic! It was very windy but we took a tour through the Titanic museum there, each of us playing the part of a real passenger on the boat. We got tickets and everything. At the end of the tour you could see if the person who originally held your ticket survived or was lost in the tragedy. Kelly and I died but hey at least the grandparents survived! After that we departed for Blarney to see the castle and kiss the stone! Not worried about the germs we scaled the steep winding staircases until we reached the top. Hopefully I got the gift of the gab and not Ebola.....hahaha After that we headed to Cork City which is pretty much a wannabe Dublin. We didn't like it very much but luckily we only spent about an hour there before we hopped back on the bus to take us to Dublin. Exhausted from a long day, Kelly and I returned home to watch the movie Titanic after being inspired at the museum. We were even able to point out some key errors about the film, such as Leo having an assigned bunk room! They were first come first serve, so you had to hunt down an empty one yourself. The next morning I took the grandparents on the DART out to Dun Laoghaire to see the sailing and go to the market we like. We strolled around for a little getting crepes and cider with apple brandy before heading back to Dublin and saying our goodbyes. It was so great to see my family and have a little taste of home! I'm excited to see them again at Christmas. I can only hope they had as good of a time as I did showing them around.


From Dublin, With Love.

Belfast Blast

A few weeks ago (Oct 10-12th) I had the opportunity to get out of Dublin for a little and head up to Northern Ireland and Belfast! 

The drive up was so beautiful! There is no way pictures could ever truly capture the natural beauty of Ireland's landscape. Being that it was the weekend before our midterms, most of us were a little anxious about studying time, but considering we are studying all things Irish, exploring in Northern Ireland was the perfect destination to combine studying and fun! Upon arrival at the hotel, we had a presentation by an expert on Northern Ireland's ever changing murals. It was interesting to see how the murals transform during different political and social circumstances. The murals could depict any sort of message from violent to peaceful. They are not all focused on Northern Ireland issues either. I saw many about the Palestinian conflict and other global topics. After that we had dinner and thought about what we wanted to do for the evening. The biggest difference between Dublin and Belfast was just the sheer lack of people. It seemed like we were in a ghost town! The night life was pretty drab as well, but we eventually had found a place called The Basement that was playing some really awesome live music! Everyone was slagging me a bit because I decided to have a recovery weekend and stay sober hahah! We only stayed for a little bit though because we knew we had an early day the next morning. Bright and early we all piled into buses to take us up to the northern most point  on the island to see the Giants Causeway. The drive was interesting because of the crazy weather changes. One moment it was bright and sunny, then dense fog, then rain, and back to sun again! So bizarre! It was also weird to see the Union Jack flying everywhere as opposed to the Irish Tricolor. Northern Ireland is a part of the UK so it's under British control, hence the flags. Before we actually got up to the Causeway we had to drive through Bushmills and see where all that tasty whiskey comes from. Once at the Causeway we got a short guided tour telling us about the Celtic mythology surrounding the site, including a bunch of stories about the giant himself, Finn McCool! The scenery was breathtaking (see Facebook) and it was a beautiful crystal clear day! From the top of the cliff you can look off to your right and see Scotland in the distance and to the left, Donegal, the most northern part of the Republic of Ireland. After exploring the Causeway and cliffs for a few hours, we hopped back on the bus to go to a small town called Portrush for lunch. We had the most amazing barbeque pulled pork. Probably one of the best meals I've had in Ireland. We headed back to Belfast after that. Instead of going to our scheduled dinner, a few of the lads and I decided it would be a much better use of our time to go to an ice hockey game! Who would have thought there was a team here?! Off we went to the Belfast Giants game. I refused to cheer for the Giants though, considering it was Black Sunday back at home. LETS GO EAGLES. They were playing the Dundee Stars, a team from Scotland, and boy did they destroy them! The final score was 7-1 and every time they scored this song played : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXl1Bvj_qoQ

It was so fun to learn the words and clap along. I think we fit in pretty well. I even broke my sobriety pledge and had ONE beer because....well come on it's hockey! There was even a fight. It was a great way to spend the evening. 

On our last day in Belfast we were given a bus tour of all the murals we had learned about on Friday. They were so fascinating, the way each was so unique from the last. All of them are illegal by the way, just no one ever says anything about it. I also had the opportunity to sign the Peace Wall that divides the Catholic and Protestant halves of the city. I think one of the most interesting things about Belfast is that even though there is no more outward aggression for the most part, there are still obvious signs of divide. For example, the gates to get between the Catholic and Protestant areas of the city are still closed and locked every night at 9PM. The tour of the city continued by driving through the shipyard where the Titanic was built. Two giant cranes, Samson and Goliath, loom over the Belfast skyline. There is a museum there but we didn't have time to check it out due to our packed schedules. The shipyard used to employ over 40,000 people but now employs only about 400. It is a testament to the downfall of the industrial area. We also saw the building where the original plans for the Titanic were drawn up and Titanic studios, where one of my favorite shows, Game of Thrones, is filmed! Finally we headed home to Dublin and prepared for our midterms. I still haven't gotten the results back but I think I did pretty well. 

From Dublin, With Love.

Canvassing Chaos

Last week, on Thursday I got invited out to join the campaign efforts of my boss, Senator Cait Keane, in a truly hands on way. In the morning we went into the office, but just after lunch we headed out to the Templeogue and Terenure sections of Dublin, also know as Dublin South West. It was the day before the election and it was our last chance to get the word out about voting Fine Gael. To say that things did not go as planned would be a gross understatement. Firstly, the drive should have only taken about ten minutes. Instead, we got a little lost and ended up driving around for several hours until we FINALLY found the group. We walked up and down a few blocks, knocking on doors, and handing out flyers. Most people were still at work so I didn't end up talking to that many people. After about an hour and a half we gave up and in true Irish fashion ended up at the pub. Overall I had fun but by this point in the campaign there was not much more we could do. Our candidate ended up coming in third behind the Sinn Fein candidate in second, and the Anti-Austerity Alliance member winning the seat.

It has been a great time working on the campaign but now I'll be going back to doing more legislative research and less constituent services.

An interesting weekend to say the very least

Hello all,

Hope everything is still well across the ocean and the Ebola hasn't gotten a hold on you yet! Just thought I'd give an update on this past weekend while I have a free minute a work. I won't tell anyone if you don't. Anyway, Friday night we went out to a bar called The Capitol Lounge which is famous for is €5 cocktails. Needless to say we all had a grand night. Saturday was a lazy day and I never even made it out bed except to walk down to my friends house to have a movie marathon! Sunday though we planned to travel to County Wicklow for a hike. My friends and I took the DART down to Dalkey to meet up with some of our school friends. We had chartered a bus to take us but we soon realize that said bus was never going to show up! We called the driver multiple times and he ignored us! Instead of having the day ruined, we decided to hike on Dalkey Hill and Kilney Hill, slightly smaller mountains. It was a vigorous workout, with incredible views from the top (see Facebook). After the journey up and down the mountain, we were all very hungry and decided to swing through Dun Laoghaire to go to the farmers market in the People's Park for lunch. We did some browsing and then returned to Rathmines for a nap! In the evening I mustered up all of the energy I had left and walked down to the local pub to meet up with some of the bartenders there. We have become great friends and they invited me and some others to go to Oktoberfest Dublin! It was great craic with a live band and lots of German beer. It was the last night of the festival so right before they closed they were giving out the rest of the beer for free! Afterwards we went to Workmans Pub and ended the night on a relaxing note. I was very excited to have the opportunity to go to Dublin's Oktoberfest because I couldn't make it out to the real one in Munich courtesy of some academic obligations! It was a grand time singing and dancing along with my Irish friends. They certainly know how to have a good time here in Ireland. 

This week at work should be interesting in the Parliament as it's the last week before the By-Election that my Senator is in! I'l let yous know how it goes!

Have a nice week everyone.

From Dublin, With Love. 

What a month it has been!

Hi all! (and by now I'm sure all means Mom, Dad, Mom-mom, Pop-pop and maybe a handful of others haha!)

This past Wednesday officially marked one month abroad! I can't believe how fast the time is going! As you might have noticed, I recently added a ticker on the right of this site that is counting down until the day I return to the states. It's a bittersweet site for sure, but it keeps me motivated to live it up as much as possible here while I still have the time! Anyway, things are still going just swimmingly here. I am getting into the flow of intern life. This is evidenced by the coffee shop across the street from Parliament knowing my name and order before I even have to say it in the morning! It's weird to actually know where I am going when I'm walking around city centre considering a month ago all of us were so reliant on google maps. My sense of independence is boosted by the day. Midterms are coming up soon, but for me that just means that Mom-mom and Pop-pop are almost here!! I am so excited to see my family, show them around my new city, and share a few pints. Until then I'll just be catching up on my readings (netflix) and getting a head start on my final papers (netflix,,,,).

In other news, last night we went out for a night at the races, the greyhound races! Now before you go all animal rights on me, greyhound races are very different here. There is a huge protective agency for these dogs and people get paid to come and play with them. They definitely aren't abused. We had a fabulous dinner with a complimentary bottle of wine, made some bets, lost some bets, and had a grand old time. I also smoked my first real cuban cigar! They are legal here because Ireland has no trade embargo on them. There is even a shop here that will mail you cigars, completely legally, to your home address in the states! I'm not a huge fan of cigars and honestly I'm not even sure I would taste the difference, but still a really awesome item to check off the bucket list.

I'm gonna go prepare myself for the weekend now since my friends are making me the resident bartender this weekend, mixing up all their favorite drink. Time to put my whistle skills to work!

From Dublin, With Love.

Homestay weekend got a little Gorey.....

Before you freak out that there was an injury this weekend, or chastise my spelling, let me clarify! This past weekend my friends (and new-found friends!) hopped on a bus and headed down to Gorey, a town in County Wexford. The town itself is normally only an hour or so drive from Dublin but we got caught in some wicked traffic and it ended up taking over three hours to get there! We were all pretty happy to get off the bus.

Going into the weekend we were all a little apprehensive considering we are all pretty happy and adjusted to apartment living. My homestay roommate Kelsey and I had met and hung out a few times before the weekend so I knew I'd at least be in good company. Mary and Jeff Masterson picked us up where the bus dropped us off and away we went! Mary is a child minder, or nanny, and Jeff retired from working at Eircom, which a communications company here in Ireland. Their house was beautiful! My favorite room was the kitchen, which was coincidentally where we spent the most time! For dinner the first night Mary whipped up some spaghetti bolognese. It was delicious! After the dinner, she brought out the most delicious apple pie, which she had made that day from the apples in the yard. It was so nice to get some home cooking! In traditional Irish fashion we all had a few cups of tea after dinner. Then me and Kelsey took the 10 minute walk back into the town to meet up with some of our friends at a pub called McGoverns to listen to some live music. I think we were all impressed with the music and spent most of the night singing along and have great craic! We all decided to leave after the singer played a rendition of Wagon Wheel. It made us all a little home sick and knew it wouldn't get any better than that.

While the weekend was a lovely time, I know it hit some of my friends a little harder than others. It was strange to be in a home that wasn't OUR home. Anyway, after returning home we found Jeff and Mary watching the Late Late Show in the living room next to a roaring fire. We decided to sit with them a while and unwind from our long day. Saturday morning we woke up around half nine (9:30) and Mary had prepared a huge feast for us! Sausages, rashers (bacon), eggs, toast, tomato, beans, and of course as much tea as we could drink! It was so filling. When we met up with our friends in town a little later we discovered that we were being spoiled and most of them barely had corn flakes for breakfast! The girls all did a little shopping in the various shops around town. I don't think anyone ended up buying anything, but it was nice to take in a fairly normal activity. We even got stopped by a group of locals who tried to recruit us for the women's rugby team! After hitting all the stores we wanted, we stopped into the Gorey tourism office. The gentleman running the desk was one of the nicest people I've met in Ireland. He recommended lots of things for us to do and even called us a cab so we wouldn't have to search for one in the rain (it only sprinkled on and off, still waiting on that notorious irish rain!). We decided to take the drive about ten minutes north to Courtown Harbor. Our first stop was the Seal Rescue! The poor little seals were so cute, but it was kinda sad knowing they were there because they were orphaned, injured, or starving.

After seeing all there was to see at the Seal Rescue we headed down to the beach. I finally got to  touch the Irish Sea! Most of us live on or near the coast in the states so we were ecstatic to feel the sand between our toes and be in our element! We ran around and played in the surf. Definitely one of my favorite moments of the trip so far. 

At the top of the beach, there was an arcade so some of us played a few games and grabbed ice cream before heading back to town to watch the All-Ireland Hurling final between Tipperary and Kilkenny. The original match was played three weeks ago but they tied, so it was replayed on Saturday. The Cantwell family has ties in both counties so I wasn't sure who to cheer for at first, but I decided on Kilkenny. I chose the right team! My host family was Tip fans though, so they were a little disappointed haha. We had another killer dinner of chicken burgers and chips. For dessert we had even more apple tart and ice cream and, you guessed it, irish tea. They really do love that stuff here. We were pretty stuffed so we took a little power nap before heading back out for drinks with our friends. Mary and Jeff were impressed that we were going out for a second night. If only they saw how we act in Dublin! Everyone met up at a pub called Paddy Blues for a night of dancing and having a great time! We woke up today a little tired and ready to head back to Dublin, but Mary of course wanted to give us another full Irish breakfast, this time with black and white pudding included. For those of you who don't know black puddings main ingredient is sheeps blood and white pudding is liver. I was very apprehensive but tried it. Let's just say I won't be having that again. After breakfast, Kelsey and I just relaxed and watched the All- Ireland Women's Gaelic Football match. Wexford was playing New York. Yes, the one in America. Wexford came away with the win. Overall it was a relaxing weekend, and a nice escape from the city, though we're all grateful to back at home in Dublin, which is actually starting to feel like home.

Until next time,

From Dublin, With Love.

Still on the grind

I feel like I've been starting every post like this, but I really am slacking on the blog posts! I keep meaning to sit down and write, but there just always seems to be something going on. Not a bad thing I suppose! Anyway, life is still brilliant over here in Dublin. All of us on the program have been putting in a lot of long hours at our placements. As I said before my TD is running a campaign, so I've been making a lot of phone calls to constituents about the upcoming election. They all are very confused to hear an American on the end of the line and often make me repeat myself because apparently I'm the one with the strange accent! HAH! I'm slowly catching on to the way the office works. The other girl that works in the office with me is grand and is very curious about the way things are in the states. We've talked about everything from cheesesteaks and neighborhoods in Philadelphia to who I think will win different Senate seats in the upcoming election! It's been an adventure already. After work, most of us are pretty tired. Working 9-6 is a long day! Sometimes we just head home to Rathmines by bus or walking, but occasionally we'll meet up at a bar called O'Donahue's for a few pints with the other business professionals of Dublin. It is always interesting to see the way people react when you're wearing your parliamentary credentials!

On a related note, the political party I work for, Fine Gael, is currently under fire by the people of Ireland. The Prime Minister has made a highly questionable appointment to the Senate and it is turning into a bit of a scandal! I'll try to keep you all posted on this throughout the upcoming week!

On an unrelated note, I've been making some major moves in the area of travel! After the trip to Paris in October a few of us will be travelling to Scotland for the weekend! In November I have two big weekends planned: Prague and Berlin! Finally, two weeks from now I'll be up in Belfast with Arcadia exploring where they film Game of Thrones and where the Titanic was built! I'm so excited to take my adventures across Europe!


From Dublin, With Love.

It was bound to happen eventually...

Yes. It's true. After galavanting around this beautiful country for the past few weeks, my adventures have finally caught up to me and I'm a bit under the weather this weekend. Looks as though I'll be laying off the alcohol for a few days and downing a few gallons of orange juice instead. I'm not overly concerned though considering almost everyone on my program has had the same symptoms as me since we got here. It was inevitable. Shout out to the pharmacist who hooked me up with a couple good cough and cold medicines. Usually I'm pretty self-sufficient but all the brands are different here, plus you have to ask the pharmacist anyway because the medicine is all kept behind the counter. I promise I'll be fine, just don't be expecting any crazy posts about this weekend, because I'll be rest of away. 

Struggle city. Population: me. 

From my bed, with love. 

First Days in the Office

So I got the campaign job guys! I have to say I was excited to get the position but also extremely nervous about what was ahead. I should warn you guys that because I am working for the Irish government I won't be able to tell you everything that goes on behind closed doors, but I promise to fill you in on what I can! The first day the Dail was back in session, the front of Leinster House was crowded with protesters, some peaceful and quiet, others being dragged away by the Garda, or Irish police! Needless to say it was an interesting way to arrive to the office. Once inside I was greeted by my T.D.'s equivalent to a chief of staff, Finola, and taken up to the office. It is fairly small by American standards. There are only three of us who work in there. My senator is named Cait (pronounced my like cot-ch) Keane, a member of the Fine Gael party. She is currently running a campaign to move into the Dail as a representative for Dublin South-West! She is the speaker for Fine Gael on all environment, housing and planning issues. My first two days have been full of work, from reading research documents on radon usage, summarizing the country's plan for a new water utility, and briefing the senator on bills going to the floor this term! It has been super fast-paced and challenging but nothing out of my range of ability. It is going to be a busy three weeks preparing for the election, which even if she losses isn't the end of the world because she can still hold her seat in the Senate.

I'm off to watch the vote for Scottish independence with some mates at the pub!

From Dublin, With Love

A Day at the Dail

Today was the day that most have been awaiting since we arrived in Ireland. We finally got to explore Leinster House, the Irish Parliament! Most of us haven't gotten our placements yet so we just got to see where everything is within the building. The captain of the guard showed us everything from the bars and restaurants to the actual Dail and Seanad! It was incredible to finally see where we will be working our 9-5 jobs while here! I even got a super official credential that gives me access to most of the same places that the Irish government officials can go.  I had the privilege to interview, along with two other selected interns, for a position working on a Senator's campaign! It would be a huge honor to be assigned this placement but I won't find out if I got it until a little later today, or tomorrow morning! Either way it was an honor even to be chosen to interview. I'll be sure to you all posted! Tomorrow holds another day of classes and more time at Parliament. I still can't believe this is my real life!

Love and miss you all

From Dublin, With Love.

Does this make me a Galway girl....?

This weekend my comrades and I decided it was time to get out of Dublin for a bit. Because the weather will only be clear for the next two weeks or so, we collectively thought it was now or never to head out west and experience a natural wonder of the world, The Cliffs of Moher! Paddywagon tours took care of our whole trip for a reasonable price and I would absolutely recommend using them to travel anywhere inside Ireland! Before I go any further, here's a map of our journey on Sunday:

Up before the sun, my friends and I departed for City Centre in order to catch the bus that would take us clear across Ireland! Besides the cliffs of Moher we stopped at about 8 other places along the way. The bus ride was long but it gave us a chance to see the beautiful rolling green hills, farm life, and other sites you would generally associate with Ireland as opposed to the city life we've been living so far! It's crazy how you can travel across this country from one end to other in about three hours and you can't even get across Pennsylvania that fast! It really puts into perspective how huge the United States are. Anyway, two of the more notable stops on the way to the cliffs were Kinvarra, a small village near Galway, as well as Corcomroe Abbey, an abandoned monastery that still is protected by the Irish government for it's historical significance. Here's some pictures:

panaromic of the coast in kinvarra

kinvarra 

kinvarra shops 

corcomroe abbey

real bones! ahhh!

walls of the Abbey

I don't even know what to say about the Cliffs themselves! They were absolutely breathtaking. Of course I had seen many pictures of them before but absolutely nothing compared to seeing them in person. We walked up and down the path that goes along the cliffs and took a plethora of pictures at the main cliffs and also the mini cliffs a few minutes down the road! Thankfully I didn't see the video of part of the cliffs collapsing in 2009!!!! I probably would have been a bit more apprehensive about them hahah Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip!

got my official claddagh ring!

 

From Dublin, With Love.