Excited! (Day #5)

Today went by really fast. We woke up and ate pancakes for breakfast. The syrup here is a little different then Americas syrup, but definitely good still. It was a little thicker and tasted like a mixture of syrup and honey. After breakfast we walked to class. Both of our classes were interesting today, which helped the time go by quickly. For lunch me and Jess split a BLT and chips, which cut our lunch bill down a bit so we can spend a little more on trips and souvenirs. After school we came back home and I did some reading and browsed the internet before dinner. For dinner we had spiral noodles with a great tasting sauce with sausage.

After dinner we went out to Dun Laoghaire to see some more sights at the pier and get some snacks for this weekends excursion to the northern part of Ireland. It is a very remote area of Ireland compared to what we are used to here, and I am excited to see what I think of as "stereotypical Ireland." We were told today not to bring our lap tops or phones because there will be no wireless service at all this weekend. I will miss talking to my mom this weekend and especially talking to Lauren because she will be returning home from Spain and I have not talked to her in a day already. But it is time to start packing...warm clothes, hiking shoes, and a rain coat...the weather forecast is saying a little chilly this weekend and maybe wet. I will tell everyone all about our trip this weekend when we get back on Sunday. Can't wait to tell you!

Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh

Tourists....Ahhhhhh (Day #4)

Today we woke up and met our group at Trinity College in Dublin. The campus is absolutely gorgeous and contains a ton of Irish history. We had a little history lesson on the college from one of our teachers and then our group split into two for a walk of Dublin City Center. The first part of our tour was to the North side of Dublin, which has more ritzy shops and tourist attractions. The second half was to the South side which has local pubs and parks. The architecture throughout the whole city is amazing. We went to a park which reminded me of the park in 101 Dalmatians :) It was very pretty and I am hoping to go back to relax and hang out for a couple of hours.

After our City tour we ate lunch at a little pub called The Hairy Lemon. It was very good, but me and Jess shared because a lunch was 9.90. On the way back it started raining and we all had our raincoats and umbrellas and a local student was laughing at us saying, "Tourists.....Ahhhh" it was so funny. It stooped raining just in time for us to enter the Ireland National History Museum. The Museum was cool. Jess looked at every single thing in every exhibit so it only took us 783 hours to get through, but that's okay, we are only here once.

We came home and ate dinner. Again an awesome dinner, white rice with mushrooms, chicken, broccoli and an alfredo sort of sauce on top. I am pretty tired and have some reading to do for class tomorrow, so I am in for the night. I'm also not in the mood to go out because I am worrying about Lauren and if she is safe. Her flight from Spain got cancelled and I wish I was with her and Ryann to help them and make sure they are okay. For today, that's it! Hope all is well back at home.

Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh

O'Doyle Rules! (Day #3)

Today was a good day in the neighborhood in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland. I woke up and took a shower and we headed to class. We watch an iconic movie in Ireland's history called "The Quiet Man" in our film class. In our literature class we had a lecture and discussed the myths we were assigned to read. Me and Jess ate at the cantina, or cafeteria today. I was feeling some cream of broccoli soup and when i opened the top it look like smashed baby poo, I passed on that. We decided to split a piece of lasagna and some fries.

After school we came back home and relaxed until dinner. After dinner we went out to Dublin for one of our classmates 21st birthday. The bus ride into Dublin was way longer than we expected, about 30 minutes, but it was cool to see new things. We missed the stop we were supposed to get off at so we stopped at the next stop. Dublin was nothing like I expected. It reminded me of what New York City or Chicago would be like. Big buildings, shopping malls, tourist shops, colleges, it was just huge (that's what she said).

The pub was fun though. Me and Jess ordered a Guinness to get the true taste of Ireland. We weren't big fans so we shared a Irish cider that was very good. However, we spent 15 euros on 3 drinks..yikes. Drinks here are expensive. But now it is time for bed, we have to get up semi-early for an excursion to tour Dublin and the history museum. Take it easy loyal followers!

Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh

Settling In (Day #2)

Today me and Jess got up and went to our first day of class. We had an orientation today so our classes were not as long as they usually will be. We will have class from 9:30-11:30 and again from 2-4 every Mon, Tues, and Thur. Anyway, classes were good and they should both be interesting classes with many opportunities to learn new and exciting things about Ireland. For lunch me and Jess went to the Pub and we sat down for a good 5 minutes and no one had waited on us yet, and there were maybe 5 other people in there. We got up to leave and one of the men asked if we were alright. I said yeah, but we don't really know how to get food or anything because it is our first time in Ireland. He told us that we went up and got our own food and paid for it when we were done. It was funny and me and Jess both got a good laugh out of it.

After class we came home and our luggage was here, thank goodness! We unpacked and relaxed before dinner. Dinner was absolutely delicious. Chicken and stuffing wrapped with bacon, potatoes, broccoli, and beans. I have a feeling me and Jess are going to be spoiled with dinners here :)

After dinner we took a bus down to the Dun Laoghaire Pier. We walked along the pier and saw tons of different colored sailboats lining the bay. We also got our first glimpse of the mountains and greenery of the Irish countryside in the background of the city. We are getting more comfortable here and we are looking forward to the next couple of days really getting settled in and comfortable in our new home for a while.

Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh

Luck of The Irish (Day #1)

We have finally arrived in Dublin, 24 hours after leaving home. Our flights went good, but unfortunately our checked bags got lost somewhere between Chicago and Philly. I brought enough clothes for a couple of extra days in my carry on, but Jess only has enough for one or two days, so hopefully they find them and send them to us asap. Our family is great, we had a big dinner the first night here. Chicken and vegetables for an appetizer and then burgers, brats, and potato salad. They have opened up their house for us and we can definitely tell they are looking forward to us staying here just as much as we are looking forward to being here.

The first couple of days here will probably be tough for me and Jess, missing home and what not, but we will get through it and have a great time. We start school tomorrow morning at 9:00 am and the college is only a 5 minutes walk from our house so that is really nice. Me and Jess are both really tired so we are just going to hang out the rest of the night and relax and sleep. More to come tomorrow...

Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh

And We're Off

Well, I guess I'm giving in and doing this blogging thing. Me and Jess are leaving on Saturday for Ireland or "The Emerald Isle", named after the lush greenery of the Irish landscape. I am excited to see the beautiful castles and rolling hills that are scattered across the country. We will be going to class on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday every week and our excursions take place on Wednesday's. We get Friday-Sunday off so hopefully we can make some weekend trips for extra things we want to see. I'm looking forward to having an awesome time, even though I will be missing my loyal followers back home :) Don't be having too much fun without me! For now, adieu, cheerio, hasta la vista, solong, ta-ta. 


Go dtí Am Ar Aghaidh