Southern Ireland

This weekend of incredible beauty started off with a class trip to Glendalough (valley of two lakes), in County Wicklow. One of the most important monastic sites in Ireland, Glendalough was founded by St. Kevin and is now known as the city of seven churches. It was beautiful, and after a small introduction, we had time to explore the area.







Melissa, Jack and I hiked up the mountain. We had made it pretty far when we came across a fence, so we were unable to get a picture showing off how high we had climbed!

Those of us that were heading to the south with Caroline, our teacher and tour guide, switched our bags to the tour bus and were off. We drove through County Wicklow, including the Wicklow Mountains National Park. Many movies have been filmed in this area, including scenes from P.S. I Love You. We were quick to realize why this destination had been chosen, for the scenery was absolutely breath taking. Unfortunately, because we were on the bus I was not able to take any pictures, but I found this one online to give you a taste of the scenery.

We continued our journey across Ireland down to the south western Dingle Peninsula. This small fishing village is known as a gaeltacht, an Irish or Gaelic speaking town. For us, this meant that street signs were in Irish and as we found, the language was more influential than in other parts of Ireland. Caroline, however told us that most of the locals would be bilingual and would have no problem speaking to us in English. Just for some fun, however, we had a quick Irish lesson on the bus and learned some practical phrases for the evening. Dia dhuit, ("JEE-a dich") means hello (actually, the Lord be with you I believe) and Conas ta tu ("CUNN-us thaw too") means how are you? A more tricky one was go raibh maith agat, ("gur roh moh UG-ut") which somehow means thank you. Before you knew it, the bus was filled with Gaelic speakers.

We made a quick pit stop for snacks and I could not resist taking this picture of the beautiful sunset.

It was quite the drive, we did not arrive in Dingle until around 9:00. We dropped off our bags at the hostel and headed out for dinner and some fun. Caroline is wonderful at exposing us to the local color. We went to Murphy's Pub where some people had dinner.

It was very tiny, we practically took over the whole place. There was a dog on the couch when we walked in.

I successfully ordered a Guinness at the next pub in Gaelic, and we all enjoyed the music of a solo entertainer with his guitar.


Saturday morning started with a boat ride through the Dingle Harbor. One of the famous attractions of Dingle is a dolphin named Fungie, who apparently made his way to the harbor in 1983 and has stayed ever since, enjoying the scenery and exciting the crowds who come to see him. Our group split into two boats, and we took off to find the celebrity of the harbor.








We finally found Fungie! He was quite the good sport and showed off a little for us. The ride was beautiful. The captain told us that they have not had such nice weather since August, so we can all thank God for the sunshine.

After grabbing our bags at the hostel, we warmed up on the bus and began our tour of the Ring of Kerry. This coastal route around the Dingle Peninsula is set up in such a fashion that cars are advised to drive in a clockwise direction, to allow for single lane traffic on the narrow streets.



Our first stop was at remains of old beehive huts.



After, we drove along the peninsula to Slea Head beach where we had a picnic lunch and played on the sand.

Our favorite expression of the trip thus far. "Whats the Craic" is the Irish way of saying "What's going on?" or "Where's the fun?"









The beach was incredible. Despite the cold temperatures, we all took off our shoes and embraced the cold sand and Atlantic Ocean. We actually got a game of capture the flag started, and had although I ended the game with cold, wet and sandy jeans, I can honestly say it was one of the best days I've had here thus far.

We continued our drive, stopping along the way for photos.


Inch Beach, one of the larger surfing beaches in Ireland.


Our next stop was the town of Killarney, in County Kerry. The two hour ride was filled with a long nap, and we arrived just before 5:00. A couple of us went to a little pub and got a cup of coffee and watched the France vs. Ireland rugby game. After a quick shower and mass, we all went out to dinner.


Sunday morning, we had a complimentary breakfast in the hostel and began our journey back to Dublin. The trip would not be complete without a stop to the Blarney Castle in County Cork. Built nearly six hundred years ago by Cormac MacCarthy, remains of this castle still stand today for people to admire. Legend has it, those who kiss the world famous Blarney stone at the top of the Castle will have the gift of gab, or elequence, bestowed upon them. The grounds were beautiful, and once we reached the castle, we climbed the steep, circular stone staircase to the top. The whole procedure was quite the ordeal, but very entertaining at the same time.




In order to kiss the stone, you have to lie upside down. In this position, you are looking straight down on the grounds of the castle and have a clear view of how high you really are. I loved it and can now say that not only did I kiss the Blarney stone on Valentines day, but I now have the gift of gab. What a day.

Completely exhausted from the busy weekend, we all boarded the bus and made it back to DCU by 6:00. Last night was an early night for me, and as I approach the start of a new week, I look forward for the excitement that awaits.

Meeting the Irish!

This morning for our Contemporary Irish Society class, we had a field trip to the Collins Barracks museum in Dublin. A small group of us decided to bypass the long bus ride filled with traffic and hiked for about an hour down to the museum. When we arrived and realized we had beaten some of our classmates who had commuted by bus, we knew the walk was worth it. Once at the museum, we had a scavenger hunt worksheet that we completed in the Soldiers and Chiefs exhibit which described the times the Irish were at war, both home and abroad, from 1550 to the present.

Part two consisted of a trip to St. Michens Church, a Protestant Church of Ireland. The incredibly quirky and slightly eerie tour guide showed us down into the burial vault under the church. This ancient crypt houses corpses dating back 800 years. I will spare the details, but it was quite the experience to say the least.

I made it back to DCU just in time for lunch. The Irish students are back on campus, and I met up with three of the girls that I had met last semester in Pittsburgh. Three of their classmates came as well, and I had a blast talking to them about their lives here in Dublin. They are all studying to be athletic trainers, so it was interesting to compare their experiences to mine. The girls who studied in Pittsburgh were very excited to be able to reminisce about Oakland and laughed when I told them how I have been enjoying the little differences in our cultures. They were all incredibly friendly, and I look forward to seeing them again.

Today is Tuesday which means another music class! The Bodhran is getting more intense, and even more fun. Here is a small video to show you what we're working towards. The little boy on the right is playing the Bodhran.

Superbowl Sunday! As I found out last night, this is something to be celebrated in Ireland as well. The American Football Team at DCU held a Superbowl party down in Dublin City Center. Kickoff at 6:30 back at home means the game did not start until 11:30, but it was well worth it. A small group of us attended and were slightly surprised and a little nervous when we realized it was a smaller, and more personal group than we had expected. It all worked out well, we had already met a couple of the kids on the team, and we enjoyed watching the game, meeting new people and trying to ignore the fact that we were missing all the great commercials. Everyone was really enthusiastic, despite the fact that the action is so far away. The game was broadcasted via Sky Sports, a British broadcasting company which lacked creativity in its advertising. Three commercials, advertising Dominos, Vodophone, and Sensodyne filled every break from the action and actually became humorous by the end of the game.

Today was an exciting day as well. I had my interview for my upcoming internship with Enable Ireland. The organization specializes in pediatric neurology and is comprised of a day school and outpatient therapy. The commute was a bit of a hike, door to door took about an hour and involved a bus into the city center and a ride on the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit). Overall though, not as bad as I had expected. The interview itself was very informal and welcoming, I was led into the cafeteria or "canteen" as they call it, offered a cup of tea, and then was introduced to the lead Physical and Occupational Therapists. They were interested to hear about my time here in Dublin and my adjustment thus far. It sounds like I will be able to see and learn so much while I'm there.

I made my way back to the city center and met my friend Melissa, who also had an interview downtown today. We celebrated with fish and chips and headed back to DCU together. The rest of the night consisted of a trip to Tesco, the cheaper grocery store in Dublin, and homework. DCU students are back on campus for the first time today, so I'm listening to people socializing outside as I'm writing this; the sound of people laughing and shouting is comforting, almost like I'm back in Pittsburgh (except for the snow!). Tomorrow is an early morning, we have a fieldtrip in Dublin, so I'm off to bed but more will come tomorrow!

Northern Ireland

Our venture to Northern Ireland began bright and early on Friday morning at 8:00. Our plan for the weekend was to see and experience all that we had been learning in the classroom about the history and present conditions of the North.

Here is a little background. Six of the nine counties in the northern providence of Ulster make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (quite a mouthful). The name is not the only issue that they have. Tension fills the air between the Catholics, or Nationalists who view themselves as Irish citizens and look for independence from Great Britain, and the Protestants, or Unionists who with to retain this Union.

Our first stop on Friday was Belfast, the capital and largest city in Northern Ireland. When we arrived, we checked into our hostel, had a quick break for chocolate biscuits and tea, and headed back to the bus for a mural tour of the city. Loyalist artisans started this tradition of mural painting in 1908, and the Republicans have added contributions to the color of the city since.










Belfast is strictly divided, creating a strong tension between these two groups. Between the Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods actually exits a Peace Wall, as ironic as it seems. The walls are covered with different graffiti and murals, depicting many ideas present in the city today. Our tour guide explained to us the amount of money needed to keep the peace between these two sections, for they are forced to build two of everything, including grocery stores, gyms, and movie theaters, to ensure both sides are happy, separate and equal. That is the way that the people prefer to live and I still can't seem to wrap my mind around it.




This gate is closed at sunset to prevent young rebellious boys from trying to start trouble with the neighboring community.

Following our tour, we headed over to Queen's University in Belfast for lunch. It is a beautiful campus.




The day continued at the same pace and we left Queen's University for a tour of Stormont, the Parliament Buildings of Northern Ireland. We had a short presentation about the current government structure, including the two main parties in power, and then were given a tour of the remainder of the building.




Having a little fun after the tour.

After a long day, we headed back to the hostel where I was able to take a nap (despite the fact that I was in a room of 12 girls.) Following a short rest, we headed out to Laverys for a delicious buffet dinner which left us all uncomfortably full but delighted. Our teacher led us to the Crown Saloon, which was one of Belfast's oldest and most loved pubs. The architecture of the pub was incredibly ornate and the atmosphere inside fit the part.



A group of us jumped in one of the "snugs" for a quick photo. We were told these elaborately decorated booths were created to give privacy to those who would not want to be bothered by public opinion during a night out on the town.

Saturday morning started out even earlier as we beat the sun up with a trip to St. George's Market in Belfast city. One of Belfast's oldest attractions, the market was built between 1890 and 1896 and is known to be one of the best markets in the UK and Ireland.


Meghan and I split a potato pancake which was delicious!

We departed Belfast at 9:00 and headed to Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge located in County Antrim which links the mainland to the small Carrick island. The 20 meter long bridge is 30 meters above the water and was built by salmon fishermen. Although completely safe, it was still incredibly thrilling and had my heart pounding pretty hard as I crossed.











Our next destination was The Giant's Causeway, a UNESCO world heritage site. Resulting from ancient volcanic activity, the resulting basalt stone formed a beautiful pattern of hexagonal columns. The scenery here was breath taking, and we had a hard time leaving the incredible natural beauty.







We arrived in Derry city (or Londonderry, depending on who you are talking to) before the sun set for a walking tour of the city. Derry is the fourth largest city on the island of Ireland and is located around the natural peace wall of the River Foyle. Our local tourguide was fantastic, and described to us the present condition of the city as he guided us through the walled city.

It says, You are now entering Free Derry. The eyes were added recently to remember the man killed, displayed in the next mural.





We had a barbeque dinner at our hostel where I was able to satisfy my incredible craving for hamburgers. The rest of our night was filled with traditional Irish music, which we are all growing to love.

Sunday on our way home from Derry, we stopped in Drogheda town to see St. Patrick's Cathedral. Inside the cathedral is the largest shrine to St. Oliver Plunkett. His head is naturally preserved in a glass case for all to see.

And The Rain Continues...

After a truly magical weekend, it's hard to believe that reality waits for me here at DCU. Reality is not a bad thing, don't get me wrong, I just never included thoughts of grocery shopping, cooking and homework in my ideal imaginings of this trip. However, the past three days since our trip have been very busy but uneventful.

It's nice to think in these terms, because I'm realizing that I really am adjusting to the area. Things like the Euro, the traffic heading in the wrong direction, and even the accents are not as noticeable as they were when I stepped off the plane. Just because these things are becoming more familiar does not mean I am taking them for granted, for I still wake up every morning excited for the next opportunity.

So what have I been doing? Classes are picking up, we have topics assigned for two papers and not too much time to complete them. Quizzes and reading assignments are now more common than before, making the weeks fly by. Yesterday at the gym, an older man commented on my Michigan shirt (my Pitt clothes were all dirty ha sorry Tim), and before I knew it he was providing me with helpful traveling hints and explaining his whole personal background. I do not think I will ever grow tired of this; the Irish have been so welcoming thus far and are quite chatty.

In our History of Ireland class, we're learning about the condition in Northern Ireland in preparation for our upcoming trip this weekend. I'm really interested to see how that goes. More on that will come, but for now I'll sign off saying goodbye for now or "Slán go fóill."