home sweet home!

Well we've been back home for 4 days now. Back to school, back to work, back to reality. It's like I'm in a different world. The trip overall was amazing though. It really taught me a lot about myself and who I want to be. It was also an eye opener. There is so much more out there than Castlewood, VA and I want to explore every bit that I can.

Thanks to everyone that has kept up with our trip!

Cheers!
-Shaina

Now that the pictures are on Facebook..

It's nostalgia time!

As I adjust to the time change (I love getting up at 5:30am feeling like I've slept in!) and get back into a normal, deadline-filled, monastery ruin-free schedule, the trip to Ireland becomes more and more precious.

Everything that we saw, learned, heard, tasted - everyone that we met (including each other) - these things are all permanently with me, and make me smile when I think about what a wonderful time I had.

If I had to pick my favorite thing about the trip (and thank goodness I don't!), I would say that I enjoyed Dublin the most. It was HUGE, but not slum-y or dirty as I had kind of expected to find such a big city. Maybe it was just the area that we stayed, but it was clean, the people were friendly, and on those last two days, we had finally started to become familiar with the streets and find our way around. And oh my goodness the SHOPPING. I would be broke in two days if I lived there, but I would be a happy broke that knows her way around!

Ennis, Killarney, Galway - those are also all my favorites. The whole Ireland trip is at the top of my list! I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to go, and I can't wait to go back!

2 bestes last nights in Dublin...oh Dublin, I will come back to ewe!

On the way to Dublin, we stopped at the Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey Distillery! I was so amazed how this whiskey is being processed!!!! The lady tour guide said that this whiskey is being distilled 3 times to have a very high alcohol concentration. Prof. Williams and Becca tried the pure Kilbeggan after it was distilled 3 times and they said that it tasted like moonshine. lol. I have tasted moonshine, I agree that it was VERY strong. After the distillery, we were all back in Dublin and this was when we also had to say farewell to our awesome bus driver, Con. :(


That same night I and the girls headed to the greatest awesome Temple Bar and enjoyed ourselves there, we celebrated Rachel's SECONDARY apps from School of Medicine UVA!!!! I know she'll be a GREAT doctor in the future! Congrats, Rach!!! Tonight I also enjoyed myself, even though I was sick, I still wanted to celebrate our awesome girl's bday, Shaina Hall who turned 22 tonight. I wish I could stay longer, but I had to leave to better myself for tomorrow's trip back to big old Wise....:(
Lennie Gail and I interviewed Irish girls tonight, and they were so cute. Hopefully, you guys can watch it as soon as Lennie and I posted it.

Overall, I have had A LOT OF GOOD EXPERIENCES out of this short study abroad trip and I did not regret any of it. I am actually applying to go to a summer study abroad in Spain this summer! I am so looking forward into that. The girls and I got along well and I will miss them so much! I will miss Dublin for sure and planning on coming back here ASAP! I love Europe and always do!!!!

I will miss ewe, Dublin

MH

Cliffs of Moher, Dun Aonghasa,etc...

After Killarney, the crew headed to Ennis. The girls and I spent a very quite night in this little town. We went to a bar called Y.O.L.O aka You Only Live Once. It was a nice night in my opinion, not too crazy. haha. Our hotel was very nice and full of luxury.

We went to the Cliffs of Moher the next day, however we went on a bad day because we couldn't see anything, but FOG! The weather was just bad. We spent 2 nights in Galway, the girls and I didn't do anything much really, but we all went to the Aran Islands and went to see the edge of Dun Aonghasa, it was amazingly beautiful!!!!! The Aran Islands really amazed me. The people there were very kind and welcomed us. At dinner, Rachel got an email from UVA that her application to Med School was being processed, she was so happy and because of this we all were happy for her as well! Everybody was getting sick when we were in Galway and I think it was because of me...I am sorry you guys... :(

The girls and I were very excited to be back to Dublin, the awesomest city in Ireland! :)

MH

I heart Ireland!

This will be my last entry in our Ireland blog and the thought makes me very sad. Our last two days in Ireland have been good ones. Yesterday we left the city of Galway and headed back to our first love, Dublin. We stopped on our way at Clonmacnoise which is an ancient monastic site. What was most interesting to me was just how gorgeous the still standing buildings were. There were several structures, all made of stone, that have stood there for hundreds of years. What we found most interesting was the archway of amaryst nonsense. I'm not entirely sure of it's significance but the title alone amused us. After that we headed to the John Locke Distillery. We were given a tour of what is claimed as the oldest distillery in the world, dating back to 1757!! We were shown all the ins and outs of how whiskey is distilled and at the end we were given a taste. I barely touched it to my lips and...YUCK! I felt like I had poured a bottle of rubbing alcohol in my mouth! Everyone kept saying, "It's an acquired taste" but I just can't fathom why anyone would want to acquire a taste for that. No thanks! It was amazing to go through a building that was as old as that one though. It was very cool to see the old machinery and watch whiskey being made.
Once in Dublin the girls and I hit the city for some quick shopping before the shops closed. We found out at the beginning of our trip that after 7 there are very few stores still open. We found that odd.
This morning we went to Kilmainhum Gaol (Jail). We were given a tour of this jail that dates back to the 1700s. The experience was a hair raising one. No, ghosts didn't jump out from the cells at us. It was just a crazy thought to think that I was standing where several people had spent their final days. We were told the conditions were poor ones, and they sometimes shoved 6-8 people in an 8X6 jail cell. The eeriest part (even more eerie than the gallows that our guide showed us) was when we were taken out into the courtyard. The lady explained to us that we were standing in the very spot that 16 people had been executed by a firing squad made up of very young teenage boys. It was just an incredible thing to believe. I stood on the very ground that those people had breathed their last breath. *shiver, shiver*
We spent the day today shopping in Dublin. I really like this city. It reminds me of New York City. The streets are lined with shops and crowded with people rushing in and out. We all marveled at how fashionable everyone seems to be here. You can hardly find a guy without spiked hair and skinny jeans. I was able to buy lots of souvenirs for a pretty good price today. I'm left with only four euros to my name which is just enough to buy myself something to eat tonight.
It's hard to believe this is our last night here. It's been a blast exploring all that Ireland has to offer. I like the diversity of all the places we've been. We've seen so much that Ireland has to offer in only 9 days. We've been able to see island, city, and country life. This trip has been an experience of a lifetime and I will always remember the fun I've had here.
Goodbye Ireland! I hope to see you again.

-LG

My favorite things about Ireland:
*The accents
*The castles (or cashels ;))
***Dun Aengus Fort
*The food (especially fish n chips and sticky toffee pudding)
*The sheep
*Irish wit
*The music
*The way the trees align to make little boxes to hold sheep on all the rolling hills
*How GREEN everything is
and the list goes on and on...

last night in Dublin. . . . .

It's been our last day in Ireland. We woke up early, jumped on the hop-on, hop-off bus and went around Dublin. We stopped and toured Kilmainham Gaol. Which is an old jail set in Dublin that housed people that were trying to gain Ireland independence. It was so interesting to learn about Easter Rising and about all of the executions that went on and how much people during that time frowned upon it. It was so fascinating.

After that the 6 of us girls went shopping, got lunch, and just came back, packed a little and rested up so we will be ready to go out tonight. My birthday is also tomorrow. It is very odd to not be with my family and friends, but from this trip I have gained 5 new, wonderful friends that I can't wait to celebrate with! So watch out Dublin because....it's my birthday!!

-Shaina

Our last days in Dublin

Before I come back with fifth and final mushy reflection entry, I want to post about our last two days in Dublin while they're still fresh on my jet-lagged memory.

After visiting Locke's distillery on Thursday, we arrived in Dublin sometime in the afternoon and almost immediately went to experience the best of the best of European culture: shopping! For a few hours we wandered around Grafton St., completely awestruck, everyone saying "Oh my god look at this!" at least fourteen times each. I think I was a little too overwhelmed by the the collection of stores that I'd never heard of the size of my hometown, and we decided to call it a day after a couple hours on this expedition. We decided to go get dinner at Spar, hit up the ATM machine and conquer the stores with a better plan and resources the next day.

We started Friday (our last full day in Ireland oh my gosh) on the hop on-hop off bus with a destination of Kilmainham Gaol. I was completely floored by the tour; the history was interesting enough in itself, but to be standing where leaders of the Easter Uprising were executed, to walk in a cell where revolutionary thoughts had been thought, friendships made, and, more recently, movies filmed - I just couldn't believe we got to experience it!

Our last days in Ireland were definitely some of the best! Now, I'm home and sleepy at 4:46pm. I'll be back after a nap (and the five hour energy I found in my suitcase!) to write one more post about the trip. Much sentiment will be involved - don't miss it!

Killarney and its deliciousness

Ring of Kerry!!!!

After we saw all these cashels, we visited the Ring of Kerry. That was the longest drive I've ever in. But it was beautiful!!!! The Ring of Kerry is going through the peninsula. I saw so many sheeps and cows there! We also visited this little town, called Sneem!!! N the joke that Con made (our awesome bus driver) was "you sneem, I sneem, we all sneem!" lol!!! At this little town, I took a picture in front of this traditional music store. Lennie, Rachel and I bought some cute Ireland stickers as well. Lennie bought Becca a cute sheep sticker since she is so obsessed with sheeps, lol! XD

On the same day, the girls and I went to and Indian Restaurant and it was DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Xoxo,

MH!

Living life on the edge...of Dun Aonghasa

Yesterday, we went to the Aran Islands. The weather was fantastic, and there was no fog in sight! To get to the Aran Islands, we had to take a 45 minute ferry ride from the mainland to the biggest of the Aran Islands, and since I get seasick easily, I was thankful that Lennie Gail had Dramamine. Irish is still spoken on the islands and it was really interesting to hear it. On the island, we took a bus tour where we saw "little people houses" for the leprechauns, and went to Dun Aonghasa, which is an old fort on a cliff. Since there was no fog, we could see absolutely everything, and it definitely made up for the Cliffs of Moher.

We ate lunch at a cute thatched roof cafe where I ate the most delicious tomato soup I've ever had. After the tour, we shopped at the sweater markets and played on the beach before getting back on the ferry to go back to Galway. We went to the King's Head pub in Galway and listened to live music.

Galway was a really fun city. You could tell it was a college town instantly, and we felt at home walking the cobblestone streets.

hello again 258!

Well we left Galway early this morning and stopped in at Clanmacnoise, which is right in the middle of Ireland, and Locke's Distillery, where we got to see how the whiskey is made and got to sample a little bit. Now we are back in Dublin!!! We ended up in the same room we were in the first night of the trip, so I can't wait to see what the next two nights have to offer :)

-Shaina

P.S. : Congratulations Rachel! Can't wait for you to start a new chapter in your life!

Goodnight Galway!

Today, or what is now technically yesterday, was another full and wonderful, but this time CLEAR day in Ireland! We went to the largest of the Aran Islands, Inis Mor, and spent the day trekking across the nine by two mile island, by van and by foot. The view of the sea and much of the island from the fortress that we walked up to was gorgeous, and the lack of handrails separating us from the sheer drop from the cliffs to the rocks and waves way, way below was both frightening and exhilarating. This is the only way to experience: close to the edge, wind in your hair, camera in hand, and a traditional Irish lunch of homemade soup and brown bread waiting for you after you don't fall off!

Tomorrow we head back to Dublin for two more days of fun and sightseeing, and possible shopping, now that we've found the ATM! I've heard tell of a Topshop in Dublin, and I'm more than just a little bit excited.

I'm off to bed - goodnight, Galway!

Life on the edge

Majestic. That's the best word I think to describe what I saw today. We loaded up the bus pretty early today and made our way to the ferry headed to the Aran Islands. I get motion sick very easily so the thought of being on a great big boat had me worried a bit. The fog was thick again this morning but I just kept praying and praying that it would lift so we could see what we were hoping to see today. The ferry ride was a rocky one but thanks to Dramamine and a fitful nap I was able to make it to the islands without any tummy trouble. From where the ferry dropped us off we all climbed into a van and were given a tour of the island. Our bus driver was funny and had an accent much thicker Irish accent than I had heard the whole trip. This is where things get very difficult for me. It's very hard to put into words how beautiful that little island was. Many of the houses were very old and had thatched roofs. Rock walls made little boxes all over the island. Rocks were everywhere, stacked neatly on top of each other just as they have been for hundreds of years there. It is a very old island. Our tour guide pointed forts out to us that he said had been there for 4000 years! I can hardly fathom that! They've only had electricity out there since the 70s and only in the last 5 years have they had internet. The whole place was the most authentically Irish place we've been to. Everyone there could speak Irish which sounds like a weird combination of German and French. We were told to make sure we made it to the ferry on time, because if we were left on the island we would have no street lights or open stores to give us comfort.
The very best part of this whole trip for me has been the view from the top of the fort of Dun Aengus. We walked up a long gravel road with the sight of this gigantic fort getting bigger and bigger and my curiosity was growing more and more. A paved/gravel road turned into an almost mountain climb as I tried my very best to keep my clumsy self from tripping. I was almost running as I saw the fort just within my reach. Once I got through the walk wall entrance I was not disappointed, as you can see from the pictures. It was totally and completely majestic. I was and still am without words to accurately describe what I saw. The cliffs were huge and towering. The water crashing up against them was the bluest blue. The fort itself was so enormous and strong looking. It reminded me of something that should have been in Braveheart, even though it's the wrong country for that. I told Rachel, "I feel like I've somehow slipped into a movie and I'm just walking around in the television." I took pictures but even looking at the pictures it just can't capture what a breathtaking view that was. I feel honored and blessed to have been able to see something so beautiful!
When we headed back down the rocky road we were starving. We ate at the most authentic place we've been to yet. The tomato soup was fantastic and people all around us were speaking Irish. It amazes me that a place that's so frequently visited by tourists can remain as quaint and traditional as it has. After our tour of the island we wandered around some shops and then came back to Galway. It was an absolutely incredible day.
It's our last night in Galway. Our hotel is a bit far from the town so I decided to have a night in. We head to Dublin tomorrow and I'm very excited about that. It was where we spent our first night in Ireland and we had a blast. Only two more days left in this beautiful country and unfortunately we have to say goodbye to our wonderful driver, Con, tomorrow. Sad times.

Slan (goodbye in Irish),

-LG

I'm on a boat!

Today we got up really early and ate breakfast, which was really good. We drove about an hour to the dock that sails to the Aran Islands which was a 45 minute boat ride. There are 3 islands, we went to the biggest one called Inis More. It was beautiful. The view from the top of the biggest fort on the island was breathtaking. It gave me butterflies. The view from the boat was also very pretty. Just like the grass, the water is forest green...it's unlike any water I've ever seen. Luckily it was nice weather and didn't rain on us at all.

Now it's time to go downtown and see what Galway has to offer!

Cheers!!
-Shaina

"'Round the Salthill Prom with a Galway Girl..."

We have arrived in Galway! I'm really excited to see what the city has to offer. After our eventful past few nights, we decided to stay in tonight to recuperate and gear up for our early morning ferry ride to the Aran Islands. Instead of going out, we explored our fancy hotel (The Galway Bay Hotel), and ate dinner in the bar here. I found out this past summer that I was allergic to fish, so when the 'chips' (french fries) had a fishy taste, I ran upstairs to our room and immediately took a benadryl so as not to break out in hives. After dinner, we all sat around just talking and getting to know one another better. Even though going out and immersing ourselves in the Irish culture is really fun, some nights, it's nice to take a break and appreciate who we're traveling with.

I'm excited to explore Galway tomorrow night after we get back from the Aran Islands. It'll be my one and only chance to sing "The Galway Girl" in a real Irish pub in Galway!

Sláinte,
Rachel

A day with lots of CASHELS =))

Cashels!!! & Killarney =]

Killarney!

Murphy Bar

Me!!! Kissing the Blarney Stone X]

The girls at the Blarney Castle (Gift of Eloquence :) )

3. After we all visited the Cashel of St. Patrick, we all went to the Blarney Castle! The legend is if we kissed the Blarney's Stone, we could be more eloquent. I kissed it, I hope I could be more eloquent than before. haha. The route to get to kiss this Blarney Stone was very scary!!! The stairs were narrow!!! It was tiring, but it was also worth it! :) Above is a picture of me kissing the Blarney Stone!

St. Patrick's Cashel :)

The girls at the Cashel.

1. After Dublin, we went to St. Patrick's Cashel! 2. This is a picture of the girls at the St. Patrick's Cashel! We all look awesome! it's the group of AWESOMENESS!

They say Castle= Cashle, lol!!!

St. Patrick's Cashle is amazing and

has a beautiful view. :)

Killarney, Ireland!

In my opinion, Killarney was a beautiful little townie! I absolutely loved the area because it just reminded me of Old Town, Alexandria, VA!!! Reppin AVA! :p! Well, in Killarney, we celebrated our beloved Spanish Profesora Jessica Williams!!!! The girls bought her shots and we bonded really well! We made some funny jokes at the Murphy Bar with Prof. Williams and also Dr. Collins! It was awesome! Rachel also introduced us to this delicious dessert that I forgot what is it called!!! We all shopped there and just had lots of fun! I loved Killarney! We visited the Ring of Kerry as well, it was the longest drive ever, but again it was worth it! =)

More pics to come! Stay tune!

-MH

FOGget about it!

And the adventure continues...Today we woke up early, said goodbye to Ennis, and headed out to see the Cliffs of Moher. Unfortunately the weather wasn't very cooperative today. Unlike the other day when the fog was this mystic cloud adding a magical feel to everything it touched, this fog was like a vindictive curtain covering everything we had hoped to see. We went through the "virtual reality" tour and were able to see how beautiful the cliffs are but when we climbed the hill it was only torture. It was as if someone had draped a huge grey curtain on everything. All we could do was listen to the crashing waves below and try our best not to get blown over by the angry wind around us.
After that we bumped along in the bus on our way to Galway. Our hotel here sits right on the ocean. After Jessica Williams came in from a walk, dripping with rain water, we decided the weather was far to gross to go out and explore tonight. We wound up staying in our hotel and eating at the bar here. It's a quiet night in. Perfect night to cuddle up with my iPod and a book. Hopefully the weather will cooperate with us better as we visit the Aran Islands tomorrow.

What I learned from a local last night:
A "traveler" is what they call an undesirable, a thief, a beggar.
"Talking shy" means "shootin' the breeze"
It is very rare to find someone in Ireland who doesn't drink.
A bartender is called a "barman" in Ireland.

Until next time!

-LG

ello! :)

Well it's day 4 in Ireland. The grass is so many different colors and there are so many sheeps. So far we've stayed in Dublin, Killarney, Ennis, and we just got to Galway a few hours ago. We've seen so many beautiful sights and thanks to Con, our bus driver we've learned a lot about the towns and where the best places to go are.

The food here is great and I love trying new things so it's perfect.
The beer isn't the best in the world so I've been drinking the best imported beer in the world...Budweiser.
And as for the boys, they are great too.

I also don't think there is another group of people that I would rather have gone on this trip with. They are all awesome and unique in their own way. It's been great getting to know them and will definitely keep in touch back home.

Tonight we are staying in at the hotel and eating at the bar. This is the first night we haven't went out but I think it's time for a good nights sleep. So Galway, tomorrow you better be ready because these Southwest Virginia girls are coming out to play!

-Shaina

"Let's see how many Ennis jokes we can come up with..."

Yesterday was another day of riding in the bus. Although I enjoy sightseeing, that bus must pump benadryl through the vents because I go to sleep instantly. When I was awake, though, we saw some beautiful sights. We drove around the Dingle Peninsula, to the most westerly point in Europe, where the waves crash on the rocks just like they do in The Little Mermaid. It was beautiful, and amazing at the same time to realize that the only thing separating where we were from America was pure ocean. This is one example as to why traveling is so humbling to me.

We stayed in Ennis last night. We thought Killarney was dull on a Sunday night, but we hadn't experienced Ennis on a Monday. We have all realized how quickly our money runs out here, so we all decided to split a pizza and garlic bread, which cost a mere 4 euros for each of us. We all sat in a circle in the floor and had a fun "girl talk" session, ending with dancing the Macarena and the Cha Cha Slide. Finally, we descended upon Ennis. We went into what was supposed to be a happenin' place, and were the only people there. So, we sat at the bar and talked with Dave the bartender. Since I hated Guinness, I decided to try a "Baby Guinness" which was much more delicious than its namesake.

Today, we arrived in Galway - the city I've been most looking forward to. More to come on what happens in this college town!

Cheers,
Rachel

Ireland, I love ewe!

When I pictured Ireland I imagined big castles and green rolling hills. As I stared out my window yesterday and today all I could think was how surreal this whole thing felt. It was as if I was watching a movie instead of looking out my own window.
We stayed in Kilarney the past couple of nights. Jet lag was hitting me pretty heavily the first night there and I was barely able to keep my eyes open at 9PM. I did get my first taste of fish 'n chips though! It was so yummy! Thanks to Rachel Hensley who insisted I order sticky toffee pudding, I finished my meal with a delicious dessert! I really hate eating yummy things in a foreign country because I'll just be craving it from now on.
Yesterday we toured the Ring of Kerry. Kerry is the name of the peninsula and the ring goes all around it. I have to admit, it took me a while to realize we weren't traveling to a certain destination, we were doing the touring as we drove along. This was our first time seeing what the Irish countryside looked like. It was unbelievably beautiful! The grass is this incredibly vibrant green and trees make squares on rolling hills keeping their sheep coordinated. Speaking of sheep, they mark them by painting their backs! We got excited when we drove by a field filled with white sheep marked by blue and white paint! USA! USA! Haha! We stopped at an outlook and saw our first beach. It was crazy windy but oh so beautiful! That day it was super foggy and it just made everything seem so mystical. We stopped at another beach where we were able to walk down to the ocean. The sand was like a mixture of dirt and sand. The beach was lined with really smooth gray and green rocks. I'm a huge fan of the beach so I just stood there in awe, drinking it all in. It was a fantastic day except for the very long trip. It was twisty and windy and our bus driver is a mad man on the roads. He's good, but he's a mad man.
Today we drove around again and wound up in Dingle. The road to Dingle was a crazy one! Imagine car commercials where you see the car speeding around a winding road on a mountain with a crazy steep drop off, add a beach and some greenery and you've got our trip! It was really scary but gorgeous! We stopped to take pictures at one point and I can't adequately describe how beautiful it was. We stood off the side of the mountain road and watched bright blue waves crash off of rocks. It was like a scene from the Little Mermaid and Cast Away put together. Dingle was an adorable little town. I found my family crest there! Con, our bus driver, told me Dunlops are very popular in Ireland. There are famous bike racers in the north. How cool! We did a little shopping there and headed back on the bus to Ennis.
Ennis seems like a quaint little town. We decided we wanted to eat cheaply tonight so we found a really yummy pizza place called Numero Uno. We've been very cultured this trip. We had Indian food last night and it may have been the best thing I have ever eaten!
We still have four days left here. It's been quite the experience so far! I'm so pumped to see what else is in store.

Things I've learned since being here:
*Margherita Pizza is just cheese pizza with a cool name.
*A stag-do is a bachelor party.
*Half nine means 9:30.
*Baked goods do not get covered when they are for sale! This is probably the most upsetting thing to me. We walked into a store and pastries were sitting in a basket just out in the air. Gross!
*"Don't trust Irish boys. Don't trust English boys." from a man at Murphy's last night.
*Pub and bar are interchangeable words.
*People from the UK know a LOT about American culture.

Cheers!

-LG

Castles, and Guinness, and meat pies, oh my!

October 7, 2011-October 9, 2011

Oh, Ireland... So far, everyone seems to be having a wonderful time. When I began the trip, I didn't know any of the other students on the trip, but nothing is better for bonding with people than traveling. On our very first day in Dublin, the first stop we made was at the Guinness Storehouse. I knew that Guinness was big in Ireland, but I didn't realize it was as big as it is. It tasted terribly, but just because we were in Ireland, we tried to be good sports and stomached as much as we could. Our first night out was very eventful. We literally got lost in the streets of Dublin as we roamed around the Temple Bar area. We all made it back safely, and the next morning, we headed to Killarney.

On our way there, we went to Blarney Castle to kiss the legendary Blarney Stone. I definitely not only felt more eloquent, but felt like a princess walking down spiral staircases in castle towers. We ate lunch in an adorable cafe where we had soup and sandwiches. For dinner, we went to Murphey's Pub in Killarney and listened to traditional Irish music as we ate, drank, and were merry.

I was worried about the food here... I've heard terrible things about Irish food, but so far I haven't had a bad food experience at all. My favorite by far was the Indian restaurant called Bombay Palace in Killarney. Even though our jackets have the scent of butter chicken imbedded in the fabric, it was totally worth it.

I'm going through the green glass door and I'm bringing.. Ennis!

Today was another tour day - we drove around Dingle Peninsula, stopping a couple times to look at the sea and explore the town of Dingle. The westernmost point of the peninsula where we stopped to get off the bus and take pictures of the literally breathtaking view (the wind knocked us back!) was the most beautiful view of the ocean I think we've seen so far. The water was still choppy, deep and grey, but it was a light blue where it crashed against the rocks where the cliffs met the sea. Many pictures were taken, and we got back on the bus with very tangled hair to make our way to Dingle where we stopped for lunch and shopping. Many deals were found and tummies filled, and we stopped in one more town to stretch our legs before we made it to our hotel in Ennis around 5:30pm.

With the too delicious pub food, gifts for friends (there's apparently such a thing as being too generous when you're in a foreign country with a limited amount of euros and ATM's), and all the sheep merchandise (irresistible), we're all running a little short on money. So, tonight for dinner, our genius selves came up with the perfect solution: don't eat such expensive food. Four of the girls split a pizza and two of us got pasta from a little pizza place called Numero Uno in Ennis. We sat around a little table and talked about Catholic Mass and TV shows while we waited for what turned out to be delicious food that we took back to the hotel and ate powwow style around the pizza box in the floor of one of the rooms.

Ennis is, like all of the towns we've been in, so lovely and charmingly European. Now we're getting ready to go on the hunt for some traditional Irish music in some of the pubs before we come back to get some rest for the Aran Islands tomorrow - Slán agat, everyone!

The City of Hope to meet Westlife, Dublin,IRL

Hello there! Welcome to my study abroad blog! Wish that you guys could follow my experiences in Ireland. :)

Enjoy!

Traveling is one of my favorite things to do, especially traveling abroad. Since my parents and I moved to the U.S., I convinced myself that going to other different countries is a very promising opportunity. Therefore, I have always tried to go abroad since my freshman year in college (The University of Virginia's College at Wise.) My first choice was England, but my International abroad professor; Prof. Wolney told me that "studying abroad in England is expensive, why don't you try studying abroad in Finland?" I honestly never really thought of studying there, but I told myself why not! so I applied, however before I even finished applying to go study in Finland, Prof. Wolney told me that I could not go due to a lack of GPA requirement. So...my studying abroad was postponed...I never really hoped anymore...until last semester, I saw a poster of Ireland Study Abroad and I also received an interest meeting email. That dream of studying abroad came back again.

I never really had been to Europe, except a day transit travel in Frankfurt, Germany. This Ireland trip is going awesome so far, I am having the best time of life. My first night in Dublin was GREAT, I went out to eat with the girls (Rachel, Brittany, Shaina, Lennie, and Rebecca) at the Fish and Chips restaurant. It was a bit strange because we got served by a Chinese waitress at that restaurant in Dublin, IRL! Diversity is everywhere, I see :)! After that, we wanted to go to a Temple Bar, since we didn't find the real temple bar just yet, we all went to Oliver St. John Gogarty's Bar in the Temple Bar area. We met crazy British dudes, but they were also fun and too friendly! I drank few drinks with the girls and just had fun until I saw this tall guy who just looked like my European friend, I thought that was very strange!!!!! anyways, we also encountered a crazy pedophile British man who FLASHED his goods at the bar to us! EW! that just pretty much ended my night.

I hope I can meet Westlife when I am back in Dublin!!! which is in 3 days, lol!

Irish you were here!

All my life I've dreamed of coming to Ireland. It's top of my list for places to see in the world so when I saw fliers for this trip I suppressed the urge to be cheap and signed up. I'm so glad I did!
The first day in Ireland was probably my favorite so far. Luckily I was able to sleep on the plane so I was hanging in there pretty good except for the need for a shower.
Our first stop was the Guinness Storehouse. The information was pretty cool. The beer was super gross! It was my first taste of beer ever and yuck! The view from the top was my favorite thing about the place. It reminded me of what I think London might look like from a view like that. After the Storehouse we checked into our hotel and we all got showers. We felt so much better afterward! We ate at a pub that night. After dinner the girls and I went to Temple Bar (which is like this huge area in Dublin with shops and pubs and stuff) which is where our tour guide/bus driver recommended we go. When we first got there (around 8PM) it wasn't too crazy. We met some boys from England who were amazed by us because they had never talked to American girls. They were really funny and knew a lot about American culture. They asked us about songs and movies. One told me I look just like the girl from Ten Things I Hate About You, Julia Stiles. I laughed because I get that all the time. Dublin started to get a little scary around ten which is when a friend and I headed back to our hotel. There were people everywhere with cups asking for change. Street performers seemed to be around every corner. We stopped to listen to one sing "Wonderwall" and they sang it very well! Luckily we made it back without any issues.
Yesterday we went to the Rock of Cashel and Blarney Castle. Cashel was super gorgeous and I learned a lot about religious history there. We were all so pumped to kiss the stone that has given eloquence to millions before us. The castle was gorgeous! Going up the staircase was super long and scary! It was spiraled and narrowed pretty heavily in some places. I didn't think we'd ever reach the top. When we did I was the first to plant my kiss. I laid on a plastic mat, grabbed hold of the metal bar, and bent backward. The man held me tight while I kissed the stone and counted to three, hoping the longer kiss would provide me with extra eloquence. Surprisingly the exit staircase was a lot wider and felt shorter. I wonder if they try to weed out the weak before they get to the top? We drove to Kilarney after that.
Our hotel here is a lot nicer than the first one. It's much cosier. The town is really cute. Night life isn't as happening but there are a lot of cute stores. It reminds us of Gatlinburg. There is a surprisingly large amount of Americans in this area. I had my first taste of fish n chips last night with sticky toffee pudding for desert and it was amazing!
Today we toured the Ring of Kerry. We were halfway through the ride before I realized we weren't going to a certain destination, we were driving around the ring. The countryside was gorgeous! It was so breathtaking! We stopped at the beach and took a bunch of pictures. I was in total awe of God's beautiful creation! A bunch of people on the bus got car sick because the roads were windy and really bumpy. We stopped at a place called Sneem for lunch. It was a really cute little town.
It's been a fantastic trip so far! I've learned a lot about Ireland thanks to our quite knowledgeable driver. I can't wait to see what adventures await us in the next week!

Favorite quotes so far:
"Pointy hair and no sense. They're the same the world round." -Our bus driver, Con about boys.
"I sneem, you sneem, we all sneem for ice sneem"
"The tribes would fight each other for cattle, women, you know...the usual stuff" -Con
"We've no leprechauns left in Ireland since the Japanese found out they taste like chicken" -Con


-LG

Top o' the mornin'!

Well, technically it's almost top o' the evening here in Killarney (and even more technically, no one actually says that anyway). Today is the third day of our Ireland trip, and it, as well as the previous two, have been wonderful!

After arriving in Dublin and touring the Guinness storehouse on Friday, we've visited the Rock of Cashel, the Blarney Stone, and, today, toured around the Ring of Kerry with our trusty Irish guide, Con.

The scenery today was breathtaking. The fog only added to the beauty of the blue-grey-green swirl that flew by our windows as we bounced around the narrow, curvy roads. It was very mystical - sheep included! I loved stopping by the ocean and trying not to freeze in the very un-beachlike wind coming off the chilly blue-grey water.


We stopped in a little town called Smeen (Smeen!) for a quick lunch. I got smoked salmon on brown bread - so good, like all the food here! We spent too long trying to figure out riddles on the way back to Killarney, where we shopped for a bit before coming back to rest - and blog - before dinner.

My favorite part about the trip so far has been discovering all the things here that we don't have in the U.S., and vice versa; it's kind of like finding all the hidden Mickeys at Disney World. The differences between the two countries are random, scattered, frequent, mostly small and unexpected, and more quaint than inconvenient. Just a small example: I'm not sure if it exists in America (because it seems like it should), but in the two hotels we've stayed at so far, you've had to put your room card in a slot beside the light switch to turn anything on. So when you leave and take your key, no lights/TV/curling irons are left on the burn down the hotel (or use energy, but most importantly burn down the hotel).

Also, oatmeal=porridge. I hope that saves any oatmeal lovers planning to travel to Ireland a lot of amusing but time consuming conversation consisting of "Oatmeal!" "What?".

Cheers!
Rebecca

Only Two Days Until We Travel To Ireland!!

Well, It's finally starting to dawn on me that we are actually about to go to Ireland.  I am looking forward to  making this a space where we can all share our daily reflections about the trip and the experience.

I hope that you will send invitations to your family and friends so that they can follow our trip.