Boyne Valley

One of the classes I'm taking over here is a geography class about Irish landscapes. The class is specifically for the international students as an introduction to different areas of Ireland. Two weekends ago we went on our first field trip to the Boyne Valley and made a few awesome stops.

Monasterboice

Battle of the Boyne Heritage Center

The Battle of he Boyne was fought in 1690 between two rival claimants of the English, Scotish, and Irish thrones- the Catholic: King James and the Protestant: King William. The battle was fought across the river Boyne near Drogheda on the east coast of Ireland. Won by William, the battle was a turning point in James' unsuccessful attempt to regain the crown and ultimately helped ensure the continuation of Protestant supremacy in Ireland. 

The whole field trip group. There are students from 10 different countries represented in this one picture.

Newgrange 

Newgrange is the largest of three passage graves in the Boyne Valley. It was created by the Neolithic people of the area in 3000 B.C. 

The entrance stone. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take photos inside the tomb.

Bective Abbey

Before coming to Ireland this is basically what I imagined it would look like. Seeing it all in person was better than I imagined:)

Trim Castle

Trim castle is the largest Anglo-Norman castle in Ireland and the largest remaining Norman castle in Europe. This is also the castle where many scenes from Braveheart were filmed!  

We missed our time slot to tour inside the castle, which was a little disappointing, but walking around the outside was pretty incredible. 

Overall, I'd say it was a pretty successful way to spend a Saturday!

Galway

Last weekend a few of us went on our first trip outside the city to Galway. The weather was extremely cold and rainy but we were all so excited to be traveling that it didn't really matter. We caught a bus early Friday and traveled for 3 hours to the opposite side of the country. After arriving in Galway we spent all day exploring the city and listened to live music at a couple of the pubs that evening. On Saturday we went on a bus tour to the Cliffs of Mohr.

Check out the Irish countryside! I'll admit that part of the reason we were all so excited to go to Galway was because it's the setting of the movie P.S I Love You. 

Though our dreams were later crushed when we found out that the movie wasn't actually filmed there. 

My first hotel stay! We all lucked out and found a nice hostel to stay at on the main street. When I saw my favorite travel quote written on the wall just outside our room I knew we destined to stay there. 

In our room there were these weird luggage cages under the beds. Naturally, I tried to fit inside...

                                                                           Success!

When we first arrived at the Cliffs this was all we could see. There was so much fog!! It was a pretty disappointing sight. After 10 minutes we retreated to the warmth of the gift shop then hauled ourselves back to the tour bus. Once we had all loaded back on the bus and were just about to leave our tour guide noticed that the fog was starting to clear. He gave everyone 15 more minutes to explore the area but urged us to run because the fog wouldn't stay away for long. I ran to the top of hill and in the same spot I had just stood there was a very different view...

       The view of the Cliffs was breathtaking. I'm so thankful that the fog cleared while we were still there!

Despite the rain and the cold we had a wonderful time in Galway!

Fun Fact: Scenes from Inception and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood were filmed at the Cliffs of Mohr.

Here, There, and Everywhere

Clearly I'm not very good at being a consistent blogger but here are a few highlights from the past couple of weeks! 

  

The Botanic Gardens
The gardens are a short walk from campus. It's a beautiful part of the city and I can't wait to go back when the weather is nicer and the trees start getting their leaves.

A few members of our international family!

Pubs and Clubs 

Whether it's listening to live music, dancing, or enjoying a pint, the Irish definitely enjoy their night life. We've  all had no problems adjusting to this aspect of the culture. I think the "When in Ireland do as the Irish do" philosophy applies here!

Morgan, Paige F (having the same name has caused confusion many times), and Sarah

These are the other girls from UNC that I traveled with. None of us had ever tried Guinness before so it was a picture worthy moment when we all had our first pint of Guinness together.

 Not what I had expected but not too bad! 

The Laundromat 

The international residence building doesn't have a washer or dryer (a bitter subject for us all) so our only options are to send our laundry out to get cleaned our haul it all down to the laundromat. Getting clothes set out to be washed is a bit pricey so off to the laundromat we went! Everywhere we go in Dublin it is very apparent that we're not from around here but it was especially apparent as we walked 20 minutes to the only laundromat in the area. 

While in the laundromat we dropped the bottle of soap and sent liquid detergent across the floor. The building wasn't heated so we could see our breaths the entire time we were there. The dryers didn't work so after over 2 hours we left the laundromat with very wet clothes. Overall it was a very frustrating experience and we're looking into other options for next time. 

Birthday Time!

Two people from our international group, Paige and Romain, had their 21st birthday on Januray 29th. To celebrate the occasion we all got dressed up for a night out at Temple Bar. This section of town is a big tourist area with an array of pubs and street performers. 

Wandering Around Dublin

 Just when I start to think I'm getting this huge city figured out we venture out somewhere new and I'm completely lost again. It's safe to say that I'll never be bored here or run out of things to do. I'll also never run out of Chinese restaurants to eat at, I see them everywhere! I think the current record is four in one block! 

Yesterday I made a list of places I want to go in Dublin which includes The Modern Art Museum, The History Museum,  The Dublin Castle, and much much more!

The Streets of Dublin.

 The first week and a half here in Dublin has been absolutely amazing and I feel so blessed to have this opportunity. I've loved taking in the new sights and sounds of this busy city though don't think I'll ever get used to cars driving on the opposite side of the road! The international students and I enjoy going to City Centre, the heart of Downtown Dublin, which is about a 30 minute walk from our campus. This area is constantly bustling with people traveling to the various restaurants, pubs, and shops (oh the damage I could do in some of those stores!) We've covered quite a bit of territory but there is still so much of the city to see. Here are a few pictures from our walks through the streets of Dublin.

I'm very much in love with all the colorful doors!

Tesco is the tiny grocery store we shop at across the street from school. 

 
   

Crosswalk reminders so we don't look the wrong way!

Destination Dublin.

Travel Day! 

The Flight Schedule- Leave DIA at 10:45am  Arrive in Newark at 4:00pm

                                Leave Newark at 7:15pm  Arrive in Dublin at 7:00am

Our first flight was smooth sailing all the way to Newark. Our second flight boarded on schedule but we sat on the runway for 21/2 before actually leaving. By the time our time took off I was already a little sick of the being on the plane and wasn't looking forward to another 51/2 hours in my compact middle seat. During the flight I watched a few movies and attempted to sleep but wasn't to successful. I don't understand how I can easily fall asleep sitting up in class but not so much when I actually want to on an airplane?! Overall  though it was a good flight and I'm very thankful for making it here safely and with all of my luggage. 

After arriving in Dublin and making it through customs we took a taxi directly over to St. Patrick's College. On the ride there I was fascinated by everything but it felt more like i had just traveled to a new state rather than an entirely different country.

Myself and the other UNC students were the first to arrive at our international dorm but throughout the weekend a whole slew of people from around the world trickled in. I'm currently living with students from California, Boston, Belgium, France, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, and Finland. Everyone bonded quickly and we spend most of our time talking about where we want to travel while we're here. 

The last few days have been jam packed with a whirlwind new sights, culture, and people. So far I’ve loved every minute of this experience! It is truly is a dream to be in Dublin and I can’t believe that I’ll be here for four months. Right now it feels like I’m on a vacation but I think after starting classes and establishing more of a routine that will change. I can't wait to start classes tomorrow and meet more of the Irish students. 

I'm just skimming the surface so I'll have pictures and more posts soon!