Traveling

Since the first moment I set foot in another country, I knew that traveling and adventure would forever be tethered to who I am, and would be my future "hobby". The excitement and joy I find when I go somewhere that I have never visited is almost unparalleled to anything else. Researching different locations, allocating resources and planning is almost as much fun as the actual trip itself.

 I have a long list of places that I want to explore, but so far I have been able to visit such places as Ireland, Northern Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Amsterdam, Italy and Greece. I plan on taking a trip with some of my closest friends to Europe in March for spring break, and can't wait to see what is in store!

Our Ambassadorial Project

Throughout our time here in Ireland we have taken the initiative to help out here at the Park Lodge in what ways we can. Numerous times over the last three months we have taken to helping out our friend John Paul, one of the main groundskeepers here at Park Lodge. We have assisted him in setting up and tearing down the ball room for larger events held here at the Park Lodge, as well as moving larger furniture around in the actual hotel. It was vital of us to reach out in hopes to help build bridges and relationships for the future students who plan on going on this wonderful adventure. It is important to get out of your comfort zone when you have chances like this, and converse with the people who surround you. I’m glad we did with John Paul, he ended up making this trip even better than I thought it could be. Cheers JP!

Dingle, The cliffs of Moher and Blarney Castle

Our trip to Dingle was the last trip that we were all taking together on this program, and for all of us it was the best way for it to end. The Dingle area in and of itself is a beautiful place to visit, but there were many different sites for us to see and learn about. 

Dunbeg Promontory Fort

Beehive hut

Our first day we took a bus tour of the local Dingle area and learned about the various ancient structures that still dot the landscape. We also learned about a small community known located on the Blasket Islands directly off the coast. This small community was essentially excluded from the mainland and were among the minute amount of the population to be unaffected by the Famine due to the resources of the ocean. We also encountered various Beehive houses along our tour, which were used by the local religious monks as a place to practice their religion. On this trip we also stopped by the Cliffs of Moher. Breath taking does not do enough justice to describe their beauty. We were able to walk along the cliffs and take in the views as well as snap a few post card like photos. 

Blarney Castle

Our last stop on our trip was the famous Blarney Castle were the Blarney stones resides. The castle itself was in fantastic shape, and the self-guided tour was a thing of wonder. For each of the rooms and halls we entered there was a description of what was once here, or what purpose the room served. It was easy to visualize the history that had taken place here. I was also able to kiss the fabled Blarney stone, which is believed to give all who kiss it eloquence in speech. This was our most eventful experience during our time here in Ireland.  

Northern Ireland

William of Orange

This trip we took to Northern Ireland was by far my favorite that we have taken thus far. It took everything that we have been discussing in our literature and history classes and made it real. We were able to stop in Derry (Londonderry) and walk Europe’s oldest still intact medieval wall, and see some of the murals that we have discussed in class in relation to the conflicts that have persisted in Northern Ireland for the past few generations now. 

Bobby Sands Mural

LondonDerry

When we arrived in Belfast on our first day, we were able to meet and talk with the port master of the docks in Belfast. It was interesting to see just how much influence and what kinds of contributions that they were giving back to Belfast, a city that has been experiencing an economic slump in recent years. After this we made our way to our hostel and were given a free half day to go and explore Belfast and its people. 

What I noticed first was the divide among the people who identify themselves as part of the British population, and those who identify with the Irish population. There has been a long standing animosity between the people of Belfast who identify themselves as protestant and those who are catholic. The Troubles of the 1970, 80’s, and 90’s is still in the recent memories of the people here, and it was not hard to see. The different murals in Belfast also described the history of the city and brought to light even more the way the people feel. What really got me was the peace wall that still stands to separate the communities of the Protestants and the Catholics. In recent times people have taken to leaving their mark on it. Belfast was unlike anything I have ever experienced in my life. I hope that in the future I am able to come back and see how the city has changed.

Daily Life

Spiddal!

Daily life here in the cottages and in the local area is pretty simplistic. Waking up, my first and most important objective is to make coffee. With my free time before class I usually just hang out in the cottage and greet my friends as they wake, and by 10 a.m. we are all on our way to class. Four hours later after class we all get together and come up with a game plan for the day. Some of us opt to head into Galway, while others chose to go to Spiddal for a bite to eat and to pick up a few groceries for the next couple of days. I often walk to Spiddal for the delicious Fondito Queso, which I highly recommend if you ever find yourself at Tigh Gibblins. 

The Atlantic

Usually I find that I or someone who has come with me to Spiddal will begin to mingle with the locals, and we always end up having some great conversations. Politics here in Ireland is usually the way most of our conversations end up going. The walks back from Spiddal are the best part. The sun on the still Atlantic is a beautiful sight that I will never forget. As our day winds down, we find different ways to entertain ourselves. Some of us will play cribbage, UNO or other various card games. We sometimes have the other cottages over for a monopoly night that always tends to end on a bitter note. We also have dinner together most every night, and usually spilt up the responsibility amongst us so we can all chip in. If there is one thing that I will truly miss at the end of this trip, it is going to be our group cohesion and our ability to work together to make our days here much easier and a lot more enjoyable.

Visiting Irish Students

This week we were given the opportunity to gain some insight into the world of "high school" or secondary school here in Ireland. Our group took a short trip to a Post Primary School that is west of Spiddal by about 2.5 kilometers. After a brief wait, we met with the school's principal who gave us an idea of what to expect and divided us up into two groups of eight to interact with two different classes. Once in the class, we further divided into two groups of four to speak with two different groups in the classes. As the class split, it was the typical boys on one side and girls on the other, and I opted to sit and chat with the guys.  As a future educator I could only conjure up the lame inquiries such as "What is your favorite subject(s)" and "What kinds of school activities are you guys involved with?". It was no surprise that my lack luster questions we met with the answer equivalent to that of your ordinary American high school student. I've also come to understand that learning the Irish language is not very popular among the students. The vast majority would rather be taught in English, but due to a movement in the revival of the Irish language, most of the schools in the area where we are located are all taught in Irish.
We did find however that the students were very active in sports, mostly Gaelic Football, and had a diverse interest in American sports, and even a few questions about American politics and policies. It was refreshing to see students who were interested in what was going on in other parts of the world and had realistic questions for us to attempt to answer. They were also kind enough to show us their skills in music and dance. As a class, they sang a few traditional Irish songs for us, and one of the girls displayed her fantastic talent to perform the traditional Irish dance. This was overall a good experience for myself and our group. It was nice to be able to see the similarities in the American school system and the Irish school system, as well as their differences.

The people of Ireland

Sligo

I had always heard that the people in Ireland were friendly and welcoming, but you can only really understand that once you have been here for some time. I would like to compare the hospitality of the Irish to that of those in the Midwest, but that is still not quite true.
From day one up until now, the friendliness and kindness that the locals show us is truly humbling. I was apprehensive at first and thought perhaps this was some sort of facade towards the tourists here, but I was most definitely wrong. This last weekend a small group of us took a trip to two smaller cities, Sligo and Letterkenny. Not knowing what really to expect, we meandered through the city streets looking for shops or other attractions to visit.

We found a small shop with many different wood carvings in the window so we decided to go inside. Once inside we found an older gentleman named Micheal. He was an older man, but his face told so many stories. As we were looking about his shop, he stopped working on his carving and came and talked to us about the history of Sligo and the lore behind the lands. He even cut smaller pieces of flat wood so he could make each of us our own wood etching! 

This kind of kindness is not exclusive. Waiters and waitresses at restaurants will show you the same kindness, as will any. After departing from Sligo we made our way to Letterkenny, a small but beautiful town. We met and conversed with many different people here, and the same welcoming tone was common. Its not something that you can get totally used to. Coming from the states, it continues to be a wonderful experience.

Letterkenny Church