Final Thoughts

I’m officially back in the US now.  I’m not home, home, but I’m in the JFK airport in New York.  I can’t believe that my abroad experience is over, but more than that, I can’t believe it happened.  I learned more this summer than at any event that I can remember.  I learned from the people of Ireland, with their positive attitudes, senses of humor and helpful nature.  I learned from the people on my program, who, although were all from the US, all had such different experiences to share with me and things to teach me.  And as cliché as it sounds, I really did learn a lot from myself.  I’ve never lived far away from my family, and I’ve never lived in a big city.  I learned exactly what I was capable of, and I became confident in a city that was completely unlike anywhere I had ever been, let alone lived.  It made me a lot more confident in myself, more confident than I thought I could be.

I have two shoutouts to give.

First shoutout goes to everyone in this picture:

My heart goes out to you beauties as the most adventurous fun people that I have had the pleasure to meet.  I’m so happy I didn’t get stuck with some annoying, boring, low lifes who were afraid to take risks.  I can’t believe that you guys go to school so far away, but trust me, I’ll be seeing you all again.  I wanted to get the most out of my abroad experience, and because of you biddies, I did.

Second shoutout goes to my favorite foreigners I’ll ever meet:

How lucky I was to get stuck with these two fools.  The Adfaces team, repping Ireland, Germany and the USofA kept me smiling in frustrating and often tough times.  They made me feel at home, and together we accomplished a lot.  They are two really important people to me now, and they both know they ALWAYS have a home in North Carolina when they want it. And they better want it soon, because I miss them already!

When I left the US it couldn’t have been a better time to go, I had been through two quick and dramatic relationships, a car accident and without being too specific, a bit of an identity crisis.  There was nothing holding me back when I left, and to be honest, I couldn’t wait to escape my problems and get as far away from them as I could.  Now, to my surprise, I can’t wait to get back to the US.  Not because I want to dive back into the problems I left behind, but because I’ve realized that what I thought were problems before, aren’t really problems at all.  Ireland put a lot of things in perspective for me, and now, more than ever, I feel so lucky to be the person I am.  Ireland, this summer, and the people I talked about above helped me realize that, and I’m so thankful for that.

I will be back to Ireland.  I don’t know when, but I have to go back to that beautiful countryside and 1,000 shades of green that I called home for that summer right in the middle of my college career.  I’ll never forget the beautiful scenery, the amazing people and the way that Ireland changed my life.

Cheers, forever

Sophie

Cork, Glendalough and SCOTLAND!

It's been SO long since I've written.  I am a shameful excuse for a blogger.  However, this next post is going to be so chock full of pictures and experiences that all will be forgiven soon enough.

I've had some of the most incredible experiences in my life during study abroad, and I have been taking time each day to focus on just how lucky and thankful I am to be experiencing such an amazing summer.  I'm learning new things from my classes, from the people here, from the native Irish, and from myself, and I'm loving every minute of my Irish experience.

I have ONLY 5 more days left of my program, which is the most unbelievable thing to me.  I don't think I've ever been away from home for a full two months at a time, and the fact that the first time I did was in another country is pretty crazy.  I'm getting to the point in my program where I'm so sad that it's ending, but I can't wait to get home.  It's a great place to be.  I love it here, but I hate to say it, I really do love America.  I can't wait to get back to that North Carolina sunshine, move into my beautiful new house with the sweetest girls in Chapel Hill and start a new year feeling totally fresh and brand new.

Cork

We were supposed to go down to Cork with the whole program, but because enough people didn't sign up, we had to round up a group of our own and head down South on a train ourselves.  Cork was a pretty weird place.  I'm still not quite too sure how I felt about it.  I would say, for sure, that the people down south aren't as friendly as they are in Dublin, and there were a few characters that I wasn't the happiest to meet.  However, during the day time, we had a great time in one of the nicest days Ireland must have ever seen.  We headed to the Blarney Castle, which is the main attraction in Cork.  It's pretty easy to see why.

The Blarney castle was the weirdest place, very dirty and claustrophobic (hate to complain) but it holds something unique to Ireland: The Blarney Stone.  Legend has it, that anyone who kisses the stone will be given "the gift of gab," which is basically eloquence, wit and flattery.  SO, I'm picturing this huge bolder in a field that you're supposed to kiss.  When we get to the castle and are informed that the stone is on the top floor, I'm picturing a seriously beautiful and shimmering stone.  Turns out the Blarney stone is basically built into the wall underneath the top floor of the castle.  So the only way you can kiss it is to lay on your back and arch back until you reach the stone, give it a kiss and getcha some eloquence.  Not at ALL what I was picturing, but it was really fun and we all gave it a kiss or two, and it was a great time.


Cork night life... let's be honest, kind of sucked.  We were turned away from almost everywhere because we weren't 21 or 23.  It was the most frustrating thing.  Where did they think we were, America or something?  Anyway, the one bouncer told us we weren't in Ireland in anymore, we were in Cork. Wierd... But anyway.  The second night we did actually end up getting into the "hottest club in Cork," called Havannas.  Ari and I played "dare" to make the might more interesting.  Perfect.

Glendalough

Glendalough was a day trip that we took with our program, lead by Mary, by far the cutest woman to ever walk the earth.  We took a bus with a bus driver who must have lost his mind somewhere, so it was a little bumpy and we all felt a little sick by the time we got off.  But we got there around 3 and took about an hour long walking tour of the tiny city.  It held tons of remains from an old monestary town, and the biggest structure was a tall stone tower.  It was really beautiful there, but we hadn't seen anything yettt. 

What Glendalough actually translates to is: Land of Two Lakes.  The lakes were some of the most incredible sights I've ever seen.  They were sparkling and cool, and we got there at the perfect time to see the sun shining at an angle from behind the mountains.  We had a great time playing in the field by the lake and a few people actually went in the water.  It was so beautiful and amazing, and we all had a great time walking around and admiring all there was to be seen.

Scotland

Most of you who know me know that I love having plans and making schedules and going places knowing exactly what to do at the destination.  Well in Scotland I literally had to leave all of that behind.

The name of the trip was Scotland 2k12: No luggage. No hostel. No regrets.

We woke up at 7 and took a taxi to the airport, checked in went to security and we were in the air on our way to Scotland at 9.  When we arrived, we took a 50 minute train ride into Glascow, the nearest city to where we landed.  We went to the bus station to figure everything out and then went to a restaurant to have lunch. At 1:30 we were on a bus to Edinborough, which we quickly realized is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

We always seem to have the most amazing luck with weather.  It usually sucks over here, but on the days when we're going to be out an about seeing the sites and being active, the sun always finds a way to shine.  We rode the bus through a huge rain storm, but as soon as we got off to walk around it was beautiful and sunny of most of the rest of the day.

Now when I say no luggage, I mean we literally were all carrying only tiny satchels, no sweaters, no change of clothes, we were going 24 hours with just what was on our backs.

We went to a street called the Royal Mile, started down at the bottom and ended at the top at the castle. All along the road there were street performers, magicians, escape artists, to which we stopped, watched and took our time.  We got some hot chocolate and moseyed up the hill until we reached the castle.  It was too expensive to go inside, but we walked around and looked at the views and it was incredible.

Next we went to a mexican restaurant and had cocktails.  We used the bathroom there as our make-shift hostel for the evening.  I put in my contacts, we did our make-up and hair and came out fresh and ready to go.  It was raining now, so we would run from place to place until the rain stopped.  We went into a great pub called the Royal Mile and the people behind the bar were great.  They told me to try a traditional Scottish dish, and they wanted me to try it so badly they gave me a discount.  I tried them and they were amazing.  They were like little breaded meatballs.  Still don't know what exactly they were, but hey, name of the trip is no regrets, and they were great.


Next we went to a bar called "Frankenstein" which was a cool club-ish bar that kind of tacked onto the idea that Frankenstein was born in Scottland.  We had dinner there and watched the olympics.  We cheered for the US during swimming and had a little American pride moment of our own.  Then took a cab to one of the most beautiful places in Scotland.  It was amazing and beautiful and the weather was sunny but getting darker.  It couldn't have been a more amazing view to look at.  I've never seen anything like it before.

The rest of the night was spent at swanky martini bars, clubs and an Italian restaurant at 1 in the morning when we looked like this --->
Pretty tragic.  Next we took 2 busses home at 1:30 and 3 in the morning, got to the airport at 4:30, slept off our hangovers and woke up at 7 to check in for our flight at 7:45.  We were back in our beds at DCU at around 9 or 10 am the next day.  It was the most amazing, impulsive and awesome thing I have ever done.

I'm loving this trip so much and I can't believe it's almost over.  I absolutely adore a lot of the people I've met here, and I'm going to be so sad to leave them at the end of the trip.  The fact that I have less than a week left here is unbelievable (..kind of because it's not true, my dad and sister are coming to travel around with me for a week) but I'll be experiencing everything differently then.  I'll write one more thing before I leave or just after with overall thoughts on the trip.  I can't believe how lucky I am.

They must call it the luck of the Irish because anyone who gets to spend some time in the country, just like meee, is a real lucky lad.

Cheers!

My First Two Excursions!

Northern Ireland

For those of you who don't know, which I totally wouldn't have if my comparative politics class didn't spend an entire unit on, Ireland is actually split into two countries.  I'm staying in Dublin, which is in the Republic of Ireland.  Northern Ireland is part of the UK and a separate country.  There is a lot of dispute on whether Northern Ireland should remain a part of the UK or if Ireland should be one united country.  Apparently it's a VERY controversial question to ask people's opinion on.  We obviously didn't know this when we asked everyone we met in the region.  We stopped after someone told us that over 4,000 people have died by asking that very question. Whoops!  It's really cool, though, how amazingly informed everyone is about their history there.  From taxi drivers to bouncers, everyone seems to know what's going on.

The night life was weird and funny.  However most people were old or gay that we encountered.  Both are fine, just not exactly our scene.  We ended up encountering a bachelor party of men who thought we were hilarious (who wouldn't.... am I right?) But they were really funny and actually really, really intelligent.  They knew almost more about American politics than I did, (proud poli sci major right here). I love talking about the US with foreigners.  It's amazing what parts of it they find peculiar that we don't really think twice about.  They also always harp on talking about women's rights and health care here (can I get an amen).  We learned that the word "devastating" can be a good thing.  We learned this the hard way when he said that our American accents were devastating.  When we looked a little embarrassed, he explained that it's a good thing!  "For example," he said, "black hair and blue eyes is a DEVASTATING combo." I then pointed out that he had black hair and blue eyes to which he replied, "like I said, a devastating combo."

We went to a place called the Belfast castle and went for the most amazing hike.  We've been (knock on wood) incredibly lucky when it comes to weather here in Ireland so far.  There are TONS of cold rainy days, but it doesn't seem like any of the days that we try to be outside hiking and seeing the beautiful parts of Ireland fall on those days.  I'm so thankful for this.  Ireland truly is the most beautiful place I've ever been.  I'm not much of a hiker at home, but the amazing landscape of Ireland makes me WANT to get out there and see things.  I love it.


Galway
Galway was by far the greatest place we've been so far.  We had an amazing tour guide who constantly gave us things to do.  We stayed at really cute and fun hostels and it was a great weekend filled with pub crawls, hiking, and lots and lots of cows.




Please take a moment and LISTEN to the song that was the theme of our trip.  It's called Galway girl, and we all learned the words and sang it on the bus ride there (paired with a little fat man scoop karaoke, let's not forget) and at every bar we went to.  It's about a girl from Galway with black hair and blue eyes, (apparently a devastating combo).










The pub crawls were hilarious, fun, and entertaining.  We took shots of "baby Guinness" which luckily taste NOTHING like the real beer, and are actually delicious.  They were cute lil babies and they started off the pub crawl right (see picture on the right).  We then played a bunch of other games like beer pong, boat race (chugging relay race where you turn your cup upside-down on your head when you're done... so you better've drank the whole thing), and the Guinness challenge where you had to try and drink your Guiness to an exact spot in the glass where the beer and foam meet  on the first try. Very cute and fun.  There were also many other fun opportunities on the pub crawl, please refer to the picture on the left of you would like more details.


The next day we went to the Cliffs of Moher which are considered to be one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.  It was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen.  It was breathtakingly beautiful.  There was also no fence on a lot of the ledges so you were just standing on the edge of a huge cliff with nothing to catch you if you slipped.  Pretty exhilarating. There's not much to say about the cliffs apart from how beautiful they were, but I was so happy to have had the opportunity to go there.  I loved every minute of it.

I love Ireland and I'm so thankful to be here,Cheers,Sophie

Straight updates

Ireland is great. I'm having such an incredible time and I'm very thankful to be here. Today is father's day, and I just can't stop thinking today about how I'm so incredibly thankful to have a family that will send me another place in the world to learn and experience new people.


My internship starts tomorrow.  I'll be working at a place called adfaces.  It's a company that sells space for advertising.  The company is BRAND new, only about one month in Ireland so far.  However, they've been successful other places in the world.  There are only three people who work in the company, and they need help advertising themselves and branding themselves so that people will use their service.  When I pictured my internship, this isn't exactly what I had in mind, but I'm really, really looking forward to getting started tomorrow.  Because the company is so small, I think I will be doing a little of everything, and I'll really get to see what it's like and be a part of essentially developing and starting a company!


We've been doing a lot of cool stuff.  The stuff that I thought was going to be not so cool, like class, is actually turning out to be pretty fun too. I'm taking a class called international human rights law.  It's really interesting.  Ireland actually got a better grade than the US in their human rights, but there are some major differences, for example, it's impossible to get an abortion in Ireland.  Women travel to the UK by the hundreds every year to get them.  It seems so behind and that's one thing that makes human rights totally different in Ireland.

I think one of my favorite things we've done so far was go to Howth, which is a great place in Dublin for hiking.  We basically climbed a rocky mountain that was surrounded by an incredibly blue body of water and green grasses.  It was a cool place for exploring, and it was also surrounded by an awesome neighborhoods with incredible houses.  There were some houses with helicopter pads because they could only be accessed that way because they were so secluded.  Afterward we went down to the peer and had some incredible seafood chowder and all just chatted and had a good time.  I really loved it there, and when my dad and Alisha come down at the end of the summer, I think we'll definitely have to take a trip.




We've been lucky enough to be here at a great time for futball!  Going to the pubs when Ireland is playing is the best.  Like I talked about in my last post, everyone here has so much pride, and orange and green flood the streets.  It's really cool to pretend you have any part in it.  But I did happen to bring an orange... and a green shirt, so I'm good to go.  The next game is tomorrow, so everyone's meeting up after work for some bar food and futball.  This is a video I took right before the last game.  Even though Ireland was CRUSHED by Spain, this atmosphere remained upbeat and enthusiastic the whole time.

We went on a fieldtrip to a jail, that was famous for it's cruel punishments.  We had someone pretend to be the warden and took us around and talked about how poor the conditions were.  It actually got really creepy in some parts.  It's wasn't anything spectacular, but it was cool to learn about how minor some of the charges used to be and how major the punishments were.

Next we went to Powerscourt Gardens, which was a beautiful country club sort of thing.  We had lunch there in a beautiful room made of windows.  We were supposed to pay for the gardens but somehow walked out there with no one noticing... whoops!  But they were beautiful and so well kept, everyone took a lot of pictures.  It wasn't the nicest of days, but it ended up that all the times we needed it to stop raining, it pretty much did.  I guess we've got pretty good luck!

Yesterday was great, we went on a 20 euro tour of the city and pub crawl!  A tiny red headed man in a sweater and a hat took us around downtown Dublin and told us about the history and what was going on currently in Dublin as well.  He took us to some really beautiful places, and he was very informative.  Not only was he informative, but we learned later that he was a great story teller and an awesome singer!  We all went to a place called Stagshead which is one of the most historic bars in Dublin and we went to a private room upstairs and he told us 3 really funny, really dramatic stories.  Apparently Dublin, and Ireland in general, is famous for its story tellers.  I had a great time listening to him.  In between each story he would sing a native Irish drinking song, which he says we'll start to recognize as we go out in Dublin more and more.  So we all sat around the fire drinking Guinness and singing along, slightly mesmerized by this funny little guy.  Next we had a great, great dinner, stopped at a fantastic Gelato shop and then headed to the pub crawl.

The pub crawl was led by a great young company, but we heard about it through our program.  We all got wristbands and got discounted drinks at each bar.  We went to 5 bars and ended at a night club.  We had tons of different kinds of drinks, we just took every suggestion we were given.  We had strawberry beer and butterscotch shots at one bar.  The last bar was everyone's favorite.  They had a great live band, and everyone loved that we were American.  We all got in the circle one at a time and showed off our riverdancing skills.  Then the tourguide from earlier that day showed up and he danced with all of us, and it was so much fun.  The night club that we went to was owned by NONE OTHER THAN Bono. Hahaha.  It was actually really fun.  Strobe lights can make a girl feel sick after a while though, so we didn't stay too long.  It was totally worth the 20 euro and we met a lot of other people who came on the crawl with us who were both Dubliners and travelers themselves!


I'm having a great time.  I love the people I'm traveling with and I can't wait to get to work tomorrow and see how it goes.  It's gonna start getting less like a vacation and more like real life starting tomorrow, but I think we're all ready.  Our class has quite a bit of work and we have to do some work for our internship section of the trip too, so that's not the most exciting thing I've ever heard, but we'll all manage.


Overall, I'm thankful to be here, and it's starting to feel like home!

Ireland Pride

A few key differences so far in Ireland

• You have to look right when crossing the road and not left... that'll getcha
• Coins are really important, so don't throw them all in the tip jar, you'll need'm later!
• Waiters will not bring you anything you don't ask for... including refills on water
• No one carries guns, not even the police
• If you look lost, someone will always try to help you
• There's a lot of national pride

I just got back from an incredibly crazy and crowded pup in downtown Ireland called "The Living Room."  There were tons of cheers that everyone knew, and everyone was decked out in green and orange.  It reminded me a little of some situations I face at UNC, but people with me from other colleges had never experienced anything even remotely similar to it.  I have a lot of pride in UNC, but as far as American pride... I guess that's a little different.

I had never really thought much about it until the head internship coordinator said that Americans were the only people in the world that were embarrassed or ashamed to say where they're from.  When he asked us what words we would use to describe americans, we all said things like, "fat, lazy, entitled, uneducated, etc." No one said things like hardworking, curious, ambitious or anything along those lines.

When you ride the bus around Ireland, poor places, rich places, businesses, churches, offices, everywhere has the country's flag hanging from one of the windows.  It's really cool, and it makes you feel really good about being in a country like this.  But when you think about the reputation you pin to a person who has an American flag hanging in the united states, it's totally different.  

A guy in a pub last night told me that the Irish are notoriously bad at soccer, but that they consistently win best fans every year.  That, to me, is awesome.  It's funny, because we have more freedoms in America, it's almost like we have a lot more to be proud of, but we like to focus on the problems we have in America and we let them define us.  Ever since this realization, I've tried to hold up my head when I say that I'm an American, because I've decided it's something that I am proud of.

Finally, I'll leave you with a funny story.

In a pub a few nights ago, a guy asked me where I was from.  When I said America, he laughed and said, well could'ja be just a li'le more specific? I said North Carolina and he responded with a nod and an, ahhhh yes, of course.  I asked him if he knew where that was and he replied that of course he knew where North Carolina was!  Well... where? I asked.  

Everyone knows North Carolina is in California, he said.  To which I replied, well... just as much as Ireland is in Germany!

Slàinte! (Cheers!)

Sophie

First day in Dublin

Well, I'm here.  This blog now has actual meaning.  My flight was last night at 9:45 pm and I landed this morning at 9am (Dublin time).  Everything was fine, luggage arrived and the bus to take us to our housing was on time.


Dublin is a really cool city, it's a mix between beautiful scenery and really cool industrial buildings.


My roommate, Sarah, is cute, and in addition to her, I've met a ton of fun girls (there's only one boy), that are great.  I'm always afraid that people won't match up or like my sense of humor.  Everyone here, though, is funny, and loves to laugh.  I can tell it's going to be a great group.


I had a moment of home sickness, and the realization that I'll be here for 2 whole months, but everyone spoke up and felt kind of the same way, so it was a nice little bonding moment to be there for each other.


We had an orientation meeting which I dozed in and out of because of my severe jet lag.  We came home and napped for a few hours, then got up, got dressed and headed out.


Me and about 10 girls went out to a restaurant called "Bad Ass."  We ordered our first beers in Ireland.  The waitress found out this was our first Ireland experience, and was really sweet and fun.  I got some soup, some people got wings, some people got pizza.  We all picked off each other's plates and laughed and had an awesome time.


After dinner we all went into a cool alley that led to a big square of pubs.  They had a live band in one that was singing really classic american songs, like Tom Petty, ACDC and Rolling stones.  It was really fun and everyone was singing and dancing and hugging.  We got to know a few Irish people who were really friendly, along with some people from Australia and Germany as well.  At one point we all looked at each other and said, "we're at a pub in Ireland." It's hard to believe how lucky we all are.


Finally we walked into a disco, which they ID'd us to make sure we were 18...(insuuuuultiiiing)... and we were THE ONLY ones in there.  They gave us free drinks and we danced like crazy for a while before heading home.


Both out and back we took the bus which is 2 euros each way.  Still getting the hang of Euros, but I'm sure I'll get it eventually.  Those coins are important, totally not like American money.


Don't have my internship yet, but the woman who's looking for me says she's working on mine, and mine alone for the next three days.  Really, really hoping I'll get a good one that I enjoy a lot.


Tomorrow we're having a scavenger hunt in the city, and y'all know I'll win that.


Bad news: Hulu does not work outside of America.  It's okay though, I'm finding ways to cope.


Sophie

What's so great about your own bed?

I'm leaving tomorrow.  It's a little anticlimactic because I'm first going up to New York for my cousin's wedding, and THEN going to Ireland.  Nevertheless, this is my last night in Durham, and the last night in my bed for about two and a half months.


When people come home after being gone for a while, they always like to comment on "how nice it is to be back in my own bed."  My bed is comfortable, but I'm not sure if that's why I love it.  I think there's gotta be something else.


I think the human race is obsessed with familiarity; I know I am.  There is comfort in walking into a crowded room and seeing someone you know, even if you really don't like the person much at all.  It allows you to drop your shoulders and walk a little taller, at least that's the case for me.  Everyone says they love trying new things, (me being one of those people), but I'm pretty sure familiarity is what keeps everyone sane.


No one's going to crave a nights sleep in a room they don't recognize and don't know all the secrets about.  Everyone loves their bed because there's absolutely nothing about it that will surprise you.  You know which pillows are the best to stack up for reading, and the exact spot on the bed that has a little indent of your body from where you've laid there so many times before.  It always feels safe to slide yourself back into the grooves of the mattress.  Your mattress.  You know right where the outlets are, just in case you need them.  You know the safest rout to take from when turning off the light across the room to putting your head on the pillow.  Everything seems like common sense, and that's really, really nice.


I'm not going to have any familiarity in Dublin.  That's what scares me the most.  I love new things, and I love adventures, but I also really, really love my own bed.  I think this is what I'll struggle with the most in Ireland, but for some reason I'm not really letting it bother me.  I think I'm pretty good at making things familiar fairly quickly.  Whether it's people, places, walking routs, or a special flavor of coffee, I'm gonna make little snippits of Dublin my own. I'll give myself a place to feel comfortable that can serve the purpose that my bed serves at home.  I can't wait until faces of strangers become the one's I find comfort in spotting from across the room.  I can't wait to make Dublin familiar.


But for now, I guess one last time, I'll snuggle down in my comfort zone, not pushing any boundaries, and relishing in the fact that I have nothing to wonder about, nothing to question, and every reason to feel safe.  


Sophie