legendary

Well it seems like I've been going and going non stop. Last weekend I went to Adare and Kerry. I had loads of fun which amounted to not so much fun on our drive back. Then this week was rag week at DCU. Basically its a week to donate money to charity but in order to do that you have to attend events on campus like the rag ball that I went to last night. I really hope all that money was going to charity because it was expensive. I bought two drinks and it was 25 euro. I felt really poor and ripped off after that. But they brought in some bands all week but last night b*witched, 2 unlimited, and Sash played. All those bands are bad euro pop from the early 90's but it made things interesting.  

Anna and Ariella

after the pub we went back to the house that we were all staying at. 

Birthday girl in the middle.

Beth and Sherman. Beth is probably telling me to stop taking pictures.

We were driving a long the coast and came upon this weird gate. so we got out and walked on the beach.

double vodka and red bull

I went to Carlow last weekend. It was basically what I expected a town in Ireland to be like except for this random huge night club that we went to. The club had a couple of dance floors and a live band as well as dj's. The club was a nice reminder of how much I am not into euro-pop and club music. Oh and people in Ireland really do eat a lot of potatoes.  We ordered Chinese food and it came with chips (fries) oh and waffles here are actually like huge waffle fries. Pretty good stuff.

downtown Carlow

Ariella and Aaron. 

Then monday my friends Evan and Antoine (the cool kids) came to Dublin for a stop on their tour. We used to eat chicken wings every sunday so we found a bar that served them. It was nice to have a little bit of Chicago in Dublin. 

This weekend I went to Adare outside of Limerick and then to Kerry. It was my friend Aisling's 21st birthday so a bunch of us trekked over there for the party. I'll post some of the pictures later because the internet here is so slow and it won't download my pictures. 

grand!

Well my first week has come to a close. Very interesting to say the least.  Everything is so different but especially the classes and social rules. I've learned that classes never start on time and that I have way too much time on my hands since classes only meet once a week.  Also, everyone goes out during the week, especially Thursday, and then they all go home on the weekend to work. 

The weirdest thing to me though is that my school has a bar on campus that only DCU students can go to. I had my first experience there this past Tuesday and it was pretty funny. The bar was packed and they brought in a couple of bands for the night including an ABBA cover band. Even better was that it was apparently the best ABBA cover band. So after my friends and I were done with class we had a few rounds at the bar and sang ABBA all night.  I think Loyola could pick up a few tips from the Irish.

 But, the Superbowl was a bust. Since I don't really understand football and really just wanted to watch it for the commercials, I was bummed to find out that the commercials weren't the same. I had a blonde moment and forgot that I was not actually watching American television.  But at least my NY friends enjoyed the win. So much even that one of them broke a window in his room. From pure excitement I suppose? Damn Americans! Just kidding...kind of. 

Tomorrow I am headed to Carlow which is about 45 minutes away from Dublin. My friend Ariella's boyfriend is from there so me and another friend, Anna, are tagging along with them. And next week I am going to Kerry for a friend's 21st birthday. The 21st birthday is a huge celebration here. All your friends travel to your hometown and stay in hostels or at your parents house and basically you party for two or three days.  Pretty much, Ireland is overwhelming me with its social scene! Hopefully I can adjust fast.

I haven't been taking any pictures because I am afraid I'll break or have my camera stolen and Bowman wouldn't like that! But I am going to get braver and start taking it everywhere, starting tomorrow. But in the mean time I'll leave you with a few lowly pictures of my room (I think my mom will be the only one to appreciate these). Also you should take a look at my friend Rachel's blogs. She's into vegan cooking and photography.

Slainte!

guinness and green things

Well the last few days have been crazy. I've managed to move in and buy groceries and all that stuff and today I took on the city with a friend.  I even figured out how to take the bus but it's really expensive here with it being 1.50 euro to go one way. That really adds up when you think about it. But today we did the tourist thing and shopped on Grafton St., Henry St., and ate dinner in the Temple Bar district. I also had my first Guinness today (tasted just the same, sorry!). Its been colder than usual I guess (32 F) but it hasn't been too bad.  No snow like I hear Chicago had.  

Things are very different but also a like in some ways. However, I am getting used to it and I am even learning to look to the left before crossing the street. I wish I could get a bike here so I could get around quicker but the streets are so narrow and the drivers don't really pay attention to how close they are to one another. I'd probably die the second I tried so I'll just stick to my own two feet and the bus. 

But school starts tomorrow and I am going to a super bowl party tonight at 11. I'll let you all know how my first week goes and I hope I can understand what my teachers are saying. Wish me luck!

slainte! (cheers)