Recap: Dublin & Beyond!
Greetings from Dublin! As the end of our program approaches, we have all become quite busy here. With only three weeks left, we are trying to squeeze in all of the activities we haven’t had a chance to do yet. Although I have been here for almost...
Vincenzo’s: Late Night Take Away
I have always longed to be a regular at a restaurant. To have mutual recognition between myself and the server, make small talk, and go our separate ways is my dream. My dream came true with Vincenzo’s. Vincenzo’s is a takeaway restaurant that ...
On Having Visitors While Abroad
As we approach the end of our time her in Dublin, one thing that I have noticed is the number of my classmates that have had family and friends come visit them in Dublin; and even more people have plans for visitors when the program ends. I had no...
Ring, Waterford, and (A LOT of) Family
When I told my grandmother about my plans to study abroad in Ireland she immediately exclaimed: “You’ll have to visit the cousins!” She filled me in quickly, explaining that she, and by extension I, have distant family in Waterford. Although...
Airfield Estate: A Visit to a Farm
This weekend, I had the opportunity to visit a working farm just outside of Dublin. A distant relative of mine had invited me to spend the day there (with no admission ticket needed!) and the thought of spending time outdoors, in nature, and aw...
Irish 101: A Guide to Irish Name Pronunciation
Coming to Ireland I was familiar with some of the more well-known Irish celebrity names (Saoirse Ronan, Sinéad O’Connor, Domhnall Gleeson, etc.), but I could not have anticipated the bizarre spelling and pronunciation of household names in Irish...
Write. Drink. Sleep. Repeat.
Saint Patrick’s Day weekend in Dublin – the ultimate Irish American party. Sunday 17 March : three days after my 21st birthday, four days after I started getting a cold, and one day before my paper on the welfare state was due. Th...
Full Circle Sea Turtle: An Ironic St. Paddy's
This past weekend was St. Patrick’s Day and, feeling obligated to participate in some capacity, I attended the Dublin parade. As soon as the parade began, I was struck by the amount of American acts, notably marching bands, included. Although I ...
Taking Back the Train
In the United States, I have been on a train about two times. I just haven’t really thought of it as being a form of transportation to visit sights. Especially because where I live in California, the state is so long, so being on a train for a lo...
Ewe have got to be kidding me!
It was reading week, 2019. My boyfriend Jay was visiting me from the US, and I was just looking for a quiet, rural Irish holiday. We set out on a journey to the Wild Atlantic Way, the west coast of Ireland. Our plan was to stay in a cute and dainty...
Once Upon a Time, Irish Mythology Crash Course
Recently we all made presentations for our Irish Life & Cultures class on various aspects of Irish life, ranging from Irish celebrities to Irish food culture. I did my presentation on Irish mythology and I want to share some of the things I lea...
Irish Dancing Where It All Began
Since I was a little girl I have been an Irish dancer, so one of the things that I was most excited about when applying to the Dublin abroad program was being able to Irish dance in Ireland. Luckily, the Irish dance community worldwide is quite sma...
Country to Country is Like State to State
Traveling between countries from Ireland seems to be easier than traveling between states in the US. I’m from Southern California, so I’ve flown a fair amount to and from Oregon for school, since the drive between my home and school is around 1...
Touring the Guinness Storehouse
Living in the Liberties of Dublin has been a wonderful experience. It is an amazing area of Dublin that has clearly retained that smaller community vibe within the city, and th...
On Irish Slang
We have been in Ireland for about two months now, but it doesn’t take that long to notice that Ireland is very different from the United States. The people are different, the food is different, and the buildings here have a distinct history that ...
Dublin’s Free Museums
If you ever come to Dublin, the museums that they have are a must see. In particular, the National Gallery and the National Museum of Ireland have been two of my favorites so far. And the best part? They’re both free (donations are appreciated th...
Recap: To Act or Not to Act, That is the Question
It’s hard to believe we have now been in Dublin for just about two months! Beyond our classes and internships, we have managed to keep busy with other activities. The week before reading week (the equivalent of spring break), we attended two pla...
Feeling Patriotic?
One of the many things that my sharp intuition has picked up in the course of my travels abroad is the negative association between Americans and America, crazy I know. Contrary to popular belief America is perhaps not the most fondly looked upon c...
Ireland Solo Adventure
After familiarizing myself with Ireland in the past month, I have been to all the four quadrants the country has to offer. From living in the east, study tours to the north, west, and south, and my own independent travels of cross sections in...
Recap: Legend... (wait for it) ...Derry
LC students were back in action on Monday or at least those of us who weren’t coughing, sneezing, and blowing our noses. That’s right, the plague has come. Nonetheless, everyone has been optimistic about our travels. On Thursday we took a mi...
The Wild Irish Sea
Being abroad has been so unforgettable so far, but for some reason something had really been lacking until this past weekend. I hadn’t really had the whole fact of being on the other side of the globe sink in. Perhaps this is due to Dublin ...
Irish Sheep
A Bush on the Move This weekend we took a little trip or maybe as the Irish would describe it a long journey to the west coast of the island. This was a lot of firsts for me in one weekend. It was the first time I had ever been to Galway, the ...
A Moment of Peace
While exploring the city of Galway me and some friends came across the Galway Cathedral and decided to head in. After the somewhat hectic move in to our hostel, and the eager rush to get out to explore the city, I found the inside of the cathedral ...
When in Doubt, Stick Your Arm Out
Growing up in San Francisco, I learned how to take public transportation from a young age and generally consider myself pretty savvy at navigating the various systems in different cities throughout the United States. Since arriving in Dublin, I hav...
The Secret To Aging Gracefully
The secret to aging gracefully… As our trip progresses and everybody starts getting more comfortable with their routines and living in Dublin, I have noticed a tendency of all the young students to hang out only with other young students. Th...
Impression of Time in the West of Ireland
Two decades. That’s really as far as I can look back and comprehend. Well I guess to be fair I have some sort of idea what it was like six decades ago. My parents were little babies and people drove cars and watched television and maybe even laug...