Oof. It’s been a long three weeks, and I write this blog post from an adorable balcony of a cafe in Delphi. 21 of us arrived in Athens on September 2 to move in to our apartments in the neighborhood of Pangrati and begin our orientation at CYA. E...

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 ...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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 ...

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...

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...

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...

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...

           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...

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 ...

Eli Barnes Overseas Internship Blog Post: The Quest for the Best Scone I consider myself to be somewhat of a scone guy. Back in the states, my ideal morning starts with a good scone and a good cappuccino. Before coming to Dublin, I expecte...

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...

Public transportation is a relatively new experience for me. I grew up in a smaller rural town that had one single bus that went from our downtown to the mall and that was it. It was pretty much impossible to get from downtown to my house using the...

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...

As I walked into the office of my service internship organization after coming back from our spring break, I thought it was just another ordinary Tuesday. I opened up Slack, my office’s internal messaging system, and saw that one of my co-workers...

77101210310true83,0,2252,3200 77102235310true64,262,2075,2912 77103233310   This Friday I hopped on a train to explore a corner of Ireland I’ve been dreaming of for over a year–The Dingle Peninsula. I brought two friends with ...

When visiting a new city, I naturally seek out and visit places that are often frequented by other travelers. While sometimes overpriced, crowded, and cheesy, “tourist” spots tend to provide a glimpse into a location’s historical and cultural...

This semester I was thrown into a new country, with students I do not know well, meeting people who have an accent I do not understand, and yet the hardest adjustment for me was cooking for myself. I fortunately grew up with a mother who loved to c...

Recap            Hello from Dublin! It’s been just over a month since we’ve been here in Dublin and it has been a very eventful month. We all found our own spots across the city for lunch, take-away, “late night food” and c...

The 124-acre plot of Glasnevin Cemetery is the final resting place for approximately 1.5 million people (just for reference, the current population of Dublin is 1.3 million). From the outside, the cemetery looks like a fortress, it is surrounded by...

Vale, hay muchos fotos impresionantes de la Alhambra en el web.   Es super-impresionante cuantos diseños hay en la Alhambra!  En este post voy a prestar atención e los diseños de frisos de la Alhambra. Un diseño de friso is una dise...

For as early as I can remember, I have feared birds. While I still very much remain distrustful of the avian species, my experience with the birds of Ireland has been slightly more positive than anticipated. And by slightly, I mean I may have disco...

Yesterday I found myself walking along the road of Dark Hedges in Northern Ireland.  The beech trees reaching overhead are grand, yet they create a secluded tunnel reminding me of the rhododendron forests in my mountain home.  I...

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...

I have had a problem that has plagued me and my wallet since my high school days, I am addicted to coffee. The cup of dark happiness has helped me through all the assignments of high school and now college. I have accepted this necessary evil and h...

Apparently flamenco is WAY bigger than a dance with clapping and dress swooshing.  As with many things we’ve seen so far, it is a tradition with widespread roots.  My references all seem to disagree but from what I’ve seen flamenco is...

Going abroad was an experience I didn’t know how to prepare myself for. Aside from going to Mexico once or twice when I was about five years old, I had never traveled out of the west of the states. Up until I decided to go to college in Oregon, I...

My sweet tooth is heredity. I would like to give a big thanks to my mother for always keeping our house fully stocked with fresh baked goods when I was growing up. I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without you. Anyway, I feel it my duty to beque...

Before I got to Dublin, I mentally prepared myself to be surrounded by places and people that were almost completely different from the US. I prepared myself (not well) for the infamous Irish rain that I have yet to see. I had my Irish friends teac...

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 ...