2 years post Ireland and I still miss it!

Ok. I'm SO sorry for not getting the longest post ever (aka my epic 2 week tour around Europe) out......

Fast forward 2 years later and I STILL haven't done that post. But today, in honor of it being the two year anniversary of me leaving for Ireland, I'm going to do a "best of" post and stroll down memory lane a bit :) I'm not quite sure how to go about this since there is so much that I loved, so forgive me if this is somewhat jumbled and long!

First I guess I have to start with how I don't think I'll ever forget the night before I left. Knowing that in less than 24 hours I was going to be boarding a plane that would take me roughly 3,500 miles away where I'd be for 6 months? Yeah, that was terrifying. Saying goodbye to my family was hard, especially saying goodbye to my dog and two cats. But I managed to walk away from them and got on the plane. And let me tell you, landing in London after not sleeping for close to 24 hours? That was an experience and a half.

To this day I still want to find that kid that was throwing cheerios at me. I still want to kick him. Stupid child throwing cereal at a sleeping person....

But it was all worth it when I finally got to Ireland. Now this time has already been documented in a past post, so I'll skip it, mostly due the fact that I don't really remember a whole lot of it due to lack of sleep for 2 days.

Roommate time!

Let me just say, I STILL miss our weekly viewing of Jersey Shore. That show is awful without all our commentary and Paige's singing. I wouldn't have traded you guys for anything :)

Kelly- Our resident Betty Crocker. You were the first of the roommates that I met and you were so nice helping me figure out how to use the shower and settle in!  For some reason the talk we had walking to your friends' house for dinner has stuck with me to this day. Sometimes I'll read the card you gave me right before you left and smile because that talk helped me with a lot of things, even if you didn't know it :)

Michelle- Because of you and your drink mixing, I will never be able to drink green apple vodka ever again. Haha But you always had the most ridiculously amazing stories and the worst luck with the dryers actually drying your clothes. Walking into the kitchen the first time that happened and seeing your clothes hanging everywhere? Priceless.

Paige- You were always a great voice of reason which we all needed sometimes. For some reason I've never forgotten the time when we were studying for our Celtic Mythology class in the library and I told you how to bold letters in facebook chat. And when we went exploring and found the rugby field that was near where we lived despite it being super windy outside. Also thinking of roof/ruff never fails to make me laugh ;)

The roommate Valentines Day Cake!

A few honorable mentions...

Matt and Korali- you two were awesome people to have with me. Being in the same program as you made things so much easier and more fun. Our times during the "excursions" we had are some of my favorite.

Coleman- where to even begin talking about Uncle Coley. Having you as our go to man was awesome. You made me feel so much more at ease about arriving in a new country all alone. There were times I don't know what I would have done without you.

The rest of the Galway girls- you guys made being in Ireland. So many great nights, so many awesome stories I'll be telling for the rest of my life. Ya'll are awesome and I wouldn't have traded you for anything.

Now on to the actual places!

Ireland- Ireland had a certain magically beauty to it that no other country was able to match. But of course I'm going to say Galway! By US standards it was a small town, but the to Ireland it was a large city, which made it a bustling place that brought so many different kinds of people there. Plus Galway had a great Celtic culture background that really made living there perfect. I think my favorite thing about Galway would be Galway Bay. Being able to grab lunch and eat it by the bay while reading a book was one of my favorite things to do. Sitting there had a calming effect that I've never really been able to recreate. There are still times when I wish I could go get fish and chips and sit by the water. Galway is known as one of the "cultural" epicenters of Ireland, which meant there was so much to learn! All the signs were in both English and Gaelic, classes were offered in both languages, and there was almost always busquers on the streets playing all types of music.  There was such a charm to Galway that I've yet to see or find anywhere else. OH I also have to mention the Cliffs of Moher. They're slightly more touristy, but there was something about looking out and seeing how huge those cliffs are. And on the way home, our bus driver stopped and some of the smaller cliffs where you are allowed free range to roam...I'll never forget seeing the sunset while sitting there. That plus going to the Aran Islands with the Interstudy kids and the cliffs there, sitting off the edge of them was one of the most amazing, yet dangerous, things I've ever been able to do.

Scotland- The 6 am plane ride exhaustion was totally worth it for Scotland! I went with Kerry, a girl from my program, and we met up with some of the other Interstudy kids which was such great fun! We walked around the Royal Mile, went to Edinburgh Castle, and saw the Elephant House (though we have it on good authority from our hostel manager that Rowling really wrote at a noodle shop that is now closed). One thing I'll never forget is the 12 hour long bus tour that Kerry and I took. I mean, in theory it's awesome because you get to go see all these amazing things all in one day. It's the 12 hour part that's a little bit hard to handle. At the beginning we were all excited because of the itinerary, but come the 8th, 9th, 10th hour all we really wanted to do was get off the bus. Not to say we didn't. There were stops along the way where we could get out and explore, but still. And some of the best ice cream I'd ever had was from a little local store by Loch Ness. And yes, we made a point of counting the number of kilts that we saw. Safe to say Scotland lived up to it's name on that one!

London- Right off the bat, my first thought is riding the London Eye at night. Seeing the city lit up was surprisingly beautiful and has always stuck with me. But there wer so many things about London that I loved! While my friends and I were walking around, we came upon 2 police officers who we ending talking about Europen vs American beer. Yet another strange conversation that I'll never forget! Also accidentally climbing up the never ending staircase from the underground to the street (seriously it's like a landmark for being the most consecutive stairs in London). The Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, AND we saw a real black swan! Which I realize is not that amazing, but none of us had ever seen one before and with the movie and all...we were just excited.

Bernadette and her wonderful mother!

Germany- I went to visit my friend Bernadette and her family for a weekend. First of all, for someone who is such an animal person, having to leave behind my dog and cats was super hard. So when I found out that not only was I going to see my friend but that she had a cat too? I was pumped. But in all seriousness Bernadette and her family were so amazing and welcomed me into their beautiful home. Staying in someone's actual home made it seem very odd that I was actually in a different country since so many things seemed exactly like Cincinnati. It was quite strange in a good way! Bernadette, her wonderful mother, and I went on a day trip around the area and saw King Ludwig II's unfinished castle, Herrenchiemsee. Which I thought was beautiful even though it wasn't completed. Actually, the fact that it wasn't finished made it more interesting since you could see the planning and stages the building went through! Overall, my weekend at Bernadette's house was so much fun and a great break from the touristy feel you can often have traveling.

Epic tour of Europe time

First of all, let me just say that on this trip I was a freaking magnet for riots and protests. Seriously, in pretty much every city we ran into, we were somehow part of, or witnessed one. It was ridiculous and hilarious and slightly unnerving. Overall, there were so many things about this trip that I loved. Getting to go around Europe with my sister was such great fun, and reminded me that Holly and I can indeed get along for long periods of time.

Amsterdam- Most people would probably expect me to say the Red Light District, but after getting slightly lost there, let’s just say I don’t really remember what my favorite thing was. Though I do remember the train station being pretty cool.  We took a side trip at the recommendation of our dad to a place called Madurodam.  It's basically a place that has the Netherlands at a miniature scale.  It was epic.  Epically tiny.

Brussels- Oh Brussels, I think this city brought the weirdest experience Holly and I had. That being this odd couple that we sat next to during a dinner who had brought their desperately in need of a bath dog (that description coming from a huge animal lover who works with animals…). Looking back on it, all three of them were desperately in need of a bath. The man kept trying to make conversation with us in some form of broken English, and at first we humored him. But his wife being our “translator” obviously wasn’t working, making the whole experience both humorous and slightly disgusting. Now a positive memory was walking around Brussels at night finding all the sculptures and fountains that I thought were the hidden gems of the city. The square was beautiful at night and getting to see the city in a different light, if you will, was pretty great.

Paris- I fell in LOVE with Paris. Something about that city just made me not want to leave. The architecture, the people, the food, the sights, just everything was so amazing. I honestly am not sure I could even narrow down my top 10 favorite things for Paris. But some that stick out are walking through the catacombs (kind of unnerving, but beautiful in its own way), Notre Dame (I was very disappointed the gargoyles didn't move), the Louvre, and the Eiffel Tower lighting up at night. Paris was also the city of stairs. Good god. Holly and I joked that we were going to have the thighs of Gods by the time we left, but dear lord they just never seemed to end! The one day I tried to count the number of stairs, I lost count at midday around 850. Also, remember when I said I attracted riots? Well on the day Holly and I went to visit the Louvre, there was one large enough to shut down the metro stops surrounding the museum. Problem being neither of us knew that due to the fact we don't know French. So it pretty much happened like this:
We pass the train stop...
Me:Um wasn't that the stop for the Louvre?
Holly:Uhhhh yeahhhhh. Let's try getting on going the other way and see if that works.
(We do exactly that and pass it yet again)
Me: Uhhh wasn't that the stop again?
Holly: Uhhh yeahh...Wanna go for a walk?
And so we departed the train and proceeded to pass the riot on our nice jaunt to the Louvre. Not to forget when we left the building, the 3 closest stops had now been closed. Though we did met a nice Australian couple who we walked from stop to stop with.
All of that being said, Paris was magical in all the best ways. I can’t wait for the day when I get to go back.



Idar Oberstein- For those who don’t already know why Holly and I went to a seemingly obsolete city in Germany, Idar Oberstein was the city my parents lived in when my dad was stationed in Germany while in the Army. We kept our visit there a surprise for my parents, only telling them we were there after getting to our hotel. Which on that note, one of the most awkward moments on our trip happened while getting to the hotel. Between the two of us, we had 2 backpacks and a small wheeled suitcase to last us the 15 days of our trip. Now imagine us loudly wheeling that stupid thing down a cobblestone street in a small town that is not used to tourists. I couldn't help but hum “one of these things just doesn't belong here…” while getting the stares of the locals. But my favorite thing in Idar Oberstein was finding my parent’s old house. Holly is very analytical whereas I’m very visual, so between the two of us we were able to find their house using 2 areal pictures of their neighborhood. When we finally found it, the older woman who lived with her son remembered my parents and we got to hear a few stories about them when the lived there. It was unbelievable that she remembered exactly who our parents were and seemed so excited to meet their children. It was super interesting to see a place that Holly and I could have potentially grown up in.

Parents' old house in Germany

Munich- Many people may think that my love of WWII is morbid, but I find that the main attraction for me is the stories that are left behind. Some are of hope, some of despair, but they all speak of humanity and their actions, which is what is so fascinating to me. Visiting the Dachau Memorial was possibly one of the most humbling things I've ever experienced. The atmosphere of the area was somber, but held a grain of hope that I think the survivors who helped design the memorial wanted visitors to feel. I won’t go into more detail, but being in that place made me realize how precious life is and that no matter what, people will rise up and fight.

Salzburg- I was in Salzburg twice actually. Once visiting a friend who was studying there, and another with my sister. My most memorable moment here was a tour Holly and I took of the Salzburg country side. We got to see some of the filming places from The Sound of Music, and see some of the most beautiful lakes I've ever seen in my entire life.

You thought I was kidding didn't yo

Florence- Both Holly and I were slightly sick while we were here, but the one thing I do remember from my sickly haze was the Gardens of Boboli. First of all, anyone who knows my sister knows that she is a cat magnet. So while in the gardens, I kid you not, 6 cats came up to her. One even went so far as to try to climb up her leg. But anyway, in the gardens, you could walk up to the highest point in Florence where they had a beautiful rose garden. And roses being my favorite flower….I was a happy girl.

Rome- Rome was not at all what I expected. In my mind, I had thought of how Rome was in the movies, but we got there and saw how industrial it was. Though in saying that, it was odd to be walking down a busy road and see old ruins sitting on the side of the road. But by far my favorite thing in Rome was the coliseum. I've always loved Roman history and getting to learn about the grand structure was so cool. Actually getting to walk around there? So amazing. Honorable mentions of Rome are for sure the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel, and the Trevi fountain.

Madrid- Three words. Twin baby pandas. I've loved them my whole life and getting to see 6 month old baby pandas was adorable. All they did was sleep and try to climb up their tree, but I sat there for a good 40 minutes just staring because there were real live baby pandas RIGHT in front of me. Also in Madrid it was super awesome to be able to use my Spanglish skills. I can read more Spanish than I can speak, but being able to use those 3 years of Spanish classes made me feel pretty damn smart.

To conclude this MASSIVE favorite's post, I'd like to say that there are a million and a half fabulous things and stories that I've left out. Studying abroad is literally the best decision I've ever made in my entire life and I know that the things I learned and the memories I have are precious. There were so many moments were I just had to take a step back and realize that yes, this was indeed happening and I was visiting things I'd only dreamed about.

And now for a montage of some of my favorite pictures from all over Europe!

Cliffs of Moher

Visiting Kat in Salzburg

Main Square in Brussels 

Taken from the highest point in Paris

The conversation I will never forget

Interstudy kids hiking in Killarney 

Favorite graffiti in Galway

Rosenheim, Germany and Salzburg Austria

Mountains by Bernadette's house

I guess I should start with how I met Bernadette. For the past year and a half, I've lived in a special international housing complex that had about half American and half international students. Last year, Bernadette lived down the hall from me. When I found out that I was studying abroad, she kindly offered for me to come and stay with her and her family if I got the chance to. Well, long story short, I got the chance : )

I left pretty early in the morning in order to get to the Munich train station at a reasonable time. One flight, one bus ride, and a train ride, and I was finally meeting up with Bernadette!! It was amazing to get to see her again for sure. I was staying with Bernadette and her family for the weekend, and they turned out to be amazingly lovely people! Her Mother was extremely nice and did her very best with speaking English, which she did quite well I might add :) My only wish was that I could speak German so I could have communicated better with both Bernadette's mother and father. Also I totally fell in love with Bernadette's cat! After being away from my own cats for so long, it was amazing to get to pet and hold Moritz! (Bernadette, let me know if I spelled his name wrong! haha)

Bernadette and her wonderful Mother : )

While I was with Bernadette, herself, her Mother, and I went to King Ludwig’s Herrenchiemsee Castle which is located on one of twin islands. We visited both islands and the castle, all of which were very beautiful! Even though the castle was unfinished, it was still much more impressive than anything you could find in America. On the last full day that I spent with Bernadette, we made the 45 minute trip to Salzburg to visit a friend from University of Dayton, Kat,  who just happened to be studying abroad there. Bernadette and I met up with Kat and her friend and the proceeded to show us around the city. Salzburg, and Germany for that matter, is a beautiful place.

Fountain at King Ludwig II's unfinished castle

While we were in Salzburg, the four of us (Bernadette, Kat and her friend, and myself) hiked our way up to the Salzburg Fortress, which apparently has never been overtaken, which I found very impressive. The view was amazing and made the hike up totally worth it! Kat gave us a tour around the city before having to get back to her school work, leaving Bernadette and I to wander around a bit more. The two of us found an absolutely wonderful gelato shop! Like possibly the best I'd ever had! Totally wish we had one of those in Cincinnati! After some ice cream, we saw that it was getting dark, and heading back to the train station to head back to Bernadette's house : )

Visiting with Kat in Salzburg!

I must say that Germany left a wonderful impression on me. It was much more green and beautiful that I had been expecting! Everyone was so nice there, one guy actually stopped me from stepping on some live wires. It was definitely a close call! haha Anyway, I'm sure I've missed a lot considering I'm typing this months later, so if I remember anything after I post this, I'll be sure to come and add it!

I PROMISE I'm working on the last of the updates from Europe....

....But I wanted to get this off my chest first. Feel free to skip if you so choose. Considering it's 5am, it may get a bit rambly. Just a warning : )

I decided a long time ago that I wanted to travel and see the world. I can't remember a time when I didn't want to come to Ireland, or see London, Scotland,  the Dachau concentration camp, Paris, have actual Italian food in Rome, you get the gist. Maybe I got my Grandmother's wander lust, maybe I'm just too curious for my own good. Point being, I've had the once in a lifetime opportunity to see things that other people are forced to see only through Google Images. Yes, I was forced to leave my friends and family, my comfort zone, my life, to do it, but I did it and I am a better person for it. I've learned so much about myself here and learned to accept that there are somethings about me that I just can't change no matter how hard I try.

The last few years have not been easy for me. An up and down rollercoaster that seemed like it was never going to end. But coming here, meeting the people I did, making the friends I've made, and getting to figure out that life isn't worth it if you can't let go of things, people, you name it. What's the point if you can't laugh at yourself once in a while? Make plans for the future, because even if it may seem like you don't have one right now, things change, things get better, and you move on to the next day. Smile, because even though things may suck right now, someone somewhere out there, is feeling exactly like you do.

On that note, one of the main things I've learned is that no matter what, everyone is human and deserves to be treated as such. Even when I was in countries were I didn't speak a word of the language, there was still the woman who tried to help me find my way, still the creepy men who watch as you walk away, still the sweet little kids who will stare and smile back when you grin at them, we're all the same no matter where we are, what language we speak, who we love, who we look up too, or who we associate ourselves with. There have been so many times since I've been here that I could have been in real trouble if someone hadn't stepped in to help. I almost stepped on a live wire in Munich on my way home from visiting a friend, but a man who didn't speak a word of English grabbed my arm and stopped me. Basically what I'm trying to say is that we're all human beings, which is why I will never understand the hatred that is in the world. People tell other human beings that they can't marry whomever they may love, can't be who they really are, should be ashamed of themselves for being different in any way, which means they're telling our children that too. So how can you be so freaking shocked when bullies torture school kids to the point where they feel like they have no other choice but suicide. It makes my stomach churn thinking that people will sit idly by while kids are made fun of for being gay, overweight, wearing clothes that aren't "cool", being a nerd, being religious, or non-religious, etc.  So parents, don't act so shocked. They learned it from you.

London, Killarney, Edinburgh, and Updates!!!!

Ok. So I realize it's been forever since I updated everyone, so prepare yourself for the longest blog post in the history of blog posts.

LONDON. Was amazing. So many memories that I'll never forget.

First of all  I went with my friend Mary Kate, her friend from home Ruthie, and Ruthie’s friend from the Netherlands, Marike. As it turns out, the 4 of us got a long pretty well!

Mary Kate, Ruthie, and I flew from Shannon to London together before meeting Marike at our hostel. But on the flight over, Mary Kate decided she wanted to play the scratch card game that was offered for 2 euro a card. She was nervous. It was a bit ridiculous considering it was a scratch card game, not a real live poker game. She lost, go figure, but “won” another card in a second chance scratch box. She lost again, but was laughing so hard she was in tears. To say it was amusing is an understatement.

After landing, we met up with Marike at our hostel before heading out around town to sight see. We saw so much in the two days I was there, I'm actually quite impressed with us. We made it around to the London Tower, figured out the underground (much easier than I was expecting actually), saw Piccadilly Circus, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye (at night!! So cool! See picture above :) ), the Tate modern art museum, The Globe, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, visited Harrods, the standard tourist pictures in a red phone booth, London Bridge (which isn't the real London Bridge anymore), some parks, and probably some stuff I'm missing.

The four of us had a wonderful conversation with two London police officers since we managed to be in London during the protest on government cutting funds. They talked about how McDonalds in Europe is "rubbish" but in America it's "Brilliant". Also that American and German beers are "awful" compared to beer in England, Ireland, and Scotland. I must say in general, I agree with the man. The protest (more like a riot) that we somehow stumbled into, was massive! Literally the most people I've ever seen in one place at one time. Like literally you could look down a main street and not see an end to the people marching. It got so bad that parts of the underground where shut down because people were defacing and peeing in there. I can't decide if it was a good or a bad thing that we were there during the protest, but in all honesty, I can now say that I was in the largest protest in England's history!! :)

KILLARNEY. Such an amazing little Irish town. Beautiful, calm, wonderfully cute town.

So my program that I chose to study abroad with (InterStudy) has these 'excursion' weekends where they take us places, pay for pretty much everything, and basically just show us a good time. This group of kids in the program are all amazing. Like literally I don't think there is a single person in the program that I've met that I didn't like. Everyone is so nice and friendly that it makes me glad that they attempt to get to know you before letting you into the program. Anyway, the trip to Killarney is a story in itself. In order to get there from Galway, you have to take a bus to Limerick, then transfer onto a different bus that finally takes you to Killarney. On the first bus, my friend Korali and I got our own seats, which is nice, but I got stuck behind a man with the worst BO I've ever smelled in my entire life. No joke. By the time we got off the bus, I thought I was going to puke from how bad it smelled. Now on the second bus, there was no disgusting smell, but there was a woman who I swear liked to hear the sound of her obnoxiously loud voice. Now that may sound harsh to you guys, but this woman had to have been deaf or something. She was yelling into her phone for 3/4ths of the trip, telling someone on the other end about where something was in a cabinet. I don't really know what she was talking about considering she had a very thick accent that made it super hard to understand her. But after these trips, we finally got to Killarney.

Charlie playing 'Titanic' on our boat!

The first day we went for a boat ride across the Killarney National Park lake where our boat master had an ADORABLE dog named Charlie that I almost begged to take home! After the boat ride, we went on a 7 mile hike through the park, which would have been so amazing had it not been raining : /. Despite the rain, the company, conversation, and the sights made trekking through the weather so worth it. Though I do admit to my feet being sore after the long walk.

Matt, Mark, Collin, and Maddie on their horses

The second day we went horseback riding! I hadn't been riding in years, but now that I've ridden again, I can't wait to get back to the states so I can ride more! The horse that I rode was a gorgeous gray horse named Leroy. After hearing the name, I immediately turned to the rest of the group asking if any of them had ever heard of Leroy Genkins. Those who did got a good laugh out of it :).  Leroy was a great horse and did what I 'told' him to do, only protesting once or twice when he wanted to eat some of the leaves nearby. We got to trot a little, which was cool, since usually 'follow the butt' horses don't want to do that haha.

SCOTLAND: A beautiful country. Possibly my favorite place second only to Galway.

My friend Kerry and I decided a month or two ago that we wanted to visit Scotland. We planned out our trip (and by we, I mean she did most of the planning...) and decided to go this past weekend. Unknown to us, 2 other kids from our program were also going at the same time. Our friends Kimmie and Rachel were also going to be in Scotland at the same time, so we all wanted to meet up. Now getting to Scotland was a pain all in itself. The flight Kerry and I booked was for 6:30 am flight from Dublin to Edinburgh, which seemed like a good idea at the time considering it only cost 12 euros for each trip. The only problem is Dublin is a 3 hour bus ride from Galway, and you have to give yourself time to go through security, which is how I found myself on a 1:15 am bus to Dublin. Kerry, only being able to find a bus from Cork to Dublin the night before, had the  task of sleeping in the Dublin airport overnight, which I do not envy her for. On the plane ride from Dublin to Edinburgh (which is only like, 45 minutes) Kerry and I had an epiphany. Now some of you may read this next sentence and think, "wow, they never noticed that?", but give us a break, we were exhausted already and this was new to us. We discovered that the sky is always blue, its just that sometimes there are clouds blocking our view.

Kerry, Naeemah, Me, and Rachel in front of Edinburgh Castle :)

Now when we finally got to Edinburgh, it was around 8am, and I had been awake for going on 8 hours. Since we didn't have the energy to do much, Kerry and I walked around the city, getting to know it a bit, went to the Edinburgh Museum, the Zoo they have there, adventured into some beautiful churches, and pretty much did anything we could think of to keep ourselves awake. We eventually retired to our hostel and passed out. I was dead to the world until the next morning. The second day, we took a 12 hour bus tour around Scotland which covered the Highlands, Loch Ness, a few castles, and a few other less popular 'hidden gems' of Scotland. It was amazing, but soooo long. 12 hours is way to long to be on a tour for! Saturday, Kerry and I met up with Rachel and her friend Naeemah (who is so funny!) and visited Edinburgh Castle. the Scotland Disney store, Rachel ate some haggis (soooo gross. Google it. Seriously, Ew), and a general great time was had. We walked around the city shopping street some, before sending Rachel off on her way back to London. After walking about half way up to Arthur's Seat, which holy crap, is by far one of the steepest hills I've ever seen, Kerry, Naeemah, and I met up with Kimmie (another girl from our program) and her friend for some fish and chips.

Loch Ness. Where's Nessie??

After dinner, Kerry, Naeemah, and I went back to Naeemah's hostel to chill before heading off to sleep. To say that the day's were super long in Scotland is an understatement. We definately took advantage of our time there! Sunday brought me to the end of my visit to Scotland, so I boarded a bus by myself since Kerry was jetting off to Italy, waited a while in the airport, people watching (where a creepy man kept asking me what city I was from after seeing my US passport...) and finally made my way back to my home away from home, Galway :)

Hotay, now onto the updates. This week is going to be long for sure. I have an exam for my Celtic Mythology, Religion, and Folklore class tomorrow, plus I have to finish my 2,000 word essay for one of my psychology classes, since it's due Monday, which is when I'll be in Germany visiting my friend Bernadette! Which is another update, this weekend, I'll be with Bernadette and her family :) I met her last year in the International living community. She's such a sweet person and I can't wait to see her again and get to meet her family!

Also something I'm super excited about is my friend Kat from home coming to visit!!!! She's studying abroad in Salzburg, Austria at the moment, and she's coming to visit me in Galway. As much as I love the people I've met and made friends with here, it will be amazing to see a familiar face from home. I'm totally excited to see her and get to show her around "my Irish city". Now all I gotta do is think of all the good things I need to show her :)

Alright, so now that I've typed up the longest post *ever*, I need to get back to studying for my exam and writing my paper. Hope everyone reading this is doing well and I hope to see/talk to you soon!

This is a Journey, not at Destination

So St. Patrick's Day. Where to start. Technically it started at 9:30 am. My roommates and I joined some friends from our hall, and ended up starting at a friend's who lives about a 40 minute walk away. We took a taxi since we didn't want to carry everything for the walk. After hanging out there for a while, we walked into town for the parade. The parade wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but was cool to see none the less. People on stilts, dancers, bagpipes, the whole package :) After the parade was over, we retired back to our friends house for a few hours before heading into town for the night. Let me just say right now, downtown was crazy. I'm not sure I've ever seen that many people in one place in my entire life. I'd say 80% of Galway was somewhere in town. It was awesome! It was a day that I'll never forget, that's for sure :)

Group picture from St. Patrick's Day :)

Galway Girls!

Now that St. Paddy's Day is over and done with, it's finally starting to hit that I only have so much time left here. It's making me sad that I'm actually going to have to leave here! This is one of my last weekends here in Galway before the serious traveling starts. The weekend after this I'm in London, next weekend is hopefully Austria, then Germany, then Scotland, then exams start. It's going to be a crazy couple of weeks, that's for sure. I'm just praying that everything works out the way I want it too!

The past few days have been the first in the 2 1/2 months that I've honestly been homesick. Almost to the point that I thought "I want to go home". The only thing I've wanted was to cuddle up with my dog and my cats, which sounds pathetic, I know. I called my friends Tyler and Erika and my roommate from home Courtney, and thankfully they were able to snap me out of it. What would I ever do without them? I seriously am missing them like crazy. After talking to them, I realized that I'm so lucky to be here and that it's shouldn't be all about what's happening tomorrow, but about what you can do today. This whole time here is a journey that I'm supposed to grow and learn from. Don't worry about what you can't change and learn to let things go. If you never let go of the bad things, you'll never be able to truly experience the wonderful things that are going on around you.

Erin Go Bragh

Connemara, RAG Week, Papers, and Planning

Ok. Sooo there's a lot to cover so I'm gonna try and summarize everything without going on and on about it all! haha

First- RAG Week. Rag stands for Raise And Give, which is a week-long fundraiser for local charities around Galway. While it does raise a lot of money, it's kind of become a "spring break" for students. Most of the Irish students skip classes all week, drink all day (and night if they're still walking), and some dress up in crazy clothes and costumes. On Monday, the first day of RAG week, there was a MASSIVE mob outside our building. And when I say massive, I mean upwards of 300 to 400 people. It was like there was a rugby game going on outside our building with how loud it was! Bottles were being thrown, people were climbing on everything, some fights broke out, and someone managed to light a tree branch on fire! It was crazy! That is till the fire department and the Guarda (police) showed up and started arresting people. I was told that our "celebration" even made the Irish news!

Notice the smoke?

Next up is my trip to Connemara. My friend Matt, roommmate Kelly, and I took a tour of Connemara, Cong, and Kylemore Abbey. So far this may have been my favorite thing I've seen. The tour was more for the scenery than for things to do. The Abbey was built by a man for his wife after they both fell in love with Ireland. Their story is actually quite tragic considering their child got sick, so they moved to Egypt, where the mother got sick caught some Egyptian sickness and died. After they left, Nuns converted it into a school for girls who wanted to become nuns. It's one of the coolest things I've ever seen. The building itself is so grandiose and beautiful nestled into the mountains and woods. It was epic. The Abbey also has a beautiful garden. Though since we went while it was still too cold for flowers, it didn't look at all like the google pictures. But with some imagination, you can imagine how pretty it would have been.



Kylemore Abbey



The Abbey's Gardens sans flowers :(

















Now onto the papers and planning section of this rant. My roommate Paige jokes that every other conversation we have is about homework, which is kinda sad, but true. I have more papers to write all at once than I would at home. It's kind of awful. 8 papers (2 of which are done and turned in at this point) plus a multiple choice final, and 2 in class essay finals. This should be interesting. Even though the papers are a big pain, I have to say I am enjoying most of my classes. 2 of them are  "kill me now" classes, but other than those I actually like my classes' topics haha.

As for what I'm planning, there's actually a lot. I'm going to London March 26-28th with some friends. Then possibly out to Austria to visit my friend Kat for a few days, then onto Germany to visit Bernadette, a native German friend who lived in my hall last year :) Scotland and the Ring of Kerry are also on the planning list and are happening sometime in April, which I'm super excited about as well. I'm also trying to plan the EPIC trip my sister and I are going to be taking at the end of April when she comes to visit. And by epic I mean we're going to a ton of places in like 16 days. Paris, Amsterdam, Munich, Berlin, Venice, Rome, Switzerland, Austria, and of course Ireland are all on our "to do" list. Now if only Holly would get back to me on what she wants to see....hahahaha. :)

I would also like to add in that my parents are awesome. They've sent me packages with Mac and Cheese (which I think I've already explained doesn't exist here), breathe right strips (since my nose has been ridiculously stuffy), and thin mints!!! Which I was SUPER excited to see. They're totally my favorite Girl Scout cookie :). AND in the card that came witht the package I got yesterday, I was informed that I'm finally getting my own car, aka my Mom's old one, which is totally ok with me. I love that car! Can I just take a moment and say I'm excited?!?!

Now seeing that next week is St. Patrick's week (yes, its St. Paddy's WEEK here), I'd like to finish as much homework as possible so I can enjoy myself! I'll leave you with a pretty picture :)

Slán go foill

2 Months? Woah. When did that happen?

Holy crap, I just realized I’ve been in Ireland for 2 months. That is so crazy for me to think about. My time here has gone so ridiculously fast. As much as I miss my dog, my cats, my family and friends, I can tell you right now that I’m going to be extremely sad to leave here. I haven’t had the time/opportunity to travel out of the country a bunch since I’ve been here, so I’ve gotten to know and love Ireland, especially Galway. I’m so glad that I chose Galway over Dublin. Not that Dublin wasn’t amazing and cool, it’s just that Galway has a homey, chill atmosphere that Dublin just doesn’t have.

Moving on, my roommate Paige just enlightened me on what the hell a Turduncken is. Basically it’s a duck inside a chicken, inside a turkey. I don’t know whether to be intrigued or disgusted. I think I’m going to just go with a combination of the two. Also our apartment seems to be best friends with breaking things. Between the four of us, we have broken somewhere around 6 things, four of which have been my fault. I think I should just keep everything on the floor or something, save myself the trouble of having to clean up the things I break.  Also we had a roommate Valentine's Day. We made dinner together and Paige bought us a wonderful cake to share. It was awesome :)



Roommate Cake <3



Now on to the different trips that I’m planning!  This weekend, I am hoping to go to Connemara (Irish weather permitting), then the weekend after I may be going up to Belfast. March also means that St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland. How sweet is that?! I’ve heard it gets crazy in town, which I totally believe. This should be interesting, and by interesting I mean awesome. Thank God I don’t have classes the next day. After St. Patrick’s Day, I’m around Galway until the last week since those are the last few weeks of class. The first week of April, I’m hoping to go visit my friend who is in Germany, and a friend who is studying abroad in Austria. If not, then I’m just going to just backpack around and see where I end up since there will be no more classes to worry about.

I’ve also noticed that I miss singing sooo much! When I’m at home in Cincy I can totally jam out in my car, in the shower, in my room when everyone else is asleep, you get the gist. But here the walls are like paper and I’m always surrounded my people and I’d rather not freak anyone out by random singing. I tried to join the choir society here, but the times they meet are times when I have class, which is totally inconvenient. I totally started lip syncing/dancing on the walk home; needless to say I got some odd looks from people considering it was like, noon on a Tuesday and plenty of people walking around. Later walking around town, I noticed a music store was going out of business sale (half off!!). I went in and bought a ton of new music for a fairly low price. I got Mumford & Sons, the 2 Adele CDs, Florence & the Machine 2 disc set, the new Radiohead cd, the best of Michael Jackson, and Imelda May. Not to mention the 2,000 songs I got from my friend Korali. Needless to say I’ve been jamming out to some great music while trying to do my homework J