Cork!

Last week my friend Meg and I took advantage of being finished with classes to spend the day in Cork. We had a ton of fun wandering the city and exploring the huge variety of shops. Like many of the cities I've been to in Ireland, Cork is cut down the middle by a river:

We got some lunch from the English Market, which feels like a farmers market that got moved inside. It's filled with meats, cheeses, exotic spices, and all sorts of food oddities.

We found a beautiful little park that would have been awesome to picnic in if it was just a tiny bit warmer. We just took a self-portrait instead and kept walking:

Midway through the afternoon, we decided to stop into one of the many cafes / bars for a snack. A delicious piece of carrot cake and a pot of tea hit the spot. I'm definitely going to have to start using a tea pot at home...it tastes different and keeps the tea hot! And it's just fun.

We even came across a mini-waterfall hidden down a tiny side street:

I've spent most of the weekend resting, reading, and walking around Limerick, so now it's time to actually do some revising (studying) for my Irish Folklore exam tomorrow. I've never taken an entirely essay based exam before, so this could be interesting. Good thing I'm starting with one of my easiest classes!

Munster Rugby and Tin Whistles

Last weekend I crossed one more item off of my to-do list by going to a rugby match. I've accepted that I'm not going to master all of the rules before I leave here, but even without always understanding what was going on, the evening was still really fun. Unfortunately the weather wasn't spectacular, but the real rain held off until the match ended.

We had tickets for the stands, meaning we stood on wide steps right behind the end zone (no idea if that's what it's actually called or not). We had an amazing view - the field was feet in front of us.

Thomond Park is big, with a capacity of over 25,000, and it seemed to be almost full when I was there. However, the entire place goes absolutely silent whenever the kicker sets up. It feels like a weird interjection of golf or tennis into football.

Watching guys get thrown up in the air in order to catch the ball from the sidelines is a bit funny.

Despite being within feet of getting a try (similar to a touchdown) that would have won them the match, Munster was unable to get the ball over the line and fell short of victory.

In completely unrelated news, as part of my traditional music class, my tin whistle group performed in our end of the year recital. Imagine somewhere between 100 and 200 college students taking part in a complete beginners recital featuring whistles, dancing, bodhran (drum), and singing. It was a pretty entertaining sight. (Thanks to Lindsay for the picture!)

A Quick Tour of the University of Limerick

On the weekends, the majority of UL students head home, leaving the campus extraordinarily quiet and empty. I took advantage of that the other week to take some pictures of the place I've spent most of my time these last few months.

I live in Dromroe Village, one of 5 or 6 villages students can live in on campus.

Each building in Dromroe is named for a different tree. I live in Ash House.

I walk across this little bridge to get from the village into campus:

Then through the car park...

Many of my lectures are in the Main Building, which I suspect is actually a giant maze they use to perform psychological experiments on students instead of using mice in a lab. There are 6 floors, which from bottom to top are labeled G, O, M, 1, 2, and 3, and 5 different sections (A to E). So the room code B1023 means section B, floor 1, room 023. I spent some quality time translating the room codes of all the different places my lectures were in during orientation...

Even though Plassey House, the original building from which the University first started, is connected to the Main Building, I've only been in there once (on a tour during orientation).

Brown Thomas is one name for the odd (and, to be honest, a bit creepy) statue that stands in the center of campus.

The Living Bridge spans the Shannon River and connects several academic buildings and two student villages to the main campus. It sways a bit in the wind and as people walk over it, which led to its name. At night it's lit up with blue, purple, and white lights and looks like an alien landing strip.

My favorite part of campus is the River Walk that runs behind Dromroe. I think I already posted some pictures I took when I first got here, but here are a few more just in case...

I am so close to actually being up to date with this blog! I'm only three posts behind. It's amazing what (procrastinating) studying for exams can lead to...

A last minute addition: as I was walking into town today I got some pictures of the giant flagpoles at the Main Gate:

Family Time!

After a bit of a mix up at the Dublin Airport (which ended with a pleasant taxi ride for a me and a harrowing tour of Dublin for Mom and Dad), I met up with Kyle, Jo Ann, Mom, and Dad at the beautiful Clontarf Hotel in Dublin. As much as I love hostels, it was pretty nice to sleep in a cozy bed, use a huge fluffy towel, and not press a button for shower water every 30 seconds.

The next day we spent wandering around Dublin checking out the different shops and the different statues scattered around the city. It was fun to actually know where I was most of the time, even though navigating from place to place was often a bit circular rather than direct.

We found the hedge maze in the Iveagh Gardens, but Dad and I let Mom, Kyle, and Jo Ann navigate it:

That night we went to a dinner theater show in Howth with traditional music and dancing. It was fun, but don't talk to Dad about the Baileys coffee. He probably still holds a grudge since Mom and I didn't take ours.

The next day we went out to Bru na Boinne, which includes Knowth and Newgrange, massive Neolithic passage graves. It was one of the coolest things I've seen in Ireland, and I definitely thought it was more impressive than Stonehenge. I also enjoyed the many labels they had in front of different trees since it helped my Horticulture project quite a bit (I had to photograph and identify 15 different types of trees or bushes).

Newgrange:

On top of the main mound at Knowth:

In front of a secret escape route (possibly) at Knowth:

Some of the ancient art at Knowth:

Kyle's closed eyes take away from what was a nice picture:

At least closed eyes are better than this face:

Mom and Dad at Newgrange:

Inside the passageway at Newgrange:

The evening we went to Howth, a tiny fishing town outside of Dublin. We walked up to a group of people gathered by the harbor and saw that they were feeding a couple of seals! It was pretty cool to see them outside of an exhibit at an aquarium.

Kyle likes to think she's on Deadliest Catch:

The next day we met Kathy and Noreen and took the scenic route to Limerick so that we could stop in Tipperary.

Jo Ann, Dad, and I played some Tetris to fit everything into the car for the ride to Limerick (mind you, this is just the front seat):

A majority vote meant Dad sat in the backseat:

Despite having 6 backseat drivers, Mom did a fantastic job of ferrying everyone around all week:

We stopped at the Rock of Cashel, the ruins of an old fortress, and took shifts climbing into driving wind to the top of the hill that the castle is on. The view from the top made it clear why they chose that place for a military fortress. You could see for miles!

Some views of the castle itself:

I unfortunately had class for the rest of the time everyone was visiting, so I would go to my lectures in the morning and then meet back up for dinner (eating proper dinners for an entire week was such a treat!). The one day I did have relatively free we went to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. 

How many Mitchells and Keanes does it take to actually get to the castle? (Dad was looking at a map too, but he was too far away to get in the same frame)

What you can't see in this picture is that Kyle is trying to step on my foot:

If I lived in a castle, I don't think I'd ever get tired of the view. However, I'm not sure how often I'd brave the steep, winding stairs in order to actually see the view.

Mom takes her place on the throne:

I think Kyle's favorite part of the day were the animals:

In her defense, the rooster was a bit intimidating:

Dad and Jo Ann tried to act like natives by ordering Guinness. Kyle had to help them finish it.

And so ended the first of what will hopefully be several trans-Atlantic family vacations!