9/3/08-9/4/08

After months of anticipation I finally arrived in Ireland, the flight was long, they showed one movie and it was a chick-flick (boo). The food was ok, but we sat on the runway for a hour and a half, it was rough. But I finally arrived Wednesday September 3rd, 2008 at around 8 am.
It was interesting going through the airport because it was not that well laid out, going through immigration was pretty easy and they seemed more excited that I was staying for four months then paranoid that I wasn't going to study. It was pretty cool walking through the airport not knowing what to expect. I walked to where i was going to exit the airport and sure enough there was an IES sign and this lass with an Irish accent greeted me with Hello Joe. I was pretty surprised that she knew who I was until I realized that I had sent in a picture months earlier. But it was still nice to feel welcome. What they say is true, everyone here is really polite which is awesome. So I took a taxi with another girl in my apartment complex. I wasn't sure what to expect going to the apartment, but the ride was absolutely amazing, all the pictures you see don't do justice to the beauty, even along the highway. The other thing I noticed was the fact that almost every car I saw was new and in great condition. I was in one of the nicest Nissan taxis of all time, and that was just a prelude about what was to come. We finally pulled up to our apartment and I was in shock with how nice it is. My apartment complex is a gated community meaning the only way to get in is through wrought iron gates that are locked. So our RA threw my key down and I was through the first gate. I walked up to the building that my apartment is in (there are four buildings) and I needed to use the same key to access the building.
So I had my suitcases and I figured being on the second floor I could walk up one flight of stairs and be in my apartment, little did I realize that I was on the ground floor and the 2nd floor was actually to floors up, not one. So I lugged my luggage up the stairs and finally got to my door, I was full of anticipation knowing that I was going to be the first person in my apartment. I opened the door and I walked in and I was instantly impressed with the hard wood floors. I put my bags down and started to walk around and I was in complete shock because the apartment is gorgeous. It is one of the nicest apartments I have ever been in with a sweet balcony to boot. Needless to say I was thrilled. Since I was first I got to pick the biggest bedroom, the one with its own bathroom! So I put my stuff on the bed and just sat at the kitchen table in shock from what was around me. I was finally realizing my dream of living in Ireland. In walked my RA who is a lovely woman from northern Ireland whose name is Marieaid (not how its spelled, but I don't know how to spell it) I talked to her for a bit about Ireland and things to do (Ireland is supposed to be big for festivals). After a little bit my first roommate showed up, his name is Derrick and he goes to University of Indiana. He picked the same room as me and is a really cool kid who I get along with very well. He was in as big of shock as I was which resulted in us taking lots of pictures of the apartment.
Side note-There is a picture of the Man with No Name (Clint Eastwood) over my bed)
So we just hung out around the apartment and waited for our final two roommates to show up, who did a hour later, conveniently in the same cab. We exchanged hellos from the balcony and before long Adam and Brian entered my life. Adam also goes to Indiana, but did not know Derek and Brian goes to Tufts. Both took the only room remaining and we started the bonding process. I was a little nervous about roommates especially after my Dad asked if there was a way to change roommates if I didn't like them. Thankfully all three are really cool and we get along great. The best part is the timid getting to know each other period did not last very long, we all are sarcastic and have good senses of humors so the digs started almost immediately which has led to constant laughter. We know refer to each other as flat-mates or more affectionately besties. It has gone so well that other people in the program were asking if we had known each other before we got here.
We started out the day by having Jake come over because he couldn't get into his apartment so he met my flat-mates and we decided to go to the Tesco (a kind of Irish Wal-Mart) which is a five minute walk from our apartment and in the largest shopping center in Ireland, the Dundrum Town Center. So we got to the store and I have to say it is some pretty cheap stuff. I hopefully got a weeks worth of groceries for 24 Euros! It was pretty weird to go into a grocery store and just have a huge alcohol section that I legally have access to. So I bought some groceries including a six pack of Bavarian Crown, a fine import from Holland (not). So my first beer in Ireland was from Holland. We got back and we put our beer in the freezer and I made a cheap frozen pizza, which could have been worse. I ate and then we watched some TV which is a high percentage of American shows. Our RA came over around 6:30 and gave us an mini-orientation about our apartment and how to use some of the appliances. She left to go show other apartments and we ended up meeting her a little bit later so she could walk us through our commute which includes a train ride. We walked and saw the IES center and then met all the other students at a pub where I had my first Guinness in Ireland which was delicious.
We stayed there for about a hour and then headed back to the apartment because we were all tired from our flights.
So we went to bed and got up Friday at around 8 am which was not the most pleasant feeling in the world. We needed to be at the IES center at 9:15 am and we miraculously made it there by 9:19 am which was a good start to the day. We had a little safety orientation in the morning and I also got a cell phone, after the couple hours of that we got on a bus and went to Glendalough which is the site of a former monastery. The ride there was gorgeous, I cannot state how beautiful this country is, the pictures I have taken do not do it justice. We took this long and winding road through the countryside which was a little scary because the roads were definitely not designed for a big bus. It added to the adventure though. We ended up at Glendalough and had lunch which consisted of sandwiches and broth, it was actually pretty good. I have also found something I enjoy which is tea with milk and sugar. After lunch we took a tour of the monastery which was really cool, our tour guide was funny and informative. We found out that Daniel Day-Lewis runs in the area routinely. After the tour we took a long path to go to a lake in the valley that seemed straight out of braveheart which was awesome. It was cool to see the lake and childishly skip stones. We eventually made it back to the bus and it dropped us off at the IES center. IES was taking out to dinner that night, but it was a 30 minute walk from the center! So they dropped us off and then made us walk a long distance. The walk was fun because we got to see some of Dublin which made it worth it. We got to this restaurant called the Schoolhouse and had a great dinner there. The dinner consisted of red pepper soup, rib eye and mashed potatoes and a browine with vanilla ice cream, it was a great meal to end the night.
We walked back to the LUAS (train-which was interesting because they don't require tickets to get on, its a honor system, and sometimes they have people on the train checking tickets. IES gives those of us living in Dundrum tickets because we have to commute to class. The girls who were with us lived within walking distance to the IES center so they didn't have passes. We decided it wasn't worth it for them to buy tickets and they illegally got on the train. All seemed fine until a couple stops later the ticket checkers came on! Well I immediately got a knot in my stomach, because even though I was fine I still would feel bad if they got written up and recieved a 45 euro fine. As the ticket checkers got closer I realized the only thing we could hope for was getting to our stop before they got to us, thankfully our stop was the next one. I refused to make eye contact with the checkers thinking the guilty look in my eyes would have them skip people to get to us. The guy was one person away from me as our train started to slow down, he finished checking the ticket of the person in front of me as the doors opened and we all walked out. We are never going to ride the LUAS illegally again.) and came back to our apartment, stopping at the Tesco to pick us some things (wash cloth, laundry detergent). Came back to the apartment with some girls from the program and hung out with them. After they left we watched some Rocky and conversed in the living room.
I also started a collection that I hadn't even thought about. I picked up a coaster at the Schoolhouse and put it in my pocket. I pulled it out when I was taking everything out of my pocket and Adam came up with a brilliant idea, we are going to take coasters from the bars we go to and write the name of the place and the date we were there as sort of a running tally of where we have been. The plan is to also get a giant map of Dublin and plot where we have been and where we want to go. All in all it should be an extremely entertaining and fun semester full of shenanigans. It is definitely a different tempo to life here and should be something that is enlightening in a way. it is amazing that English can be so different, the sayings and words they use are completely different and you really have to think to follow along. I think it will get easier the longer I am here and help me accomplish my goal. My goal is to develop a kickass Irish accent for when I get back to America, I know that here I'll sound like such a foreigner, but at home I will sound so badass. More to come.