Wednesday, April 1st 2015
Today, as I was in the last few hours before my spring break trip, I was Skyping with Casey (an amazing friend from Olin). I was telling her about my spring break plans, all of which involved traveling alone between cities, sometimes spending time sightseeing with me myself and I and othertimes with people that I don't know that well (Of course also telling her about seeing great friends and the incredible things I was about to do). She then asked me, 'Aren't you scared?'. My immediate and instinctive reply was no. And it was true. I wasn't scared. I was excited and hoping all of my plans would work out and the trip would be fun, but I would not at all call myself scared. This is a very big change from the beginning of my study abroad semester. I used to look for people to walk between buildings with in college in America. Now, I feel like I'm able to do things alone and actually enjoy the time that I am spending by myself. It infact gives me freedom to do what I want for that time because there is no one else who it is affecting. After walking through the city of Mechelen by myself and spending an afternoon completely alone in Berlin, I truly feel the ability to take on a day by myself. I feel so proud of myself for getting to this point. By Casey asking if I was scared, all of these thoughts came to mind and it felt truly liberating. I now feel free to be by myself sometimes and do my own thing.
I finished my spring cleaning (my kot is so clean and sparkly, you'd be amazed!) and packed my final belongings before heading to the train station. I got to the airport and naturally my plane was delayed. After a little more relaxation time in the airport, I boarded my first of five RyanAir flights in the next three weeks. Let the adventure begin!
I arrived in Dublin and was met by Alison's smiling face! It was so nice to see her again! Missed her even in those two weeks. We got the bus back to her school and made our way into her dorm. After some greatly missed pillow-talk we fell asleep, preparing for a very fun three days.
I finished my spring cleaning (my kot is so clean and sparkly, you'd be amazed!) and packed my final belongings before heading to the train station. I got to the airport and naturally my plane was delayed. After a little more relaxation time in the airport, I boarded my first of five RyanAir flights in the next three weeks. Let the adventure begin!
I arrived in Dublin and was met by Alison's smiling face! It was so nice to see her again! Missed her even in those two weeks. We got the bus back to her school and made our way into her dorm. After some greatly missed pillow-talk we fell asleep, preparing for a very fun three days.
Thursday, April 2nd 2015
Today I had a big day ahead... to see almost all of Dublin. Alison had class for parts of the day, so she was going to meet me for some of it. So, as she went off to class, I climbed on a bus towards the Dublin Castle. First of all, if you didn't already know, they drive on the left side of the road in Ireland! This was the most mind-boggling thing to get used to. Not only was it weird to look at, but I never knew which way to look when crossing the street. I absolutely looked the wrong way quite a few times! Throughout the few days it only got more confusing and terrifying. I never knew what was correct! (Foreshadowing to Barcelona... I got confused the first few times crossing the street because it was the wrong direction).
While I as riding the bus, I met a lady who was from Ireland and giving a tour to a group of Italians. She spent the whole bus ride talking to me about Ireland and Americans. She certainly did her fair share of making fun of us, but I was also enjoying a very unique and eye-opening cultural moment. Everyone also talked to each other on the bus, such a culture shock from Belgium where you strictly keep to yourself. The lady gave me a full explanation of her perspective of Americans and talked a lot about the great things that Ireland has to offer.
While I as riding the bus, I met a lady who was from Ireland and giving a tour to a group of Italians. She spent the whole bus ride talking to me about Ireland and Americans. She certainly did her fair share of making fun of us, but I was also enjoying a very unique and eye-opening cultural moment. Everyone also talked to each other on the bus, such a culture shock from Belgium where you strictly keep to yourself. The lady gave me a full explanation of her perspective of Americans and talked a lot about the great things that Ireland has to offer.
When I finally arrived, I bought tickets for a guided tour of the castle. While waiting for it to start, I went to see famous Christ's Church Cathedral. I could only see it from the outside, but it was huge and gorgeous. I them wandered into the City Hall which had a lot of interesting symbolism, earned from listening to the English tour guides around the room. I made it back to the Dublin Castle to start my tour. I got to see some ancient ruins and climb underneath the ground. Alison joined us as we went to the state rooms. Both Guiness and Ireland use the harp as a symbol, but since Guiness trademarked it first the city always has it facing the opposite direction. The castle was nice but really nothing special. We waked across the street to Queen of Tarts for lunch. We split a mushroom and gorgonzola tart and we each had a scone for lunch. Tea is incredibly popular in Ireland and always black and served with milk and sugar. The tea was very delicious. That afternoon, I wandered through Temple Bar, which is a fun area but wasn't great in the rain. So I made my way to Trinity College, the Harvard of Ireland. There were some awesome sculptures and fun things to look at. It was a beautiful campus, but the highlight was absolutely my Big Belly trash can spot! Another point in the Big Belly hunt around Europe.
I decided to wander into the National Gallery. Although I don't normally love looking at art, this was great because I felt like I was learning history and culture through the artwork. It was very interesting to look at and very enjoyable. I wandered into a park and found a war memorial. It was quite interesting. It showed four soldiers standing over an eternal flame. The flame was actually lit, which I found really cool that they would have what looked like a bonfire as a monument. I then wandered into the Museum of Natural History and was quite surprised by what I saw. The museum was completely filled with stuffed animals, literally animals from all over the world that were dead and then had been re-stuffed and put on display. It was a very weird experience but at least interesting to see. I then made my way to the Museum of Archaeology, where I saw lots of old treasures. I then wandered through Steven's Green, which was a beautiful park. There were pretty bridges and gorgeous things to look at. I wandered the shopping neighborhood for a bit before sitting down to enjoy a bowl of soup. As I was finishing my soup, Alison joined me! So the two of us quickly explored the market hat I was in before heading to Temple Bar on the Temple Bar street. We each got a pint (for some reason they measure their beer in pints in Ireland even though everything else is in the metric system) of Bulmers, an Irish cider, and brought it into the bar. Two musicians were singing pop music but acoustically with their own twist. It was fantastic. The crowd was loving it and made a very fun environment. We had a great time watching them play and singing along. A great Dublin Pub experience. We then went home and crashed in preparation for tomorrow.
Friday, April 3rd 2015
Alison and I got out of her place very early in the morning, because today we are going coast to coast and then back again. We prepared for our bus tour with some delicious muffins and very much missed chai tea. We then climbed onto the tour bus for a big day. Our tour guide was pretty great, cracking lots of jokes and having fun with the tour. Somehow he drove this huge bus through tiny streets while also telling us stories. I'm not kidding about tiny. Some were so small you thought that the bus was scratching the paint on the other bus while passing. The roads throughout Ireland were tiny and windy while many huge tour buses flew through them. I would never want to dive on them and was shocked by how fast he was going! Don't forget, we were driving on the left side as well! The whole experience was thrilling and terrifying.
Our first stop of the day was Dunguaire Castle, a very nice castle in the cute town of Kinvara. We walked counter-clockwise around the castle, as instructed. There are lots of myths about the castells, this one, if you asked a question in the arch, it would be answered by the end of the day. There were more about walking around the castle, but you can look those up if you are interested. The castle was right on the Atlantic Ocean, but this is a view of the ocean that I've never seen before. Swampy water is very common in Ireland, and it was all around the castle. It didn’t seem like the Atlantic Ocean that I knew, but it was certainly the same body of water, just in a very different form. We then stopped at an abbey. It was quite weird because it was so old, with many very old graves, but also had some very recent ones. The mix of old and new was quite unique. We then made our way to the mini cliffs. We looked around, got a wonderful view and then jumped on the bus to race to lunch. I had a nice piece of salmon to give me energy for the rest of the day before climbing aboard to see the main attraction.
We arrived at the Cliffs of Moher and they were fantastic. The wind was crazy strong and pushed you in every which way. We were trying to be very careful around the edge because it was quite dangerous, but we also wanted to experience it. The first place we sat down, we dangled our feet over the edge. The cliffs were breathtaking. The second place we sat, there was no edge below us, so we were really just looking down into the cliff. It was terrifying! Needless to say, we didn't stay in that spot for long. I wanted to get a better look over the edge, so the best way to do that was to lay flat on my stomach and look over. This is where the title of this post, 'More mud, more fun' comes in. My tush had been a bit muddy from sitting, but now I was just laying there! To make matters worse, I rolled to my side to get a good picture of Alison and was just rolling in mud (the picture was totally worth it!). I didn't care at all though because I was having such a wonderful time. We walked a long way up the edge of the cliff. It was fantastic and the views were amazing. Being so close was thrilling, terrifying but also insanely beautiful We enjoyed each other’s company and could not enjoy the nature more. Just before time was up, we ran back to the bus to make sure we reached it on time and didn’t have to camp there until the next day.
We made one more quick stop before arriving back to Dublin. Since it was Good Friday, there wasn't much open for dinner. We decided to experience a Dublin classic, fish and chips, in the fast food manner. When the food finally arrived (I know, it wasn’t very fast), it was served on a ceramic plate with real silverware!! Dublin fast food has some real class. It was actually very good with a nice big piece of fish. I was very impressed. We ended Good Friday with ‘The Great Matzah Search’. Finding matzah in Dublin is not an easy feat, but Alison and I really wanted to something for Passover. Alison located a place to find it, so we took a nice bus ride out there and late at night bought our box of matzah. When we finally got home, we did what any two girls would do, make chocolate covered matzah. We had our own little Passover together. Since a roommate’s friend was sleeping on the couch in the kitchen, we made it on the floor of the hallway, it was quite the production. But we were doing it together, so it was fun no matter what. It was very special that we had the opportunity to spend the holiday together. We are both very much absorbed in new cultures and communities, which are amazing and a very interesting experience, but when so much family and celebration is going on at home, it is particularly nice to be with someone who feels the same way, celebrates the same traditions and such a good friend.
Saturday, April 4th 2015
To continue our Passover celebration, we made matzah brie or fried matzah for breakfast. It made us both feel like we are home or at least a bit connected to the holiday. It was delicious and fun to make
We then took a train to Howth for the day. When we arrived we went straight for the water to look out. Sailboats were everywhere and then all of a sudden a seal popped his head out of the water, almost as if he was saying hi to us. I couldn't have asked for a better surprise! We then decided to go on an adventure through Howth to see the beautiful views. We ended up climbing into neighborhoods until we found a small path through bushes that led to a bench facing the water surrounded by bushes with beautiful flowers! The view was amazing and I felt like I had just walked into a different world. After spending some wonderful time together enjoying the company and the view, we walked down the hill towards the town. Instead of walking into the town we followed a road that lined the edge of the cliff. There were some very nice views but we were somewhat blocked. The adventurer in me decided to follow a small path that went closer towards the water and much off the beaten track. We followed the path, which was increasingly less of a path and more like jumping from rock to rock, as it got closer to the water and down the cliff. Eventually, we got to a place where the decline was so steep that it actually required you to repel down. Amazingly, there was a rope attached to that pole at that spot which we could use to lower ourselves closer to the water. When I looked around me, there was a perfect rock for us to sit on. We relaxed on the rock and enjoyed the incredible views of the cliffs, the water and the sky. Everything was beautiful and fantastic. We greatly enjoyed the time hanging out, relaxing together. Then Alison decided that she had to pee. Of course I don't report every time of us needs to use the restroom, but this time was different. We were too far from the town to walk all the way back there and a bathroom ahead wasn't imminent. Fortunately, we were in a very secluded spot with no way for anyone to see us. The only problem, Alison didn't know how to pop-a-squat. That is right, in the middle of Howth, Ireland I taught Alison the art of peeing in nature. It is a valuable skill everyone should know, so I was glad to have the honor of teaching her. It was an incredibly hilarious moment for both of us, and became the joke and entertainment for the rest of the day. I was a very proud teacher although we laughed at the little puddle that remained until the ocean finally pulled it away.
We then made our way back to the town to enjoy the popular Howth market. It was really exciting and had so much going on! We bought some fried calamari and enjoyed it in the park. It was soooo delicious. We walked around and looked at jewelry and talked to lots of the artists. One of the artists was named Peter and Alison loved his work. We spent a very long time taking to him and he even promised to make the ring Alison wanted in her size!! I love talking to jewelry artists. I always search for the artist markets because I think they are very special experiences.
At this point in the day it was only 2:30, so we were right on time! We grabbed some more Irish food as a snack for our train ride back to Dublin and headed to the Guinness Storehouse. The experience inside the storehouse was amazing! It was like a party in the museum! I also had a ton of appreciation for the production quality of the whole museum. They had lots of videos that if not for the crowd was nicely timed to it felt like the brewer was walking you through the brewing process. We then learned about some of the history, and I have to say they did a great job with the exhibit! It was funny and they had some great stories in the text that you read. Through my travels I have read many signs explaining something or about monuments etcetera. I have found that they can vary greatly in their interest, specifically in relation to how they write it. I really appreciate reading the stories about what happened or enlightening facts about history. On the other hand, often the signs just tell facts and give very little interesting information that you couldn't just google. So I was quite happy with the information I got at the Guinness storehouse because it was interesting, story filled and humorous.
As we ascended the museum (shaped like a pint glass), we made our way through all of the exhibits. We then had the opportunity to learn how to pour our own Guinness beer from tap. Every beer has their own particular way of being poured, and a Guinness has quite a few steps to get it perfectly correct. After being taught, we got to learn by doing, so each of us went behind the bar. Barely able to see over the bar and I pulled the handle to get my beer from tap. It was really fun and a bit harder than you'd expect. We took our beautifully poured beer and brought them upstairs to the Gravity Bar. The views of Dublin were incredible. I could see so many of the landmarks I had either visited or heard about. A wonderful way to start winding down my first city on my long adventures.
Reflections
In my time in Dublin, it became very evident to me how important my Jewish identity is to me. In the very beginning of the semester, I was very careful about exposing it (and still slightly am) because of the extreme anti-Semitism in Europe. I have also been ignoring my personal dietary restrictions so I can experience all parts of the cultures that I am touring. But in the time I spent with Alison, I realized how much I truly missed those aspects of my life and how wonderful it was to be with Alison for Passover.
Things I've noticed about Ireland and Irish people:
They are so patriotic! Everything is 'Irish', the dairy is Irish dairy, the meat is Irish meat. They constantly pride themselves on their own culture and it has been very interesting to see.
The public culture has been a huge difference from Belgium. Here, they talk to each other on the trains and buses and are very outgoing with strangers, versus in Belgium, you rarely hear people talking to the stranger besides them on public transport.
A huge problem is that when you are walking, you have no idea which side to pass someone when you are both walked towards each other! It is very confusing. So you don’t guarantee going right, because you don't drive on the right, but it is not necessarily left either! Too confusing!
Things I've noticed about Ireland and Irish people:
They are so patriotic! Everything is 'Irish', the dairy is Irish dairy, the meat is Irish meat. They constantly pride themselves on their own culture and it has been very interesting to see.
The public culture has been a huge difference from Belgium. Here, they talk to each other on the trains and buses and are very outgoing with strangers, versus in Belgium, you rarely hear people talking to the stranger besides them on public transport.
A huge problem is that when you are walking, you have no idea which side to pass someone when you are both walked towards each other! It is very confusing. So you don’t guarantee going right, because you don't drive on the right, but it is not necessarily left either! Too confusing!