On Friday morning, we (Jan, Silvia, Carole, and myself) took a taxi to the Galway airport with our bags packed and excitement inside. We then met a nice gentleman that rented us a car for the weekend! We left Galway about 10:00 and headed north. On our way we made a few stops to see the beautiful landscape that the west coast of Ireland brought us. It was the only sunny day of the weekend and we saw some beautiful countryside! We stopped at a few different cliff areas and, don't worry, I took lots of pictures! Around 7 we made it to Derry, our home for the night. We stayed at the Derry independent hostel and found it only mildly uncomfortable (my bed was quite squeaky!).
In Derry we decided to give ourselves a night tour. We saw the walls of what used to be the outer portion of Derry and protected the people in the village in the wars. It was kind of neat to walk along the walls and we got a great view of the city. We made a pit stop at a cute little Irish pub that had GREAT live music and enjoyed a beer before heading back to the Hostel for a night's sleep.
Saturday morning we woke up and headed further north to visit the Giant's Causeway. We had to stop first of all at an HMV and buy a few CD's. The Irish radio was NOT cutting it for us. Onward hoe. On our way we saw an old castle (Dunluce, I believe?) and stopped to check it out. The Giant's Cause was AMAZING! It was really windy there and we were afraid that we were going to get knocked off the edge or something, but we didn't. It was just quite chilly and a little rainy--but totally worth it! We were there for quite awhile taking in the beauty and walked up the side to see the great view from the top!
After that stop we were cold and hungry, but headed onward to our stop for the night- Belfast. We checked into our hostel and walked around the town for awhile. There was some sort of festival going on called 'Unite against Hate' at the city hall and we got to check that out too. Belfast is a pretty large city and it was neat to see. Saturday night we were all quite tired and decided to order a pizza and go to a movie. The cinema in Belfast much quite a bit cheaper than in Galway so we checked it out. We then went back to the hostel to call it a night.
Sunday morning I was awoken by construction in front of the window. I did not think that 6 am on a Sunday morning was a great time for that! After breakfast we packed up the car and headed to the Belfast castle. It was not quite as historical as other castles I have seen, but VERY beautiful! Right when we were leaving the rain began again--it was quite a rainy weekend! After the castle, we stopped at STARBUCKS! Yes, this is the first time I've had it in 2 1/2 months...it was pretty delicious! :) We decided to check out the great shopping that Belfast has to offer. It was a good day. We left Belfast at about 6 pm and arrived back in Galway around 11:30.
It was a GREAT weekend and we all had a lot of fun! Needless to say, I slept in today :) Today we have a "Bank Holiday" for halloween, so DAY OFF. Nothing too exciting planned, just some reading and hopefully some relaxing.
Now, I need to figure out what to dress up like this weekend--hmmm...
Monday, October 26, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Some Pictures from the weekend...
Lindsay, Steph and I at the Dublin Zoo
At the Guinness Storehouse (Dublin)
A beautiful fall-leaved wall @ Bunratty Folk Park 
Me @ Bunratty Castle-- I LOVE Castles!!! 
Showing off where I go to school- Lindsay, Steph and I in the Quadrangle.Monday, October 19, 2009
Dublin
Friday night, we rolled into Dublin! We took a taxi to our hotel, which was kind of far from the city centre. We were hungry so we walked to a pub not too far from the hotel. They informed us that they no longer serve, so we had to go to McDonald's because it was the only other thing in the area. We went back to the pub for dessert!
Saturday morning we got up early and decided to take the Luas (kind of like their transit system) into the city. We got off and walked to the Guinness Storehouse. We were there for quite sometime learning all about how to make Guinness and Arthur Guinness and the 9000 year lease. It was really cool to see everything there and hear all about Guinness, and of course get a free pint at the end of the tour :) The Guinness store house is 7 stories tall and the highest point is the gravity bar which is all glass and gives you a great view of the city!
After the Guinness factory we got on a Dublin city tour Hop-On/Hop-Off bus. We thought this would be the best way to see much of the city in 2 days. Saturday was a really busy day in this sense! We went to Kilmainom Gaol (jail) which was really amazing and I learned a lot about the 1916 uprising in Dublin. I was really glad we did this tour because a lot of the people involved in the uprising have buildings and streets named after them. It was fun to recognize those names and know the story behind it.
After the Gaol we got back on the bus and saw Trinity College, Temple Bar Area, Christ Church, etc... We saw quite a bit!! At the end of the day we were pretty exhausted and hungry! We had a great meal at Flanagan's restaurant and took the Luas back to our hotel.
Sunday morning we got up and headed to the zoo. The zoo was one of the stops on the Hop-On/Hop-off tour that we saw and since our tickets were good form 24 hours, we still had time to hop-on and get there. The Dublin zoo is really quite large and had a lot of stuff. I LOVE zoos and they even had my favorite animal, the giraffe!! After the zoo we went and saw St Patrick's Cathedral. After the cathedral it was almost time for me to head back to Galway. We stopped at the hotel, grabbed my stuff, took the Luas to the city centre and said our good-byes.
It was so fun to have Steph and Lindsay here and I'm glad that we got to see so much in the time that they spent here. I think they had fun and were also ready to head home and not live out of a suitcase anymore.
I took a bus back to Galway--it rained the whole way back. We definately had great weather while they were here to sight-see! When I got home I was pretty tired.
Today I have to catch up a bit on homework and get ready for another week. Next weekend I'll be headin to Northern Ireland!
Saturday morning we got up early and decided to take the Luas (kind of like their transit system) into the city. We got off and walked to the Guinness Storehouse. We were there for quite sometime learning all about how to make Guinness and Arthur Guinness and the 9000 year lease. It was really cool to see everything there and hear all about Guinness, and of course get a free pint at the end of the tour :) The Guinness store house is 7 stories tall and the highest point is the gravity bar which is all glass and gives you a great view of the city!
After the Guinness factory we got on a Dublin city tour Hop-On/Hop-Off bus. We thought this would be the best way to see much of the city in 2 days. Saturday was a really busy day in this sense! We went to Kilmainom Gaol (jail) which was really amazing and I learned a lot about the 1916 uprising in Dublin. I was really glad we did this tour because a lot of the people involved in the uprising have buildings and streets named after them. It was fun to recognize those names and know the story behind it.
After the Gaol we got back on the bus and saw Trinity College, Temple Bar Area, Christ Church, etc... We saw quite a bit!! At the end of the day we were pretty exhausted and hungry! We had a great meal at Flanagan's restaurant and took the Luas back to our hotel.
Sunday morning we got up and headed to the zoo. The zoo was one of the stops on the Hop-On/Hop-off tour that we saw and since our tickets were good form 24 hours, we still had time to hop-on and get there. The Dublin zoo is really quite large and had a lot of stuff. I LOVE zoos and they even had my favorite animal, the giraffe!! After the zoo we went and saw St Patrick's Cathedral. After the cathedral it was almost time for me to head back to Galway. We stopped at the hotel, grabbed my stuff, took the Luas to the city centre and said our good-byes.
It was so fun to have Steph and Lindsay here and I'm glad that we got to see so much in the time that they spent here. I think they had fun and were also ready to head home and not live out of a suitcase anymore.
I took a bus back to Galway--it rained the whole way back. We definately had great weather while they were here to sight-see! When I got home I was pretty tired.
Today I have to catch up a bit on homework and get ready for another week. Next weekend I'll be headin to Northern Ireland!
Limerick
On Thursday morning, October 15th, I met Steph and Lindsay at the bus station to get on our way to Limerick. We arrived in Limerick, found our hotel and then proceeded to King John's Castle. King John's castle is in town and was a little bit smaller than the other castle's I've seen. We still thought it was pretty cool and got a beautiful view of the city. They even have an archaological dig area because part of the city fell. I find that kind of stuff really fascinating!
After the castle, we walked to the centre and found a cute little place to eat. I thought it was quite delicious. I made Steph try her first Bulmer's cider beer, because she didn't like the Guinness.
When we were on our way back to the hotel, we saw some swans and almost got close enough to pet them! At the hotel, Lindsay and I decided to check out the pool. The exciting thing about that was we were required to wear swimcaps...That was pretty funny!
When I got done swimming, Steph and I went to find some traditional Irish music. We went to a place on the map that said there was music, however they were closing. The nice lady there gave us directions going back the other direction to a place much closer to our hotel. We enjoyed some fiddling and good conversation. We headed back to the hotel and crashed so we could get up early and see the Bunratty Castle.
Friday, we left the hotel and got on a bus to the Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. It was AWESOME! There was a really cool huge castle that is set up much like it would have been in the 16th century. They also have many acres of land to be set up like an old Irish countryside/village. It was so much fun!! It was like Bonanzaville, except bigger and had a castle. We left there just in time to get on another bus and head to Dublin!
After the castle, we walked to the centre and found a cute little place to eat. I thought it was quite delicious. I made Steph try her first Bulmer's cider beer, because she didn't like the Guinness.
When we were on our way back to the hotel, we saw some swans and almost got close enough to pet them! At the hotel, Lindsay and I decided to check out the pool. The exciting thing about that was we were required to wear swimcaps...That was pretty funny!
When I got done swimming, Steph and I went to find some traditional Irish music. We went to a place on the map that said there was music, however they were closing. The nice lady there gave us directions going back the other direction to a place much closer to our hotel. We enjoyed some fiddling and good conversation. We headed back to the hotel and crashed so we could get up early and see the Bunratty Castle.
Friday, we left the hotel and got on a bus to the Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. It was AWESOME! There was a really cool huge castle that is set up much like it would have been in the 16th century. They also have many acres of land to be set up like an old Irish countryside/village. It was so much fun!! It was like Bonanzaville, except bigger and had a castle. We left there just in time to get on another bus and head to Dublin!
Steph and Lindsay visit GALWAY!
Last Monday, October 12th, after a long hour in class, I walked to the Hotel Clybaun to anxiously await the arrival of Miss Stephanie Forbord and Miss Lindsay Cook. After a couple hours, they showed up!! It was so much fun to see familiar faces in Galway. I was so excited to have them here!! On Monday night, I brought them back to my apartment and we made pizza. I knew they would be tired after their long flight, so we just hung around for awhile and they then went back to their hotel.
On Tuesday I had classes again. I was planning on meeting them in the City Centre around 4 after class. When I met up with them I showed them a few cool souvenire shops and then we went to look at the Cathedral. It was shortly before mass so we only saw it for a second but it was something I thought they should most definately see while in Galway. I then brought them to the University and showed them the Quadrangle and the campus where I go to school. We then stopped and got ingredients and i made lasagna!! Silvia came over and so we all sat down and enjoyed my marvelous lasagna...I thought I did a pretty good job :) After we finished eating we booked tickets for Limerick and Dublin and then proceeded to the city centre to meet up with some people at King's Head.
King's Head is probably my favorite place in the centre to go. They have live music every night and Steph and Lindsay liked it too! It was fun because I had told a bunch of people we were going, so when we got there we met up with a bunch of my friends here. I was excited to see how many came!
Wednesday Steph and Lindsay explored Salthill while I again went to class. After class I met them at their hotel and we took a bus to the city centre to find something to eat. We ate at Finnegan's and had traditional Irish food. Steph and I both at fish and chips and it was the best fish I have ever had! Lindsay had beef shephard's pie which also looked quite amazing.
It was fun to have them in Galway and show them a little bit of what I do here.
On Tuesday I had classes again. I was planning on meeting them in the City Centre around 4 after class. When I met up with them I showed them a few cool souvenire shops and then we went to look at the Cathedral. It was shortly before mass so we only saw it for a second but it was something I thought they should most definately see while in Galway. I then brought them to the University and showed them the Quadrangle and the campus where I go to school. We then stopped and got ingredients and i made lasagna!! Silvia came over and so we all sat down and enjoyed my marvelous lasagna...I thought I did a pretty good job :) After we finished eating we booked tickets for Limerick and Dublin and then proceeded to the city centre to meet up with some people at King's Head.
King's Head is probably my favorite place in the centre to go. They have live music every night and Steph and Lindsay liked it too! It was fun because I had told a bunch of people we were going, so when we got there we met up with a bunch of my friends here. I was excited to see how many came!
Wednesday Steph and Lindsay explored Salthill while I again went to class. After class I met them at their hotel and we took a bus to the city centre to find something to eat. We ate at Finnegan's and had traditional Irish food. Steph and I both at fish and chips and it was the best fish I have ever had! Lindsay had beef shephard's pie which also looked quite amazing.
It was fun to have them in Galway and show them a little bit of what I do here.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
October
I haven't had any updates in awhile, but I thought I'd fill you in on what has been happening in Galway this past week.
Last weekend was pretty relaxed. We tried out a new place on Saturday night, it was pretty fun! On Sunday morning I went grocery shopping--I really wish groceries weren't so expensive. When I got home, I made delicious brownies! Sunday night a bunch of girls came over and we watched movies, ate pizza and brownies.
Tuesday night the International Student Society put on an 80s themed party. The costume winner would receive 50 euro! Unfortunately, none of us won, but we had a great time getting all dressed up for it! It was a lot of fun!!
Yesterday I had my first ever kiting experience! It was so fun!! My friend Marcel has this big kite that, if the wind is strong enough, will lift you up and lots of people go wind surfing with these kinds of kites. I won't be doing that, but he kept talking about kiting and I wanted to see what it was all about. I had a bunch of time between classes so we went out...and I think it's probably my new favorite activity! It was so fun!!
Tonight we're going to greyhound dog races. I've never seen them, but a few people wanted to go, so I thought I'd go along. I'm excited to see what this entails!
My roommate, Jan, has a few friends coming for the weekend. I am getting very excited because my friend Steph is coming MONDAY!!!! It'll be really fun to see a face from home :) She'll be here for about a week, so I'm sure I'll have all sorts of adventures to blog about after next week. I know that we will go to Limerick and Dublin!
Hope the first week in October is treating everyone well! (I can't believe it's October!)
Monday, September 28, 2009
Cork!
Saturday morning at 6 am I joined my friends Shannon, Erin, and Dorte to head to the bus station where we loaded a bus for Cork. The bus trip took about 4 hours so we slept on the bus and then were ready for a day on the town. We arrived at our Hostel, left our things and then decided to adventure. This is only the second hostel I've ever been in, but it was really nice and had more of a bed and breakfast feel to it. We were happy because we ended up having out own room--which was quite convenient!
We then decided to hop on a bus and head just outside of Cork to go to the Blarney castle.. WOW! The blarney castle and the grounds that it is on are amazing. Very beautiful and really cool to see the castle. I also KISSED THE BLARNEY STONE!! :) We were at the castle for a good portion of the afternoon and saw a lot of beautiful waterfalls, flowers, and cool stone structures. When we got back into Cork we stopped at a grocery store and picked up some pasta, garlic bread, and wine. We went back to the hostel and ate a feast..It was quite delicious, but apparently our eyes were bigger than our stomachs--we had a little extra pasta! haha...
Saturday night we headed out! Erin has a few friends that are studying in Cork, which was nice so they could show us around and bring us to only the best places. Needless to say, we had a lot of fun that ended in getting lost and eventually getting back to our Hostel quite late! Cork is a little confusing because there are two rivers and if you don't know which one you are by...you can get quite lost! Apparently the town used to be all rivers and they decided to pave over the rivers and make streets--fun fact.
We slept in on Sunday and then walked around town for a bit. Saw a lot of really cool churches and other buildings. Erin and I then headed to a Munster Rugby match. We got there quite early and got to see the excitement build as the match got closer. We ended up buying jerseys and having a blast while cheering on Munster, who won 27-3. The match was tied at 3 until halftime--Munster came barreling through in the second half! Rugby is pretty big over here and people get really intense with it. We had a BLAST!! Also, turns out Rugby players have really nice legs and are quite attractive, I'd go back! :)
After the match we met up with Dorte and Shannon to grab a bite to eat. We were all pretty exhausted so we just went back and hung out in the hostel and chatted until we all fell asleep. Our bus left Cork at 7:25 am this morning so that we could get back to Galway for class. I took a nap this afternoon and am still a little tired, but had a really fun weekend!
Back to the books for another week! The first choir practice is tomorrow so I'm pretty excited about that. There are a lot of activities starting this week, so it'll be another busy one.
I can't believe Thursday is already October!
We then decided to hop on a bus and head just outside of Cork to go to the Blarney castle.. WOW! The blarney castle and the grounds that it is on are amazing. Very beautiful and really cool to see the castle. I also KISSED THE BLARNEY STONE!! :) We were at the castle for a good portion of the afternoon and saw a lot of beautiful waterfalls, flowers, and cool stone structures. When we got back into Cork we stopped at a grocery store and picked up some pasta, garlic bread, and wine. We went back to the hostel and ate a feast..It was quite delicious, but apparently our eyes were bigger than our stomachs--we had a little extra pasta! haha...
Saturday night we headed out! Erin has a few friends that are studying in Cork, which was nice so they could show us around and bring us to only the best places. Needless to say, we had a lot of fun that ended in getting lost and eventually getting back to our Hostel quite late! Cork is a little confusing because there are two rivers and if you don't know which one you are by...you can get quite lost! Apparently the town used to be all rivers and they decided to pave over the rivers and make streets--fun fact.
We slept in on Sunday and then walked around town for a bit. Saw a lot of really cool churches and other buildings. Erin and I then headed to a Munster Rugby match. We got there quite early and got to see the excitement build as the match got closer. We ended up buying jerseys and having a blast while cheering on Munster, who won 27-3. The match was tied at 3 until halftime--Munster came barreling through in the second half! Rugby is pretty big over here and people get really intense with it. We had a BLAST!! Also, turns out Rugby players have really nice legs and are quite attractive, I'd go back! :)
After the match we met up with Dorte and Shannon to grab a bite to eat. We were all pretty exhausted so we just went back and hung out in the hostel and chatted until we all fell asleep. Our bus left Cork at 7:25 am this morning so that we could get back to Galway for class. I took a nap this afternoon and am still a little tired, but had a really fun weekend!
Back to the books for another week! The first choir practice is tomorrow so I'm pretty excited about that. There are a lot of activities starting this week, so it'll be another busy one.
I can't believe Thursday is already October!
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