I'm taking a break from studying to write this because I know I won't be able to focus unless I update my blog. Just to warn you, my next post probably won't be for another two weeks. Finals are (scarily) just around the corner and I should be devoting every waking hour to catching up on work. Yuck. So there's no need to sit around and wait for my always frequent and regular posts.
...
Right. Down to business. Two Saturdays ago I went on a field trip with my archaeology class to County Roscommon. We saw Roscommon Castle, Roscommon Abbey, and the deserted village of Rindoon/Rindown. It was cold but thankfully not raining. It was beautiful area. We were tromping through pastures for several hours. It felt just like home. *Sigh* I felt pretty bad for the students who were wearing sneakers - it was muddy enough to pull a shoe off. I don't think that actually happened but it was a definite probability. It was great to be able to go to a few of the places we had learned about in class. It was also great to see a part of Ireland that I wouldn't have visited on my own.
Then last weekend, Butler took us up to Belfast for Thanksgiving weekend. (Happy Late Thanksgiving, everyone!) We left Thursday morning, which gives you an indication of how serious the Irish are about attending classes since we had to miss the last two days of classes of the entire semester. Anyway, it was about a six hour bus ride so we got to the hotel in Belfast just in time for dinner. We walked to a hotel restaurant where they served us Thanksgiving dinner. It was really a Thanksgiving-themed dinner. Even if the hotel had served the perfect, just-like-Mom's Thanksgiving dinner, I don't think it would have been the same. Thanksgiving really has a lot more to do with the environment of the whole day than the actual meal, I think. Being in the kitchen, watching football, sprawling out on the couch with everyone else. That's what makes it Thanksgiving. The dinner was still fantastic. The dessert especially (graham cracker/brown sugar crumble-cheesecake-pumpkin-caramel/rum sauce loveliness). Friday was a bus tour to the Giant's Causeway, which is basically a really cool rock formation. We had a couple of stops to a rope bridge and a somewhat-intact castle. Our tour guide was really informative and he talked a little about growing up during the Troubles, the conflicts in Belfast between the Catholics and Protestants. It was really inspiring to hear how he dealt with the trauma of living amid so much violence. We were able to go on the Black Taxi tours Saturday morning where the drivers walked us through the history of the Troubles and took us to memorials and famous neighborhoods. I really had no idea how recent the Troubles were. It was really eye-opening and reminded me how lucky I am to live in a peaceful and stable community. The Black Taxi tour was only an hour and a half, so my friends and I walked around the downtown area for a while. We stopped at St. George's Market, which is like LA's Grand Central Market, had lunch at Victoria Square, and went to the HUGE Christmas market by the city hall for dinner. I spent my leftover pounds (the money, not the weight) on chocolate (of course) and honey-roasted cashews and macadamia nuts. Those were the best purchases I made all weekend. The city had their Christmas decorations up, and it was so beautiful when all of the lights were lit. It also snowed while we were there! The snow was more like Dippin' Dots rather than actual flurries, but snow is snow is snow! It was a great kick-off to the Christmas season. Although since Ireland, the silly country that it is, doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas decorations have been out almost since Halloween. I've had to temporarily give up my diatribe against celebrating Christmas before December because there is just no fighting the city lights and enormous store window displays. There's no way I would have won. But it doesn't matter anymore, because it's December!! I fully embrace the Christmas music now; I've been playing it all day. It actually snowed here in Galway yesterday too, which I thought was impossible. Something about it being too warm. And these were legitimate flurries. There's actually still snow on my balcony. Most of the snow outside the apartment complex has turned into ice, unfortunately, but it doesn't make me feel so bad about missing the snowfall at home.
Oh boy. I just scrolled back up through my post and saw how long that paragraph was. Ooops. That, kids, is what not to do in an English paper. I suppose I could have just said I had a wonderful time in Belfast and I'm so happy it's December, but where's the fun in that?
I should probably get back to the salt mines, but now you know how I spent the last two weekends and I can rest easy.
Happy December, everyone!
love always.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
And the countdown begins!
Hello! I am so excited to talk at you. It's been a while (as usual)!
And again, as usual, these past couple of weeks has been pretty eventful. Classes are starting to wrap up because ... dun dun dun ... I only have one more week of school left! WHOA! I'm trying to work up enough steam to seriously sit down and study. And let me tell you, it's not going so well!
I registered a couple of nights ago for next semester's classes. I had a fabulous registration time although Claremont McKenna's psychology department had to make things a little difficult. I still ended up with a pretty cool set of classes. I can already tell I am going to be pretty busy, especially compared to this semester. I guess that's what the Scripps Off-Campus Study Office meant when they told us about the possibility of experiencing culture shock when we come home.
I went on my last international trip last weekend. I stayed with another fabulous Scrippsie in Edinburgh, Scotland. Let me just start off by telling you how much I LOVE that city. A lot. I was hooked within minutes of arriving there. I got there pretty early Friday morning, and since LeeAnn had class until 11, I had a few hours to do whatever. I actually had a lot of work to do, so I went to the Elephant House Cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter!!!!!! I originally didn't want to go there because I thought it would be really touristy but it wasn't at all. I was actually the only person there for a while. Granted, it was 8:30AM, but still. Sitting in a cafe seems like a pretty ordinary thing to do, but it was actually a pretty amazing experience. I was able to find the cafe all by myself, and since I had to walk from where the airport shuttle dropped us off, I was obviously able to see some of the city. It's absolutely amazing. ALL of the buildings are so OLD (and so pretty!) - it's awe-inspiring. And then to sit in the same cafe as J.K. Rowling and be writing a fabulous piece of literature (well, not really, it was just an essay), it was just a really cool feeling. And to top it all off, Edinburgh just exudes Harry Potterness. It's like the modern-day, city version of Hogwarts and definitely forever cemented in my 10 Favorite Places list. LeeAnn and I went to a museum, a cafe that had beautiful peach tea, did more homework, went to a pub for dinner, and then went to another pub and had yummy mulled wine. We went to the town of St. Andrews on Saturday and saw the cathedral ruins, went to a couple of cute craft fairs, had famous ice cream (Carmel Coffee flavored - YUM!), and ended the day at a used bookstore. Absolutely wonderful.
I'm glad I went to Scotland and saw LeeAnn, but I'm also glad I don't have any more international trips planned. I didn't realize how exhausting these weekend trips would be! I do have a fieldtrip with my archaeology class (we're going to County Roscommon to look at ditches and mounds that were once moats and walls with maybe a few castles and churches thrown in) this Saturday, and then a trip to Northern Ireland with Butler next weekend. And that will be the end of my You-went-where?! trips. I guess my stay in Galway would count as one of those trips too.
It's funny - after next week (my last week of classes), I have Study Week, then two weeks of finals, and then I come home! It's almost unbelievable. I can't believe how fast my time here has gone by. Though I will admit that ever since the beginning of November I've been pretty ready to come home. To be fair, I think that it has a lot to do with my impending finals. As Timon says to Simba, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!". But even without finals, a semester abroad is just the right amount of time. I can't even imagine how I would be feeling right now if I had decided to stay for a whole year. I can't wait to just be with my family and friends. There's something to be said about physical proximity and knowing that my mom or sisters or friends are in the next room or right down the hall. Ahhhh, I'm so excited to come home!
I haven't posted pictures in a while so here are a few snapshots of my trips!
Wow, I completely forgot how long it took to upload photos. It wasn't just because I've been too busy. I hope you like them!
love always!
And again, as usual, these past couple of weeks has been pretty eventful. Classes are starting to wrap up because ... dun dun dun ... I only have one more week of school left! WHOA! I'm trying to work up enough steam to seriously sit down and study. And let me tell you, it's not going so well!
I registered a couple of nights ago for next semester's classes. I had a fabulous registration time although Claremont McKenna's psychology department had to make things a little difficult. I still ended up with a pretty cool set of classes. I can already tell I am going to be pretty busy, especially compared to this semester. I guess that's what the Scripps Off-Campus Study Office meant when they told us about the possibility of experiencing culture shock when we come home.
I went on my last international trip last weekend. I stayed with another fabulous Scrippsie in Edinburgh, Scotland. Let me just start off by telling you how much I LOVE that city. A lot. I was hooked within minutes of arriving there. I got there pretty early Friday morning, and since LeeAnn had class until 11, I had a few hours to do whatever. I actually had a lot of work to do, so I went to the Elephant House Cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter!!!!!! I originally didn't want to go there because I thought it would be really touristy but it wasn't at all. I was actually the only person there for a while. Granted, it was 8:30AM, but still. Sitting in a cafe seems like a pretty ordinary thing to do, but it was actually a pretty amazing experience. I was able to find the cafe all by myself, and since I had to walk from where the airport shuttle dropped us off, I was obviously able to see some of the city. It's absolutely amazing. ALL of the buildings are so OLD (and so pretty!) - it's awe-inspiring. And then to sit in the same cafe as J.K. Rowling and be writing a fabulous piece of literature (well, not really, it was just an essay), it was just a really cool feeling. And to top it all off, Edinburgh just exudes Harry Potterness. It's like the modern-day, city version of Hogwarts and definitely forever cemented in my 10 Favorite Places list. LeeAnn and I went to a museum, a cafe that had beautiful peach tea, did more homework, went to a pub for dinner, and then went to another pub and had yummy mulled wine. We went to the town of St. Andrews on Saturday and saw the cathedral ruins, went to a couple of cute craft fairs, had famous ice cream (Carmel Coffee flavored - YUM!), and ended the day at a used bookstore. Absolutely wonderful.
I'm glad I went to Scotland and saw LeeAnn, but I'm also glad I don't have any more international trips planned. I didn't realize how exhausting these weekend trips would be! I do have a fieldtrip with my archaeology class (we're going to County Roscommon to look at ditches and mounds that were once moats and walls with maybe a few castles and churches thrown in) this Saturday, and then a trip to Northern Ireland with Butler next weekend. And that will be the end of my You-went-where?! trips. I guess my stay in Galway would count as one of those trips too.
It's funny - after next week (my last week of classes), I have Study Week, then two weeks of finals, and then I come home! It's almost unbelievable. I can't believe how fast my time here has gone by. Though I will admit that ever since the beginning of November I've been pretty ready to come home. To be fair, I think that it has a lot to do with my impending finals. As Timon says to Simba, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!". But even without finals, a semester abroad is just the right amount of time. I can't even imagine how I would be feeling right now if I had decided to stay for a whole year. I can't wait to just be with my family and friends. There's something to be said about physical proximity and knowing that my mom or sisters or friends are in the next room or right down the hall. Ahhhh, I'm so excited to come home!
I haven't posted pictures in a while so here are a few snapshots of my trips!
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Me being silly next to a statue of Nicolas de Condorcet in Paris (only Scrippsies would understand) |
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| Blarney Castle, Cork |
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| ME IN THE FAIRY GLADE! Blarney Estate |
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| This was literally the only place in the Elephant House Cafe that was Harry Potter themed. |
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| For Ms. Stenberg |
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| Me and LeeAnn at the St. Andrews Town Hall (the old one - they obviously built a new one) |
love always!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Through the wind and the rain
Before I left for Galway, I heard a lot of "You're going to Ireland? You must like the rain." And even when I got here, when the friendly Irish learned I was from the Northwest, they would say, "So you're used to the rain!". Rain, rain, rain! That's all anyone talked about. Naturally, I expected Galway to have frequent and massive rainstorms all semester. You can imagine my surprise/delight/exasperation when I woke up (not just on Monday but on every single morning since then) to the greyest and darkest skies all semester and the accompanying rain drops. As the Irish would say, "It's absolutely lashing outside". One thing you should know about me: I am a solid fan of the romantic cliches about rain - listening to the rain hit the roof, splashing in puddles, dancing in the rain, all that jazz. However, even when it's just raining and I'm not in the mood to reenact the scene from Singin' In the Rain, the rain is totally tolerable. Yes, I hate it when my jacket or bag gets damp and the water is slowly travelling up my always-too-long jeans, but those are usually the worst of my problems and are fairly quick fixes.
What really confuses me is the wind. That's the real reason why students come to class soaked. (Ok, so maybe the rain has something to do with it too. But it really is all of the wind's fault.) You know that part in Mary Poppins at the very beginning where she literally blows all of the other potential nannies away with a huge gust of wind and several umbrellas get turned inside out in the process? If you bring an umbrella to school, it is almost guaranteed that the wind will think you are a nanny. The way to school is becoming an umbrella graveyard. The roads are just littered with their corpses. In addition to rendering one level of protection completely useless, the wind blows the rain straight into you. You become a water magnet! The water will either slide off of your rain jacket onto your pants or the rain will hit you from all directions. That is what really gets you. Or gets me, I should say. I seem to be the only person on the entire campus who walks into the main concourse looking like a wet cat. My hair is plastered to my head, there's water running down my face, and I'm dripping water like a leaky faucet, whereas the Irish girls are walking around with their perfect hair, make-up on their face and not liquified on their shirt, and most importantly, dry pants. It's absolutely mind-blowing, especially when they don't ever wear anything heavier than a cardigan. I don't understand. It's like their European sense of fashion makes them impervious to rain.
It sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm really just trying to colorfully describe the wonder that is Irish weather. The real sentiment behind this post is one of pure joy. Tuesday was THE BEST DAY! Of the entire semester. Probably of my entire life. Ever. I woke up to rain blowing everywhere and immediately decided to wear my rain trousers. What are these magical rain trousers you ask? They're basically like a rain jacket but obviously you put them over your pants and then your pants don't get wet. I walk out the door wearing my rain boots, rain trousers, and rain jacket, and I will admit, I was feeling a little self-conscious with all of my rain gear on. Problem? Nope! Just ask Robyn! Thank goodness for her to-hell-with-them attitude! I looked like I had been swallowed by a plastic blue and black circus tent, BUT IT WAS SO WORTH IT!!!! It was so satisfying to be able to see the rain rolling off me instead of being absorbed by my clothes. It was also incredibly satisfying to see people on the way to school or in the hallway with wet clothes while I was as dry as an Oregon summer (as mean as that sounds). Thank you, Mr. Dennehy, for the suggestion to buy the rain trousers!! I am pretty sure I will owe you several dry pairs of jeans and dozens of comfortable class hours by the end of the semester.
In addition to coming back to the apartment completely dry despite walking through a monsoon, I FOUND A CARE PACKAGE FROM MY MOMMY!!! There it was, sitting on the coffee table, just waiting for me to open it. It consisted of nothing but food from Harry & David and a love note from Mom. SOUP AND CHOCOLATE PANCAKE MIX AND MOOSE MUNCH!!!!! Can you say best care package ever?! I am currently bouncing up and down on my bed from sheer happiness even after two days of opening this gift from heaven. (I'm pretty sure my roommate is thinking There she goes again!) I am so excited to eat everything.
Isn't it funny how a few posts ago I was discussing my miserable, rainy day, and this time it's about my fabulous, perfect, exciting, rainy day? All I can say is I love Ireland.
Wish you were here!
What really confuses me is the wind. That's the real reason why students come to class soaked. (Ok, so maybe the rain has something to do with it too. But it really is all of the wind's fault.) You know that part in Mary Poppins at the very beginning where she literally blows all of the other potential nannies away with a huge gust of wind and several umbrellas get turned inside out in the process? If you bring an umbrella to school, it is almost guaranteed that the wind will think you are a nanny. The way to school is becoming an umbrella graveyard. The roads are just littered with their corpses. In addition to rendering one level of protection completely useless, the wind blows the rain straight into you. You become a water magnet! The water will either slide off of your rain jacket onto your pants or the rain will hit you from all directions. That is what really gets you. Or gets me, I should say. I seem to be the only person on the entire campus who walks into the main concourse looking like a wet cat. My hair is plastered to my head, there's water running down my face, and I'm dripping water like a leaky faucet, whereas the Irish girls are walking around with their perfect hair, make-up on their face and not liquified on their shirt, and most importantly, dry pants. It's absolutely mind-blowing, especially when they don't ever wear anything heavier than a cardigan. I don't understand. It's like their European sense of fashion makes them impervious to rain.
It sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm really just trying to colorfully describe the wonder that is Irish weather. The real sentiment behind this post is one of pure joy. Tuesday was THE BEST DAY! Of the entire semester. Probably of my entire life. Ever. I woke up to rain blowing everywhere and immediately decided to wear my rain trousers. What are these magical rain trousers you ask? They're basically like a rain jacket but obviously you put them over your pants and then your pants don't get wet. I walk out the door wearing my rain boots, rain trousers, and rain jacket, and I will admit, I was feeling a little self-conscious with all of my rain gear on. Problem? Nope! Just ask Robyn! Thank goodness for her to-hell-with-them attitude! I looked like I had been swallowed by a plastic blue and black circus tent, BUT IT WAS SO WORTH IT!!!! It was so satisfying to be able to see the rain rolling off me instead of being absorbed by my clothes. It was also incredibly satisfying to see people on the way to school or in the hallway with wet clothes while I was as dry as an Oregon summer (as mean as that sounds). Thank you, Mr. Dennehy, for the suggestion to buy the rain trousers!! I am pretty sure I will owe you several dry pairs of jeans and dozens of comfortable class hours by the end of the semester.
In addition to coming back to the apartment completely dry despite walking through a monsoon, I FOUND A CARE PACKAGE FROM MY MOMMY!!! There it was, sitting on the coffee table, just waiting for me to open it. It consisted of nothing but food from Harry & David and a love note from Mom. SOUP AND CHOCOLATE PANCAKE MIX AND MOOSE MUNCH!!!!! Can you say best care package ever?! I am currently bouncing up and down on my bed from sheer happiness even after two days of opening this gift from heaven. (I'm pretty sure my roommate is thinking There she goes again!) I am so excited to eat everything.
Isn't it funny how a few posts ago I was discussing my miserable, rainy day, and this time it's about my fabulous, perfect, exciting, rainy day? All I can say is I love Ireland.
Wish you were here!
Monday, October 25, 2010
It's a jolly holiday!
Happy Bank Holiday everyone! Isn't it a wonderful Monday? Here is my update of the past couple of weeks like I promised!
I had my very first paper due last Monday. It was a 1000 word (about 3 1/2-4 pages) summary review of an article handed out in class. Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Lecturer, did I not tell you I'm a third-year college student? I guess I just have the good luck of still looking like I'm in high school. Well, since you're making this assignment so easy, I will just have to complicate things a little to make it more stressful. Let's see ... oh, I know! I'll go away to Paris the weekend before which leaves me less time to write my paper. So much to do, so little time is every college student's life motto in addition to being a Mary-Kate and Ashley TV show theme song. Unfortunately, I am a Time Management Master so that's not going to cut it. This is my first paper since May? Rustiness factor - I'll take that. I still need something else though ... how about showing up to the empty office of the department's secretary during the only free time I had before the deadline? Oooo, that might make things a little too exciting, Maria. You might want to tone it down. Ok, well, what if I add an unexpected window of free time with an open office? Perfect! Finally, a level of difficulty befitting a college student.
I'm still going to the Irish dance lessons. They are starting to get a little harder, but I am still enjoying myself. The class is a lot smaller now than it was at the very beginning. I think a lot of the girls were scared off by how fast the teacher goes through the steps which is a shame because she's a really nice person. I decided not to go to the salsa lessons hosted by the Dance Society although I finally convinced a few of my friends to go to salsa lessons in town. They really enjoyed themselves, which I am so happy about, and I think we have plans to go again this week. I also found out about a salsa/bachata/tango lesson on Thursdays which sounds amazing.
So I guess you've realized by now that I did not go to Cork this weekend. Alyssa and I decided to push it back a week. Cork had a jazz festival this weekend and while it would have been amazing to go, it probably would have been more expensive. I also heard that most, if not all, of the hostels were full. I wasn't that disappointed. We're still going, we'll be back in time to go out on Halloween night (I'm going to be Pocahontas!), and I had (still have, I guess, since it's not over yet) a three-day weekend to work on homework. Since I was here in Galway on a Saturday for once, I went into town with Jenn to the weekend market. It was really cute! I saw some great potential Christmas presents. The weather was perfect - sunny and not that chilly. I think that was the first time all semester that I was in town on a Saturday afternoon. I loved it. The streets were busy, and Shop Street was packed. It was a great day to be out and people-watch.
I'm looking at my calendar right now to jog my memory about what else happened these past couple of weeks, and I only have five more weeks of classes! This semester has gone by soooooo quickly! I can't believe it. I am still so excited about being here in Galway, as much as I can't wait to see everyone back home. You'd think I'd be tired of living here by now (I know I was expecting it when the halfway mark came around), but nope! Still having a great time. I wish you all were here with me.
love always!
I had my very first paper due last Monday. It was a 1000 word (about 3 1/2-4 pages) summary review of an article handed out in class. Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Lecturer, did I not tell you I'm a third-year college student? I guess I just have the good luck of still looking like I'm in high school. Well, since you're making this assignment so easy, I will just have to complicate things a little to make it more stressful. Let's see ... oh, I know! I'll go away to Paris the weekend before which leaves me less time to write my paper. So much to do, so little time is every college student's life motto in addition to being a Mary-Kate and Ashley TV show theme song. Unfortunately, I am a Time Management Master so that's not going to cut it. This is my first paper since May? Rustiness factor - I'll take that. I still need something else though ... how about showing up to the empty office of the department's secretary during the only free time I had before the deadline? Oooo, that might make things a little too exciting, Maria. You might want to tone it down. Ok, well, what if I add an unexpected window of free time with an open office? Perfect! Finally, a level of difficulty befitting a college student.
I'm still going to the Irish dance lessons. They are starting to get a little harder, but I am still enjoying myself. The class is a lot smaller now than it was at the very beginning. I think a lot of the girls were scared off by how fast the teacher goes through the steps which is a shame because she's a really nice person. I decided not to go to the salsa lessons hosted by the Dance Society although I finally convinced a few of my friends to go to salsa lessons in town. They really enjoyed themselves, which I am so happy about, and I think we have plans to go again this week. I also found out about a salsa/bachata/tango lesson on Thursdays which sounds amazing.
So I guess you've realized by now that I did not go to Cork this weekend. Alyssa and I decided to push it back a week. Cork had a jazz festival this weekend and while it would have been amazing to go, it probably would have been more expensive. I also heard that most, if not all, of the hostels were full. I wasn't that disappointed. We're still going, we'll be back in time to go out on Halloween night (I'm going to be Pocahontas!), and I had (still have, I guess, since it's not over yet) a three-day weekend to work on homework. Since I was here in Galway on a Saturday for once, I went into town with Jenn to the weekend market. It was really cute! I saw some great potential Christmas presents. The weather was perfect - sunny and not that chilly. I think that was the first time all semester that I was in town on a Saturday afternoon. I loved it. The streets were busy, and Shop Street was packed. It was a great day to be out and people-watch.
I'm looking at my calendar right now to jog my memory about what else happened these past couple of weeks, and I only have five more weeks of classes! This semester has gone by soooooo quickly! I can't believe it. I am still so excited about being here in Galway, as much as I can't wait to see everyone back home. You'd think I'd be tired of living here by now (I know I was expecting it when the halfway mark came around), but nope! Still having a great time. I wish you all were here with me.
love always!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Back from Adventureland!
Hello hello hello! It has been a while since we last talked, and man, do I have a lot to tell you!
Two weekends ago, Butler (my study abroad program) took all of the students studying in Ireland to the Killery Adventure Center. We stayed at an on-site hostel for the entire weekend and were able to do all sorts of cool, adventure/outdoor stuff. And by cool, adventure/outdoor stuff, I mean there was a high ropes course, a zipline, a huuuuuuuuuuuuge swing, a climbing tower, kayaking, gorge-walking, clay pigeon shooting, archery, all sorts of good stuff. We even had the opportunity to jump in a bog! I didn't, but a couple of my friends did, which was probably even more hilarious than if I had gone in myself. I will admit I was a little wary about the weekend since outdoorsy activities just aren't my thing, but I was able to keep myself busy and mostly entertained during the sessions. It really was a great weekend. Everybody was excited to be there (and not just because we were given free meals!), and it was fun to meet people from the other universities. My one big accomplishment during the weekend was climbing all the way to the top of the rock tower. It was actually pretty scary; not because I was afraid of falling (my belayers were great!) but because the tower was so tall! It was actually kind of weird because it wasn't like I was looking out over something. I didn't even have to look down to successfully freak myself out. I was just thinking about how high I was and bam! I was stuck. My friends down at the bottom were absolutely wonderful though. I had my own little cheering squad - I really wouldn't have been able to make it to the top if they hadn't been so supportive and great.
So that was my first amazing adventure weekend. This past weekend I adventured myself all the way over to France for what turned out to be less than 24 hours in Paris to see, as it turned out, two beautiful Scrippsies. It was a pretty crazy weekend. I started my journey at 1:15AM Saturday morning and got back to my apartment around 2PM Sunday afternoon. I didn't get very much sleep that weekend. I was really worried about travelling by myself to a country where I didn't speak the language, but I made it there (and back!) in one piece. My visit was fantastic. Julia met me at the bus stop with two croissants for me (one even had chocolate!) which melted my heart and made my stomach very happy. We went to her foyer (it seemed like a cross between an apartment/college dorm and a hostel) to drop off my stuff. Mirabelle, another Scrippsie who is studying in Paris, showed up and we all went out and had a three hour lunch where we caught up, ate quiche and pasta, and drank the most amazing hot chocolate. It was wonderful. Afterwards, we took the obligatory touristy, Scripps reunion pictures by the Seine River, and then we parted ways. Julia and I ambled along the river for a while on the way to the Musee d'Orsay. Unfortunately, the museum was closed by the time we got there. But not to worry! We simply headed over to the Eiffel Tower. (Good subsitute, don't you think?) By that time it was getting dark, so we were able to take pictures of the tower once all of its lights had been lit. It was so beautiful! We also walked to the Arc de Triomphe then had crepes for dinner off of the Champs-Elysees. We ended the day/night with blues dancing! That's right. I blues danced in Paris. How fantastic is it to be able to say that sentence? It was so great to dance again! We both had a really great time.
That trip was absolutely perfect. Julia was the perfect hostess even though she had to deal with my extremely sleep-deprived self. I couldn't have asked for a better tour guide. It was great to be able to talk to people from my own school, although I will admit talking to Julia and Mirabelle about Scripps made me the most homesick I have been this semester. I am already so excited for Spring semester.
My next trip is (hopefully!) this weekend to Cork, a city in southern Ireland. I'm going with a few other girls, and I don't think we've done any planning whatsoever, but if we are going, we're going this weekend. I'm 85% sure we're going though. I am super stoked.
Now that I've told you all about my past and future weekends, I should probably tell you about my past, present, and future weeks. However, this post is long enough, so we will just have to wait until next time (next week at the latest!). Thanks for reading (and bearing with all of my empty promises about when I will post next)!
hugs and kisses!
Two weekends ago, Butler (my study abroad program) took all of the students studying in Ireland to the Killery Adventure Center. We stayed at an on-site hostel for the entire weekend and were able to do all sorts of cool, adventure/outdoor stuff. And by cool, adventure/outdoor stuff, I mean there was a high ropes course, a zipline, a huuuuuuuuuuuuge swing, a climbing tower, kayaking, gorge-walking, clay pigeon shooting, archery, all sorts of good stuff. We even had the opportunity to jump in a bog! I didn't, but a couple of my friends did, which was probably even more hilarious than if I had gone in myself. I will admit I was a little wary about the weekend since outdoorsy activities just aren't my thing, but I was able to keep myself busy and mostly entertained during the sessions. It really was a great weekend. Everybody was excited to be there (and not just because we were given free meals!), and it was fun to meet people from the other universities. My one big accomplishment during the weekend was climbing all the way to the top of the rock tower. It was actually pretty scary; not because I was afraid of falling (my belayers were great!) but because the tower was so tall! It was actually kind of weird because it wasn't like I was looking out over something. I didn't even have to look down to successfully freak myself out. I was just thinking about how high I was and bam! I was stuck. My friends down at the bottom were absolutely wonderful though. I had my own little cheering squad - I really wouldn't have been able to make it to the top if they hadn't been so supportive and great.
So that was my first amazing adventure weekend. This past weekend I adventured myself all the way over to France for what turned out to be less than 24 hours in Paris to see, as it turned out, two beautiful Scrippsies. It was a pretty crazy weekend. I started my journey at 1:15AM Saturday morning and got back to my apartment around 2PM Sunday afternoon. I didn't get very much sleep that weekend. I was really worried about travelling by myself to a country where I didn't speak the language, but I made it there (and back!) in one piece. My visit was fantastic. Julia met me at the bus stop with two croissants for me (one even had chocolate!) which melted my heart and made my stomach very happy. We went to her foyer (it seemed like a cross between an apartment/college dorm and a hostel) to drop off my stuff. Mirabelle, another Scrippsie who is studying in Paris, showed up and we all went out and had a three hour lunch where we caught up, ate quiche and pasta, and drank the most amazing hot chocolate. It was wonderful. Afterwards, we took the obligatory touristy, Scripps reunion pictures by the Seine River, and then we parted ways. Julia and I ambled along the river for a while on the way to the Musee d'Orsay. Unfortunately, the museum was closed by the time we got there. But not to worry! We simply headed over to the Eiffel Tower. (Good subsitute, don't you think?) By that time it was getting dark, so we were able to take pictures of the tower once all of its lights had been lit. It was so beautiful! We also walked to the Arc de Triomphe then had crepes for dinner off of the Champs-Elysees. We ended the day/night with blues dancing! That's right. I blues danced in Paris. How fantastic is it to be able to say that sentence? It was so great to dance again! We both had a really great time.
That trip was absolutely perfect. Julia was the perfect hostess even though she had to deal with my extremely sleep-deprived self. I couldn't have asked for a better tour guide. It was great to be able to talk to people from my own school, although I will admit talking to Julia and Mirabelle about Scripps made me the most homesick I have been this semester. I am already so excited for Spring semester.
My next trip is (hopefully!) this weekend to Cork, a city in southern Ireland. I'm going with a few other girls, and I don't think we've done any planning whatsoever, but if we are going, we're going this weekend. I'm 85% sure we're going though. I am super stoked.
Now that I've told you all about my past and future weekends, I should probably tell you about my past, present, and future weeks. However, this post is long enough, so we will just have to wait until next time (next week at the latest!). Thanks for reading (and bearing with all of my empty promises about when I will post next)!
hugs and kisses!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Just another manic Monday
All Mondays are long, annoying, inconvenient, and a big hassle.
I know people will believe me when I say that I'm not an I-hate-Monday-just-because-it's-Monday kind of gal (mostly because I've said it before). It just depends on my class schedule for the day, and this semester, my Monday class schedule is long, annoying, inconvenient, and a big hassle.
Today was particularly bad. But (always the optimist!) it was also particularly good. How is that possible, you might ask? It's either one or the other! Well, let me tell you.
I'm sick. For the second time since I've been here. That'll be once every two weeks if this ridiculous pattern keeps up. I caught my first cold while I was in Dublin for Butler's orientation. I would rather not have had it, but it made sense what with the stress of flying, the time change, and coming into contact with new people. The cold I have right now also makes sense (Jennifer and I were both double-dipping in the same ranch sauce, even though I knew she was sick) but TOTALLY preventable which makes it waaaay worse. I definitely felt it today and according to Jenn, it's going to get worse.
A cold? Big deal! People get those all the time! Yes, but you don't understand. I haven't been sick in almost three years! You heard me. Not so much as a sore throat during my entire college career. I don't know how. I don't know why. But that's what happened. I guess I am overdue for a cold, but twice in one month? Really?
Most Mondays, I'm at school from 10 until 6. It's not that I have 8 hours of class. I actually only have four, but I have these awkward breaks in between classes. I have a two hour class followed by a three hour break, then a one hour class followed by a one hour break, and ending with a one hour class. It would be totally worth it to go back to my room during a one hour break at Scripps, let alone three whole hours, but when it takes at least forty minutes to walk to and from the close end of campus? I don't think so! So you will understand when I say Mondays make for a very tired and grumpy Maria. In terms of my schedule, however, today really wasn't too bad. A three hour break is my max in my When is it worth it to walk back to Menlo scale, so when my two hour class finished an hour early leaving me with four hours until my next class, I decided to go to the apartment for a really long lunch break. I was able to eat my peanut butter and jelly sandwich while watching Veronica Mars (Dani, forget dancing! Let's just have a Veronica Mars marathon next time I visit Oxy!), and I was much more inclined to do some reading for class.
Of course this flipside has a catchside. ('Catch' is the closest antonym of 'flip' I could find. Let me know if you have any better ones!) I had to walk back to school when it was drizzling, and let me tell you, twenty minutes in drizzling rain has the same exact effect as two minutes in a downpour. Even with a rainjacket and rainboots! The water just slid off the jacket and onto my jeans. I don't mind walking in the rain, but I do mind wearing wet clothes while sitting in class and writing on potentially damp notebooks. Yeah, that part wasn't so fun.
More good news: I went to my first Irish dance lesson!!! I had to stay at school for an extra hour, but it was totally worth it! I'm not very good at it, because my feet and legs just don't have the level of coordination that it takes, but I'm so glad I went. The teacher is a student at NUI, but she's been dancing since she was tiny and really knows her stuff. She's also a good teacher which is probably the best part. (Just because someone can dance doesn't automatically make them a good teacher.) It was wonderful to be able to dance again. I'm really looking forward to the salsa lesson on Thursday and next week's Irish dance lesson.
Even better good news: I thought I lost my favorite chapstick (ChapStick 100% Naturals for those of you who were curious) BUT THEN I FOUND IT AGAIN!!!! It was hiding in the tissue box I brought to school with me today. Finding something you thought was lost is seriously one of the best highs ever.
The best and most exciting news today? I got to chat with one of my best friends today! If that's not a mood-lifter, I don't know what is. We were finally able to catch up with each other for the first time since our sleepover two days before I left. I can't wait for our yet-to-be-scheduled Skype date!
So what have we learned from this post? Mondays? BAD! This Monday? Could have been worse.
What have I learned from this post? Complaining is so much fun! I feel better already!
hugs and kisses!
I know people will believe me when I say that I'm not an I-hate-Monday-just-because-it's-Monday kind of gal (mostly because I've said it before). It just depends on my class schedule for the day, and this semester, my Monday class schedule is long, annoying, inconvenient, and a big hassle.
Today was particularly bad. But (always the optimist!) it was also particularly good. How is that possible, you might ask? It's either one or the other! Well, let me tell you.
I'm sick. For the second time since I've been here. That'll be once every two weeks if this ridiculous pattern keeps up. I caught my first cold while I was in Dublin for Butler's orientation. I would rather not have had it, but it made sense what with the stress of flying, the time change, and coming into contact with new people. The cold I have right now also makes sense (Jennifer and I were both double-dipping in the same ranch sauce, even though I knew she was sick) but TOTALLY preventable which makes it waaaay worse. I definitely felt it today and according to Jenn, it's going to get worse.
A cold? Big deal! People get those all the time! Yes, but you don't understand. I haven't been sick in almost three years! You heard me. Not so much as a sore throat during my entire college career. I don't know how. I don't know why. But that's what happened. I guess I am overdue for a cold, but twice in one month? Really?
Most Mondays, I'm at school from 10 until 6. It's not that I have 8 hours of class. I actually only have four, but I have these awkward breaks in between classes. I have a two hour class followed by a three hour break, then a one hour class followed by a one hour break, and ending with a one hour class. It would be totally worth it to go back to my room during a one hour break at Scripps, let alone three whole hours, but when it takes at least forty minutes to walk to and from the close end of campus? I don't think so! So you will understand when I say Mondays make for a very tired and grumpy Maria. In terms of my schedule, however, today really wasn't too bad. A three hour break is my max in my When is it worth it to walk back to Menlo scale, so when my two hour class finished an hour early leaving me with four hours until my next class, I decided to go to the apartment for a really long lunch break. I was able to eat my peanut butter and jelly sandwich while watching Veronica Mars (Dani, forget dancing! Let's just have a Veronica Mars marathon next time I visit Oxy!), and I was much more inclined to do some reading for class.
Of course this flipside has a catchside. ('Catch' is the closest antonym of 'flip' I could find. Let me know if you have any better ones!) I had to walk back to school when it was drizzling, and let me tell you, twenty minutes in drizzling rain has the same exact effect as two minutes in a downpour. Even with a rainjacket and rainboots! The water just slid off the jacket and onto my jeans. I don't mind walking in the rain, but I do mind wearing wet clothes while sitting in class and writing on potentially damp notebooks. Yeah, that part wasn't so fun.
More good news: I went to my first Irish dance lesson!!! I had to stay at school for an extra hour, but it was totally worth it! I'm not very good at it, because my feet and legs just don't have the level of coordination that it takes, but I'm so glad I went. The teacher is a student at NUI, but she's been dancing since she was tiny and really knows her stuff. She's also a good teacher which is probably the best part. (Just because someone can dance doesn't automatically make them a good teacher.) It was wonderful to be able to dance again. I'm really looking forward to the salsa lesson on Thursday and next week's Irish dance lesson.
Even better good news: I thought I lost my favorite chapstick (ChapStick 100% Naturals for those of you who were curious) BUT THEN I FOUND IT AGAIN!!!! It was hiding in the tissue box I brought to school with me today. Finding something you thought was lost is seriously one of the best highs ever.
The best and most exciting news today? I got to chat with one of my best friends today! If that's not a mood-lifter, I don't know what is. We were finally able to catch up with each other for the first time since our sleepover two days before I left. I can't wait for our yet-to-be-scheduled Skype date!
So what have we learned from this post? Mondays? BAD! This Monday? Could have been worse.
What have I learned from this post? Complaining is so much fun! I feel better already!
hugs and kisses!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Menlo Park Apartments: Where 'furnished' means 'complete with a jet engine'
In order to avoid writing another final-essay-long post, as Dad observed during our Skype chat, I figured I should post more often. So here I am. Posting more often. (And by that I mean making the effort to post more often, getting distracted, and ending up with infrequent, super-long posts.)
The jet engine I am referring to in the post title is actually my apartment's washing/drying machine. One of my flatmates is washing her clothes and I can hear the machine all the way upstairs. It literally sounds like a plane is taking off in our kitchen. It's pretty entertaining.
Sightseeing update: I went to the Aran Islands last Saturday. It was a pretty dreary day so the main island probably wasn't at its awe-inspiring best. I did have a couple of mini-adventures though. Our first stop on the bus tour was at a lighthouse and stone fort at the highest point of the island. My accomplices and I had a lot of fun climbing through the holes in the fort walls and taking silly pictures. It was just like being back in elementary school on the jungle gym. I should act like a kid more often - it was fun! We also hiked up to another fort on the edge of the island. It took about 20-30 minutes to get up there and that was probably the first time I had done any hiking since my family hiked the Grand Canyon four years ago. (I was only just a little traumatized.) It was a good first-hike-since-the-Grand-Canyon. We were able to walk to the very edge of the island, and by 'the very edge' I mean one step too many and you would find yourself cliff diving - and not in a good way. I was able to stand at the edge for maybe ten seconds before my fear of heights pulled out the megaphone and told me to slooooooowly back away. The Aran Islands are also really famous for their knitted sweaters, which was probably one of my favorite parts about the islands. There was a documentary about yarn-making and knitting running in the sweater shop and it was SO COOL! There are stitches that only the Aran Islanders know and the families who have lived there since the beginning of time have their own stitch. I love knitting; I can only do the basic stitch, but after seeing the sweater shop, I really wanted to learn something more complex. (Insert not-so-subtle Christmas gift request here) Even though the weather wasn't perfect, it was a fun day trip.
I joined the Dance Society at school and ended up volunteering to teach salsa lessons. The DanSoc was able to get the teacher from last year to teach them, but I thought I was in charge there for a while. I'm actually pretty happy that I'm not the teacher because I was starting to realize how unprepared I was. I don't have any salsa music and I also don't know the lead's footwork for any of the moves, both significant problems unless I was teaching deaf follows. It would have been a really good experience, but it also would have been a fairly big time commitment. And now I get to go to the lessons and imagine how much better my class would have been if I was teaching! So much more fun! I really am super stoked to go to the lessons. I miss CCBDC (Claremont Colleges Ballroom Dance Company) SO MUCH!!!! Salsa nights, Underground Blues, 7AM practice. Wahhhhhhh!!! I have found a bar in town that has salsa dancing but the challenge there is finding people who want to go so I'm not walking around at night by myself. I'm sure I can find someone to drag along at least once, but I WILL GO at least once before the end of the semester.
I also joined the Archaeology Society (cheap sightseeing trips that I don't have to organize!), and there was a meet and greet at the college bar on Tuesday. I went with Alyssa, another Butler student in Menlo. I knew about the free food, but I was not expecting the free glass of wine. It was definitely one of those culture shock moments for both of us (but not in a bad way!). I love being legal.
I don't have any trips planned for this weekend. I figure I should stay here and actually get some work done. Unheard of, I know, but I'm ready to do nothing, er, I mean, be productive, for a change. Alyssa and Jennifer are coming over later to bake carrot cake and make it a study party. I am so excited for this carrot cake. Yum!
Wish you were here!
love always!
The jet engine I am referring to in the post title is actually my apartment's washing/drying machine. One of my flatmates is washing her clothes and I can hear the machine all the way upstairs. It literally sounds like a plane is taking off in our kitchen. It's pretty entertaining.
Sightseeing update: I went to the Aran Islands last Saturday. It was a pretty dreary day so the main island probably wasn't at its awe-inspiring best. I did have a couple of mini-adventures though. Our first stop on the bus tour was at a lighthouse and stone fort at the highest point of the island. My accomplices and I had a lot of fun climbing through the holes in the fort walls and taking silly pictures. It was just like being back in elementary school on the jungle gym. I should act like a kid more often - it was fun! We also hiked up to another fort on the edge of the island. It took about 20-30 minutes to get up there and that was probably the first time I had done any hiking since my family hiked the Grand Canyon four years ago. (I was only just a little traumatized.) It was a good first-hike-since-the-Grand-Canyon. We were able to walk to the very edge of the island, and by 'the very edge' I mean one step too many and you would find yourself cliff diving - and not in a good way. I was able to stand at the edge for maybe ten seconds before my fear of heights pulled out the megaphone and told me to slooooooowly back away. The Aran Islands are also really famous for their knitted sweaters, which was probably one of my favorite parts about the islands. There was a documentary about yarn-making and knitting running in the sweater shop and it was SO COOL! There are stitches that only the Aran Islanders know and the families who have lived there since the beginning of time have their own stitch. I love knitting; I can only do the basic stitch, but after seeing the sweater shop, I really wanted to learn something more complex. (Insert not-so-subtle Christmas gift request here) Even though the weather wasn't perfect, it was a fun day trip.
I joined the Dance Society at school and ended up volunteering to teach salsa lessons. The DanSoc was able to get the teacher from last year to teach them, but I thought I was in charge there for a while. I'm actually pretty happy that I'm not the teacher because I was starting to realize how unprepared I was. I don't have any salsa music and I also don't know the lead's footwork for any of the moves, both significant problems unless I was teaching deaf follows. It would have been a really good experience, but it also would have been a fairly big time commitment. And now I get to go to the lessons and imagine how much better my class would have been if I was teaching! So much more fun! I really am super stoked to go to the lessons. I miss CCBDC (Claremont Colleges Ballroom Dance Company) SO MUCH!!!! Salsa nights, Underground Blues, 7AM practice. Wahhhhhhh!!! I have found a bar in town that has salsa dancing but the challenge there is finding people who want to go so I'm not walking around at night by myself. I'm sure I can find someone to drag along at least once, but I WILL GO at least once before the end of the semester.
I also joined the Archaeology Society (cheap sightseeing trips that I don't have to organize!), and there was a meet and greet at the college bar on Tuesday. I went with Alyssa, another Butler student in Menlo. I knew about the free food, but I was not expecting the free glass of wine. It was definitely one of those culture shock moments for both of us (but not in a bad way!). I love being legal.
I don't have any trips planned for this weekend. I figure I should stay here and actually get some work done. Unheard of, I know, but I'm ready to do nothing, er, I mean, be productive, for a change. Alyssa and Jennifer are coming over later to bake carrot cake and make it a study party. I am so excited for this carrot cake. Yum!
Wish you were here!
love always!
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