Snow in Dublin: When the World Shuts Down

Hi again!

It's only been a few days since I last posted! Aren't you impressed?

I bought a new camera. Did I tell you that already? My last one broke, and it was going to cost MORE to get it fixed than to just buy a newer (and better) one. Guess which option I chose? I Chose Awesome.

On Friday night, the end of the world started to occur here in Dublin. That's right.

It Snowed.

Dublin doesn't typically get ANY snow, much less 3-6 inches in November, much less 3-6 inches in November accompanied with thunder and lightening. It was epic. A group of us had returned from the pub late Friday night so find ourselves listening to the roll of thunder and flashes of light. And then it started to snow. The first thing we could think of was to run outside (bottle of wine in hand) and play in the snow. A snowball fight and pathetic snowman later, we went back inside and went off to bed.

Guess what happened next?! Saturday happened next. You see, Friday comes directly before Saturday. And you know what happened on Saturday? We got more snow. I was in City Centre at this time (the heart of Dublin) and things started shutting down.

Drivers couldn't handle the snow, the buses shut down and stopped running, half the taxi fleet abandoned good money, and hundreds of people were throwing snowballs, frantically hailing taxis, making snowmen, and dancing and singing. Sounds terrifying!

Actually it was pretty cool. What I learned though is that Dublin got a bit of snow last year as well (except that was in JANUARY), and they had gotten just a bit the year before (IN JANUARY), but they hadn't had snow for 20 years before that. The city is completely unprepared to handle snow in any amount, and they certainly don't have stockpiles of salt.

No snow on Sunday, so that was good. But guess what? Today is Monday, and we're getting more snow. Crazy, eh?

Thanksgiving in Ireland

Hi Friends and Family!



HAPPY day after THANKSGIVING!



The Irish don't celebrate Thanksgiving (they didn't really do the whole 'Pilgrims and Indians' thing), but I wanted to take this moment to be thankful for everything amazing in my life.

Certainly family is at the top of that list, and I am definitely missing my family during this holiday. I won't be making it home for Christmas either (I'm excited to spend Christmas in Dublin), but I sure do love and miss my family. The best support in the world.

My friends, many of whom are my familial extensions. I've made some pretty incredible friends in my short time in Dublin, but I am grateful for them. My friends that are still in the Chicago-area (and the rest of the US) have been on my mind a lot. I love you all!

The opportunity to be in Ireland. I'm not 100% sure how the stars aligned to get me here, but here I am. And that's amazing.

Heat. Man, it's getting cold and I sure do like heat.

My sense of humour. No, really. I'm hilarious.

My bike! I freaking love that thing! It's getting pretty cold to be on it though. I need to purchase better riding gear.

Theatre. I have learned SO much about it, and I am looking at productions from different angles all the time. I am so thankful that I have the resources to see some really cool (and not so cool) stuff.

Lush. There's one right outside the main gate of Trinity. I smell delicious most of the time. It really picks up my mood.

Tea. It's just awesome.

The internet. Sounds trivial, I know, but it's really important and amazing. We have the entire world at our fingertips.

There is so so so so so much more to be thankful for, but I'm going to stop there for tonight. I hope you're all happy, healthy, and doing great things. I love you.

Pictures and Adventures

One of my best friends here in Dublin is actually a 25 year old PhD student from Boston (his name is Craig). Lately, we've hopped on the bikes and just taken off into the unknown. We also tend to wander around the city aimlessly. This is the PERFECT way to learn about the city, and today we took some pretty cool pictures that Craig doctored up. Check 'em.

Yes, that's the sun shooting out of my eyes:

Craig:

That's "the needle" in Dublin.

Craig:

The River Liffey in City Centre, Dublin.

That's it for now! Classes start back up tomorrow so I gotta get some work done. Love to you all.

Quite the Random Update

Hi Again!



Here is a quick update on life in Ireland:


I got a bike! It's a purple Jeep Cherokee Laredo mountain bike that was gifted to me from my classmate Moira. Someone had kicked in the back tire a while back and she said I could have it if I wanted to get it repaired. DONE! For only 45 euros I have a bike. I rode it for about 4 miles yesterday. My "pride" is sore today.



This week I don't have classes because of "Reading Week." It gives students an opportunity to catch up on the things they haven't done yet and to prepare for the rest of term. It's been a much needed break from class.



My classmates and I are still in the process of writing a show for next term, and I am getting increasingly excited about it. I can't divulge info just yet, but I will as we become more solid in the process.



I continue to see Irish theatre, and it continue to be a fantastic experience.



I went to an ALL Irish speaking pub last night! Crazy, eh? I joined a friend who is a member of the Cumann Gaelech (It's commonly referred to as Gaelic Society, but the word Gaelech literally translates as 'Irish'). I will be joining them for their weekly gathering next Tuesday. It's amazing that some of these students grew up in households that actually only spoke Irish. Hopefully I'll pick up a thing or two. It's a very old, very interesting sounding language.



The weather has been cold and rainy, and it gets dark around 5:00 already with daylight savings time.



Also, things that I have learned since being here:

Emergency Vehicles pretty much have the same kind of sirens as the US.

Pickle relish does not exist here

"Cottage Cheese" is actually sour cream

There is no Miracle Whip in Ireland, and the Irish like putting mayonaise on almost everything.

Potato Chips are called "Crisps" while "Chips" are pub fries. "Fries" are things you get at McDonald's.

People don't tip out here. The 20% tip rule doesn't really apply out here, and you almost never tip your bartender. Your drinks are already so expensive because they factor that in.

Street signs are actually quite small, and they are located on the sides of buildings (if you're lucky).

Irish people say "like" at the ends of their sentences all the time, like.

Guns are banned here. In fact, not even the police carry them.

The police are called the Garda or Gardai.



OH! And I discovered a waterfall about 7 minutes from my residence hall. I frequent it. It makes me happy. It's on the River Dodder, and there is also a random statue of a rhino in the middle of the river. I love it.



That is all for now. Thanks for reading.

Much Love.