Wow. So, I've been here for 10 months already. That sure went fast, didn't it? It was 4th of July weekend last year when I found out I had been accepted to Trinity. By the end of July I lost my job, by the 1st of August I moved out of my apartment and in with my mom, and by September 16th I was on a plane bound for Dublin. A lot has happened in 10 months. More than I could have ever imagined. And now I'm in the last leg of my education here with my dissertation due next month.
It's been months since I last updated. Time has gotten away from me, and I do apologise for that. So, to recap on the past couple months:
In May, my Aunt Beth and Uncle Jamie came to visit me, and they brought some of Ba's ashes with them. We did a pretty extensive Irish tour from coast to coast. We didn't see the midlands too much other than passing through it on the train. Our first stop was in Glendalough. We were in a cloud the entire time, and visibility was low. I climbed An Spinc with them, but you couldn't see the valley below us. Actually, we were in a storm at the top of the mountain, but we conquered it anyway. In Glendalough we found a ton of snails. This one I liked a lot.
Here is a picture of Ba hanging out in the valley with us:
We headed south to Cork a day or two later. Anytime and Irish person has asked about my heritage, I've told them that I am of Sullivan ancestry. Almost every time "Ah, that's a Cork name" is the response. I didn't really come to Ireland to trace my roots, but it's still cool to think about where I've come from.
We met this guy named Victor, and he has these two swan friends George and Mildred. George and Mildred were just swimming by and Victor told them to come up out of the water and say hello. Sure enough, they did and they greeted Victor. He gave them a bit of bread and they had a lovely chat. This particular lake, by the way, is part fresh water and part salt water. It's called Lough Hyne and it has a very interesting ecosystem because of it's tides.
The sunsetting over the landscape.
We rented a car while we travelled through Cork, Westcork, and a bit through Kerry. I saw a random graveyard on the side of the road and we decided to stop at it. I amazed to see that half of this thing was full of Sullivans and O'Sullivans. Sullivan in Irish (what we call Gaelic) is actually spelled Suilleabhain. If you have any interest, I recommend putting Sullivan into wikipedia.org to read the history. It's really interesting stuff.
After we returned to Dublin and the following day we decided to go to a whole new country: Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland has a very troubled past since it's still in British rule. We arrived in Belfast and we decided to take something called a Black Taxi tour which brought us around the city to key political areas and murals. The bloodshed that has been seen in this area is unfathomable to many of us.
The political murals on the Protestant side of Belfast have been there for a while, and many of them violent in nature. This is an image of a sniper, and no matter where you stand, the rifle follows you. I tested this and it's 100% true. I can't imagine being a kid walking to school everyday with this imagery.
The sunsetting over the landscape.
We rented a car while we travelled through Cork, Westcork, and a bit through Kerry. I saw a random graveyard on the side of the road and we decided to stop at it. I amazed to see that half of this thing was full of Sullivans and O'Sullivans. Sullivan in Irish (what we call Gaelic) is actually spelled Suilleabhain. If you have any interest, I recommend putting Sullivan into wikipedia.org to read the history. It's really interesting stuff.
After we returned to Dublin and the following day we decided to go to a whole new country: Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland has a very troubled past since it's still in British rule. We arrived in Belfast and we decided to take something called a Black Taxi tour which brought us around the city to key political areas and murals. The bloodshed that has been seen in this area is unfathomable to many of us.
The political murals on the Protestant side of Belfast have been there for a while, and many of them violent in nature. This is an image of a sniper, and no matter where you stand, the rifle follows you. I tested this and it's 100% true. I can't imagine being a kid walking to school everyday with this imagery.
While up north, we also took a bus tour to the Giant's Causeway, Carrick-a-rede Bridge, and the Buschmills Distillery.
When we returned to Dublin, Beth and Jamie had one last night where we had a few pints at Gogarty's, my favorite pub.
SO! That's been the past couple of months in a nutshell. Now I just need to focus on my thesis and figure out what to do next with my life. I have some ideas, and I've been doing a lot of brainstorming and writing lately. Tomorrow I start a Samuel Beckett workshop which will last 5 days. I'm pretty stoked about that.
When we returned to Dublin, Beth and Jamie had one last night where we had a few pints at Gogarty's, my favorite pub.
After they went home, I performed in an original show called What's Left Over, and then in early June, I performed in the Dublin Shakespeare Festival in "A Midsummer Night's Dream." I was Hermia, one of the four lovers.
"Midsummer" was performed in a park called Merrion Square. I have more photos, but here are a couple to give you an idea.
SO! That's been the past couple of months in a nutshell. Now I just need to focus on my thesis and figure out what to do next with my life. I have some ideas, and I've been doing a lot of brainstorming and writing lately. Tomorrow I start a Samuel Beckett workshop which will last 5 days. I'm pretty stoked about that.
That's all I have for now. Thanks for reading!
Much Love to everyone.
