My visit to Northern Ireland

There is so much to talk about in regards to this past weekend. To start off, for those of you who don't know, The Republic of Ireland (where Dublin is located) and Northern Ireland are two different countries. Northern Ireland is a UK country.

We did a two day trip to Northern Ireland this past weekend, starting on Saturday. We took the bus up north to Belfast. At Belfast we went to the Titanic Exhibition. At the exhibition I learned more about the Titanic than I thought I would ever know. First off, I had no idea the Titanic was built in Belfast. The exhibition went through the whole reason why Belfast and HW was granted the duty of building the Titanic as well as how it was built. I then learned about how the send off was celebrated as well as the events leading up to the sink of the ship. I got to read the exact messages that were sent between different boats at the time of the iceberg as well as messages from the Titanic captain to these boats and the shore. It tugged at my heart a lot to see actual words from the captain of the ship that said they were sinking... I've only seen such in the movie. Also, hearing the voices of some of the survivors was an incredible feeling. It was sad to think about but also incredible to think what they had survived and lived to tell.

After the Titanic exhibition our group took a "black cab" tour. This tour took us around a part of Belfast that was considered Extreme Protestant. Mind you, the reason for the violence and segregation in Northern Ireland is due to religion, there is tension still today between the Protestants and Catholics. Throughout this part of Belfast there were memorial murals everywhere honoring the assassins and extremists that have passed away. Our cab driver told us there are so many murals in the part of town that it would take over two months to actually show them.

I learned so much while being on the "black cab" tour. They call it a "black cab" tour because large tour buses would not be respected in these areas. I learned that the schools are still segregated by religion and that only 7% of them are integrated in any way. People believe that that is where the island of Ireland needs to start to be able to integrate the land into one country. Also learned that less than 20  years ago we would not have been able to take this tour on account that anyone who came to Northern Ireland had the fear of getting shot or bombed in this part of the city. The thing that baffled me the most about this part of town is the "peace wall" that was built between the extremist Protestant part and the Catholic/Protestant part of town. This peach wall is built between these two sections and is closed off at midnight so that anybody who wants through the wall can only make it through two gates that have security. I had no idea there was still such violence and segregation in this country to be in need of a peace wall. This astonished me. BUT! I did get to sign the peace wall. I wrote "Everybody love everybody."

Later that night we went to the oldest bar in Belfast called "The Crown." This bar was really cool because it had booths with their own doors. We got one of the booths in front and were able to close the door to the rest of the bar and have a more quite visit with the rest of our friends.

On Sunday we got to adventure even further up north. We first visited the Carrik-a-Rede rope bridge. This bridge connects Ireland with a smaller sized island off the coast. There were 37 mph winds when we crossed this bridge, which were kind of strong and blew the bridge as I walked it. I know a rope bridge sounds dangerous and all, because when I heard about it I pictured the scene in Shrek when donkey and Shrek had to cross the bridge to the castle as it was falling apart. But this bridge was much more stable than this and not as high. It still wasn't easy to do, I had to build up the courage. But once I got over I got to take in beautiful (and windy) scenery on an Island in the middle of the ocean. It was a great experience.

Lastly, we visited the spot on the coast called The Giant's Causeway. This is known (in Ireland) as the 8th wonder of the world. It is due to a volcanic eruption over 50 million years ago. There are approximately 40,000 interlocking basalt columns throughout this piece of land that gradually fall beneath the ocean. It was a beautiful sight of mother nature. These columns are mainly four, five, six, and seven sided. There are a few two, three, eight and nine sided ones. It reminded me of a patio that someone had put in professionally, that is why I think it is so magnificent that mother nature developed these shapes.

All in all it was a fantastic weekend exploring Northern Ireland. I think I learned more about the island of Ireland this past weekend than I have the entire time I've been here. I had no idea there was still conflict going on and I do hope that they find true peace and are able to make this divided island into one.

Enjoying Ireland while not being a tourist

A lot of my posts have been about the different places I have visited here in Ireland. These events have been quite touristy but not all of the things that I do here are that way. Let's talk about some week day occurrences that I've come across.

Well first off, we have the greatest Irish roommate possible. Her name is Micah and she is the most genuine person I've met while I've been over here. She is always making "too much" food and sharing it with me. She has already made use two batches of cookies to come home to from work, they were all DELICIOUS. She has her friends over all the time who are just as sweet as her. Her friend Stuart made use an apple pie last week while the rest of us watched Shrek 2, her friend Alienor bought us TWO BOTTLES OF RANCH (thank the lord, I have needed my ranch fix) and all of her other friends are incredibly welcoming and are always recommending things to do and places to go.

Last week Micah and her friends brought us to one of their favorite bars. This was my first gay bar experience ever. It was a good time. The people who brought us out were always introducing us to their other friends, buying us shots and grabbing us to dance. But mind you, the dancing here is completely different than in the US. A lot of time at bars the only type of dancing you see is grinding but here the only time you grind is if you're wanting to go home with that person. Instead of grinding everyone just kind of stands in a circle and dances. So, of course, I start dancing like a weirdo, pulling out the sprinkler and the shopping cart. This was much more of a hit at a gay bar than at any of the other bars we have gone to.

While on the topic of dancing, I have realized that guys are more willing to just go on the dance floor and dance by themselves or with their friends. At home I don't think any guys go to the dance floor unless they have a girl to dance floor. Here all guys just dance. Their dancing is more swaying and talking but they are still on the dance floor and still look like they are having a good time. Even when guys are dancing with girls it is often face to face with distance between them. It is something I have had to get used to seeing here because like I said, in the US this would not be happening. Instead, I would be a little grossed out by how boys and girls are grinding all up on one another.

Lastly, even strangers are extremely open to getting to know you. Last night Sara and I were in our apartment and looked out into the courtyard and saw a group of guys playing with a soccer ball and of course we wanted to join. So, Sara started making conversation with them through the window and they said we could come down and join them. We did. We got to know these four guys, learned about their day jobs, where they live, what they are doing in Dublin and even made plans to go out in Dublin with them so they could show us their favorite places. I know people are nice in the US but I feel as if this type of situation would not occur as much at home as it does here.

Overall, I have enjoyed learning more about the culture over here through these experiences. The dancing is not as weird to me as it was the first night I saw it, the hospitality is something anyone can get used to immediately and I love Micah and her friends.

We are planning to go watch the sunset somewhere tonight and going out tomorrow with our roommate and her friends again. I've had a really good week so far, feeling good each day, being productive and experiencing as much as I can about this place, seeing that I only have three and half weeks left.

Love you all! Cheers :)

Weekend update!

There is so much I want to talk to you all about right now but I don't think I can manage to squeeze it all in one blog post. So, this will be one of many to come in the next few days.

I want to start by talking about the adventures I got to enjoy this weekend, starting with Saturday. On Saturday we had to be up and going by 6:30 a.m. to go get on a bus for a day tour to the Cliffs of Moher. Even though I was extremely exhausted, this may have been my favorite day tour yet. The cliffs are on the other side of the island which took us almost four hours to get to (which baffles me because to get to the other side of America would take days). We had a few stops, saw a few other tourist attractions but the cliffs were by far the most majestic and breathtaking things I have ever seen. They are right on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. They made me fall in love with mother nature. The fact that these ginormous and beautiful things are made from mother nature and the Earth is incredible. The world we live on can do wonders and these are one of them. I don't even know how to describe them to you all because they are just that stunning. There aren't enough words to do them justice. Not even the pictures do them justice. I hope that you all get a chance to see these cliffs in real life. It's worth every single penny.

Today, as in Sunday, we went on a day tour to Wicklow. Wicklow is a town right outside of Dublin that is filled with mountains and everything green. We started off our day with a "bike tour" that was more like a workout than anything. When we signed up for this tour I expected it to be a laid back and simple tour of Wicklow on bikes, not too strenuous, but no. Instead, it was mountain biking through trails, up hills and on the edge of lakes. I enjoyed it and all but I wish I could have got to see more of the scenery than work my butt off trying to get through the dirt and sticks. Our bike tour guide was pretty awesome though. He was a Hungarian man who made an effort to get to know each and every one of us.

After our bike tour we took the bus around Wicklow and through the mountains. They have this old "military road" that was built up in the mountains back in the day. This road is basically a one lane road that is up at the top of the mountains with no railings. While we were on this road we got to see a few really cool things. The first was we got to see the view from above down on to Lake Guinness, which is where Arthur Guinness had his summer home and where Guinness continues to get it's water from. This was a beautiful sight. Then we stopped at a bridge on this military road. This bridge was featured in PS I Love You, so that was exciting to be able to see where part of the movie was shot. Our last stop was to some church ruins and another beautiful lake inside of the mountain. Even though it was rainy most of the day, the views were still gorgeous. I've always wanted to be able to be up in the mountains of Ireland and I got my chance to today. It was well worth it.

So, that is what I got into this weekend. I am falling more and more in love with this country each and every day. It has made me appreciate so much more in life, including more love for the Earth we live on as well as much more respect for the history that brought us to where we are today.

I will be blogging again in the next 24 hours because a lot of other things have occurred since Wednesday that are not as large as the Cliffs of Moher but have made such an impact in my time here. Can't wait to tell you all more about it tomorrow.

Let's chat for a moment

So, I just wanted to take a few minutes to just talk through my realizations and my encounters as I'm making it through my third week in Dublin. There are a handful of things that I have had to get used to or have learned about the Irish culture so let's just talk about a few.

1.) They are very indirect. I have learned this mostly through my work. Some days it is quite difficult to understand what my boss wants me to do because she doesn't come out and directly tell me. She will ask me what I think about a job but then won't tell me what I'm to do or if I am to do it then later ask me how far along I am with it. That is something I have been able to almost master in the past weeks at my internship, understanding that when she brings up any sort of job that I should probably work on it.

2.) I feel as if the Irish are quite sporadic. Sara and I were actually discussing this today via texts. Both of our bosses will tell us to do one thing then another then another then go back to the first thing then talk about the last thing then bring up a new thing all in the span of five minutes. I do not know if they use to-do lists or not but when she tells me what to do I attempt to write a to-do list but I never know what is the top priority.

3.) 1 & 2 have taught me that in the work place many Irish don't ask as many questions. They do what they think is best even if they weren't told to do so. I feel like us Americans like to ask to make sure we are doing what is right, yes we like to go above and beyond, but many of us do not just think up an idea and begin it without discussing it with someone. But as my boss says, that's not how the Irish work and Americans ask too many damn questions (she's pretty blunt).

4.) Aside from the work place I've come to realize that Irish have very small personal bubbles. People on the sidewalk get right next to you while waiting for the bus. They will get in your face and begin conversation, no way of avoiding that. They will sit next to you on the bus even if there are plenty of seats open. Most of the time they are the sweetest people and just want to get to know you, especially when they hear your American accent, but other times they make you feel a bit uncomfortable.

Their are many ideas that have been stirring in my head since I've been here. These are just a few that I have come to solid realization with. I will be sure to update you all on other things that I learn about the Irish and the culture over here.

Love you all! Thanks for reading :)

What a beautiful weekend

First off, I apologize for it being a while since I last posted. I have just been busy taking in the beauty of Ireland for the past few days. And let me tell you, I never want to leave. I know we have been lucky with weather so everything seems that much more beautiful, but I do believe that no matter if it's rain or shine here, this country will always take my breath away.

Let's start with Friday. Well, it was a blast. Sara was lucky enough to get two free tickets to the Republic of Ireland's first World Cup 2014 qualifier match. Thankfully she brought me with her! To our surprise, when we got to the field, we had front row seats! Right on the goal line. It was such an experience, unlike any other. The crowd was full of energy, the team played so well and Sara and I got to experience it first hand. Ireland won that game three to "nil" and we got to see two of the goals scored on our end of the field. That was fantastic. I have not been so passionate or enthused for a game or a goal in some time. It sent chills down my back.

Then Saturday we went on a preplanned trip with EUSA. They took us on a bus tour to New Grange. Before visiting New Grange we visited two other sites. One was of historical ruins in the country side of Ireland. These ruins were over 5,000 years old. The fact that there is still structure and parts of these buildings still standing strong baffles me. I love how old everything is in Ireland, gives me much more of an appreciation for history.

We ended our trip at New Grange which was fantastic. It is this above ground tomb. Basically there is one corridor that leads to the middle of the tomb and all around is land that is filled with the remains of mostly family members of who built this tomb. It's magnificent because when you look at it it just looks like a large hill, with some sort of wall on it. The wall is only recently put up to help preserve the tomb. But this tomb has been in place for thousands of years now. It was built with a roof opening that faces the sunrise and that on the day of the Solstice, December 21, the sun will light up the inside of this tomb for approximately 17 minutes. Once the sun passes this placement the tomb will not be lit inside again for another year. Luckily, they have lights throughout the tomb for tourist accommodation, therefore we got to go inside the tomb and experience it. Everything about this monument was astonishing. How they were able to build such a structure without all the tools we have today is beyond me. I wish everyone could experience this monument, it really makes you wonder and reflect on history itself, what went on before our time. INCREDIBLE.

Sunday we took a trip to Bray. Bray is just a city on the coast outside of Dublin. It is stunning. We were able to take a hike up to the top of a extremely high hill. This hill is on the edge of the coast so when we made it to the top it was beautiful because you were looking out onto the ocean at one side, the town on another and the hills of Ireland on another. It's so hard to describe the beauty of Sunday. My favorite part was getting to the top of the hill, sitting on the edge, looking out over the ocean and just being silent. It was like the world stopped moving and I was at peace with everything. I hope everyone gets to experience that feeling once in their life. I give thanks to mother nature for that feeling. It's crazy how something so constant and always there can make you feel so at peace if you just let it and if you just embrace it. Just through that one day of hiking, I learned more about myself and the world than I have in quite some time.

I am in love with this country. End of story. I have been here for two weeks and I have already learned more about myself than I have in the past three years of college. I hope that everyone gets to experience this feeling and this realization like I have. Thank you to everyone who has supported me so far. You all are making this trip even more worth it.

Becoming a casting director

So, I started my internship yesterday and let me tell you, ITS A BLAST! I've never once thought of being part of the film industry or entertainment world as whole before, but even after just my first two days of working at Gillian Reynolds Casting Agency, I feel like I should add it to my possible professions.

Yesterday we spent our entire time in a hotel conducting casting auditions. These auditions were pretty cool because they were for an American television series based out of Scotland, which you can see why they came to an Irish casting agency for actors. The coolest part was that the role that was being auditioned for was for one of the lead male roles who is supposed to be a dreamy dreamy guy, therefore, I got to see a lot of beautiful Irish actors throughout the day.

My main job for the past two days was to learn how to edit the casting tapes, label them and put them into what ever application is necessary for the specific producer. I also have been doing typical intern duties, such as, getting the coffee, getting lunch, replying to emails and a few other little things. But that's okay because I get to spend my time feeling like I am a celebrity and getting to now local celebrities as well.

When I first interviewed for this position I wasn't sure it was for me. I thought that it was going to be a bunch of information that I had no idea about and different things on the computer that I have yet to learn. But once I got to work yesterday I felt right in place. I knew exactly how to use the application on the mac computer and got along with the assistant very well. I truly thing that I can help this company in a way. It is a great company and they do great work but I do think that I can help them in a public relations aspect. I already began to edit and work with their blog and I hope to implement a social media plan just to get the name out there even more. I also hope to help keep everything more organized.

On that note, one thing I did realize today is that the business life here in Dublin is much different than at home in America. I feel as if it is more hectic because it is less organized and less on a structured plan. I think this is good in some ways because it provides time for relaxing and connecting with coworkers but I also think it takes away from the productivity. I know that the Irish are more about spending time with people than getting work done and that is something I know I will be able to get used to easily. It is just strange going from internships in America where I always had something to work on to this type of business culture. I can't wait to get a feel for it some more throughout the next few weeks.

In the end, I love where I was placed for the summer and I can't wait to see where it could possibly take me in the future. I believe it's already starting to open so many more doors for me! It's just the beginning.

FUTBOL

I know I just posted a blog but I wanted to make one solely for the futbol game I got to enjoy yesterday, seeing that soccer was such a big part of my life.

Soccer (aka FUTBOL) may be one of the biggest reasons I am who I am today. I know the end of my career wasn't the prettiest after two ACL surgeries and a coach that could careless about his players, but I don't regret a day spent on the field or with a soccer ball. That being said, being able to see a European soccer game, aside from one in America, was a blessing.

I know American games are fun to attend and watch but being in the UK and watching a sport that is as popular as if it were American Football in the states, was marvelous. We only attended a "friendly" which means that it was just a regular match, not a qualifier or playoff. But it was just as exciting as if I were watching a playoff game. The city of Dublin is extremely dedicated to their futbol teams and you could feel the excitement and passion through the audience. Being able to experience this high and this enjoyment was remarkable that I can't imagine what it would be like to go to a playoff/qualifier.

The stadium, Aviva, was breathtaking. It was an open stadium with an abundance of seats. The grass was greener than any grass I have ever seen and the people were friendly, as usual here in Ireland.

Being at the stadium though made my heart ache, in a good way though. I realized the passion and love I still have for the sport. I don't regret quitting when I did because I would not be where I am today if I did not, but I hope that one day in the future I get back into it, whether it be an old person league or playing pick up with friends. Soccer taught me so many lessons and so much about myself. I would not have the strength I do, physically, mentally or emotionally if it weren't for the time I spent playing the sport. I thank it for being such a big part of my life and I thank the Republic of Ireland for showing me how much it means to me again.

Here is a shot of me in the stadium and the stadium itself:

My first real night out

I have had such a great past 48 hours, full of new experiences and new friends. On Saturday night I went out with a few of the Ball State crew. We went to two new pubs/bars. The first was the Big Tree where we met a bunch of new Irish folk and got to dance and sing to American classics such as "Don't Stop Believing" and "Stacey's Mom." Laura and I owned the empty stage and just danced.

 Later, we went to another place called the Porterhouse. Here, Laura and I felt a bit out of place. We were dressed pretty casual, in leggings and cute tops. When we got into the pub we realized everyone was wearing skin tight dresses and high heels... um what? Was not ready for that but oh well, we still enjoyed some drinks and had a great time.

At the Porterhouse I made my first Irish friends. A few Irish guys, around our age, approached us and we made friends. I found it funny that I made friends with them by sort of making fun (or slagging as they say in Ireland) them. I was trying to use their lingo and they loved it, thought it was hilarious.

With these Irish guys were two American girls who were such gems. They became our friends right of the bat and we ended up going back to the apartment of one of the guys because that was where the girls were staying. We stayed the night there and they had quite the adventure back to our apartments the next day.

Experiencing my first day without a map and being lost in Dublin was quite interesting. I'm very glad I had Laura with me. Here in Dublin, they don't use a lot of street signs. Even after talking to one of the other BSU students about where we should go and what streets we should take, we still got lost because there was no way of knowing which street was what. This is something that I need to get used to with Dublin, I need to start picking out landmarks to know my way around instead of by streets.

Overall, it was a great first real night out in Dublin and I can't wait to experience more. OH! And I exchanged numbers with a cuuuuuute Irish guy who wants to go get drinks in the near future. 

The past three days

I don't know why I haven't posted in this in the past three days, I haven't been incredibly busy but I have had time to get to know others on the trip as well as travel the city of Dublin.

On Thursday we went to the Guinness Brewery here in Dublin. It was such a great experience. I expected it to be more of a display of the actual brewery but instead it was more like a museum. I enjoyed learning about all the things that went into making Guinness the popular "stout" that it is today. We learned about how to brew, what is in the beer, the advertising and about Arthur Guinness himself. My favorite thing I learned about Guinness was the saying "Guinness is good for you" and also that doctors used to prescribe it for sickness.

Later that evening we decided to go to the Temple Bar District which is an extremely tourist bar joint. I liked being able to experience it but it was SO EXPENSIVE. I met some Norwegian cops though, they were fun to get to know.

Yesterday, Friday, we had more of a chill day and just slept, went to orientation and grocery shopped. But let me tell you about this grocery shopping experience! I think it was the first time I have experience culture shock thus far. First off, we wanted to go to Aldi because it is supposedly the cheapest here. So we were kind of lost getting their, missed our bus stop, had to walk further than we expected. Totally screwed that up. Then when we were there we realized that Irish people do not have the same space bubbles as we do. People were all up in our business whenever we were looking at different groceries but they weren't rude or anything. It is just completely different from what we expect in the United States. I would not expect others to be five centimeters away at almost all times in the grocery store. Then when we were checking out we could only pay with cash because they do not accept cards that "swipe." So, good thing I had some cash on me. And lastly, THEY DON'T BAG. Which I tried to be ready for and brought my backpack but noooooooo, I had to carry half my groceries in my hand on the walk/bus back. It was very flustering and I couldn't wait to get out of there. I hopefully will be more adapted by the next time I go to the store.

Then today we took a tour around Dublin and stopped at the Dublin Castle and St. Patricks Cathedral. Both of these places were beautiful.

I love the buildings and the monuments in Dublin and Ireland in general because they are so old. Compared to the United States, they are hundreds of years older but still just as tall and just as strong. I loved learning about these building on the tour today. It's crazy to think about how they built these beautiful structures back in the day. Like, we think construction takes a long time now? Imagine how long it took back then.

After today I realized that I just want to engulf myself in this culture and this environment. It's completely different from the United States but also the same, if that makes any sense. I've learned so much about myself already and it's only been a week. I can't wait to see who I become at the end of all of this.


Here is a picture of me in front of the Dublin Castle and below is a picture of St. Patricks Cathedral:

Happy Saturday y'all!