Well, not yet...but I will be in like 6 and a half hours!!!
Here is the link to the dance video...you have to be friends with me on Facebook to see it, but I think everyone who reads this blog is: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/video/video.php?v=518120799956&ref=mf
It's really slow, but it kind of showcases the basic steps of Irish set dancing (three step, seven step, and a little tap)
I went to watch my housemate Ciara in her performance ensemble the other day (she's a flute player who apparently has played a gig with the Chieftains before...). We also watched competition dancers who are first year dance majors at UL...and they were AMAZING. It was really intimidating. These girls were just all over the stage. There was also one guy, and apparently he danced with Riverdance recently. Pretty amazing, huh?
Also, I have a job! YAY! Talk about stress relief. Now onto VACATION!!! Be back in a week!
Friday, April 24, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
The Last Week of Classes
So, it's the last week of classes, and it has been uneventful thus far. That being said, there is a lot to come: the Bon Voyage dinner tomorrow night, dance recital on Wednesday, handing in my very last paper on Friday, finding out if I have a job, and Spain on Saturday!!! It's weird to think that I'll be back for just over 2 weeks when I return from Spain, seeing as there won't be much going on when I get back. I have another week off (study time!) before my exams, which last over the course of a week, and then exams for a week. I'm sure it'll all go by really quickly, but right now it doesn't feel like it. Weird.
There's not much to report other than that...our dance will be taped (yikes) so that will be online soon.
There's not much to report other than that...our dance will be taped (yikes) so that will be online soon.
Monday, April 13, 2009
This One's For You, Sarah Critter
Hello all of my (like, 7) readers! Apologies for the lack of posting, I just hadn't had much to write about for a bit and then I got busy all of a sudden, but I will update you on the goings-on in Limerick and elsewhere. You have to admit though, I was doing pretty well on the posting till the last few weeks. I'll just blame it on the fact that I had schoolwork for the first time all semester and was doing that instead. Thank Sarah for giving me the kick in the arse to post something though!
So on March 30th, my family came to visit me! Let me just state here that they came during the drunkest college week of the year, known as RAG week. RAG, I learned, stands for "Raise-A-Grand". While the official purpose of the week is to raise money for charity, the Irish use it as a week to drink (surprised?). Every college has a RAG week at a different time, and essentially everyone just gathers on one campus and goes absolutely crazy. Most people don't go to classes, they just drink their lives away all day. Literally. I'm fairly certain that all of my (18 year-old) Irish housemates were drunk for the entire week. This is not an exaggeration.
Anyhow, when my family arrived on Tuesday my parents came and picked me up once I was out of class and brought me to Adare for the night, where they stayed in this absolutely fabulous villa. At some point I'll have to steal pictures from them so you all can see but it was really very nice. We just hung out that night, and then I had to go back for class all day the next day.
On Wednesday, my family went to the Cliffs of Moher (and I believe by the Burren as well?) while I was in class, and then came and got me so we could go to dinner at a real Irish pub, Dolan's. Unfortunately, there was no music that night because there was a match on, but at least my family got to go to one traditional pub while they were here.
Thursday after class I took the family down to Limerick to look around and I got a chance to show off a bit of my navigation skills (note: I have absolutely no sense of direction but I can get around Limerick fairly well now) and we just essentially explored the town a bit and did some shopping. We then ended up at the Mill Bar that night I believe (my father's favorite place) and then I was dropped off back at Cappavilla so I could take my sister out for the night. It was a grand time...we went to the usual club I go to, called the Lodge, with a couple of my American friends and then met up with some of my Irish ones as well. It was especially funny because most of the people I was with that night were closer to Kara's age than mine.
On Friday I was picked up nice and early (due to a cancelled class) and we went to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park over in County Clare. The castle was brilliant and the folk park had some very nice grounds that we could explore. I think apart from the castle my favorite part was the pigs that were running around in their little area. I believe my parents have pictures of this so I will steal them when I get the chance. I then left Cappavilla for the weekend to stay with my family in Adare.
On Saturday we went to Cork City, about 2 hours south of us. There's great shopping down there, and we spent the afternoon walking around and taking pictures as well.
Sunday we walked the grounds of Adare Manor (really class) and took some pictures of the gardens and whatnot. The Manor was absolutely gorgeous, as you can see from my pictures. This was the only day I think I actually had my camera with me. After a walk on the grounds we went to King John's Castle in Limerick City. It's actually really cool because you go through a mini museum where they tell you a bit of the history of the castle, and then you can go out into the courtyard and up to the towers to look over the city. I think my favorite part though was the excavation site, where they found 800 year-old sunken houses under the castle. Really quite cool.
Monday was the last full day that the family was here, so we took our time getting out of Adare and then went back to campus so I could show everyone where my classes were and such. I'm not sure that anyone took pictures but I will be sure to before I leave, because I think UL is a nice-looking campus (I think the fam will agree with me on this).
I stayed in Cappa on Monday night since the family was leaving early the next morning, and then stayed by myself for the next few days watching all of the episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (yes, I watch that show now) and writing my paper that is due tomorrow. I'm so glad I did it early because all of my friends that came back from their trips are pulling all nighters tonight to get it done.
On Saturday I went up to Galway to stay with my housemate Ciara for the weekend. She lives about 15 minutes outside Galway City, so when I arrived we walked around for a bit before going to her house. The city is absolutely gorgeous and I'm a bit disappointed that I didn't get to go up with my family, but that's alright. It was really nice though. We also went to her Auntie's house in the city to visit for a bit, and she gave me a chocolate bunny for Easter!! It was very cute. We went to the "Tav" that night for Ciara's friend's album launch party and while the music was not really my style it was still a lot of fun. We sat and had a few pints and rocked out to their music with all her friends, and I got to see my other housemate Libby which was great. We returned to her house round 1am and then went back out to the pub down the street (literally a 30-second walk) to meet up with her dad and uncle. Her dad was pretty drunk by the time we got there, but he was great to talk to. It was funny because I had a hard enough time understanding him without the drunken slurs, so the alcohol didn't really help me in that sense. We had a couple pints there with him though before we went home at half four (can you believe it?).
Sundays are quite lazy for the Irish, I've noticed, as nobody was out of bed before half twelve the next day. Even though it was Easter Sunday, her family expressed no interest in going to Easter Mass, which I found a bit ironic since Ireland is supposed to be so Catholic. I've been told though that many people consider themselves Catholic, but never really go to mass. We had a nice little breakfast and a shower before Ciara's friend Natasha came, and then her dad took us out to Cong to see Ashford Castle. We took a walk for a couple of hours, and then drove around the countryside for awhile. It was magnificent. There were some really huge hills that we drove around as well as a lake (see my photo album). We made a couple of stops along the way to get out and take pictures (at which time Natasha and Ciara would yell "TOURIST!!!" at me). We didn't return home till around 8, had dinner, and then Ciara and I went out to Ballinrobe in County Mayo with a bunch of her friends. We went to the Tav first to see the pig roast, and then ended up taking like an 18-seater cab or something to Ballinrobe, where it seemed everyone they went to school with was. We stopped at a bar to have a couple of pints and talk with people before going to the Valk Nightclub down the street. Talk about crazy. We even ran into a couple of teachers at the Valk, probably in their late twenties, who were just as drunk as anyone else in the place. It was an interesting thing to see, for sure. Ciara and I ended up staying at her friend Gillian's house that night, since her house was fairly far away.
Today was another lazy day, as we got up at twelve and went back to her house for breakfast, showers and packing so we could come back to UL, and now here I am! I haven't got a lot coming up in these next couple of weeks, as I only have 9 days of class left (!!!!!!!!!!!!). I am going to Spain on the 25th though so I will probably update once more before I leave.
The weekend overall was grand. Ciara's family was so welcoming and friendly and I just felt like I was at home by the second day I was there. They were also interested in what I was doing with my schooling and such, and we were able to talk a lot about that. If I get the chance, I will absolutely go back and visit them.
Album from when the family was here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011758&id=1083330009&l=028a81b284
Album from Galway: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012078&id=1083330009&l=42273b9acf
So on March 30th, my family came to visit me! Let me just state here that they came during the drunkest college week of the year, known as RAG week. RAG, I learned, stands for "Raise-A-Grand". While the official purpose of the week is to raise money for charity, the Irish use it as a week to drink (surprised?). Every college has a RAG week at a different time, and essentially everyone just gathers on one campus and goes absolutely crazy. Most people don't go to classes, they just drink their lives away all day. Literally. I'm fairly certain that all of my (18 year-old) Irish housemates were drunk for the entire week. This is not an exaggeration.
Anyhow, when my family arrived on Tuesday my parents came and picked me up once I was out of class and brought me to Adare for the night, where they stayed in this absolutely fabulous villa. At some point I'll have to steal pictures from them so you all can see but it was really very nice. We just hung out that night, and then I had to go back for class all day the next day.
On Wednesday, my family went to the Cliffs of Moher (and I believe by the Burren as well?) while I was in class, and then came and got me so we could go to dinner at a real Irish pub, Dolan's. Unfortunately, there was no music that night because there was a match on, but at least my family got to go to one traditional pub while they were here.
Thursday after class I took the family down to Limerick to look around and I got a chance to show off a bit of my navigation skills (note: I have absolutely no sense of direction but I can get around Limerick fairly well now) and we just essentially explored the town a bit and did some shopping. We then ended up at the Mill Bar that night I believe (my father's favorite place) and then I was dropped off back at Cappavilla so I could take my sister out for the night. It was a grand time...we went to the usual club I go to, called the Lodge, with a couple of my American friends and then met up with some of my Irish ones as well. It was especially funny because most of the people I was with that night were closer to Kara's age than mine.
On Friday I was picked up nice and early (due to a cancelled class) and we went to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park over in County Clare. The castle was brilliant and the folk park had some very nice grounds that we could explore. I think apart from the castle my favorite part was the pigs that were running around in their little area. I believe my parents have pictures of this so I will steal them when I get the chance. I then left Cappavilla for the weekend to stay with my family in Adare.
On Saturday we went to Cork City, about 2 hours south of us. There's great shopping down there, and we spent the afternoon walking around and taking pictures as well.
Sunday we walked the grounds of Adare Manor (really class) and took some pictures of the gardens and whatnot. The Manor was absolutely gorgeous, as you can see from my pictures. This was the only day I think I actually had my camera with me. After a walk on the grounds we went to King John's Castle in Limerick City. It's actually really cool because you go through a mini museum where they tell you a bit of the history of the castle, and then you can go out into the courtyard and up to the towers to look over the city. I think my favorite part though was the excavation site, where they found 800 year-old sunken houses under the castle. Really quite cool.
Monday was the last full day that the family was here, so we took our time getting out of Adare and then went back to campus so I could show everyone where my classes were and such. I'm not sure that anyone took pictures but I will be sure to before I leave, because I think UL is a nice-looking campus (I think the fam will agree with me on this).
I stayed in Cappa on Monday night since the family was leaving early the next morning, and then stayed by myself for the next few days watching all of the episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (yes, I watch that show now) and writing my paper that is due tomorrow. I'm so glad I did it early because all of my friends that came back from their trips are pulling all nighters tonight to get it done.
On Saturday I went up to Galway to stay with my housemate Ciara for the weekend. She lives about 15 minutes outside Galway City, so when I arrived we walked around for a bit before going to her house. The city is absolutely gorgeous and I'm a bit disappointed that I didn't get to go up with my family, but that's alright. It was really nice though. We also went to her Auntie's house in the city to visit for a bit, and she gave me a chocolate bunny for Easter!! It was very cute. We went to the "Tav" that night for Ciara's friend's album launch party and while the music was not really my style it was still a lot of fun. We sat and had a few pints and rocked out to their music with all her friends, and I got to see my other housemate Libby which was great. We returned to her house round 1am and then went back out to the pub down the street (literally a 30-second walk) to meet up with her dad and uncle. Her dad was pretty drunk by the time we got there, but he was great to talk to. It was funny because I had a hard enough time understanding him without the drunken slurs, so the alcohol didn't really help me in that sense. We had a couple pints there with him though before we went home at half four (can you believe it?).
Sundays are quite lazy for the Irish, I've noticed, as nobody was out of bed before half twelve the next day. Even though it was Easter Sunday, her family expressed no interest in going to Easter Mass, which I found a bit ironic since Ireland is supposed to be so Catholic. I've been told though that many people consider themselves Catholic, but never really go to mass. We had a nice little breakfast and a shower before Ciara's friend Natasha came, and then her dad took us out to Cong to see Ashford Castle. We took a walk for a couple of hours, and then drove around the countryside for awhile. It was magnificent. There were some really huge hills that we drove around as well as a lake (see my photo album). We made a couple of stops along the way to get out and take pictures (at which time Natasha and Ciara would yell "TOURIST!!!" at me). We didn't return home till around 8, had dinner, and then Ciara and I went out to Ballinrobe in County Mayo with a bunch of her friends. We went to the Tav first to see the pig roast, and then ended up taking like an 18-seater cab or something to Ballinrobe, where it seemed everyone they went to school with was. We stopped at a bar to have a couple of pints and talk with people before going to the Valk Nightclub down the street. Talk about crazy. We even ran into a couple of teachers at the Valk, probably in their late twenties, who were just as drunk as anyone else in the place. It was an interesting thing to see, for sure. Ciara and I ended up staying at her friend Gillian's house that night, since her house was fairly far away.
Today was another lazy day, as we got up at twelve and went back to her house for breakfast, showers and packing so we could come back to UL, and now here I am! I haven't got a lot coming up in these next couple of weeks, as I only have 9 days of class left (!!!!!!!!!!!!). I am going to Spain on the 25th though so I will probably update once more before I leave.
The weekend overall was grand. Ciara's family was so welcoming and friendly and I just felt like I was at home by the second day I was there. They were also interested in what I was doing with my schooling and such, and we were able to talk a lot about that. If I get the chance, I will absolutely go back and visit them.
Album from when the family was here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011758&id=1083330009&l=028a81b284
Album from Galway: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012078&id=1083330009&l=42273b9acf
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
