Trad on the Prom

Last night our group went to a music festival called Trad on the Prom.  It was tradtional irish music and dancing.  It was phenomenal to see all the talent of the dancers. 
Today was our last day of classes and it was wonderful.  We all shared in one of the most powerful, emotional, and beautiful experiences I've ever had in my life.  It is so hard to explain what we did but it brought everyone much closer together. We live in a culture of focusing on the negative things and it is so eye opening to share all the positive things that we've learned about each other. I'm honored to be able to share this experience with the 32 other phenomenal women on this trip :) 

Weekend In Dublin

We spent the weekend in Dublin visiting Pavee Point and attending and marching in the Gay Pride Parade.  We did a lot of shopping because they have a lot more to offer in dublin. Thursday we toured the guinness factory and I had my first (and possibly last) guinness ever. The factory was very cool though and also interactive. Friday morning we went to Pavee Point which is a shelter and informatin center for Irish travellers. They are an ethnic minority in Ireland that travels around instead of staying in permanent housing. They are very discriminated against.  It was cool to learn about another culture and the struggles they have faced throughout the years. Things are beginning to change for the better for this group and they are able to get into the government more and chage policies.  Saturday we watched and marched in the gay pride parade which was indescribable. It was such an empowering experience and it was great to see people able to express themselves and not be criticized.  The law in Dublin prohibited protesting which was really cool as well.  Sunday we packed up and went home in the morning.  I met some incredible new people and I'm so happy that I branched out and did that. 

Cliffs of Moher

Today we went out to the Cliffs of Moher. We ended up having a beautiful day. It rained on one of our stops but the entire time we were at the cliffs it was sunny.  There were some really cute shops there and I finally found a gift for my brother :) Hopefully he likes it! It was a pretty short day trip so cool meals to talk about.  Tomorrow we leave for Dublin for the weekend so I have to get a few papers done tonight and pack as well. In dublin we are going to a battered women's shelter and to the gay pride parade for my classes.  The rest of the time we have to explore!

more pictures

gelato flower :)

the view from the eiffel tower

Weekend in Paris!!!

The weekend in Paris turned out wonderful. Getting there was a different story. Our plane was delayed 45 minutes, the bus broke down at the airport for 2 hours and we didn't get to the hostel till 3 am... the hostel closed at 2. Thankfully the wonderful man at the desk had some sympathy for us and let us in :) The first day we went and toured the eiffel tower and wandered the streets of Paris. Anna and I decided to walk down the eiffel tower instead of taking the elevator.. lets just say we didn't take into account how large it actually was. We definitely got our exercise in. Saturday we hopped on the metro and saw the louvre, Notre Dame, Arc de triomphe, the champs-elysees (the biggest shopping street in paris), and some gardens. It was all so beautiful! When we were walking down the champs-elysees we saw a big building with golden gates and around 200 people waiting in line to get in. We wondered what store could be that popular that 200 people would wait in line to get in. Was it louis vuitton? Was it coco chanel? nope. It was Abercrombie and Fitch. We all had a good laugh at that one :)  Saturday night we went to watch the eiffel tower light up and at 11pm the tower starts to flash and it looks like it is sparkling in the night.  It was a wonderful end to the trip. I'm so glad that I got to go to Paris and being there was so unreal. It's the one place i've dreamed about going my whole life and it was worth every penny.

Aran Islands

Today we took a day trip out to the Aran Islands and it was absolutly beautiful!!! Tomorrow we are leaving for Paris!!! So much to do and see :) We took a ferry out to the islands and a bus tour around the islands... we got to stop and hike up to an old fort and some cliffs.  There were a few places to eat and I got fish and chips that was the "catch of the day"... It was really fresh and delicious!

First Weekend

This weekend we walked a lot downtown and explored the many shops. There was a fresh market saturday that sold food and crafts.  We went out to a few pubs and listened to live music. Thursday night there was also some live irish dancing that was pretty cool.  There was a boat cruise down the corrib river friday where we saw a few sights and learned how to make irish coffee. My roommates made fajitas for dinner with some fresh vegetables which was delicious! Today we went into town and had lunch at a cafe and did some homework. For dinner everyone met as a group and brought a dish to pass and talked about our weekend.. Some girls went surfing today and they said it was really cool. 

Kylemore Abbey

Today we went to the kylemore abbey and it was absolutly beautiful. We took a tour bus around western Ireland and got lots of good pictures. The abbey had a old church and huge garden that was really pretty.  There were lots of sheep roaming around the mountain sides and some almost got ran over by our bus! The food there was phenomenal too. I had a sun dried tomato and cheese quiche and a piece of strawberry cheesecake which has a different consistancy than american cheesecake.

Today just got better and better :)

Day started off bad but things turned around in the afternoon... We went into town and found the authentic claddach ring store (only one in the world) and bought myself a ring!!! Comes with its own certificate of authenticity :) Not many people can say that they have an authentic one. Then Megan and I went out to a cute little pub for dinner and I bought my first LEGAL drink :) Didn't even get asked for an ID.. then we went grocery shopping and took the shuttle back to our apartments. Tomorrow we are going to Kylemore Abbey... I'm so excited!

Getting annoyed

It's been a long day already and I'm super annoyed that my camera cord isn't charging my camera, my skype keeps signing me out and not letting me sign back in, and I need a nap.  One more class and then heading into town again for the night. Field Trip tomorrow :) Hopefully that'll be a nice break from all this crazyness. ahhhh.

First Day in Downtown Galway

After class today we walked to downtown Galway which is about a 25 minute walk from our apartments.  I bought a new purse and a scarf that were surprisingly cheap.  We were talking to some Irish boys outside a pub and they called themselves "typical Irish pissheads" which was hilarious.  There was a street band playing some american music which was cool because we were pretty much the only ones singing along.  We ate dinner at a place called the Cellar and it was delicious. 

Corrib Village

Yesterday we went grocery shopping which was a new experience. Still getting used to using Euros instead of dollars and that coins can be worth more than 25 cents.  Bagging your own groceries is also a new experience along with providing your own grocery bags.  Today was the first day of class and I'm so excited for the Women's Health Class after going through the syllabus.  It seems really fun and not too much outside work. It isn't dark for long here and going to bed with the sun still shining in my window was weird.  One more class this afternoon and then we are going downtown to pick up some more food, go out for dinner, and get some home supplies that were not provided for us.  This week is supposed to be cold and rainy the entire time so I might have to invest in some more warm clothes. Hopefully the time change gets easier in the next few days... I'm still so tired. :( I'm still so excited that I'm here and can't wait for some wonderful adventures!!

Day 1: Shannon to Galway

We arrived in the Shannon Airport at 9:15am Ireland time. Not much sleep on the plane and everyone looks pretty tired waiting for our bus at 12:30. 2 travel days in a row is exhausting. Hopefully we'll get to Corrib Village by 3ish because all I want to do right now is take a shower and a nap.  So excited to finally be in Ireland though!!!!  Everyone here has such a cool accent and it makes me smile as people are walking by and talking. :)