It is with very bittersweet feelings that I write to you this one last time. While I am excited to see my family and spend the Christmas season with them, I would be lying if I said that I'm ready to go home. I've had the most amazing experiences overseas. I've traveled to places I'd only ever dreamed of and met new friends from all over the world.
We've really been soaking it in here in Ireland this last week. We made one final last trip down to Cork to kiss the Blarney Stone and I got to see Abby again! Now, the Blarney Stone is meant to give those who kiss it eloquence, or 'the gift of gab.' For those of you who know me, you must know that I need no assistance in the gabbing part; but not to worry, I haven't noticed any dramatic increases in my already superfluous chatting.
Then after Cork, I was off to Dublin one last time. One of the great things about my job at Camp Birchwood was all the amazing young women I met from other countries. It just so happened that one of my co-counselors from the summer grew up outside of Dublin and now attends UCD. Few moments make us happier than a reunion with someone we truly missed, and my reunion with Aisling did not fall short. After practically tackling each other in the Dublin bus station, we reminisced as we walked around Dublin. We only had a few hours together, but I was so happy to finally see her! After all, it would have been ridiculous for us not to see each other when we were actually living in the same country. I think Aisling may have been a bit disappointed that I didn't pick up more of an Irish accent, but I can say that I've picked up quite a few things. One of which, unfortunately, is the swearing! But don't worry, I'll be keeping it in check at home :-) And of course, I'm sure you'll notice a few other changes (ie I've started calling fries chips and chips crisps....).
After my quick trip up to Dublin, I've stayed in Limerick to soak it all in my last few days here. I must say I even considered 'accidentally' missing my flight home and then just dodging immigration for the rest of my life. But, while I may be annoying and whiney about not wanting to be home for a bit, I am actually very excited to go home. Missing Thanksgiving was tough and I'm so excited to get to see all my family and friends.
I'm leaving behind a lot here, but now I get to start planning my next adventures! Coming back to Ireland will probably be at the top of my list and then who knows from there!
Here are some of my favorite pictures from my time in Ireland. I hope you look forward to seeing them all again as I will probably force all of you to sit in front of my computer and go through ALLLLLL of my pictures. Some of you will probably even have the pleasure of doing this multiple times ;-) I'm kidding, but not really....
Well... for the last time:
With love, from Ireland
Biff
Well, quite a bit has happened since my last (super sappy) post. We actually spent more than 3 or 4 days in Limerick! Hard to believe, I know! But we needed some major recovery time from all of our travels. At first we really enjoyed our time off...
But by Saturday (Nov 26th) my lovely travel companions and I were going stir crazy in Limerick. Luckily for us, one of Ireland's best rugby teams plays in Limerick and they had a home game! So, we all got decked out in our Munster red and headed to Thomond Park!
Luckily, we had our Aussie with us to explain the game. Once we got the hang of the rules, we really started to enjoy the game (not just the view!).
Of course, Munster beat Edinburgh! We had so much fun and were so glad to experience more of Ireland!
Then after a few days of trying to make ourselves study early we were ready to hit the airport again ( and I actually did a whole study guide and started another one! Was very proud of myself). Jacqui, Mary Jo, and I were off to London for a longer trip than normal. Now why would we plan our longest trip in the most expensive city we've been to, which also has the worst exchange rate, you ask? Uhhhhhhhh cuz we don't think things through apparently!
BUT we're all very glad we had a good stretch of time in London! We all tried going to bed early because our flight was due out of Shannon early in the morning and we had to be on a 3:40am bus to the airport. However, excitement left us all sleepless (which of course reminded me of my all time favorite commercial - press play below!):
After getting up VERY early to catch our flight to London, we caught a train, the tube, and walked a few blocks to our hostel. Eventhough we were exhausted, we knew taking naps would leave us worse off for the day so we kept on truckin. Luckily, we had entertainment close at hand. Our hostel was located right by Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens.
We knew Hyde Park was having a Winter Wonderland Carnival while we were there and decided to make our way to that for the day. On the way, we ran into the famous statue of Peter Pan and the Princess Di memorial fountain. We also encountered quite a few swans and other various birds that like to get verrrryyyyy close to people. I think London made me more scared of birds than I have ever been.
I think the carnival was more than any of use thought it would be. There was an ice rink, a gift market, mini-pubs, rides, Santa, and possibly the coolest bar I've ever seen!
Yes the bar does rotate!
After hanging around the fair, we were off to dinner and in bed early! The next day was full of our favorite mode of transport - the 'Hop On-Hop Off' Bus! We went to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum and met some of our favorite celebrities (and my future husband Prince Harry of course!)
I'm planning on sending this out as an engagement announcement....
Had to get a picture with John Wayne - couldn't help but think of Grandpa's giant cardboard cutout!
Then it was off the London Eye! The giant ferris wheel that gives you a view of all of London and Westminster!
We caught a boat tour up the Thames after dark to see London Tower, London Bridge, and Tower Bridge.
Day Three was spent around Big Ben, Westminster, Buckingham Palace, and St. James Park. We took our boat cruise again - but this time in daylight with a hilarious guide.
We met up with one of Jacqui's friends from home who is studying in London this semester too! I can only imagine she was just as happy to see Marie as I was to see Steph. Their hilarious stories about home made me so excited to go visit them in Boston someday soon!
Our last day in London, we decided to fly solo from the buses. We went shopping on the famous Regents and Oxford streets, shopped around Nottinghill and the Portobello Market, and made our way up to Camden to take a look at their street market as well. As night closed in, we visited our beloved Hyde Park fair one last time and called it a night. We were up early again for an hours worth of travel to the airport before catching an 8 am flight. Exhausted, we all wandered back to our rooms to 'study' (aka nap).
I don't think it's really hit us yet that London was our last big trip. We've really led 'the life' while in Ireland. We may be exhausted and sick of hostels now, but I know it's only a matter of time till that itch for travel comes back. Who knows, maybe the three of us will continue to have insane European adventures together in the future. As for now, it's Limerick and exams (possibly with a day trip to Cork thrown in.... after all, we have to kiss the Blarney stone!).
I can't believe how quickly this has all gone by. I'm due home in less than 2 weeks! And while I'm so excited to see my family, oooo and ahhhh over how much my little guys have grown, and recount my adventures to many, I'm going to miss this country so much.
I think it's safe to say I'll be back here again - the sooner the better!
Well this blog post is coming at you early this week. We're all having a relaxing, lazy weekend here in Limerick to be followed by a week full of mad studying for exams. The holiday season started this week, normally a time to be spent lounging around with family and eating until you pop. Needless to say, this Thanksgiving was a little different. For about a month now all of us Americans have been dreading Thursday the 24th. Most of us found the idea of spending Thanksgiving without our families too difficult to bear. However, we pushed on through and realized how much we truly have to be thankful for. So at risk of being over-sentimental, here is what I'm thankful for:
I'm thankful to have had this amazing opportunity to study abroad. I've been places I never would've imagined going and met so many amazing people. Normally on Thanksgiving my cell phone is flooded with 'Happy Thanksgiving' texts from friends, but being overseas, I did not get to experience this annual delight. However, one of my Irish friends did remember me on Thanksgiving and I think that text means more to me than he could possibly know. I also have the best travel buddies a girl could ask for. I cannot count the times they've made me laugh till my cheeks hurt and I had tears in my eyes. They are truly amazing young women and I cannot imagine my life in Ireland without them! I've truly feel that I've grown as a person since I've been in Ireland. This is one of the best decisions I have ever made and I'm so grateful that I was given this opportunity.
I am grateful to have an incredible group of friends. Whether they be friends from Ireland, college, high school, or those few that I've known since elementary school, they are amazing people. I'm so blessed to be surrounded by such genuinely great people. I even would count those I've worked with at Bella Napoli as a second family. We've had so many good times together, and I know we'll be there for each other for years to come! I cannot wait to see all those lovely familiar faces when I get back to the states!
Most of all I'm so incredibly thankful for my wonderful, loving family. We always poke fun at my mom for using the phrase, 'my cup runneth over' every year at Thanksgiving. But, I feel like I may need to steal this phrase this year. When it comes to my family, my cup really does run over. I have a father who supports me in all that I do (not only financially - although I do also really appreciate that part!). I have a mother who I'm so thankful I never went through the 'I hate you' phase with - I'm lucky enough to count my mother as a friend as well as family. I'm happy to say that I also know count my three older brothers as friends instead of mortal enemies. I'm not exactly sure when that transition occurred, but I will be ever grateful that it did. I also cannot say enough about my extended family. I have wonderful grandparents who I cannot imagine my life without, cousins who are the closest things I've ever had to sisters, the most adorable little second cousins who bring me nothing but smiles and laughs, and wonderful aunts and uncles who I love being around and can make me laugh until I cry.
Being away from home for Thanksgiving was really difficult. However, we all made it through, and at least for me, it made me reflect on my life more than normal. I have so much to be thankful for, and if you're reading this blog post - you're probably among those things for which I am most grateful!
AND now that Thanksgiving is over, it is officially the start of the Christmas season! This is my favorite time of year and I could not be more excited. I'm even watching 'A Christmas Story' right now as I'm writing this! I cannot wait to break out the Christmas music either and we're going to a tree lighting in about a week! We're off to London next weekend and I've heard that they're already all decked out for Christmas, so that will surely get us even more into the Christmas spirit!
While I will be so sad to leave this wonderful country and experience in about three weeks, I genuinely cannot wait to be home with my amazing family for the Christmas season!
If you're anything like me, you may have wondered why all the ex-patriots move to Paris. So many of the greats moved there. Not only American greats, but many of the best minds from England and Ireland moved to Paris as well.
I've been to Paris before, but it was only for a day and about 5 years ago. I was excited to make my return to say the least! Unfortunately, I barely got two days in this glorious city this time around. However, I fell back in love with Paris just as quickly as I fell for it the first time.
Unfortunately Jacqui and I were down one musketeer this weekend as a marketing project kept Mary Jo from joining us as planned. However, we decided to trek on. We left for Dublin Thursday night and spent the night in preparation for an incredibly early flight on Friday. We landed in Beauvais and took the bus into the city. We hopped a couple metro trains and arrived at our hostel on Montmartre. As it was already noonish and we were very tired from a day of travels, we decided to explore around Montmartre for the day. We walked up to Sacre Coeur, which has a stunning enough view itself. We went up in the dome to take in an even more breath taking view of the city.
The plaza just in front of the church seems to be someone of a haven for street performers. One of the performers we saw was truly incredible. He started off juggling a soccer ball on a platform, which was normal enough. However, when he started doing it on a railing, we were more impressed. THEN, he went on to climb one of the iconic Parisian light poles and do tricks with a soccer ball while hanging off the side of it. Everyone on the steps was in awe! It was truly amazing.
We then decided to make our way to Pere LaChaise Cemetery. This cemetery holds the graves of many famous people including Gertrude Stein, Oscar Wilde, and Jim Morrison. Unfortunately the cemetery was closing as we were making our way to Morrison's grave, so we never saw any of the specific graves we set out to. But we still saw tons of beautiful monuments and the crisp fall air added something beautiful to this somber place.
As it was finally after 4pm, we headed back to our hostel to finally officially check in and see our room. At some point we were switched to a private room (which ended up being pretty nice) and we even had our own little balcony!
By this point, we were EXHAUSTED. So, we had a quick dinner up the street from our hostel, took in a bit of night air on our balcony and headed to bed!
Day two we were ready to go! And of course we found one of our favorite modes of travel - the hop on hop off bus. Our lovely receptionist helped us get tickets and find the closest stop - whoever said all the French are rude, must be really picky about how people act. Of course, not everyone we met was the nicest, but all of our waiters etc. never made me feel unwelcome. When I stirred on the crowded metro, I had a woman ask me if this was our stop and politely shift around so we could get out (by the way she asked me all this in French and I understood & replied in French - so hey AP French wasn't so much of a waste now was it!).
Now after riding the bus around a bit, we decided to get off at the Louvre and ended up spending a good deal of time in there. Of course, we didn't see even close to the whole thing but we did see a lot. I got to see a few Carravaggios (one of my favorite artists) and a TON of really famous works.
A Renoir that I fell in love with.
After visiting the Louvre, it was time to wander off to a late lunch. We ended up hopping off the bus on the Champs-Elysees. We were on a part of the street that does not normally have stores, but this time of year is covered in little white booths. Some were selling soap, others jewelry, and others food. Here we grabbed some fresh off the stone crepes and ate them while we strolled around and waited for the next bus. We took the bus to the Eiffel tower of course! Unfortunately we didn't get to go up in it. The lines were so long and we still had a lot to do!
We were off to Notre Dame and the areas around there. Now along the way on the bus, we saw the Arc de Triumph, the Gare du Nord, and many other landmarks that we unfortunately did not have the time to jump off and see.
We went in Notre Dame as soon as we got off the bus. Unfortunately, the sun wasn't bright enough to really get the Rose Window, but it is still one of the most incredible churches I've ever seen. After going inside, we wandered around Notre Dame and the banks of the Seine. We found some nice shops and a nice place to grab some dinner - after all we had to stay around Notre Dame until nine.
At nine o'clock we hurried back to the square in front of Notre Dame to see my friend Steph and a couple of other friends from Syracuse. Steph, Lorne, and Veronica are all studying in Madrid and happened to be in Paris the same weekend! Of course, Steph and I found this too good to be true and arranged to meet!
We all talked and walked back towards our hostels together. We weren't together all that long but it was so nice to see another familiar face from Cuse after so long! After bittersweet goodbyes, Jacqui and I headed back to our hostel. Another exhausting day had us sitting and chatting on our balcony taking in the Parisian night air before quickly crashing into our beds.
We didn't have much time before we had to head to the bus stop in the morning. So, we grabbed some more fresh crepes and did a little bit of shopping around Sacre Coeur.
And then we were sadly off the airport complaining that we didn't have nearly enough time in this wonderful city.
Now I can't speak for Jacqui, but I know I can't wait to get back to Paris. Rome was nice, Edinburgh was amazing, but Paris is indescribable. As the French say, it has a certain Je ne sais quoi.
Maybe someday I'll end up like Gertrude Stein (other than the whole living with a lesbian lover thing) and be saying, "America is my country, Paris is my hometown."
Oh we English majors love our homophones, don't we :)
Well this weekend it was off to bella Roma for our lovely pack of weirdos. So, the adventures of Cartographer Barbie (Mary-Jo), Baby Barbie (Jacqui), Tour Guide Barbie - Auzzie Edition (Caitlin), and Tour Guide Barbie 2.0 (me) commence!
We landed fairly late on Friday night and after hours of traveling were content to have a quick dinner and crash. We hit the pavement pretty hard on Saturday.
First stop was of course the Vatican. Luckily, it was a straight shot on the metro and we didn't have to walk the 5k, as we would do plenty of walking later in the day.
After wandering the Vatican, we had what was probably the most expensive lunch of our lives. We thought we'd be safe on prices by not actually eating in the Vatican cafe, but it seems the places surrounding it charge even more. We learned our lesson on that one and remembered to look for a sitting fee everywhere after. Then, we literally walked around an entire country. Yup, we walked around the entire Vatican and ended up in St. Peter's Square.
After a quick break back at the hostel, we headed out to find the Piazza della Repubblica. Of course, we wouldn't be us if we didn't do some accidental wandering on the way! But we eventually found it - and it happened to not be far from our Hostel at all.
Then we headed onto the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps - both of which were absolutely mobbed - so we made our way back to them Monday morning.
After giving ourselves a tiny bit of extra sleep, we were at it again for Sunday. We visited the Colosseum, the Forum, the Pantheon, and the Piazza Novona.
We ran into the Maria Maggiore and the Musei Capitolini on our way as well. Needless to say, after a day that busy, we were all ready to crash.
We were all exhausted by Monday (to say the least!). So we decided to take it easy and go back and see the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain during the day! Then it was a leisurely lunch and off to the airport! Of course, traveling back was no fun. We didn't get back to UL until 4am. All delirious with exhaustion, we had never been happier to hit our beds! We're so glad we went to Rome, but again, we were so happy to get back to Limerick where we could all have our own showers and our big beds!
All in all it was a great trip! We were only really followed by boys once, and no one was pinched (which is more than I can say for the last time I was there).
Off to Paris in a few short days! Don't know how I'm gonna hold up here! Hope all goes well!
