Don't worry, I'm still alive!

So I was talking to my sister yesterday and she brought to my attention that I haven’t blogged in quite a while. These past couple of weeks have been non-stop so I apologize for not being as up to date as I’d like to be. But not to worry because I’m still alive and yes, everything is fantastic! Aside from the fact that we’ve had more site visits then I can count, and our first midterm, everything been so much fun. I think I’ve been to downtown Dublin around eight times this week, had coffee an equal number of times and just enjoyed being in another country. Another exciting event that happened this week was the ‘dart’ opened back up! It shut down after a mudslide took out some track between Greystones and Brey (the next town over). The dart is our local commuter train that literally everyone uses. It's so nice to have that back up and running because now we don't have to take the bus! Since it's been so long since my last post I think I’m going to give you a quick rundown of the past two weeks and throw some pictures in there as well. I mean, lets be honest, who doesn't like pictures? They make trying to explain anything so much easier and reading for sure more fun!

Starting out a few weeks ago, our group went to see the Raglans (a young Irish band who recently received a record deal over in London) at the Greystones Theater. They were absolutely amazing!


A couple days later our group went to Glendalough. It's a really old monastic site hidden within the Wicklow mountains. We were able to hike up to the top of one of them. The weather was perfect for our hike and everything was so beautiful!

Finally made it to the top! It snowed three days prior to our hike which is unheard of over here in Ireland! Apparently, this is the most it's snowed over here in twenty years!

Went to Jer Point Abbey.

Visited the Rock of Cashel in Kilkenny. It was so much fun and the view made the hike up totally worth it. If you look at the picture close enough, you can see a chunk of the castle that fell off years ago during a storm.

The view from up there was incredible!

Yeah, things got a little out of hand.


Had the best, and i mean the BEST, Carmel Macchiato I've ever had at a little cafe called 'Esquires' in Killarney!


Then later on that evening our group had dinner at Kytellers. They had a live band playing Irish music while we were there. It was the ultimate 'pub' experience!


And I even met the Pope. (That one's for you rags!)

Alright, those are just a few of the fun events that happened over the past two weeks. I'll do my best to keep all of you updated more frequently. Hope everyones doing well! Later.

Finally here!

This semester in Ireland has been long awaited and i'm so glad to finally be over here! I can't fully explain how beautiful it is in Ireland. Every morning i wake up with the view that one can only dream about. When I look out the window from my room on the second floor of the "man house" i can see the Greystones harbor to my right and then off to my left are the mountains that stand prominently in their place. Knowing that i get to look at that, makes makes getting out of bed a little easier in the morning. That and the fact that I'm in Ireland. It really is a weird feeling waking up in the morning and knowing that i'm thousands of miles away from home. It has taken a little while for me to finally get used to this "Irish culture" but i'm growing accustomed really fast. Everybody's so nice over here that it makes the transition easy. We've already spent three days touring around Dublin, looking for the best coffee shops, pubs, and places to eat. This past week of "school" (if you can even call it that) has been fantastic! We have literally spent everyday relaxing and enjoying the Irish culture. It really is a one of a kind experience. I know that academics will pick up, and we will actually have to study a little, but for now life couldn't be better! I am with the greatest group of people i could ever imagine (since miami). Everyone in our group is so laid back and easy going and that is for sure a praise! One of the things i love about this semester in Ireland is the fact that you have complete freedom to do whatever you want. You are free to leave the dorm at two in the morning and take a walk down by the harbor, or head down to the Beach House (our local pub right on the harbor) to watch a rugby game, go to Dublin, or do whatever you want. The directors are so laid back and it's fantastic.

We had our first site visit yesterday (Friday) and our group visited some really old ruins. We visited a grave yard that was covered in old celtic crosses that were hand carved thousands of years ago. It's amazing that they look as good as they do. My favorite is probably our trip to New Grange! That was incredible! I think it's absolutely incredible that there are structures from 5000 years ago that are still standing today. I mean, to us, a 250 year old colonial house is old. Over here something is old if it's been there a few thousand years.

Well i'm sure there will be many stories to tell later on! I miss you all and hope you all are doing well back in America! I'll try to keep you updated as much as possible. Later.