Surfing and Windsurfing

Surfing and windsurfing are both pretty difficult but this was definitely one of the best weekends of my life. I won't be turning down another chance to do this. For obvious reasons I didn't get any pictures of me actually surfing, but the scenery and location couldn't have been better.

From Ireland

From Ireland

From Ireland

See the whole album below! Off for a night out with the Football team.

Windsurfing Trip!

Kerry Way

Ireland is famous for its landscapes, and I finally got to witness some of its majesty.

I'd let the pictures do the talking but you really have to see it yourself!

From Ireland

Check out all the pictures from the trip in my album!

Kerry Way

Nights Out and Rugby Game

From Ireland

From Ireland

Everyone is all about a night in the club around here, and they sure know how to do it. Can't say I've ever been to a Chicago night club, but going out around here is a lot of fun, no matter your level of drunkeness. Irish people love to dance, and there's no shortage of places to go. Unfortunately cover charges can be quite high, and you'll want to do most of your drinking beforehand because alcohol prices in the clubs are outrageous.

From Ireland

Another aspect of Irish culture I've had a chance to experience is Rugby. Although I didn't find it quite as exciting as American Football, it was still cool to goto a live sporting event. Our seats didn't allow for the greatest picture taking angle but I got a few.

Other than that classes have been extremely laid back and I don't expect that to change much this coming week. I have a hike planned tomorrow around the nearby countryside so I'll get some pictures of that up ASAP. It's about time I experienced some of the landscape I came to see!

My room's a mess and so is the kitchen, so I better be off to get some work done.

Things I've Learned in Ireland so far

If something costs 1 USD it's going to cost 2 Euros.

If it's not raining, it's going to rain.

There's no such thing as warm water. There's lukewarm, and then there's scalding.

At certain times of day don't expect to even have lukewarm water. Ice cold is more accurate.

The toilets don't flush down. They just splash water around.

All lights flicker before they come on.

The internet says you're not connected but you can still use it.

Crack = Fun. "What's the crack??"

Outlets make strange humming noises when things are plugged into them.

I'm the one with an accent.

Orientation

From Ireland

It's still raining. Got a cool rainbow snapshot however.

Had Orientation all day since 9 this morning. Went out last night, probably stay in tonight.

Might go into the city this weekend.

More later. Dinner time.

It rains a lot here...

From Ireland

It's been raining all day. Not a whole lot I can do about it either.

Add to list:

Umbrella

Departure

From Ireland

And we have liftoff. Eight hours and two trays of airline food later I landed in Dublin, Ireland. The trip here couldn't have gone better. Both flights I had two seats to myself, so I had plenty of room to stretch out. All the food and drink was free, so I didn't starve. And, when the sun began to rise the view from my window seat was phenomenal. If you've ever seen the ocean from the coast line, seeing from overhead is an entirely different beast. The water looks like a darker blue version of the sky, and for second you might wonder if up and down even exist or matter anymore.

From Ireland

Quite honestly my worst fear at the moment is never being able to take a trip like this again. I'm hearing a lot of good things about the months to come, and I can't wait to see what unfolds. I'll keep you updated.

-Jacob