I'm Back!!

Today is my first full day back in America! This past week has been a whirlwind of studying, packing, and saying good byes. Yesterday was a really long day of travelling. We had to get on the bus to Dublin at 3am (Ireland time) to get the rest of the group their on time for their flight, so most of us did not sleep that night. I flew separately, so I was just waiting around for several hours. I then flew from Dublin to Boston and then from Boston to Pittsburgh, where I met my dad. We then had an hour and a half drive back home. I was so exhausted and confused haha.

My dad made me a sign for picking me up from the airport that had a shamrock on it :) My family made signs for the back door and my room welcoming me. They also got me a cookie cake and put flowers on my nightstand!! It was really sweet! They are the best!

The sign in front of it says "Welcome home!"

It's weird to have to get re-adjusted to things that I have grown up with. For example, I got really excited in the parking lot when I realized that the cars would be driving on the right side of the road. And I had to remind myself that I could no longer use euros to pay for things. I'm so excited that I can plug things straight into the wall without needing an adapter or converter! It may sound weird, but I keep having to remind my self that I am in America. I am glad to be back, but I really miss Ireland.

This trip has been amazing; I am so blessed. I have loved every moment of it, and I will never forget it. And I'll already trying to figure out when I can go back!!

I don't know if I'll be posting again, so I just want to say thanks to everyone who has been following my blog!!

Study Day

This past weekend, we stayed in Waterford because we have had so much work to do. So, we have just been doing work and enjoying Waterford.

We really enjoyed spending time in Downtown Waterford

Monday was our last day of regular classes, and today was just a study day.Tomorrow, we have finals- joy. I am giving a presentation for both of my classes, so I'd appreciate prayers!! It's very strange and sad to think that tomorrow is my last full day in Ireland. I don't want to leave!!

Second Trip to Dublin

On Thursday, we went to Dublin for a second time for a field trip. The first place we went to was Christ's Church, which is the second most important church in Ireland (or so we were told). It was beautiful, and it is my favorite Cathedral I have seen so far.

The legendary Strongbow is buried here 

We got to climb the tower, and this was the view of the Cathedral from the top

This is the bell tower we climbed; I got to ring one of the bells!! They told us that they have more bells than any other church in the world

After that, we went to a museum next door called Dublina. We saw exhibits on the Vikings and the Black Death; it was a little depressing.

This is a statue of Stronbow; I feel like I can't go anywhere here without hearing about Strongbow and Aoife

All of the mannequins here are incredibly creepy; this one scared us to death because it talked and moved when we walked by

We spent the rest of the day walking around the city until it was time for us to go to a play. We met some people who where break dancing in the street that were really nice. One of the girls said she did a study abroad in Georgia!

Goofing around in St. Stephen's Greene

Rachel and I waiting for the play to start

Overall, we had a great time. We didn't get back into Waterford until around 1:30am, so we were exhausted!!

Cashel and Clonmel

This past Tuesday we went to see the Rock of Cashel, which isn't actually a rock haha. It is an old Cathedral. There was a particular type of limestone used for part of it, and that is where the name comes from.

The building is falling apart, so it is in the process of being restored

After touring the Rock of Cashel, we went to Clonmel. The only thing we really did there was walk around trying to find data for our research projects. It was a really small, sad town that was a little run down.

I don't know what this is; I just thought it was pretty

The River Suir (which is also the name of my dorm)

After getting back to Waterford, we went downtown to celebrate my friend Lydia's birthday!!

Me and the birthday girl :)

We had a lot of fun! We ate a place called Geoffe's (pronounced like Jeff) and then we went to a place called Kazbar. We have been told by locals that Kazbar is the best, and I agree :)

Galway!

At the crack of dawn Friday morning, my friends and I left for Galway. We got there around lunch time and ate a pub in town. We then walked around Shop Street for a while. There was music everywhere, and I loved it!!

We got drinks at a really cute chocolate shop

Shop Street

Galway Bay

I love her!

We sat on the edge of the bay and sang disney songs :)

The boys were looking for rocks to skip

I had to go in!

This pub is called The King's Head because King Charles' head hung in this window after he was executed

So excited when I found this!

I had a really great time in Galway, and I wish I could go back!! The next day we got up early again and headed to the Cliffs of Moher. If you are a Princess Bride fan, this is where they filmed the Cliffs of Insanity scene.

It was breathtaking! 

There were two castles on the cliffs

I think the pictures can speak for themselves. It was hard for us to see how big it was; it didn't look real. It was so incredibly beautiful!! I read that it was in the running for one of the seven wonders of the world. These cliffs are definitively the most beautiful thing I have ever seen! I don't think anything else can compare!

Kilkenny

Today we went to Kilkenny for our field trip, and we got to go to a couple different places. The first was to The Cathedral Church of Saint Canice, which was beautiful. There is a tall, narrow tower that you can climb up if you want to see the view from above. It was a scary experience haha, but it was great.

You can't see it, but the stained glass was gorgeous.

This is the tower that we got to climb up.

The view from the top

These are the narrow stairs we had to climb during the last part of it 

Made it!

Going down was much worse haha

After that, we went to the Rothe House, which is a historic home of one of the wealthier families in Kilkenny.

Rothe House

We were told that there were no nails or glue used to put together the ceiling

They had a huge herb garden

We were then let go for the day, and my friends and I wanted to see Kilkenny Castle. So we ate lunch there and went exploring. We weren't allowed to take pictures of the inside, which was unfortunate.

They had a pretty Rose Garden!

I wish pictures could capture smell!!

Naturally, the fountain is in the shape of a clover

Everything we saw today was so lovely and rich in history. My friends and I really enjoyed it!