Happy Last Day of Term

Wednesday was my last day of term!  I am not going to my classes on Thanksgiving, because even though it is not celebrated here in Ireland, I am still going to recognize it :)

I had two classes, which I have to say, I am happy to see go!  These two classes were my Sociology of Community course and Politics of Church and State.  Both of these classes have been pretty boring, so no tears were shed when parting ways with my lecturers.  I cannot believe this semester is over.  It is insane to me!  This semester has been so great so far, in terms of classes.  I have taken some really interesting courses, a few that I would definitely not have the chance to take back at Holy Cross.  All in all, I think term has been a success (so far, I still have to hand in my finals!).

I spent a good portion of the day working on my papers curled up in my warm room.  It sounds like all I have been doing lately is papers, and I have to say, that pretty much is true!  I really want to just crank everything out before I go home for the holidays.  Also, it is getting very chill out (a mere 46 degrees), so it is easy to stay inside all day!  I am such a baby when it comes to the cold now.  My family was sending me pictures of snowy CT, something I am definitely not prepared for!

By the time many of you read this, it will be Thanksgiving.  So, let me be one of the first people to wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!  I hope everyone arrived at their respective Thanksgiving locations safe and sound.  Enjoy lots and lots of food and quality time with family and friends :)

Good luck to the Unite to Fight Manchester Road Race team, and everyone else participating in the race!

Have a fabulous day, and enjoy the start of the Holiday Season!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

This is what winter looks like in Ireland.  I put a picture up a few weeks ago of these trees, and now they are bare!  It is starting to get chilly!!!

In honor of Thanksgiving, I have put together some pictures of the many pieces to my life that I am thankful for: 

The most incredible (and good looking) family in the world:

A clean bill of health for the best grandparents out there :)

My hilarious, adorable, loving, more-than-amazing parents:

The best support system ever (they even supported me during my fear of Disney)

My sisters (including those without the last name "Spalluto," because you are the fourth sister!)

The greatest dog, but basically a human, Olive <3

Holy Cross and the best friends I could have ever asked for:

 

The Yankees (and Dad!)

Black Point, and the family made there that no one will ever understand: 

 And last but not least, Ireland and all of my travels--the best times I have ever had in my twenty years of life:

I had to add a cliche plane wing picture for Brendan and Mo to get a laugh :)

One Class Down!

Tuesday was test time!  I was so ready to have this OVER with.  I know I have said this many times before, but I despise exams.  Tuesday at 12 PM could not come fast enough (when my exam would be done!).

I had a really late night studying for the exam, but that is what I get when I saved everything for the last minute.  At HC, I am an organized student, and would never study for a final the night before.  But, school in Ireland is so different than home, and I have given myself a little bit of a break.  The grades I receive here are not factoring into my GPA, so I luckily have the ability to slack off a little bit.  It has been really nice, but what will I do when I go back to HC?!

The exam was not too bad, it was over, that is all that matters!  I already wrote the paper for this class, I just have to hand it in.  So, I essentially and done with the class!  WOOHOO!!!  One class down, five more to go.  I can do this, the prize at the end is a very long Christmas break with people I have not seen in months.  I cannot wait!

After the exam, I recuperated for a little and watched some TV and just relaxed.  My brain needed it before heading to another paper.  I also ran into the City Centre to pick up some food for the week, and best of all, a Christmas sweater.  The City Centre was getting ready for the Cork Christmas Markets, which start this weekend!  I was so shocked to see a ferris wheel being assembled when I came down my street.  Cork seriously goes all out for the holidays, and I think it is absolutely incredible!

I bought a Christmas sweater (which you will have to wait and see!) because on Sunday, Jane and I are going to Dublin for the Christmas Markets, as well as an event for the Make a Wish Foundation.  The event is an attempt to break the world record of the number of people in Christmas sweaters in one place.  This is happening on O'Connell Street Sunday afternoon, and I am so excited for it!  It will be a great break to get us in the holiday mood :)

Well, back to writing papers!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

A beautiful day in the City Centre!

Prepping for the Christmas Markets in Cork!

Candy is the Finals Energizer

Prepping for finals has finally arrived.  Monday was first of many jam-packed working days.  But, it is so short-lived that I think I can make it through!

While I was in the middle of writing my paper on Monday morning, I received an email from the reception office saying I had a package.  I didn't order anything, so I had no idea what it could be.  Obviously, I ran right over to the office because I am such an impatient person.  I was so happy to see that it was from my family!!!! They were sending me a care package to get me through finals.  If that isn't the sign of an awesome family, I don't know what is :)  The package was filled with lots of chocolate (Reese's, Hershey's Cookies and Creams, and Peppermint kisses), Essie nail polish (my FAV), an iTunes gift card (to help me survive my next few trips), some fun bracelets, and a beautiful card.  It absolutely made my day.  I was in such a rut of writing papers, so this came at the perfect time.

After indulging in lots of candy, I went to class.  I had an exam in the class (Cultures of Cities) on Tuesday, and I was not very prepared, to say the least.  Class got me a little nervous for the exam, but when I got home I buckled down and got to business.  It was a looooong night of studying for me.  Nothing a little coffee in the morning can't fix!

Be back soon, hopefully I will have survived my first final!

XO,

Caitlin 

THE BEST THING EVER

UCC gets prettier and prettier.

Sunday Dinner

So far, I had a great weekend.  It was very relaxing, and perfect weather.  I really could not have asked for anything better for one of my last weekends in Cork!

Jane and I forced ourselves to get up and go to a spin class Sunday morning, which definitely kicked our butts.  We were so sore from Saturday's class, I did not know how I was going to make it through!  I was really glad I did it though, because it was a perfect kickstart to my day.  When we got home, I made myself another great brunch, showered, and did some (okay, barely any) work.  It has been really hard forcing myself to get work done once I finish one paper.  My brain is a little dead and needs recuperating!

After getting some work done, Jane and I walked into the City Centre to meet our advisor, Shane, and some other HC girls for dinner at a restaurant, SoHo.  We hadn't seen Shane since the first week, so it was nice to catch up and hear what he has planned for us next semester.  I think he thinks we are crazy because it is all girls here in Cork from HC and we really love to talk, loudly.  However, the dinner was great!  It was on Holy Cross's dollar, so obviously we all picked out appetizers and the most expensive steaks.  After dinner, we went to an Irish film with Shane called, "Out of Here."  We went to the dil at the Triskel Arts Centre.  This was a really neat place.  It was an old Church converted into concert hall.  The film was okay, but I love going to the movies, so it was a nice excuse to finally do it!

When we got home, I got a little more work done and headed to bed.  I have a busy week ahead of me!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin  

Dinner!  

Triskel Arts Centre

  

A Saturday of Spinning and Studying

So, Mother Nature did her thing and the rain stopped on Friday!  Saturday was absolutely beautiful out.  It was a little chilly, but the sun was shining all day long.

I woke up Saturday morning and made myself a nice big brunch.  I made eggs, toast, sausage, and some veggies.  I was impressed with my bruch skills, not as good as my dad's, but a good substitute :) Weekend brunch is definitely not a regular occurrence in Ireland, and it is something I miss so much about America!  I am such a breakfast person, so I am definitely experiencing some withdrawals...

Unfortunately, I did not have much time to go out and enjoy the sun because I am in finals crunch mode.  I am trying to get as many papers done as I can over the next week so I can enjoy my last few weeks in Cork.  I did have two papers done by Saturday evening, which was a big relief.  I haven't had to do much work all semester, which is pretty normal for the Irish school system, but everything comes all at once towards the end of the semester.  As my family keeps reminding me, this is the final stretch until I have almost six weeks off.  Saturday marks two weeks until I am home for Christmas!  I cannot believe it is the holiday season already, it is crazy!  

Jane and I also went to a spin class on Saturday evening.  I haven't been to a spin class in so long, and I have to say it was awesome being back.  I forget how much I love to spin, it is kind of like my de-stresser, so it was a perfect study break activity.  When I came home from spin, I had a really long FaceTime call with my friend Chris from HC.  I hadn't talked to him in forever so it was so great catching up with him!

It was back to the books for me.

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin 

Brunch by Caitlin :)

Such a nice sunset going to spin class!

Back to Oliver Plunkett

So, I jinxed it.  Friday was such a rainy day!!!  Luckily, I had a lot of work to do, so it made it much easier to stay inside.

I really did not do much on Friday at all.  I did not have any class, so caught up on sleep a little bit and organized my room.  After (slowly) waking up, I figured it was time to get crackin' on one of my papers.  I was writing my final paper for Social Geography, so once I finished that, I would be almost done with the class!  I cannot believe how fast time is flying by...

My paper was actually a really interesting topic.  I was writing about gender and how space in the world is gendered.  It definitely made it a lot easier writing about something I was interested in, unlike my Early Start class papers.  Knowing that this was all I had to do today made it a little harder to work efficiently, but hey, at least I was getting some work done, right (unlike the usual)?

At around 7 PM, Jane, Julia, and I went to the Oliver Plunkett to meet up with Nicole and her parents who were visiting until the 26th.  I haven't been to the Oliver Plunkett since my parents were here, so I was super excited to go!  Nicole's family ended up buying us dinner and drinks, which was so nice of them!  We stayed for a few hours because there was a great Irish band we wanted to listen to.  I was having such a fun time, and it was definitely a taste of home seeing someone else's parents.  Only a few more weeks until I see mine :)

It was back to work once I got home!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

More Christmas decorations going up in the City Centre!

A delicious dinner at the Oliver Plunkett.

Nicole and myself at the Oliver Plunkett!

Cheese is Life

Thursday was a quiet day for me.  It was one of the first weekends in forever that I would be in Cork, so it felt a little weird not scrambling to get ready to travel.  I was really looking forward to a quiet weekend!  I have loved traveling so much, but sometimes it is nice to just do nothing.

I took Thursday as a recuperating day.  I wrote one of my six final paper (woohoo!) on Wednesday, so I just wanted to kick back and relax!  I went to class, and then the gym with Jane, and then came home and did absolutely nothing, but watch Gossip Girl (it is majorly one of my guilty pleasures!).  The weather has been so good here, which has been a great treat.  There has not been much rain at all.  I thought Ireland was a rainy country?!  However, I am not complaining...the rain can stay away as long as it wants!  The temperatures have also been pretty high, about high forties to low fifties.  I am really liking this whole "mild winter" thing.  The East Coast is going to be a HUGE shock to me!!!

When I came home from the gym, I was really excited to make dinner.  I bought this great new goat cheese from the English Market that I was dying to try (be jealous, Carolyn, it was so great).  I decided to make a pear and goat cheese pizza.  It was soooo delicious and a perfect dinner for staying in!

Once I finished dinner, I figured I would give the kitchen/common room area a good clean.  It was just me in the apartment for the weekend, so I cleared everything out and did a major scrub down.  When I am stressed I tend to clean, so clearly finals are coming.....

To me, this was a perfect night!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

My new goat cheese!

Such a great dinner.

Sunny, Sunny Day!

So, I know I am going to make all of you east-coasters jealous, but, Wednesday was GORGEOUS out.  It had to be about 55 degrees and sunny.  I am liking this November weather!

Jane and I went into to the City Centre to meet up with Grace at O'Conaill's to catch up with one another.  We needed to exchange stories about Amsterdam and hear about Grace's trip to Prague and her upcoming trip to Budapest!  I hadn't been to O'Conaill's in so long and I forgot how good it was. Definitely a great study pick-me-up.  After catching up for a while, I walked around before heading to class.  The city was buzzing with people taking in the beautiful day.  I am going to miss this city when I am gone for a month (as well as the above freezing temperatures).

I skipped my evening class that night (oops) to work on a paper.  I am cracking down so I can finish and have some free time before heading home!  I want to have a few days to enjoy Cork and relax here for a little bit.  It is so hard to get work done here, though!  I really want to enjoy the Christmas decorations and stay in the City Centre as much as I can, but, I need to be disciplined at some point :)

It is weird not getting ready for another trip over the weekend!  But, I am enjoying the absence of craziness and packing.  I still cannot believe I only have a few more weekends left in Cork for the semester.  I know I have said this a million times, but I do not know what I would do if I did not have a year here.  The year is allowing me to really get to know Cork, as well and do some incredible traveling.  My time has been so awesome so far, and I cannot wait to see what other great things are coming my way!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Milk and white hot chocolate :)

City Centre! 

A nice walk home from the gym. 

A gorgeous sunset. 

Cooking and More Cooking

Tuesday was a day of getting back into my groove here in Cork.  I had to get a lot of errands done to settle back into the apartment.  Now that my travels were done, I was going to have to com up with meals to cook for every night again!  I have to say, I do not love cooking.  I didn't inherit that gene Carolyn and my dad have of seeing cooking as fun...

In between my two classes, I went to the English Market.  I was going to do a big grocery run so I hopefully will not have to buy a lot of food over the next few weeks.  As I was walking into town, even more Christmas decorations were going up!  I seriously cannot imagine how the city could even find a place to put more up, but they managed.  There was a great big tree being decorated on Grand Parade, not as nice as Rockefeller, but a close second :)

After my classes, I came home, had dinner, and did some cooking.  Jane came over and hung out with me for a while while I cook, to keep me company!  I made Dad's chickpea soup recipe, which is definitely a staple meal for me here.  It is super easy to cook, freezes well, and always delicious, what else could I ask for?

I told myself I would get work done, but, surprise, surprise, I did not.  This seems like a trend here in Ireland for me...

Be back soon, hopefully having got some work done!

XO,

Caitlin

Christmas tree!!

Cookin' time

A Little Pampering

Monday was a very dreary and grey day in Cork City.  The rain from Amsterdam followed us to Ireland!  However, this made it a little easier to stay in my apartment and begin thinking about the work I had to do!

I went to my two classes on Monday, Social Geography and Cultures of Cities.  When I got to Social Geography, I learned that this would be my last class...crazy!  Hard to believe that everyone at home is getting our for Thanksgiving break and I am finishing up the semester.  As a little celebration to getting through Social Geography (well almost through it, I still have a final paper), I decided to get my nails done in town.  I can absolutely admit that I am a diva when it comes to getting my nails done, it is one of my favorite things to do to relax.  I wasn't feeling 100%, so I thought it would be the perfect cure.  It definitely helped :)

Once I was done with classes for the day, I was seriously dragging.  I think the grey weather added to my exhaustion was wiping me out.  I had no plans, other than staying in and FaceTiming Anne to catch up with her.  We put this date on the calendar early last week, our schedules were so crazy!  It was awesome catching up with her, I miss her so much and cannot wait to see her in a few weeks!!

I told myself I would start work...but shocker, I didn't.  Monday was a "chill out" day before the grind of school work really got going later in the week!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

An ugly day on Oliver Plunkett Street

Cloudy River Lee

It's a Wrap!

Sunday was our last day in Amsterdam.  It was such an awesome weekend seeing everyone from HC.  It definitely made me miss Holy Cross a lot, but I will be home so soon!  I also cannot imagine not being in Cork this year.  The semester is flying by!  I can truly say studying abroad has been the most incredible experience of my life, thank goodness I have a year :)

Most of the HC kids were out of the hostel by 6 AM.  Luckily, we had a later flight, so we still had a full day of touring.  It was Chelsea's birthday on Sunday, so we began the day by having a celebratory breakfast.  I had another Dutch pancake, this time it was an apple and honey one.  I am trying to bring the tastes of New England fall to Europe!  Breakfast was super delicious, and a perfect start to the day.

The weather was pretty gross out--rainy and cold.  This was a great opportunity to visit more museums.  Jane and I went to the Ruks Museum, which is sort of like the MET of The Netherlands.  We were there for two hours, but it felt like no time at all!  I was so lost in the art, there were millions of beautiful pieces.  My favorite exhibit was the photography one.  I have grown such a liking for photography since being abroad, so it was really interesting to me!

After the museum and walking around for a little while, we headed back to the hostel to pick up our bags and head to the airport.  The incredible weekend was coming to a close, unfortunately.  However, a major perk of going home, we were flying into Cork!  We were avoiding the three and a half bus ride, thank goodness!

We did not get home late at all, I think I walked into my apartment at 9:30.  This was such a nice change!

My travels for the semester were officially done.  I cannot believe it!  I am so fortunate to have done all that I did.  Including Ireland, I visited seven countries!  It is a little mind boggling, I know.  It'll be nice to have a weekend in Cork for the first time in forever.

Next trip, AMERICA!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

A photography piece from the Ruks Museum.

Lots and Lots of Touring

Saturday was a little bit of a rainy day, AKA a perfect day for museums.  Amsterdam is known for having a museum for just about everything you could imagine.  There were two that a majority of us were set on seeing before the weekend was over:  the Anne Frank House, and the Van Gogh Museum.

We (Me, Jane, Betsy, Nicole, and Will, another HC abroad student) woke up early Saturday morning in order to avoid the long line at the Anne Frank House.  We did not have to wait very long, maybe about 45 minutes.  I learned a lot about Anne Frank when I was in middle school, so I was very interested to see the real setting of where everything I have heard about truly happened.  This was an incredible experience, seeing the house, but so emotional as well.  It was heartbreaking to hear Anne Frank's father speak about his family on old video recordings, and so eye-opening seeing where the families hid, learning about what their daily lives were during the horrible time.  I really enjoyed seeing this house, and it definitely puts life into perspective.  I think that it was important for me to see this while I was in Amsterdam, because while my travels were all fun and games with the Holy Cross crew, it was good to have a little bit of a reality check as to what Amsterdam used to actually be like.

After the Anne Frank House, we were on a mission to find this cafe, Cafe Papeneiland, which is famous for their Dutch apple pie. It was very close to the House, and a perfect morning snack.  When you walked in, there was pie everywhere!  Clearly this cafe is famous for the pie, because they were very prepared for the crowds of people they would soon see.  This pie came just in time for a little Thanksgiving prep!

Once we had our fill on pie, we headed towards the famous Amsterdam sign and the Van Gogh museum.  When we got to the sign there were so many people there that we recognized, it was crazy!  I ran into one of my friends, TJ, from West Hartford!  I had no idea he was going to be in Amsterdam for the weekend.  It was such an awesome surprise.

We stayed at the sign for a little while, probably longer than we should have.  It was like an adult playground, we were having so much fun! We then headed over to the Van Gogh Museum, which was so amazing.  I could have stayed there forever.  The art was absolutely gorgeous, definitely a highlight of my trip!

We were pretty tired, and hungry, so the five of us headed over towards our hostel area to find some dinner.  We went to a cute little Italian restaurant and had some delicious comfort food.  After we ate, we went back to the hostel to clean up and get ready for the night.  We were meeting up with the HC kids again for a quick drink later in the evening!  It was so fun having everyone back together!

It was an early night for everyone, but a very fun night!  Most people had early flights on Sunday, so we were saying our goodbyes.  Hopefully I will be able to see everyone in December!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin    

Pie Time!

Nicole, Besty, me, and Jane! 

Nicole, Jane, me, Will and Betsy at the "I Amsterdam" sign.

Me and Jane at the sign!

 Me and TJ!

Amsterdam canals!

Jane, Will, myself, Nicole, Betsy