Quiet Day

Mondays are really not exciting for me here in Cork.  I have a class right in the middle of the day, so not much gets done.  But, I kind of enjoy it, it allows me to regroup after the weekend!

I still had no computer, unfortunately.  When I called the computer store, they told me there was not a technician in all weekend, so they were unsure what the problem was, and it  would not be fixed until Wednesday...classic Europe.  Not the news I really wanted to hear, but, at least it was getting fixed!  This meant that I needed to survive through class without a computer, which normally I would be fine with, but Mondays is when I have class with my super boring professor, so I tend to distract myself on the internet.  I guess I will actually have to try and pay attention!

After class, I headed to the gym for a little while, and then had a very quiet evening.  I was pretty wiped out from the weekend still.  As fun as it was, the trip was a little exhausting.  I need to get back into my traveling ways and learn to function on little sleep!  I was a pro last semester!

That evening, I came home and tried out a new recipe I found on Pinterest.  It was a quinoa, crushed tomato, brussels sprout, sausage concoction.  It was really easy, and so delicious!  When I finished eating, I just hung out with Orna and Meadhbh and caught up on our weekends.  I am so lucky I have great roommates like them to come home to :).

It was a quiet night!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

The veggie stand on my street that I always talk about.  I am here all the time, it is so convenient! 

Such a nice night. 

Dinner!

Ring of Kerry Makes Me Merry

Sunday was the last day of the Ring of Kerry trip.  I was having so much fun, and could not get over how gorgeous everything was that had seen, and there was even more to come!

We departed the hotel once again at 9:30 and had many stops to make throughout the day.  Our first stop was in Derrynane, where Daniel O'Connell's house was located.  Daniel O'Connell was a very famous political leader in Ireland, known mainly for his fight in the Catholic Emancipation movement.  The house was very pretty, located on one of the most gorgeous beaches I have ever seen.  While there, we learned all about the wildlife at the beaches, and what you can find there from a marine biologist.  The beach had to be my favorite part of the day.  It was so serene, and a beautiful day out.  I could have stayed here forever.  I wandered along the water searching for sea glass, shells, and other beach treasures.  It gave me a a taste of summer and reminded me of Black Point :).

After our stop in Derrynane, we had a bit of a drive to where we would take a break for lunch.  The drive was the actual "Ring of Kerry," and I now understand why people are so adamant about seeing this.  It truly was the most beautiful place I have ever seen.  The views were incredible, and you were literally in the mountains.  Pictures do not even do the Ring of Kerry justice. It is unbelievable.  I

wish it was a little more accessible because I would want to bring all of my guests this semester!  We stopped during the drive at a place along the Ring of Kerry known as Ladies View.  It looked over many lakes and mountains, making a perfect setting for a picnic!

When we finished our picnic lunch, we were back on the road again.  Our next stop was the Torc Waterfall.  This was one of the sites I saw with my family when they visited in October.  However, when they came, it was so rainy and dreary out that it was almost hard to enjoy.  Luckily, the weather was nice this time, so we got to enjoy it a little bit more!

We were off to our final stop of the day, Muckross House and Gardens and Killarney National Park.  The Muckross House and Gardens is an estate that has been turned into a museum today.  It consists of an enormous house, surrounded by pristine grounds.  The grounds are so pretty, a perfect place for a wedding.  Maybe one day I will come back here for my wedding, does that sounds good with you, Dad???  We were able to wander the area for a little while before we headed back on the bus and back to Cork.

It was a fabulous weekend, and I love Ireland even more than I did before, which I did not think was possible.  I know it is still early, but I already am getting sad about leaving here!!!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

HC girls on the Derrynane beach! 

Derrynane, Co. Kerry. 

Jane and me on the beach.

Lunch spot at Ladies View.

Muckross House

The grounds at Muckross

The lake at Muckross.

Ireland, You Continue to Amaze Me!

Saturday was a busy day, filled with lots of site seeing.  The weather was incredible, thank goodness. We would be outside for a majority of the day, so, a day without rain was perfect.

We left the hotel at 9:30, and out first stop was Valentia Island.  This is a very small island off of Co. Kerry, which is home to about 600 people!  Today, there is ferry or a bridge that provides access to the island, but back in the day, you could only get there via boat.  It had gained notoriety as being one of the first places to receive transatlantic communication to America, pretty neat!  Valentia was a really pretty area, with gorgeous vistas of the water and surrounding mountains.  I could not get over how gorgeous the weather was!

Our next stop was Geoghan Mountain and the Fogher Cliffs.  This is the highest point on the island of Valentia, and let me tell you, it was quite a hike.  But, it was so worth it.  When we got to the top, I was in awe.  The view was unbelievable, with the greenest mountains and rollings hills I have ever seen, surrounded by the ocean.  The sky was crystal clear, and it was pretty warm out!  When I reached the top, I had one of those moments where I could not believe this was actually my life.  Ireland is unbelievable.  After the hike, we went to a little farm at the bottom of the mountain.  It was time to meet some baby cows!  They were so cute, a little restless, but adorable!  A local farmer told us all about their dairy business, what they sell, how many cows they own, etc.  It was really neat, and totally something that is classic to Ireland.

We then hopped back on the bus and headed to Ballinskelligs, a village in Kerry, where we saw a film about the Skellig Experience.  The Skellig Islands are very remote, right off of Co. Kerry.  At the top of this island, which resembles a mountain, there is am old monk village.  There are over 600 steps to the top, which took hundreds of years to build, all done by the monks.  Also, their new claim to fame, part of the new Star Wars movie was filmed there!  After the film, we headed to the beach in the village.  We were meeting the Lifeboat team, kind of like the Coast Guard.  We even got to take a tour of the boat!  It was really interesting, and I am alway happy when I am back at the beach :).

We had one stop before lunch, a the Ballycarbery Castle.  This was in the town where our hotel was.  It was huge!  Supposedly, some movies have been filmed here as well.  It is so interesting to see how many castles there are in Ireland, and I still am so fascinated by them!  After this quick stop, we went to the hotel for a quick lunch, and we were off touring again!

The next stop was the Cahergal Stone Fort.  This reminded me of some of the stuff we saw during my Early Start class.  It was really old, but still in great condition.  We got to climb around to fort for a while and have a little fun.  It was still so sunny out, so everyone wanted to stay in the sunshine as long as they could.  Once we were done with the fort, my favorite part of the trip occurred.  We got to hold some lambs!!!  They were so tiny, one was only two weeks old!! They were so soft and cuddly.  I was loving this so much!

We then went back to the hotel to rest up before dinner.  We had another long night of leaning about Irish culture.  We lean red lots of Irish songs and did a little trivia!  It was really fun getting to know more of the kids on the trip and hanging out with them.  I was having a blast!

Be back soon with more details of the weekend!

XO,

Caitlin

HC! At the top of Geoghan Mountain and Fogher Cliffs:

Jane and me at the top of the mountain! 

View from the top of Geoghan Mountain and Fogher Cliffs. 

Calfs!

Ballinskelligs Beach

Ballycarbery Castle 

The lamb "bleated at me! 

Ring of Kerry, Commence!

Friday morning was crazy.  I had to go get my computer fixed and get ready for the weekend away.  I was really excited for this trip, though.  It is so nice getting out of the city sometimes, being reminded of how beautiful the countryside is.

First things first, finding out what was wrong with my computer.  So, during my last class, my computer screen would not start up, it would only flash a question mark.  I had a feeling that this was a hard drive issue, which is never a good sign.  When I woke up, I went straight into the city to the computer store.  I have a MacBook, and there is no Apple Store here, so I had to go to an Apple reseller place.  It seemed legit, and I was desperate.  When I arrived to the store, my computer started working, I felt like such an idiot!!!! I was up for hours the night before trying to get it to work, and there was nothing.  At least it worked, that was all that matter.  I decided to get a coffee and take my time before I had to leave for the Ring of Kerry.  It was such a nice day out.  When I got home, however, I experienced some technical difficulties, again.  My computer stopped working....AGH!  At this point, it was 12:45 and I was leaving my apartment for the trip at 1:30.  I quickly ran to get a taxi and get back to the computer store.  The man working there recognized me, and saw my panic.  He took my computer to get fixed and I was off!

I made it to the bus in time for my trip, and I was ready for the weekend to begin.  Holy Cross pays for one big trip for us throughout the semester, and the Ring of Kerry has always been the one that Shane, our advisor, takes us on.  There had to be over 50 American students on this trip this weekend, a majority of them being Loyola Maryland kids.  I was really looking forward to meeting more people!

Our first stop on the journey was some caves!  These were known as Crag Caves.  These caves are millions of years old, created out of limestone.  We were taken on a tour though these caves, which was really interesting.  I did something like this in my Early Start class, the Mitchelstown Caves, which I thought were a little cooler, but this was still a neat stop!  After the caves, we drove to the hotel, the Ring of Kerry Hotel.  The drive there had some of the most beautiful sites I have ever seen.  There were snowcapped mountains everywhere, with a pink sky.  Ireland is seriously a little piece of heaven.

When we got to the hotel, we settled into our rooms and had an amazing dinner in the restaurant downstairs.  I was having so much fun, and it was only the beginning.  Once we ate, it was time for a little Irish culture lesson for us.  First, there were some local Kerry Gaelic Football players that came to talk to us and teach us some skills, and next, there were some Irish dance lessons.  It was so much fun, and very tiring!

We headed to bed after the full night of events, we had a long day on Saturday!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin    

Caves!

Crashing in Cork

Thursday was a crazy day.  It was a full day of classes, and they day before I left for the weekend trip to the Ring of Kerry.  I had lots of getting ready to do!

I stayed on campus for a majority of the day.  I am actually really enjoying my time on campus, exploring the hidden nooks and crannies.  In between one of the breaks, Nicole and I went to Cafe Depeche.  This is one of my favorite coffee places in Cork, and I went all the time last semester.  It was so good!  This place is such a tiny, full of character, adorable coffee shop.  It was a great little afternoon pick me up.  Before my last class, Jane and I decided to book the rest of our April trip!  I am so happy that we finally have this nailed down.  Our itinerary is scheduled as starting in Rome for Easter with my family, to Sicily (with my family), to Athens, then to Mykonos.  Warm weather, I cannot wait to be with you again!!!!!

During my last class of the day, I encountered some MAJOR difficulties.  My computer was crashing...and I was freaking out!  This was horrible timing because I had just made a file of all of our travel information on my computer, thinking I was being organized.  Thank goodness I have a patient family, because they definitely had to deal with lots of hysterics and panicking Thursday night.

It was not my week, first my glasses, now my computer.  Hopefully the weekend would be better!!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin  

Coffee break with Nicole! 

A beautiful day on the UCC campus (pictures: Honan Chapel).

Homework?

How tired are you of hearing how beautiful the weather has been in Ireland?  Beacause, I am sorry to tell all of you buried in the snow back East, it was such a sunny day today!  I told my roommates what the temperatures were like back home, and they almost died.  Below, WAY below, freezing temperatures are not something Ireland sees very often, or ever.

I had two classes today, Political Sociology and Sociology of the Media.  Political Sociology is with the boring professor, again, and I think I die a slow death each time I have that class.  I really cannot take it.  However, it is only an hour, so I survived.  After my first class, Jane and I decided to book some flights for our big break in April.  It looks like we will be going to Rome for Easter with my family, then to Sicily with them, and then Jane and I will go to Greece.  We were planning on going to Croatia, but unfortunately, it was too hard to get to.  So, that is why we decided to go to Sicily with my family.  My dad has planned a great trip, and I am really looking forward to it!

Later in the afternoon, I had a meeting with my advisor, Shane, about my first, real homework assignment.  This is my ICIP, a cultural immersion project Holy Cross requires us to do while we are abroad.  I am planning on writing my ICIP about this blog, so, we will see how it comes out!  I got out of the meeting early, so I walked over to the Hayfield Manor, which was right next to my professors office.  I wanted to check out their afternoon teas for when I have guests!  It is also such a gorgeous place, I thought I would enjoy the scene on the nice day!

After classes, I headed to the gym, and went to the steam and sauna for a very long time, again.  Ah, this is really something I could get used to all of the time!  My parents asked me about homework tonight, and I honestly said I do not get any.  I asked one of my professors about reading, and he told me that they do not expect students to do reading.  This is not something I would ever hear at Holy Cross.  So, I think I will embrace this while I can!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin  

Sunny Bandon Road

Exploring Hayfield!

I had a mishap with my glasses today...

Roomie Night

I really love my schedule on Tuesdays this semester.  I have two classes, one at 10 AM and the other at 6 PM, so I have a lot of time in between to get stuff done and be productive!

After my 10 AM class, Jane and I went to the gym and the the steam room for a very long time.  It was so relaxing and a really nice start to the day!  When I came home, I had some lunch, called my mom, and got ready for the day.  It was really great knowing I still had the entire afternoon to get some errands done and be productive.  My first stop was the Laundry Basket.  This is a place that washes, dries, and folds your laundry for you.  I know that sounds so lazy, but I have not had the chance to keep up with my clothes, so, I figured for this one time I would indulge, but that is it!  Once I dropped off my laundry, I went to try another new coffee place.  This one I went to was call Gulpd.  It is hidden down a little alley, and very hard to find.  I only knew about it from our advisor who talked about how great it was.  He was right, Gulpd was delicious!  The vibe here was really cool too.  There were wooden benches, farm tables, mason jars, all around an awesome place.  I had my caffeine fix, so it was off to the next stop, River Island, a clothing store.  I just needed a few quick things, so I did not stay here too long, otherwise, I know I would have caused some serious damage to my wallet!  My last stop was the grocery store.  I went to Tesco, a large grocery market, hoping I could find some greek yogurt as well as some cereal, weird foods I have been missing from home.  I was successful and got everything I needed, woohoo!  A good day in the City Centre :).

When I was all finished with classes, Jane, Meadhbh, Orna, and I went out to dinner and drinks together at Captain America's.  They kept asking if the food there was really like American food (burgers, pizza, etc.), and as unhealthy as it is,we told them that it indeed is what American food is like, they just need to come and visit us now to try it themselves!  I have not been out with my roommates yet this year, which is crazy!  It was such a fun night, with some great food and drinks, and lots and lots of laughs.  We definitely need to make this more of a tradition before I leave in a few months.

It was a wonderful day for me.  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Some cool graffiti I saw on my way to Gulpd:

Gulpd!

The roomies (Orna in the middle and Meadhbh on the right)!