*Hey Everyone! I’m sorry it has been so long since my last update-I have spending less and less time on the computer and more time out enjoying Ireland as much as I can before it is time to go home. Hopefully this blog will get you back up to speed with what has been going on around here! I will have pictures posted soon!*
March 31,
So today was Brittany’s 21st Birthday. I had made it my goal that I was going to bake her grandma’s red velvet cake with frosting so she would have a taste of home while she was here. I mean, everyone likes to feel special on their birthday.
The cake itself actually turned out really well. It couldn’t exactly be “red velvet” because I didn’t have any red food coloring. But it was still pretty. And then I began the frosting which eventually became the death of me. It is supposed to beat with an electric mixer for 5-7 minutes which means I had to beat it by hand for almost 2 hours. It was so darn tiring! However, when it was done I was very happy that I persevered and didn’t give up. It did take up most of my day though.
After that I made a lovely lunch stir-fry with potato slices, green pepper, mushroom, carrot, and celery in some basalmic. It was so tasty! I love having some fresh ingredients in my diet again.
We had Literature Class and today’s discussion was solely on James Joyce’s “Dubliners”. While reading the book, it literally made zero sense, but the discussion really helped me focus. After class, the rest of the Dawson-French clan came over to the study cottage to help us sing happy birthday to Britt and eat cake and rice krispies. I think everyone enjoyed themselves.
After cake, Christy and I made a huge pot of spaghetti to eat before the play we were going to see that evening. The play was done by two voices and was performed in the study cottage for us-so we were pretty cramped! It was called “The Hunger” and was very powerful. It was great timing because we had just finished our history studies on the Famine.
At 10 we went to Brittany’s Birthday disco, and I literally just danced my heart out! I especially loved when they played the older songs, because I could actually pull out real dance moves : ) The best part of the night though was when Professor Duncan got pulled onto the dance floor for ABBA’s “Dancing Queen”! It was definitely the highlight of the evening for all of us!
April 3,
Before I begin recalling the days events, I just want to say how strange it feels to be writing the word ‘April’ at the beginning of this journal. The last 3 months have gone by in the blink of an eye. I was told that this adventure would be over before I know it, but that is finally becoming a reality.
Today began with Mass at 11 o’clock across the street. I feel fortunate that I was able to play guitar in addition to singing with the choir. Today, Maria kept encouraging m to just play along with the musicians on the opening Irish tune. I was trying to tell her that I did not know it all, but she kept pushing me just to give it a shot so I did. I would just watch her fingers to try to follow the chords. It wasn’t my best performance but I definitely kept up with everybody! Today Brittany and I sang ‘Take and Eat’ as usual, ‘Today’ for the communion hymn, and then ‘Let it Be’ for the closing song. After mass, I joined Rob, Annie, James, Hannah, Brittany, Bailey, and her family at Sammon’s for Brunch. I was thinking about skipping my full Irish Breakfast this week in order to save a few Euro, but I realized that it was more important to just be there spending time with my friends because those are the memories I am going to look back on and smile. So I ordered my favorite-the Full Irish Breakfast with Tea!
After breakfast, I ended up going to the study cottage for a bit before it was time to have our traditional game of Soccer. Today will be Liam and Emily’s last Sunday in Tully Cross so I felt that it was very much appropriate to go down to the pitch and play. Even though I am not any good at soccer, it was still fun (my team definitely lost though!). After a few hours of playing, most people left. So those of us who were left (Bailey and her family, Liam, Emily, Vaughn, Jake, and myself) had a quick game up to 3 to give Liam as much playing time as possible. I actually ended up scoring a goal!
When I finally walked back into my cottage, I was greeting by a roaring fire and a sweltering hot living room. So I ended up just grabbing my book and a glass of water and went out to sit at the picnic table to cool off. Not more than two minutes later, Jake comes walking out with his book and invites me to come with him to Sammon’s on a black currant run. We went to the pub an up to the bar to order where we met Patrick having a Guinness. We got to chatting with him for quite a while and then Jake was finally able to convince Patrick that we were just going to sit over by the window and read. We shared a few poems and had a very productive afternoon. There was one point though that Patrick called me back over to the bar in order to listen to a guy named Tom sing. Then Patrick convinced me to sing a song as well so I sang “Fire and Rain” by James Taylor. I love just chatting and spending time with the locals here. They have literally just become a second family!
April 7,
At noon today, all of us began the walk to Kylemore Abbey. Even Dr. Duncan came which was a surprise. Let’s just say that he is not the fastest walker in the world-so Jake and I ended up walking with him the entire 10 km, but we ended up having a great time chatting! We finally got to Kylemore and were just waiting around for our little tour, which wasn’t even much of a tour. The Abbey itself looks so majestic from a distance, but it is really not that much to see once you are inside and up close. Any way, after we wandering throughout the few rooms we got to ask the Mother Superior some questions and of course Allison was asking how to get up to the Jesus Statue that a group of people had tried to find before. She told us that the path had technically been closed for about 10 years, but we could venture up at our own discretion. Since Mother Superior said we could venture up there if we wanted to- A group of us decided that after touring the Victorian Gardens we were going to make the hike up to say “Hey!” to Jesus on the mountain! The weather today was literally perfect. It was 60 degrees and sunny-ideal spring weather. Bailey, her brother Evan, Rob, Jake, Allison, and myself walked pass all of the danger signs to make this hike happen. The path in the first section of trail was literally like trekking though a rain forest. It was so great! Then the path started to disappear and we just followed our instincts of where it looked like it had once led. When we finally made it out of the brush and into the open mountain air, we climbed up to the Jesus statue! The view was unbelievable! We had talked about coming up here ever since the first time we saw the Abbey, and now it had finally happened! While hanging around the statue we saw a very pretty waterfall down the mountainside a bit. So of course, we had to scale across the mountain to check it out! It ended up being this beautiful little waterfall/mountain stream. We all took of our shoes and felt the refreshing chill of the water between our toes while climbing on the slippery rocks. Three months ago, I would have never imagined that I would be playing in a waterfall on the side of a mountain in my bare feet. If I would have seen a “Danger” sign, I would have turned the other way-If I had seen the trail disappear into rocks grass, and gravel-I would have turned around and gone home. I overcame all of those things today. Instead of playing it perfectly safe, I took a deep breath and ventured outside of my comfort zone. Even though it may not have been a big deal to some, today was an enormous step for me and I am incredibly proud of myself. Today turned out to be one of the happiest moments of my life. I have never felt so alive! While the six of us were playing in the stream, we were joined by Bridget and Sarah. We were just hanging out and talking when Jake whispers that somebody else is coming and that it looks like Jan (from the Czech Republic). We just brushed him off, but then who suddenly appears on the side of the mountain? It is most definitely Jan himself. I could not believe it-of all people to meet up there, of course it had to be Jan.
After we made it down the mountain, Dr. Dawson and Mr. Agattas were kind enough to give us a ride home so we didn’t have to walk another 10km! As soon as we got home, the first thing on my agenda was to get in the shower and clean up before Culture Class. As I am getting ready to dry my hair, I hear a knock at the door. I run down to answer it, and it is none other than the boys from Cottage 7 standing there with a bowl of Chili, courtesy of Mr. Foley. They tell me to take a few bites and I immediately start tearing up because it is literally the HOTTEST chili I have ever had in my life. It was super good, but just incredibly spicy! So I went and willing burned by esophagus with the boys!
April 8,
Today we left Tully Cross around 7 in the morning and drove 5 hours until we got to the Rock of Cashel around noon. This is a beautiful site on top of gigantic rock in South Tipperary. There is a round tower, an old cathedral, and chapels with preserved paintings from the 12th century. Another very beautiful site with so much history. We then got on the bus to head to Cahir Castle which turned out to be one of my favorite castles we have seen thus far. It is also located in South Tipperary and is actually one of the oldest castles in Ireland! The defenses incorporated into this castle predate the use of gun powder which made it that much more fascinating! The Castle is surrounded by the River Suir, which creates a natural moat. There were all sorts of little features created to kill the enemy such as small doors that forced you to lean over so someone could be on the other side and chop your head off! We had a great tour guide and we had lots of free time just to play around and explore the castle!
Afterwards, our group took a short hike to see the Swiss Cottage which is located on the same estate as the castle. Designed by John Nash, this cottage was used by Lord and Lady Cahir for entertaining guests. It is considered to be an ornamental cottage. All of the miniscule details that went into this piece of architecture are absolutely amazing. The cottage blends the earth into each element of the structure, and no two features are exactly alike. One window in a room may have pointed top while another may have a rounded top-Just little things like that. I just loved it there! Rob and I even found a fabulous tree to climb outside, and we later found out that it was a mix between a female and male tree that was over 1,000 years old!
April 9,
We woke up this morning to be greeted with a delicious full Irish breakfast at the B&B before we were off to tour the Dingle Peninsula for the day. Owen just drove and stopped the bus whenever there was a “photo opp!” or we had made it to a historically significant site. We saw so much beautiful scenery that I cannot even begin to put it into words. One of my favorite stops though was actually at a very rock beach where we all ventured down to an area filled with the most beautifully colored rocks imaginable. There were purples, greens, blues, and yellows decorating the shoreline, and I just couldn’t get enough of it. The boys had a great time skipping stones, but it unfortunately started to rain so we hopped back on the bus. Here are just a few pictures to show how incredibly beautiful the Dingle Peninsula was:
Around 430, we were back in Kilarney to have our tour of the Muckross House where Queen Victoria actually stayed during her visit to Ireland. It was a gorgeous home, and really showed a more elegant side of Ireland that we often do not have a chance to see. The grounds and gardens were what were truly impressive in my opinion. The Muckross House is right on a lake surrounded by acres of beautiful lawns and forests. After the Muckross House we stopped at the Kilarney National Park to see a stunning waterfall. We all decided to hike to the top of the waterfall before we had to get back on the bus so some of us could make it to Mass that evening. It was surprisingly hot and muggy, but the fresh air and sounds of the park made it a great evening.
That evening I joined the boys after mass for dinner, and then Rian, Rob, Kenny, Jake, Maggie, Heather, and I went to a pub called Murphey’s for a pint. It was our Dublin group reunited again and we had a blast just talking and telling stories!
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