Hello Everyone! (Warning: This is going to be a long post with a lot of pictures so prepare yourself. And you can see all my pictures by clicking on the Pictures tab in the blue bar above).
It's been a pretty busy week for me. This is a reading week for most of my classes, so I only had to go to my Irish lectures, which was a nice break. On Tuesday I had a walking tour of Dublin through my Irish Studies class for which I had to prepare a short presentation on James Connolly. We saw the main sites (Trinity College, Old Parliament Building, Connolly Station, General Post Office, Spire, Garden of Remembrance). It was okay, but chilly and windy. On the bright side, I met the other UIC student who is here at UCD with me. I've got to say, it was good to finally meet someone from Chicago. After the tour was over, I decided to wander around the city center for a bit, which was a lot of fun. I stopped at a Thai place called Wok In for lunch, then went to St. Stephen's Green, which is a park in the city center. Now, I've got to say, St. Stephen's Green to me was absolutely picturesque. I couldn't believe I hadn't been there yet. It was simply a great park for a walk, or sitting by the pond. Here are some pictures from the walking tour and my personal wanderings:
Wednesday was pretty relaxing. After my one class, I did my grocery shopping and practiced some trumpet. Then I went out to dinner with a family friend's cousin who is living and working in Dublin. He took me to Govinda's, which is a vegetarian, Indian restaurant in the city center. I have to say that after nearly two months without Indian food, this was just what I needed. Before eating, we went to a temple above the restaurant, which was very nice, as there are barely any temples in the Dublin area (there's only one other one in a suburb). It was more of a shrine than a temple, but it was still very good to go. After dinner, my host took me to an Asian grocery store, so now I know where I can get supplies for making some basic Indian food. Overall, it was a good night.
Thursday was Halloween, and I only had one class at 4, so I slept in and caught up with friends back home. I didn't go out for Halloween because I didn't have anywhere to go, and no one to go with. In the grand scheme of things, I think it was for the best. Friday, however, was different. I didn't have any classes, so I slept in again, and watched some movies in my room. Then at night I went to my Serbian friend's apartment and hung out with her cousin and some friends from France and Chile for a while. We then went into the city center to a few pubs, then a nightclub called Coppers. Overall it was a great night of good craic. I tried Carlsberg beer, from Copenhagen, which was good, but pretty similar to all the other lagers I've had here. I guess I'm just not a beer connoisseur (HA! - Kevin and Jeffrey that's for you...you know what I'm talking about). I also managed to nick one of the new Guinness pint glasses from a pub, so yeah that happened...
Then today, I decided to do a little solo traveling...ish. I started by going into the city center to the national museum of natural history. They had a bunch of animal skeletons and taxidermy, and some fossils and minerals. Overall, I guess it was cool, but frankly, the taxidermy really freaked me out, and I'll admit it was pretty scary. I mean, when you see a giant taxidermy rhino staring at you, it's kinda frightening. So yeah because of that, I had to get out of there. I then walked around the city center for a while, waiting for a bus to take me northeast of the city to a small fishing village called Howth...
Now, Howth is...something else. When I got there, I walked along this boardwalk/pier to the end and ate some food I brought, as well as took some pictures. I got lucky with the weather, as it was partly sunny, so I could actually see things. The scenery was really amazing. While I was looking out on the harbor, I saw a seal rolling around in the water. I couldn't get close enough for a good picture, but I saw it and that's what counts.
After walking along the pier, I went into the town itself and strolled around their market and through the streets. I then saw signs for the Howth Summit, and knew I had to go (Howth is almost an island, and it's basically one big hill/small mountain). Unfortunately, after the one sign I saw, there were no more, so in the process of finding the summit, I got pretty lost. It started out well, as I found...
My pictures don't really do it justice, but it was a great view. So after this, I figured I was well on my way to the summit. Unfortunately, I got a little lost and ended up in a residential neighborhood, but it wasn't all that bad. It almost reminded me of Barrington a little bit. I eventually found my way to the summit...which was honestly kind of boring. Even now, I'm not sure if I was even at the summit, but I can't know for sure. I found this map though, and it pointed me towards the opposite shore of Howth, and it was there that I found out just how great this place was.
I eventually got to the shore where there were these awesome cliffs and just spectacular views. There was also a hiking path along the shore/cliffs which I decided to use to get back to the village area. Along the way I saw a very cute light house, two rainbows...yeah that's right...TWO rainbows, and some really cool cliffs. Honestly, the place was stunningly beautiful. Seriously, words cannot describe the beauty of Howth's coast. Here are a few pictures, but check out the tab above and the links on that page for more!
Again, my pictures don't quite do the place justice, but you'll have to take my word for it, that it was amazing! What was also quite amazing was that just after I finished the trail hike, the weather turned sour, and it started to rain. Luckily I was finished, and sufficiently tired, so I grabbed a green tea from a cafe, then took the bus back to the city center. Now, I must say that of all the days I've been here in Ireland, this trip to Howth easily ranks in my top 3 days. It was just a great day overall, considering my planning, the weather, and my good fortune with what I saw. Also I think what made me appreciate it even more was that I went by myself. I had a lot of time to be with my thoughts and reflect, and just enjoy my own company. It was quite refreshing, and it has given me confidence that I'll be fine for the two weeks I'll be traveling around Europe after the semester is over.
So, I was going to go back home, but then I remembered that today is Diwali, so I went back to the temple/shrine above Govinda's for a bit, then stopped at a convenience store for some dinner materials, and grabbed a bus back to UCD. Overall, a really busy day capping off a pretty super week.
It's been a pretty busy week for me. This is a reading week for most of my classes, so I only had to go to my Irish lectures, which was a nice break. On Tuesday I had a walking tour of Dublin through my Irish Studies class for which I had to prepare a short presentation on James Connolly. We saw the main sites (Trinity College, Old Parliament Building, Connolly Station, General Post Office, Spire, Garden of Remembrance). It was okay, but chilly and windy. On the bright side, I met the other UIC student who is here at UCD with me. I've got to say, it was good to finally meet someone from Chicago. After the tour was over, I decided to wander around the city center for a bit, which was a lot of fun. I stopped at a Thai place called Wok In for lunch, then went to St. Stephen's Green, which is a park in the city center. Now, I've got to say, St. Stephen's Green to me was absolutely picturesque. I couldn't believe I hadn't been there yet. It was simply a great park for a walk, or sitting by the pond. Here are some pictures from the walking tour and my personal wanderings:
The Old Parliament Building...now the Bank of Ireland
Daniel O'Connell statue, with the Spire in the background
The Garden of Remembrance, for those lost fighting for the cause of Irish freedom
Garden of Remembrance statue...with the flag in the background this seemed like an ideal photo opportunity
St. Stephen's Green
More St. Stephen's Green
The pond, complete with swans and ducks
And more St. Stephen's Green
Wednesday was pretty relaxing. After my one class, I did my grocery shopping and practiced some trumpet. Then I went out to dinner with a family friend's cousin who is living and working in Dublin. He took me to Govinda's, which is a vegetarian, Indian restaurant in the city center. I have to say that after nearly two months without Indian food, this was just what I needed. Before eating, we went to a temple above the restaurant, which was very nice, as there are barely any temples in the Dublin area (there's only one other one in a suburb). It was more of a shrine than a temple, but it was still very good to go. After dinner, my host took me to an Asian grocery store, so now I know where I can get supplies for making some basic Indian food. Overall, it was a good night.
Thursday was Halloween, and I only had one class at 4, so I slept in and caught up with friends back home. I didn't go out for Halloween because I didn't have anywhere to go, and no one to go with. In the grand scheme of things, I think it was for the best. Friday, however, was different. I didn't have any classes, so I slept in again, and watched some movies in my room. Then at night I went to my Serbian friend's apartment and hung out with her cousin and some friends from France and Chile for a while. We then went into the city center to a few pubs, then a nightclub called Coppers. Overall it was a great night of good craic. I tried Carlsberg beer, from Copenhagen, which was good, but pretty similar to all the other lagers I've had here. I guess I'm just not a beer connoisseur (HA! - Kevin and Jeffrey that's for you...you know what I'm talking about). I also managed to nick one of the new Guinness pint glasses from a pub, so yeah that happened...
Then today, I decided to do a little solo traveling...ish. I started by going into the city center to the national museum of natural history. They had a bunch of animal skeletons and taxidermy, and some fossils and minerals. Overall, I guess it was cool, but frankly, the taxidermy really freaked me out, and I'll admit it was pretty scary. I mean, when you see a giant taxidermy rhino staring at you, it's kinda frightening. So yeah because of that, I had to get out of there. I then walked around the city center for a while, waiting for a bus to take me northeast of the city to a small fishing village called Howth...
Now, Howth is...something else. When I got there, I walked along this boardwalk/pier to the end and ate some food I brought, as well as took some pictures. I got lucky with the weather, as it was partly sunny, so I could actually see things. The scenery was really amazing. While I was looking out on the harbor, I saw a seal rolling around in the water. I couldn't get close enough for a good picture, but I saw it and that's what counts.
A great view from the pier...not sure if it's the extension of the mainland, or Ireland's Eye
A view of the light house and another pier
Howth from the pier
Another view of Howth from the pier. I think I may have also been able to see Holyhead, Wales from the pier
After walking along the pier, I went into the town itself and strolled around their market and through the streets. I then saw signs for the Howth Summit, and knew I had to go (Howth is almost an island, and it's basically one big hill/small mountain). Unfortunately, after the one sign I saw, there were no more, so in the process of finding the summit, I got pretty lost. It started out well, as I found...
this paved path that the led to...
This great view from the hill, with Howth and the coast in sight
My pictures don't really do it justice, but it was a great view. So after this, I figured I was well on my way to the summit. Unfortunately, I got a little lost and ended up in a residential neighborhood, but it wasn't all that bad. It almost reminded me of Barrington a little bit. I eventually found my way to the summit...which was honestly kind of boring. Even now, I'm not sure if I was even at the summit, but I can't know for sure. I found this map though, and it pointed me towards the opposite shore of Howth, and it was there that I found out just how great this place was.
I eventually got to the shore where there were these awesome cliffs and just spectacular views. There was also a hiking path along the shore/cliffs which I decided to use to get back to the village area. Along the way I saw a very cute light house, two rainbows...yeah that's right...TWO rainbows, and some really cool cliffs. Honestly, the place was stunningly beautiful. Seriously, words cannot describe the beauty of Howth's coast. Here are a few pictures, but check out the tab above and the links on that page for more!
I wish I had a better quality camera to capture this picture of the coast
A nice house and light house off the coast
Rainbow #1 - a little hard to see
A view of some cliffs. These are pretty mediocre, but trust me, there were pretty awesome ones.
Rainbow #2
A really cool house on the cliffs...I'd love to live there.
Again, my pictures don't quite do the place justice, but you'll have to take my word for it, that it was amazing! What was also quite amazing was that just after I finished the trail hike, the weather turned sour, and it started to rain. Luckily I was finished, and sufficiently tired, so I grabbed a green tea from a cafe, then took the bus back to the city center. Now, I must say that of all the days I've been here in Ireland, this trip to Howth easily ranks in my top 3 days. It was just a great day overall, considering my planning, the weather, and my good fortune with what I saw. Also I think what made me appreciate it even more was that I went by myself. I had a lot of time to be with my thoughts and reflect, and just enjoy my own company. It was quite refreshing, and it has given me confidence that I'll be fine for the two weeks I'll be traveling around Europe after the semester is over.
So, I was going to go back home, but then I remembered that today is Diwali, so I went back to the temple/shrine above Govinda's for a bit, then stopped at a convenience store for some dinner materials, and grabbed a bus back to UCD. Overall, a really busy day capping off a pretty super week.
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