The Biddies Take Over Galway

I woke up early the day after beer olympics to go food shopping so that I could get supplies to make homemade macaroni and cheese. Once I got back and forced the Biddies to wake up (everyone but Liz because she wakes up early every morning) we decided to spend the day walking around Galway. We started at one end of Shoppe Street and walked to the end, stopping in shops along the way. We did a lot of shipping and they bought a lot of souvenirs. One of the stores we went to was called Thomas Dillon Shop, which is a jewelry store. This jewelry store is the original maker of the Claddagh ring. I already had a ring (my dad bought me one years ago when he went to Ireland with Mr. Bowman) but I wanted something from this store. I decided to buy a bracelet that had the Claddagh symbol on it. The bracelet is gorgeous.

The Biddies in Galway.

Lindsay is a coordinator of the Boston College Student Admissions Program. One of the ideas she had for the spring was to make a bulletin board. At the end of fall semester all of the SAP volunteers that were going abroad were given a SAP shirt. Lindsay decided to decorate the bulletin board with pictures of juniors who are abroad wearing their shirts. We all decided to wear our shirts out and took a picture underneath the Spanish Arch. People probably thought that we were weird wearing the same shirts but we did not care.

The Biddies under the Spanish Arch.

After a long day of shopping and walking, everyone was hungry so I brought them to Coach Potatas. They LOVED it. I got the Italiano Potatoe which had chicken, cheese, and tomato sauce in it. It was beyond delicious. We all ordered beers with our meals.

Christine and I at Coach Potatas.

After lunch, Lindsay went to meet Haley with dinner and Liz, Christine, and I went back to my apartment. We hung out for a while and watched some television (Friends, of course). I made dinner for us and then we got ready to go out. We pregamed a little and then met Lindsay and Haley at the Front Door. It was so nice to hang out with everyone again. I had such a great time.

Liz, Christine and I before going out.

Haley and I at The Front Door.

The girls at The Front Door.

Liz, Christine and I at The Front Door.

The Biddies at The Front Door.

Beer Olympics Come to Niland House.

Krissy, Emmy, and I decided that we really wanted to do beer olympics while here in Galway. We decided that there was no better way to end RAG week then do have an all day drinking event. We made teams of four and every team had to come up with a theme/team name. Christine and Liz decided to visit this weekend so they were also there. Lindsay, my roommate this year, came to Galway for BC's spring break so she was also here. I decided to make Lindsay, Christine, Liz, and Haley a team because they knew each other the best. The rest of the Niland girls were put on random teams. My team we Dorothy, Kelsey, Lauren, and myself. We decided to be the Black Eyed P's. To dress the part we wore all black, gave ourselves black eyes with black eye shadow, and put a giant P on our shirts. The games for Olympics consisted of boat races, dizzy bat, 7/11 doubles, flip cup, and a game that was a mixture of beer pong and flip cup. The olympics were never finished because everyone ended up drinking too much but the Black Eyed P's won the most amount of game and in my eyes that meant we won.

The Black Eyed P's.

The Black Eyed P's playing flip cup.

My friend Karrah and I.

Lindsay, Liz, Christine, Haley and I ordered pizzas for dinner. We have ordered from this pizza place before because they give you a giant pizza and since we had coupons it was buy one get one free. We got two giant pizzas for less than 20 euros. WHAT A DEAL!! Haley went back to her apartment because she had to be up the next morning but Lindsay stayed with me. We were supposed to go out but Lindsay, Liz and Christine were tired. We ended up staying in the living room and talking all night. It was really nice because we all got to catch up. Overall, it was a great way to end a week full of drinking.

Lindsay - she was really excited to be in Galway.

P.S. Everyone in the States could not understand what RAG week was. The best way I can explain it (especially to Boston people) is that it is Marathon Monday x7.

RAG Week

So the first week of March is called Ragweek in Ireland. In Galway particularly, this week is insane. It involves a lot of drinking and almost nothing else. RAG stands for raise a grand because the week is supposed to be a charity week but the students have made it into a week of partying instead. I came home on Sunday from Belfast and Derry and my friends and I decided to start RAG week off right, so we went out. We went to Skeffes so we could see what all the fuss was about and everyone was out. We did not stay out that late because we were all exhausted. My friend Krissy and I decided to wake up really early (10 a.m.) and go to Dunnes to buy some beer. I bought some Carlsberg.

Krissy and I in our apartment.

We then went upstairs to the fifth floor where we could sit outside to drink. Our other friends joined us and we spent the morning/beginning of the afternoon drinking outside with some Irish guys we met. The guys live in Niland House too and they said that RAG week is good "craic."

The BC girls outside on the 5th floor.

At about two o'clock we went to a bar on campus called Campus Bar. There were so many people there and the drinking continued. Later that day we went to The Front Door to end the first day of RAG week. We went out a couple of days throughout the week and it was so much fun.

Emmy, Krissy and I at Campus Bar with our new friend?

Time Flies...

Been super busy lately with my roommate visiting, then my family and then going to London. I have 6 days left of classes and I will be spending the next 9 days writing my 6 final papers. I will blog as soon as I have time. Miss and love you all.

A little history never hurt anyone.

Sorry for the lack of blogging lately. I do not know where my days go anymore. Last weekend (the last weekend in February) I went to Northern Ireland with the International Student Society at NUIG. I am one of the officers of the club so I got to go free of charge. My hostels, some of the tours, and transportation were all paid for. After weeks of planning the trip and making sure we had all the details figured out, it was finally time to go! The buses left from NUIG at 7a.m. on Friday which meant I had to be up around 5:30a.m. so that I could get ready and walk to campus bright and early. I did not go out the night before because I know myself well enough to know that I am not a morning person and waking up that early would be hard enough without having drank the night before. Once I got to campus I found some of the other officers and we waited for the buses to arrive. We went through a company called Paddy Wagons and the buses are huge and green. There were two buses and about 100 students and we had to check off everyone's names as they got on the buses. We left a little later than anticipated and not everyone was able to make it (apparently some partied too hard the night before) but eventually we left the parking lot. I knew no one on the trip (or at least none of my friends were on the trip) so I was nervous to say the least. The bus ride was about 5 hours and we finally arrived in Belfast at about 12:30p.m. The bus dropped us off right at our hostel (The Linen House) and of course all 100 or so of us walked right into the hostel. The officers had to figure out how to put everyone in the rooms and how to split everyone up. This was more difficult than we would have thought because no one wanted to leave their friends. I decided that I could sleep anywhere because it was just for sleeping. I put myself in a room with 24 beds and hoped for the best.

Once the rooms were situated we went sightseeing. I hung out with one of the other officers and her friends. It was a lot of fun and I was able to make a lot of new friends. We went to Victoria Square which has shopping but we went because it is a clear dome that if you walk to the top allows you to see all of Belfast. It was really pretty up there and the building itself is pretty also. After Victoria Square we headed back to the hostel because it was time for our bus tour of Belfast. We got two double-decker buses and I was able to sit on the top of one of them. The tour brought us to the Protestant and Catholic sides of town and even showed us the peace wall. Belfast went through troubles that only ended in recent years. The Troubles were so bad between the Protestants and Catholics that a wall had to be built to separate the two sides. You can still see bullet holes in some of the buildings. Our tour guide actually told us that the Troubles were not really about religion but were actually political. When the Troubles started Britain still had some control of Ireland so the Protestants were British and also loyalist and the people who still viewed themselves as Irish were Republicans and Roman-Catholics. I could not believe how much history was in the town. There were also lots of murals in Belfast that have been made throughout the years. Belfast is also the town where the Titanic was built. The tour guide even mentioned how the Titanic was fine when it left Belfast and that it was the people who took it out of Belfast that caused it to wreck. Another saying they have in Belfast is about the mountains that are located in the city. "If you can see mountains it will rain in 10 minutes and if you cannot see the mountains it is already raining."

Victoria Square.

Me at the top of Victoria Square.

The Titanic Memorial.

A mural in Belfast.

The Peace Wall.

When the tour was over we got dinner and then got ready to go out. Devin had told me to go to Whites when I was in Belfast and my tour guide also told us about the pub. It is the oldest bar in Belfast and was the only one that survived all of the Troubles. The pub was so cool and I was amazed at how long it had been there. It took us awhile to find Whites though because it is tucked behind some buildings. We also went to the Crown Bar which was really neat. When you walked in there were individual sections that people could sit in. Each one had a table and places for people to sit and if you wanted you could close the door and have your own private area in the pub.

Outside of Whites Pub.

Newspaper article about Whites.

All the currency in Whites.

The next morning we had to be up early to start the touring. I got up and ate breakfast (free with the hostel), which was only toast and butter. After breakfast we all got on the buses and headed to Carrick-a-rede rope bridge. The rope bridge links the mainland to a tiny Carrick Island. We had to pay to walk on the bridge but it was worth it. After the rope bridge we headed to Giant's Causeway. Giant's Causeway was the most beautiful spot I have ever been in my life. It was gorgeous and beyond words. Giant's Causeway has a bunch of interlocking basalt columns that formed because of an ancient volcanic eruption. It was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1986.

Me at Carrick-a-rede.

Me at Carrick-a-rede.

Carrick-a-rede rope bridge.

Me crossing the rope bridge.

Giant's Causeway.

Me at Giant's Causeway.

Me on top of the rocks at Giant's Causeway.

A beautiful mountain in Giant's Causeway.

Double rainbow in Giant's Causeway.

After Giant's Causeway we went to Derry which is a walled in city. Our buses were split into three hostels and 17 of us had to sleep in a bed and breakfast. I decided to stay at the bed and breakfast because I figured it had to be nicer than the hostel the night before. I had to sleep in a room with a girl I did not know and we had to share a bed which was not as awkward as it sounds. I got dinner with her and her friends and then we all took a nap. I slept from my nap until the next morning. I guess I was more tired than I realized. It was such an amazing night's sleep though and much needed it.

The next morning I woke up early and went on a walking tour of Derry. Derry has just as much history as Belfast and is very similar to it. Seeing the walls of the city was cool and many of the buildings also had gun shot holes that were still noticeable. The walls around the Church and the bank were very high and thick to keep out bombs. There were cannons everywhere. At the end of the tour, our guide brought us to the memorial site of where Bloody Sunday took place. After the walking tour we all got back on the bus and headed to Sligo to see Yeat's grave and the town of Sligo. After Sligo it was time to head home after a very interesting and action packed weekend.

The wall in Derry that closes in the city.

A cannon in Derry.

A mural in Derry.

You are now entering Free Derry monument.

Fun Fact: Northern Ireland's currency is Pounds or Sterling instead of Euros. One of the things they kept from when Britain ruled them.

The Good Life

"This is the good life. Take a good look. Have anything you want. This is the good life. Dining with your friends at the fancy restaurant. Living the good life. We have such a good time. I know."

This weekend I went to Dublin with the BC group. Maragaret and her husband, Brian, also came. We left at 9:30a.m. on Friday morning by bus and arrived in Dublin at 12:30p.m. Once we got dropped off we took cabs to the hotel we were staying at called The Burlington Hotel. IT WAS A FOUR STAR HOTEL!! We got to the hotel before Margaret because she was driving in to the city so we waited in the lobby for her to arrive. She checked us into the hotel and gave us our room assignments. There were three people to a room and I was staying with Katherine and Emmy. The rooms were really nice. They had big bathrooms with nice showers and three twin beds. The best part was the showers which constantly had warm water, unlike at the Niland House were you have to boost the water heater. This means we have to turn a dial on the water heater and wait 35 minutes for it to heat up before showering. This was such a luxury. We dropped our stuff off in our hotel rooms and headed back downstairs to meet everyone in the lobby. From the lobby we walked through Dublin stopping at a bagel place for lunch. I got a bagel with turkey, cheese, and mayo on it. It was so delicious. After lunch we walked past the Boston College House in Dublin. There are instructors at the colleges in Dublin from BC and they have their own house. It has Boston College flags and says BC everywhere. It is very neat. From the BC house we walked to Parliament where we were given a tour. Our taxi driver on the way to the hotel told us to bring matches with us and burn the place down. The people of Ireland are not happy with Parliament these days and as a matter of fact, Parliament was dissolved a couple of weeks prior to our arrival to Dublin. Elections take place within the next couple of weeks. Parliament was really cool to see and our tour guide was nice. I learned a lot even though some of it I did not understand. After Parliament we went back to the hotel because it was raining and we were all exhausted. Although I think we were actually not that tired but we really wanted to just relax in our nice hotel rooms. Once back in our rooms I watched some t.v. and then showered. The shower was so nice. I stayed in it for as long as I could and enjoyed the hot water. I then got ready and we headed downstairs for dinner.

The BC group in front of the BC House in Dublin.

We had dinner at a restaurant in the hotel the first night. It was three courses and the food was delicious. Before dinner we had bread and you would have thought we had not eaten in days the way we all attacked the rolls. I ordered some weird chicken dish as an appetizer. I decided to be adventurous and try something new. Boy was that a mistake. The appetizer was very bad. It was chicken that looked as though it was molded together, kind of like a lunch meat that has different types all molded together. Even though it went against every bone in my body, I tried the weird looking meat and although the chicken part was good the jello (?) part was not so good. I decided to just take one bite and leave the rest. For dinner I had steak and it was SO GOOD! I realized when I was eating it that I had not had steak in a really long time. It came with sliced up potatoes. I of course had to ask for ketchup and the waiter judged me for it. The steak came with a sauce which was actually quite delicious but it did not come with enough of it. For dessert I had cookies and cream which surprisingly had no cookies. It was three different types of ice cream with fruit flavoring on top. It was also very good. The meal was extremely filling and delicious. We also had a glass of wine each. After dinner some of us decided to go out while others wanted to stay in. I went out with some of my friends. It was very low key and we just hung out at a pub. Margaret paid for our taxis though for "safety reasons." It was nice to not have to walk and to have taxis paid for us.

Kegs at the pub on Friday night.

Saturday morning we got breakfast at the hotel. It was buffet style and there was once again a lot of good food. They had potatoes, scones, fruit, sausages, among other things. I had lots of coffee because it was real coffee and not the instant stuff I am used to drinking. Whenever I find real coffee I take advantage. After breakfast we headed to Dublin Castle. After taking my castles class I was looking forward to seeing a castle. And it was a real castle unlike the motte ones we hear about in class, which basically look like mounds. After the castle we walked to St. Stephen's Green Park and walked through the park. It was gorgeous. We then walked along Grafton Street and headed towards Trinity College. On Grafton Street some of my friends and I spotted a Starbucks and headed right towards it. It was really warm outside (I did not even have to wear a jacket) and so I got an iced caramel latte. It was really good and hit the spot. Trinity College was nice, not that exciting though. After seeing Trinity Margaret gave us money and sent us on our way to the Guinness Factory. The factory was even better than I thought it was going to be. Some of the girls did a pour your own pint tour where they were taught how to pour their own pints and they got to sample a bunch of Guinness. I did not do the tour because I want to do it with my dad when he comes. After walking through the factory we got to get a Guinness in the Gravity Bar. It was so good and the bar was packed, everyone was enjoying their Guinness pints. We took taxis back to Grafton Street where Margaret met up with us. We headed to a pub where her husband, Brian, bought us each a pint. I had a Carlsberg.

The BC group with Margaret by Dublin Castle.

The BC group in St. Stephen's Green.

Me at the Guinness Factory.

My friends and I sampling some Guinness.

The Gravity Bar.

A view of all the people in Gravity Bar.

My Guinness pint after the bartender poured it.

My friends and I with our Guinness pints at The Gravity Bar.

My friend Lauren and I enjoying our pints from Brian.

Once we were done with our pints, we headed to an Italian restaurant for dinner. Once again dinner was delicious, I think that this dinner was even better than the night before. I had antipasti as an appetizer and sausage for dinner. my appetizer was good and came with some dipping sauces. One of my friends got risotto with squid. I tried it (shocking) and it was really good. I also had some bread with pesto, which was also delicious. I was on a roll with trying new things. The sausage I had for dinner was SO GOOD. It came with a sauce that was too die for and potatoes. We also had lot of wine which we all enjoyed. There was no dessert at the restaurant because it was my friend's 21st birthday and Margaret got us cake and it was back at the hotel. We sang to her at the restaurant and then headed back to the hotel. We got ready, ate some cake, and headed out to celebrate my friends birthday. We went to a really fun pub called The Porterhouse. It was a lot of fun and we met some fun people. I met some guys from New Jersey, they even live in Morris County. One of them was from Warren and one was from Morristown.

My table eating dinner.

Sunday morning we got up early and went downstairs for breakfast. After breakfast I went to church with some of the girls. We had heard great things about the mass but I was greatly disappointed. The choir was not good and the mass was long. It was also in Latin so overall it was not enjoyable. Once mass was over we headed to the bus station to catch the bus back to Galway, unfortunately our weekend of being spoiled was over. I could definitely get used to this kind of treatment.

HEN PARTY!!

For those of you who do not know what a Hen Party is let me enlighten you - it is a bachelorette party. Except they seem to be way more common in Ireland than in the States which could mean that a) women get married more frequently in Ireland or b) people throw fake parties. Incase you could not guess which category my friends and I fell into, it is b. After having seen many Hen Parties while out on the streets of Galway, we decided to throw one ourselves. We decided that our friend Kelsey would "get married." Invitations were given to each girl in our program, we went all out. There were pins for each person attending the party and a sash for the bachelorette. We bought outfits for the night at a cheap store called Penny's. We started the night in the big room upstairs where we played drinking games and all hung out. One of the rooms made a punch and had it in big pots. It was really good. We left eventually and went to Coyotes to get our free shot and free glass of champagne. If you bring a party to the bar you get a free shot and free glass of champagne per person. It is quite the deal. The night was a blast. We had a great time dancing and celebrating the bachelorette party of one of our friends. Haha.

Our free glasses of champagne.

Me and my roommates.

The group before we went out.