Being Productive for Once

Sunday, 2.9.2014:

Today I actually got some homework done and planned some stuff for the rest of the semester - not exciting but at least it is productive. In the middle of my homework I got to Skype Andy and Sarah. It was great to see them and hear about what is going on in their lives. I've missed both of then dearly. After a day of being cooped up a bunch of us decided to go to a comedy show in Temple Bar area. It was a ton of fun and the best part was it was free! It reminded me of all the comedy discs Mom and Dad made me listen to on every road trip since I was 5. It was a great end to the day and I was extremely happy I went! The night was capped off with a Skype session to my one and only Forrest Gump, Maddie, my best friend from STL. It was great to goof around with her! It made me miss all the weird conversations we have when we are back in St. Louis. Until next time followers.

Cheers,
Jenny

Glendalough Round 2

Saturday, 2.8.2014:

We woke up early again in order to get ready for another day trip to Wicklow and Glendalough. Personally, I think I could have gone without doing this trip since it wasn't anything new. We drove up to this mountain to hike but it was too windy, rainy and cold for us to hike it. We ended up spending about an hour in the bus since we couldn't do anything. Sarah and I left the bus to take some pictures with the sheep #tourists.

Even though this sounds really dorky I want to go to a sheep farm and watch some border collies in action and hold a lamb. Apparently there is a farm in Kerry where you can do this - I gotta find some time to go. We finally got the bus moving and went to Glendalough. I have been there before so I was a little bummed I wasn't seeing anything new but it was still a lovely hike. It was also nice to talk to some of the Wisconsin kids and get to know them better.

After the hike we went into a little town to get some good and walk around for a bit. We only had time to eat some food but we did get to see the center of the town where part of the movie Leap Year was filmed. That was pretty neat. Sarah and I also made plans to check out some of the antique shops when we are back in Dublin. Once we were finally back at the apartment we just had a lazy night. We really tried to motivate ourselves to go out but we just couldn't work up the energy. The only productive thing about the night was I convinced Nathan to drop box me both Leap Year and PS I Love You.

Cheers,
Jenny

Cakes, Churches and Cheeseburgers

Friday, 1.7.2014:

On Friday, everyone slept in a little before getting up for the day. This was also a packed day with touristy things. Thomas and I went to get him an Irish breakfast at the Bell and Pot, a cute restaurant I found online. While Thomas ate his Irish breakfast I digged into some delicious hotcakes. Once all the food was snarfed down we walked over to St Patrick's Cathedral. It was a beautiful, sunny day so we enjoyed walking through the park right next to the cathedral. I ended up not paying to go into the Cathedral because I didn't have my nice camera to take pictures with, but Thomas went in. He said that it was very pretty, but smaller than he expected. We then strolled along to Christ Church down the road. Neither of us ended up going in but we did sit on a bench and soaked up some of the brilliant sun rays. We then walked towards the City Hall and Dublin castle. City Hall had some pretty cool pamphlets about the city and it's crest. We then tackled Dublin Castle. I think the castle was neat but it's the best tourist thing to do in Ireland. After the castle and the courtyard we walked on home. Thomas went to get some burgers while I relaxed on the couch. We both just relaxed and ate our food before Thomas had to leave to catch his flight home. I gave Thomas a giant hug as headed out. It was truly a lovely time to have him I'm Dublin. The rest of the night everyone relaxed in the living room. I got a chance to Skype Nathan which was great since I was really missing the guy. It was grand to hear how he was doing and all. Although it was a lazy night, it was a perfect end to my week.

Cheers, 

Jenny

Making New Friends Here and There

Thursday, 2.6.2014:

Although everyone probably felt like sleeping in, we all woke up and got ready for class. And by everyone I do mean Thomas as well. He wanted to accompany me to class this day. The first class was very math based so Thomas was pretty bored. I found it incredibly interesting.....#dork. After my first three hours of class everyone went and grabbed some lunch; Thomas was able to meet more of the Illinois kids while we ate. After lunch it was time for the last class. Thomas didn't seem too fascinated about this class either since he just sat and read the newspaper the whole time. Once all my classes for the day were over Thomas and I headed over to the Jameson Distillery. We drank some famous Jameson Whiskey drinks while we talked about class. 

Fun fact: The Irish Coffee is wayyyyyyy better than the Irish Hot Chocolate. 

This time I had a different tour guide who ended up being much more informative than the one I had earlier in the semester. At one point in the tour I got a glimpse of what being married to Thomas would be like since we got into a little spat while trying to work a camera - I don't think we'd be a good married couple. Sorry mom, I think it's time to give up on that pipe dream. During the tour I made Thomas raise his hand in order to do the taste testing since I thought he'd love it - I was right. As I drank my free drink I watched Thomas in his element of joking with the other testers and enjoying the three different types of whiskey. While Thomas was being well, Thomas, I chatted with the guy at my table. Turns out he was a guy my age from Australia traveling around Europe during his semester break. I had a lovely time chatting with Sam (that's his name) about a couple of his adventures and about me studying here in Ireland. All of us got up to head downstairs since the tour was at it's end. When we got to the exit Sam was waiting to try and get a recommendation on a good restaurant nearby. Unfortunately, I didn't know the area too well so I wasn't able to help him out on a recommendation, but I did ask if he had any big plans for the night. He didn't, and so I invited him to join all the Illinois and Wisconsin kids since we were all going out that night. We Facebook friended each other so we could figure out the details later. After I made my new friend, Thomas and I headed back home for some dinner and a nap. On the way home we got into a debate about art and museums.

Fun fact: Thomas does not think waiting in a long line is worth it to see famous pieces of art.

When back at home Thomas took a nap while I took a short online quiz and made some dinner. Once all the food was ate all the roommates got ready to go out. Sam joined us at our place and then we all walked over to Fortesque Lane to meet up with everyone else. On the walk over I got to hear more of Sam's adventures around Europe. I always find it incredibly fascinating to hear what other amazing things people have done. While at Fortesque Lane, I chatted some more Sam and my housemate Sarah. I also had a chance to catch up with my friend Reid. Eventually Becca and Catie wanted to get going, so a couple of us headed out to Coppers. This club ended up being very dead - like ten people max at this place kinda dead. We found out that everyone else had migrated to Flannerys, a nearby pub. We decided to join them but in the process of getting there Becca and Catie walked us in a giant circle right back to Coppers. I ended up asking the coat check girl for directions and got us there no problem. Flannerys ended up being A TON of fun! The pub was packed and there was live music. Everyone was having a blast belting the music and dancing along.  After the live band finished playing a couple of us decided to return to Coppers. Thankfully it had filled up a lot more, but even with it being more packed I wasn't loving it that much so Sam and I decided to leave while Thomas, Sarah, and Helen decided to stay. Sam and I had a lovely chat on the walk home about our families and jobs back home. He was a gentleman by walking me to my door  before heading back to his hostel. The day ended up being a giant success!

Being Classy

Wednesday, 2.5.2014:

Wednesday consisted of a full day of classes per usual. Unfortunately, my classes are pretty bland and I don't find them too interesting which makes it hard to pay attention. After my long day of classes I made it back home and cooked up some grilled cheese for Thomas and me. In addition, to the other problems in our house, the kitchen floor is slanted which causes the stove top to be slanted as well. This means that nothing cooks evenly and so the grilled cheeses suffered a little. Post dinner all the roommates and Thomas got ready to go out. Our friend Anna come over and all of us headed of to a club called The Academy for a party. The party ended up being tons of fun and everyone had a great time. It was also nice to go out with a smaller group of people. I've learned that smaller group sometimes end up being the best move when it comes to tackling a big European city - apparently even going out has it's teachable moments. Andy knows what I mean when I say this. #heckchildren

 

Dublin Museums and Parks

Tuesday, 2.4.2014:

We woke up pretty early in order to get some touristy things done. We attempted to find this cute little restaurant that served an excellent Irish Breakfast but my Google maps failed me. We ended up having to settle for a little hole in the wall place near Merrion Square Park. We then went two different museums - The National History of Ireland: Archaeology and The National History of Ireland: Natural History. I thought both were pretty boring and uninteresting. At the first one there was an elementary school tour, Thomas and I awkwardly followed the group through the museum because the docent was really knowledgeable. Amazingly the kids actually paid attention. I found this shocking because as a camp counselor, getting kids to pay attention to educational things is like pulling teeth. Guess there is a difference between Irish and American kiddos. 

After the two museums we ventured to the two famous parks in Dublin - Merrion Square Park and St. Stephens Green. I loved walking through the tranquil parks, it allowed me to feel like I am not in a big metropolitan area for 20 minutes. At St. Stephens Green we took pictures with the Oscar Wilde statue that sits at the corner of the park. We then went back home to eat some lunch and Skype my parents. My parents had no idea that Thomas was visiting so they were shocked when they saw him on the call.

 

We had a lovely time chatting with them. Unfortunately I had to leave Thomas in order to do a group project (yes I am still being academic here in Ireland). While I was at school, Thomas decided to do a self guided tour around the city. After my project I went back home and made up some dinner for Thomas and I. When dinner was over Thomas hung out in the living room with the roommates while Catie and I went over to Stephens Lane in order to book some flights and plan some itineraries for upcoming trips. Walking to and from Stephens Lane was absolutely miserable since there was a horrible rain storm. I don't think I have ever experience wind like that before. Also I don't think cheap umbrellas stand a chance in Ireland; my personal cheapo umbrella flipped inside out like 5 times on the ten minute walk. In addition to having a horrible walk in the rain we found out that our apartment has two gigantic ceiling leaks. These leaks caused 5 of our 7 pots and pans to be taken out of commission. Thankfully my housemate, Melissa emailed our landlord to get it fixed. Everyone called it a night early since all the housemates had class early and Thomas had a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher. 

Cheers,
Jenny

Special Visitor

Monday 2.3.2014:

Due to my cold I decided to sleep in so I could build up my strength so I could show my visitor around the city. And who was my visitor? THOMAS! Good ole Thomas from high school. He was a foreign exchange student when I was a freshman in high school and we have been friends ever since. He was supposed to come into town around 12, but do to difficulty with buses he didn't get to my place until about 3. To say I was a little worried that he was lost in the heart of Dublin was an understatement. I was extremely glad when he finally made it to my home. After a big bear hug we caught up a little then decided to go to the Guinness Storehouse. This time at the storehouse I actually got to read everything and enjoy a little education (like a true Heck). We also had the opportunity to try the tasting opportunity which was fascinating because it allowed us to find out the aromas of each individual ingredient in a pint of Guinness. After the storehouse we stopped by a famous chipper to get some Fish and Chips before heading home. Back at my place we enjoyed our dinner and some whiskey. The rest of the night we just stayed in and chatted with the roommates. It was a very relaxing evening.

Cheers,
Jenny

Day in Zurich

Sunday 2.2.2014

We woke up and tired to tiptoe around our rando roommate in the hostel as we got ready for the day. We signed out of our hostel and headed out into the city looking for some food.

Fun fact: No restaurants are open in Zurich on Sundays, at least not early in the morning.





We walked around for a long time trying to find something open and ended up deciding that McDonald's was our best bet. Surprisingly, McDonald's was a great decision since it really was our cheapest option. Zurich, and Switzerland for that matter, is extremely expensive. While we chowed down on our breakfast sandwiches we tried to find plans for the day. We ended up choosing a Swiss National Museum. It was a pretty interesting museum because it had a smattering of exhibits - one minute we would be looking at an exhibit about the history of fairy tails and the next minute we are looking at the national collection of Swiss Armory. After the museum we decided to walk around the lake. It was tons of fun to see the lake and look at the mountains. Reminded me of all the lovely walk around Creve Coeur Lake. Unfortunately, my camera was experiencing some difficulties so my pictures weren't as good. After the long walk we decided to hit up a Starbucks for some wifi and delicious hot chocolate. We figured out how to get to the airport and a good restaurant to eat some dinner. Before heading to dinner we went and saw the Grossmunster Church, it was a very pretty Romaneque-stlye church. After walking around we went and at some bratwursts at this cute little place near the lake. Although the food was great, I was ready to go back to Dublin and make my own food for a while. Once dinner was over we made our way to the airport to catch our plans back to our own cities. I was incredibly grateful when I was finally back in my own home and in my own bed. One of the great surprises of getting home was there was a real couch in my living room. Yes, a real couch, not a beanbag couch. All the roommate are super excited about it!

 

Cheers, 

Jenny