So Long for Now...

Hello friends!

I hope this post finds you well, and for all of you preparing for and/or enduring finals- good luck! 

This week has been full of finals, nights out with friends, a final trip to Castlerock, good-byes, and packing. My mom arrived yesterday and we have been running around the city together; it's been wonderful to have her here and I am so glad that she has been able to see where I've been living and also meet some of my friends. It's weird though too because I still remember when we bought our tickets home together early on in the summer; our trip seemed so far off and I can't believe how quickly it has arrived! The last few months have flown and while I am excited to be at home again, I am also realizing how much I will miss Derry. This has been an amazing experience and I have been blessed by the experiences I have had and the wonderful people I have met. 

That being said, thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog- I hope it was a good read :-) And thank you all for the emails, thoughts, and prayers- they were definitely felt and I am so grateful for the zillions of ways God has blessed and taught me during my time here.

I am excited to see you all again whether that be at home during Christmas or back at school in January!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas!

Until we meet again :-)

Love,

Sara

The Beginning of the End...

So I can't believe how quickly these last few months have flown- one more week of classes! Crazy! Mary-Claire decided to leave a week early, since she is spending the next semester in France (!), so we decided to have a last night out at Peadar's on Monday night. 

I took a short video of Monday night's session which was a pretty fun one; unfortunately though there was a bus load of loud, drunken tourists so it was harder than usual to hear the musicians.

Peadar's has become one of my favorite places to hang out in Derry. There's music every night and the pub has a fun, comfortable atmosphere. So if you ever find yourself in Derry you should definitely check it out :-) There are usually far more people than there are places to sit, which usually leads to sharing benches with absolute strangers who soon become friends as the night goes on- whether you like it or not :-) 

I've had some interesting conversations with people there who have spent some time in America and have really made me think about our culture back home. On Monday we met Jason who was surprised by how unfriendly Americans are. He said most people ignored him or told him to "go away," whereas in Derry it's totally normal to start conversations with strangers on the street. I really hope that I will take the small-town friendliness I've experienced here back to the States with me. We also met Margaret who told us she loves how people look after one another here. I've found that to be so true in my experience here on campus; whenever I run into friends they always ask how I'm "gettin' on," checking up on me to make sure I'm doing well. I feel like in the States I fall into using "how are you?" as a greeting without really caring to hear the answer, something that definitely doesn't work here! As soon as the phrase rolls out of my mouth, the person stops walking and turns around to talk- even if they're running late for class. I love it! Being here has made me realize how valuable relationships with friends and family are, and how important it is to make sure they know that I care about them.

Ceol agus craic i nGaillivh

So after this weekend, I have officially decided that my friends and I have this incredible gift of attracting really odd situations. 

But before I dive into that discussion, I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!! I had the privilege of spending Thanksgiving with some dear friends in Galway. We figured fish and chips and a pint at the pub would be a good way to spend the holiday while in Ireland :-)

Galway was a wonderful city! It had the bustling feel of Dublin, but with a small-town, relaxed edge. We spent most of our time wandering and shopping, but we also managed to toss in a visit to the craft village in An Spideal, a smaller town in the Gaeltacht. We met a friend of Grainne who owns a T-shirt printing shop and also got to chat with a jeweler- I think we were the only tourists to visit that day :-) We also got to check out the Saturday morning market in town which was a fun experience as well. While the weather may not be ideal, I am loving traveling through Ireland this time of year- since there aren't many tourists, we've had some great opportunities to chat with locals!

So back to my aforementioned decision. I feel like I come back from weekend trips with some of the randomest stories- most of which happen to occur in pubs:

Case #1: On Thursday night we decided to check out a couple of pubs in town, in search of music sessions mostly, and ended up spending most of the evening in a quieter, relaxed place with some good musicians. There was a group of older guys at the table next to us, and one of them kept giving us side-glances. I made the mistake of yawning loudly, which gave him an excuse to start a conversation with us, "Was that a yawn I just heard?" After a bit of chatting, our new friend Oliver handed me a cell  phone and told me to say "hello" to a friend. After a bit of protest I said "hi" and the person on the other end mumbled a bunch of stuff I couldn't understand. I passed the phone back over to Oliver and his son grabbed the phone and ran outside with an annoyed "That was my wife!!" So apparently Oliver used me to teach his son to never lie to his wife about his whereabouts; he had to explain why an American girl was using his phone while he was supposed to be at home watching TV- oh joy. After some stories and Oliver sneaking pictures of me with his phone, we decided it was a good time to take our leave...

Case #2: The next night, we ended up running into our friends from Cork. It was so fun to see them and it made the island of Ireland feel a bit smaller :-) After running in and out of pubs for a bit, we decided to head back to the pub where we met Oliver the night before- we figured he wouldn't be in the same place twice. However, guess who was sitting at the bar when we walked in! I darted past him hoping he wouldn't recognize us- I guess Oliver had had more to drink than I realized the night before since he didn't give us a second glance :-) I had a blast with my friends at the bar that night- the craic and music was great! The band sang a lot of traditional songs and threw in a couple of unaccompanied songs as well as an amazing rendition of "Danny Boy." 

After a few hours another musician came in, armed with an electric guitar and a variety of songs. More and more people streamed into the pub and a pretty drunk guy ended up next to Mary Claire and I. He was really into the music and kept dancing around and asking us to dance with him using the line, "You'll win 'em all!!" Oh dear. He was super nice, but I don't think he realized how awkward it is to turn to a girl and shout, "Abra cadabra, I'm gonna grab ya!" I think that was when we decided to look for another pub :-)

The city was mad busy with people everywhere and after a quick walk-about we decided to head back to the hostel. 

Case #3: That night I had this really weird dream where people were running around and talking super loudly; but then one of the guys in my dream said, "We don't want them all to wake up to two half-naked guys sleeping together!" followed by Mary-Claire's voice explaining that all of the beds in our hostel room were full. What?! I turned over and opened my eyes to two guys talking to Mary-Claire in the top bunk of the bed opposite me and glanced at my watch- 5:30am. I blinked a bit and then one of the guys turned towards me and told his friend, "Another one's awake!" By then, my friends were all sitting up in bed and chatting with these two confused Irish guys named Davey and Trevor. They walked over towards my bed, introduced themselves, and Davey said, "You're small! I'll share with you!" and proceeded to climb into bed with me. Well that definitely woke me up!- I sprawled out and told him, "I'm small but I take up a lot of room!" So instead Davey found my hairbrush and started brushing my hair while Trevor started scratching my head like a dog- like I said, random! It turns out that the hostel had double-bunked our room and there weren't enough beds for the guys. Lucky for us they were super nice guys and not some creepers barging into our room (thank you Lord)! Davey and Trevor decided to hang around and chat for a bit and Trevor ended up climbing into my bed to talk about cars and ask whether I would shoot him since I'm from Montana. So while we were talking, Davey grabbed one of Lacey's books on peace and conflict studies and asked, "Is this your diary?" He opened the book up and "read" "Dear Diary, today I met two hunky, sexy Irish boys named Davey and Trevor..." At around 6 they left to find another room after shaking our hands and saying how nice it was to meet us. After they left, we all kind of looked around at each other and laughed ourselves back to sleep.

Like I said, I feel like these kinds of situations just follow us wherever we go! But I'm loving being able to tell these odd stories and have definitely been using them as shock factors in emails to loved ones: "Hi Mom! Galway was great! I have a story for you that ends with an Irish boy in my bed. Love, Sara." 

Anyways, I just wanted to relay a weekend full of friends, music, and fun and wish you all a wonderful day full of laughter :-)

Slainte/Cheers!!

942.7 Miles.

Question: What do you get when you combine 5 friends, a rental car, and 5 days in Ireland? 

Answer: A freaking amazing time!!!

This past week Lacey, Luisa, Hannah, Mary-Claire, and I rented a car and mapped out a route through the Republic of Ireland. Lacey was our driver since she was the only one with a successful history of stick-shift driving. I went with her and Hannah to pick-up the car and we decided to do a few loops around the airport parking lot before hitting the road- definitely a good choice since we all, back-seat drivers included, had quite a time adjusting to driving on the other side of the road. 

We left Derry after classes on Tuesday evening and stopped at a hostel in Galway for the night. Since we got there so late in the evening we didn't get a chance to experience the city but I am definitely planning on returning before I head back home. The hostel in Galway was great and we met a girl from Washington state who decided to travel through Ireland after spending a few months in Belgium.

Wednesday morning led us to Killarney where we stayed in a thatched cottage (!!!!) for 2 nights. We were definitely excited to find that the cottage had 6 beds, a fireplace, and a bathtub- AND it was nearly the same price as staying in a hostel! It was such a wonderful break from life in the student village and a great time getting to know one another better- I had a few close calls with death by laughter :-)

That evening we made our way to Killarney National Park to visit the Muckross House. It was built in 1843 and our tour of it taught us about living in the 19th century, both as wealthy landowners and as servants. We spent most of our time in the garden which was beautiful- I doubt we even covered half of it during our time there! It was a great time to run around and stretch our legs after being in the car so long. Unfortunately for us, the lush green lawn we decided to run across ended up being a semi-bog :-) 

On Thursday we drove through Kenmare and visited a few of the shops there before embarking on the drive through the Ring of Kerry. Kenmare was a cute town with brightly colored shops and lots of wool sweaters, scarves, and mittens for sale.

The drive through the Ring of Kerry was beautiful and allowed us to experience quite the variety of scenery- open fields, forests, lakes, hills, and even the ocean :-) We stopped every few miles or so to take pictures and pretty soon Luisa had us on timed stops- 2 minutes each :-) One of the stops we made was at a stone fort known as the Staigue fort. The fort itself was built without mortar- the walls are made up of flat rocks piled on top of one another. Temporary housing was constructed within the wall for the chieftain and his family, servants, and guards. There were stairs that crisscrossed the inside of the walls which allowed for easy access to the top of the wall- we definitely took advantage of that and got an amazing view of the hillside.

After climbing around a bit we got back in the car and drove the rest of the Ring. The Ring of Kerry snakes through a few small towns in the Gaeltacht so it was fun to stop and hear people speaking Irish and attempt to pick out the few words and phrases I know from class- and realize how badly I butcher the language with my American accent :-)

The following day, Friday, we drove down towards Cork with a side-trip to the Blarney Castle. I got to kiss the Blarney Stone- it was definitely quite an experience! Basically, you climb to the top of the castle, lay down on the ground, and this older gentleman pushes you off the side as you hang onto a metal bar and bend over backwards to kiss a wall. I'm still waiting for this gift of eloquence to kick in :-)

After the castle we drove down to Cork and stayed in a hostel in town. We shared a room with Emily, a girl from Brighton, England. She ended up showing us around Cork and went out with us for dinner and drinks- it was so fun to hang out with her! I'm definitely realizing how much I am going to miss pub culture when I go home- I love how easy it is to fall into conversation with random people. I met a guy from Mission Viejo, CA (small world!) whose daughter is studying at the University in Cork. We also ended up talking with a group of American guys who are studying in Galway and were staying in Cork for the weekend. It was a time of good craic and it was fun to compare our different experiences in Northern Ireland and in the Republic.

On Saturday we said "goodbye" to Emily and drove to the Waterford Crystal Factory. Unfortunately they don't give any tours of the factory on weekends, but it was still neat to see some of their work on display and in the gift shop. There were instruments, a football helmet, and even a grandfather clock all made of crystal! In one room I found a champagne glass taller than me- which I guess isn't saying too much :-) 

After Waterford we drove towards Wexford and stopped at Hook Lighthouse- the oldest functioning lighthouse in the world! It was built in the 12th century and for a time was kept by monks living in a nearby monastery. Before the lighthouse was constructed there were lots of shipwrecks- our guide told us that the trade route nearby was pretty dangerous- so the monks kept fires going in order to warn sailors of the rocky coastline. The timing of our trip to the lighthouse was perfect (thanks Lord!) since we got to watch the sun set from the top and the lighthouse beacon shine as we drove towards our hostel in Tramore. 

Our final day, Sunday, included a trip to the Rock of Cashel and a beautiful Sunday drive back to Derry. The Rock of Cashel was, from 300-1100 AD, the site of the thrones of the ancient kings of Munster. It is also where St. Patrick baptized King Aengus in 450ish AD. The story goes that St. Patrick accidentally stabbed the King's foot with his crosier staff during his baptism and the King held his tongue thinking it was part of the painful process of becoming a Christian. 

After wandering through the chapel, cathedral, and the graveyard we hopped back in the car and drove to Derry. While it was definitely a good chunk of mileage it was a beautiful day and a great time of conversation, laughter, and singing songs we learned along the way- many of which should probably not be sung in Northern Ireland... 

While this is definitely the Reader's Digest version of our road trip through the Republic of Ireland I hope it gives you a rough idea of what we saw and where we went :-) This was an amazing trip- I got to see so much more of the island of Ireland, meet some fun people, and grow closer to my friends from uni. While I may never be able to eat a peanut-butter and jam sandwich again, I was so blessed by a wonderful time with wonderful friends!

Dublin and Foxes and Wicklow oh my!

Hello there!! I hope all is well with you!

These last two weeks have been a blast and I feel like I have quite a bit to write about. Now that I have a camera (thanks a mill Dad!!) I can include photos in this and future posts :-) Yay!

So back to the first week of November....

That Monday Sue, my study abroad coordinator, came to Derry for a quick visit- it was so great to see her! We went to lunch with 2 other girls from Whitworth who are also here for the semester and talked about our experiences here thus far. I am glad we got to spend an hour or 2 together and it was fun to hear that Graeme is considering studying abroad in Japan next fall. Maybe he'll let me come and visit him? :-)

On Tuesday after class I booked it to the train station to meet up with my Dad. He decided to stop by on his way home from Russia and I am so glad he did, it was so great to see him! That afternoon we walked the city walls and visited the Free Derry Museum. It was cool to show my Dad where I am studying and take him to a few of my favorite places in town; showing him around helped me realize how much more at home I am feeling in the city of Derry.

That night we went to Peadar O'Donnells with some friends from uni which was awesome! There was a great band playing that night and we ended up sticking around until almost 1 AM. I heard the song "The Ballad of Joe McDonnell" for the first time that night which ended up being a really moving experience. It is about the IRA Hunger Strike that took place in 1981 and it was amazing to see how emotional people in the pub were when they started playing it. It got super quiet and so many people started singing along. It's been such a challenging but amazing experience to learn about the Troubles and see how it has impacted the people I am living in community with here- but I definitely have so much more to learn.

After classes we took the bus down to Dublin and stayed in a hotel right on O'Connell street- one of the busiest streets in Dublin which was a wonderful place to stay since it seemed like there was always something going on. Dublin was a great city to hang out in; it's a pretty international city so I heard quite the variety of accents and languages while walking around. We did a lot of wandering up and down the streets and got to see a few of the sights.

While in Dublin we saw the Book of Kells, the Guinness Storehouse, the National College of Art and Design, and a Fleet Foxes concert- we stood right in front of the stage!! I am so glad we got to hang out in Dublin together and it was definitely a trip I'll never forget :-)

Dad left Dublin on Sunday morning so I wandered around the city for a while before meeting up with some friends who came to Dublin from Derry. It was fun to walk around and take pictures- it was so quiet in the morning! Quite different from the hustle and bustle of the city we experienced during the day.

 

After meeting up with Luisa, Lacey, and Hannah we took a tour bus down and around Wicklow National Park which was a blast! It's where they filmed P.S. I Love You, one of my favorite movies, so it was neat to see the scenery in person :-) The park was amazing- we drove through lots of fields of heather and past the Wicklow mountains. It was freezing outside so our guide drove us to different view points so we could stop and take some pictures and jump back on the bus.

While it may have been warmer to travel through the park in the summer, the fall colors of the changing leaves were definitely worth it- it was beautiful! On our tour we also got to see the neighborhood where Bono lives which was pretty cool. Our guide drove us past Guinness lake as well- sand was imported and placed at the top of the lake so that it looks like the head of a beer.

Our bus tour ended at a monastery in Glendalough which was a really cool site to have a walk around. It was built in the 6th century- it still amazes me how old things are here! I'm realizing how much I love visiting sites connected with early Christian history and learning about how early Christians connected with the people in Ireland and how monasteries functioned within their communities.

The monastery was beautiful in spite of the pouring rain and we got to walk along some of the trails behind it which led to some gorgeous views of the surrounding lakes. But by the time we made it back to the bus we were totally soaked! I quickly learned that my North Face coat isn't as waterproof as I was once led to believe :-) Our bus driver offered to drop us off at the bus station on the way back into Dublin which was wonderful! That way we didn't have to walk through the pouring rain to the station and were able to catch an early bus to Derry.

It was such a blessing to have some time out in the park in the fresh air- it was a welcome break from the concrete and cigarette smoke of city life :-)

Sunday in Belfast

Our Sunday in Belfast was really sobering. Luisa and I learned that there was going to be a homecoming parade for the British soldiers in Belfast as well as a protest organized by Sinn Fein against the soldiers. We decided to go and as we were driving into Belfast we wondered whether it was a good idea to go to the march; there were armed police everywhere and they were searching cars before allowing people into the city- something I'd never seen before! We fought our way through the crowds and ended up in the middle of a group of extremely vocal and politically charged young men- they swarmed the sidewalk around us and filled the scaffolding above us, many armed with British flags. The street was full of people and the BBC estimated that 30,000 people were in the city for the parade and protest. It turns out the Sinn Fein protestors gathered right across the street from us and were surrounded by police with bullet-proof shields and helmets with face masks. As soon as the British supporters around us saw the protestors they threw their middle fingers up in the air and swore at them. They kept calling them f%$*ing gypsies, scum, and kept singing the song "Go home scum, the famine's over...". The blatant hatred made my stomach churn. Luisa and I made sure to stay together and at one point we thought we heard a gun shot which, praise the Lord!, ended up being a firework. As soon as it went off a bunch of guys jumped off of the scaffolding and started running, as did a few people in the crowd, so we took off towards the next street over. After discovering it wasn't a gunshot we wandered back and this time hung out a bit farther away from the crowd. I kept looking back at the corner we were previously standing on and it looked like something out of a history book- it all felt so surreal, I guess because I've only read about the Troubles in books and haven't actually experienced much of the aftermath. Luckily the soldiers made it down the street safely and were definitely appreciated by the majority British-supporters there. Afterwards though people started throwing fireworks and bottles at the Sinn Fein protestors so we decided it was fine time to head out.
I read some BBC articles and no one got hurt which I was glad to hear! Reporters were saying that this served as a test to see how the peace process is faring in Belfast and Northern Ireland. While it is definitely a lot better than it was during the Troubles, I think that they still have quite a ways to go. It was amazing though- at one point while the British supporters were yelling at the protestors (sorry if I sound rather one-sided, I didn't hear what was being said on the other side of the street; although I do know that the police kept a more vocal Republican group of protestors away from the march) an older man walked down the middle of the road with a sign that read, "Jesus says to love your neighbor as yourself." It was amazing to be reminded of Jesus during such a time.
I am really glad that I went; it really got the wheels in my head turning and helped me to realize how much in prayer I need to be for the people here; especially with such a hurting past in need of healing. I am so grateful that nothing worse happened beyond angry words.

A Week of Firsts

Hello again and Happy Day-Before-Halloween! I hope this post finds you well! I am quickly discovering that Derry is the place to be on Halloween and can't believe the mass of Halloween decorations all over the city. I have heard that around 30,000 people come to Derry for a night of fireworks, good craic, and drink. It should definitely be an interesting night...

This week has definitely been a week of firsts, which might be the best way to divide this post:

1. First concert in Derry!- I went with some friends to hear the Battlefield Band, a traditional music group from Scotland, which was amazing!! They played at Sandino's, a pretty popular bar in Derry. I had never been there before and from first impression it seems like a pretty eclectic place- especially with the FSLN signs along the walls :-) The music was great and it was fun to run into friends from uni; one of the students from the music department got up and played with the band which was awesome :-)

2. First visit to the Republic of Ireland: my favorite part is that we had no idea we were in the Republic :-) I went with Lacey and Hannah to Armagh, which is in Northern Ireland, but we had to change buses in Monaghan, a city we thought was in Northern Ireland. When we got to Monaghan I stopped by an ATM and was semi-annoyed with it because it wouldn't let me get pounds, only euros. I was about to go in the bank to ask whether the machine was busted but changed my mind after seeing ads along the walls with euro symbols. We thought it would be odd to stop someone and ask which country we were in so we stopped into a cafe and checked the price list and saw some flyers that confirmed that we were in the Republic and not in the North :-) 

Armagh was a fun city to visit; we visited the site where St. Patrick established the first church in Ireland, saw the ruins of an old friary, and tried to make sense of the human orrery at the observatory. Apparently a human orrery is a map of how planets and comets move throughout the year; the human factor meant that we could act out the movement of the planets and comets revolving around the sun. There were different stepping stones to show where to move around the sun/stepping stone in the center of the map. We had far too much fun with that (probably because we were exhausted from being out the night before) and I was Halley's comet (that's for you sister!!).

3. First time eating kangaroo: Yep, I had a kangaroo burger in Northern Ireland from a stand at an international market in town- probably not the best idea now that I think of it. Ironically enough it tasted like a veggie burger- in case you're wondering :-)

4. First time at the Student Union: We have a bar/club on campus and after my first visit I quickly decided that it wasn't quite my scene. Instead I have been going to Masons, a bar in the walled city, with friends. A couple of them are musicians and have been playing at open mic night which is a blast! I love hearing different musicians from around town while chatting with friends- it's great craic :-)

Other than that, there isn't too much to report. I'm still loving it here and can't believe October is pretty much over! Boy is time flying....

Dia duit!

Hello again! I hope this finds you well :-)

Thank you so much for emails and prayers- they were definitely felt this week as God decided to make me step out of my comfort zone on Tuesday night! I shared part of my testimony at CU which was absolutely terrifying but also a blessing. Terrifying because public speaking is one of my greatest fears and a blessing because God gave me the courage and the opportunity to share my story with my friends here. It was also neat to see how God connected my testimony with the greater theme of the evening- definitely a gift :-)

This weekend included trips to Castle Rock and Belfast. I had planned to head to Belfast with some friends on Friday, but that morning we decided to go leave on Saturday instead. Since my friend Hannah and I were already awake and ready to go we opted to take a train to Castle Rock to visit "Sconeland." (If you're ever in Castle Rock, be sure to visit Crusoes- they make the best scones in the world, hence the title "Sconeland.") It was a beautiful but chilly morning so Hannah and I walked along the beach talking and collecting shells. It was such a wonderful and peaceful way to spend a lazy Friday- we ran into lots of families and even watched some surfers for a bit. 

On our way home though we jumped on the wrong train and ended up in Coleraine for the evening. We thought we would be able to catch the train to Derry when we arrived at Coleraine, but just missed it. My favorite part was running and yelling after the train as it pulled out of the station- we must've been quite a site :-) Lucky for us, Coleraine is a pretty big city and we managed to kill time pretty quickly. 

On Saturday we finally made it to Belfast! On our way to the station we ran into a bunch of the German and French students who were also on their way to Belfast which helped the 2 hour train ride feel a bit shorter :-) The city felt much bigger than Derry and it was a great place to wander around and people-watch. We started our day at the market (which was like the farmer's market in Bozeman, only bigger) and got to see lots of neat artwork and jewelry. There was a band playing music there as well which made for a fun atmosphere. 

After the market we went to the Culturlann and met up with Grainne, my Irish language professor. The Culturlann is an old protestant church that has been turned into a cultural center with a bookstore, theater, radio station, gallery, and cafe. Grainne took us there for lunch and conversation- most people who visit the Culturlann speak the language pretty fluently. On our way to lunch she told us a little about the politics of the Irish language in Northern Ireland; apparently some people assume that those who speak the language in the North are Republican terrorists opposed to British rule. She didn't go into much detail though and explained to us that it is a complicated subject and isn't always black and white. I'm hoping to learn more about it in my Irish Heritage and Folklore class- we're supposed to have a lecture on it sometime soon... But politics aside, I had a wonderful time and met some great people with equally great stories. There were a few times where I thought I was going to die laughing! It was so much fun to hang out with Grainne and we ended up spending most of the day with her.

By the time we left the Culturlann shops were starting to close up so we spent the rest of the afternoon seeing some of the murals in Belfast and stopping by a few stores. There was one mural that really stuck out to me- there was a painting of George W. Bush and a caption below that read "America's Greatest Failure." It's really interesting to see how people in other parts of the world view American politics and foreign policy. People here are really in tune with what is going on in America which has encouraged me to pay more attention to what is going on at home. 

We made it back to Derry safely and with the intention of returning to Belfast sometime soon. While we definitely got to see a lot of the city, I feel like there is still so much to see and learn there! I definitely saw and heard a lot of things that really made me think and I am excited to continue to learn and experience more each day.

A Lethal Weekend

So before I continue, I just want to let you know that "lethal" is my new favorite word in Northern Irish slang. It is the equivalent of "sweet" or "cool" and I am all for adding it to the American lexicon :-)

Slang aside, I had an awesome weekend! On Friday the Whitworth British Isles Study Program came to Derry for the day- it was so wonderful to see friends from home! I didn't realize how much I had missed them until I saw them at the bus station- it was so weird to see people from home in Northern Ireland, almost like the colliding of two worlds, but it was so great to catch up on life with them :-) I tagged along with their class and got a historical tour of the city as well as a visit to the Free Derry Museum- something I will definitely have to visit again since I spent the majority of my time chatting rather than exploring the exhibits :-) I definitely felt my first wave of homesickness as I walked home in the rain after waving goodbye.

But God definitely has a knack for perfect timing; as soon as I got home I had to pack up and leave for the Christian Union retreat in Ballintoy which definitely helped alleviate my homesickness. I wasn't sure what to expect and was a bit anxious about going, but now I am so glad I went!

We stayed in a big house in the countryside complete with cows and a dirt road. It was so wonderful to be in a home and get to know people from the CU better; they are such fun, wonderful people and I am so grateful for the time we spent together. We had a speaker come and stay with us who had recently graduated from the University of Ulster at Coleraine; he spoke to us about living as a Christian in the university setting. I really appreciated what he had to say and am hoping to live it out during the rest of my time here and in Spokane when I return.

The weekend was filled with great conversation, Wii Olympics, games like Signs and Sardines, and a bit of driving around the coast. On Saturday we went to the Giant's Causeway which was a blast- the weather was amazing and it was great fun to play "outrun the waves without falling on your face" with my friends Sophie and Glenn. I was so proud of myself- I only crashed once on the Causeway rocks :-)

We stopped for drinks and cake at a cafe in Bushmills- I had the biggest hot chocolate I have ever seen in my life- and then headed to the beach for a bit. A few people walking along the beach stopped to laugh at us as we tried to get a good photo of us jumping using a camera set on a timer- we didn't quite get the whole timing bit down so it definitely took us a lot of tries. 

That night we played a bunch of games including the most intense game of Signs ever- the rules here are much different than those at Whitworth!

Sunday evening gave us a great time of group bonding :-) After we had packed the cars up to head back to the university, we found out one of the cars wouldn't start. No one had jumper cables (or jumplings as they're referred to here) so we proceeded to push the car up and down the hill to get it to start. After a zillion tries, a laying on of hands, and almost running the car into the house the car finally started- definitely a gift from God :-)

Coming back to campus after the CU Weekend, I feel more plugged into life here at Magee. It is great to feel included and to be closer to some of the other students on campus. I'm definitely beginning to come to terms with how short my time is here and am learning to appreciate and savor every moment of my experience in Northern Ireland.

Also, I feel like I should mention that the above pictures are all courtesy of a friend's facebook photo album- thanks Stewart! My wonderful dad is sending me his old camera so I hope I will be able to post more photos soon!

Slan go foill (Goodbye for now)!

What's the craic?

So, unfortunately this post will not be accompanied by any photos; I killed my camera in the Irish sea but am trying to revive it. My friend met a guy in Derry who said that white rice can somehow heal electronics from water damage- I guess I'll have to wait and see if it works :-)

Other than that this week has been great! I had my first real week of classes which was pretty awesome- I only have 9 hours of class a week with a 4 day weekend, a system the U.S. education system should definitely adopt :-) However, since classes here are pretty independent we have to do a lot of outside reading and research; but it isn't too bad when you get to pick the topic to dive deeper into. I'm enrolled in Oral and Aural Irish, Genocide and International Politics, and Irish Heritage and Folklore Studies- so far they all seem like they'll be interesting classes.

This weekend I went to Castlerock with a few friends (where my camera met it's untimely end). It's a really tiny town just north of Derry and is literally right on the coast. We went to the beach and ran around for a while which was great, especially after being cooped up in our flats all week because of the rain. From the beach we were able to see the top of the Mussenden Temple and started walking towards it. We ended up walking along the cliffs which was pretty nerve-racking because of the wind. Luckily, the National Trust anticipates such crazy walks by tourist and made a trail that led down the cliff, across the dam, and up to the Temple and Downhill house. Mussenden Temple was quite a sight, especially since it is also on its way into the sea, like Dunluce Castle. Both the Temple and the Downhill house were built by Frederick Hervey who served as Bishop of Derry in 1768 and as Earl of Bristol in 1778. Unfortunately, the house was destroyed in a fire, but different groups have been working to restore and protect the building. I think my favorite part of the outing was witnessing some sort of relay race/triathlon. While we were standing near the Temple my friend Hannah asked, "Are we in trouble?" We turned around and tons of people in neon vests were running (very quickly I might add) out of the Downhill house and straight towards us. We thought they might be some sort of National Trust security so we turned towards the ocean and pretended to look at the view trying to look like lost tourists (and probably succeeding). They ran past us and straight towards a hanging basket with maps inside and after seeing their bike helmets and the vests that read "Jeep" we weren't real sure what to make of the situation. We later found out that they were competing in a triathlon/relay and one of their checkpoints was at the Temple. One of the race photographers told us they had to run, bike, and do all sorts of activities including eating a ton of ice cream- sounds like my kind of race :-)

This morning I went to a church called Cornerstone with my friend from the Christian Union named Lauren.  The church was wonderful! Everyone was so friendly and welcoming and the worship and message were great! We are planning on going back for their night service which is supposed to be geared towards students. It was such a blessing to worship God with my brothers and sisters across the pond- the fellowship was refreshing and I am so excited to see God at work here in Northern Ireland!!

The Antrim Coast Part 2

Well first off I feel like I need to thank Dansko for making some of the most amazing clogs ever. I've almost walked the entirety of the Antrim Coast in them through quite the variety of terrain. But in other news, this weekend included my first pint and another trip to the coast.

On Saturday Mary Clare, Luisa, and I took the train to Portrush and started our day with a taxi ride to Dunluce castle. Last weekend we didn't get the chance to see the inside of the castle since we arrived after closing so we were excited to go back. We were pretty tired after chatting until 2 the night before but the firing demo did a decent job of waking us up- especially since we weren't expecting it! It was so neat to wander around the castle, especially since it was a pretty cold and stormy day complete with a raging sea below. I am loving living in a country where such old buildings dot the landscape- it was amazing to imagine how many people have crossed the castle floor before me.

^ This is where part of the kitchen fell into the sea! 

After the castle we walked to Bushmills for directions to the Giant's Causeway. The lady who gave us directions made it sound like it wasn't too far from the town so we decided to walk. While the walk was beautiful the road wasn't exactly pedestrian-friendly, so we definitely had to jump out of the road a few times to avoid tractors and buses. But I am beginning to think that Northern Ireland is best seen on foot; walking definitely gives you more time and freedom to stop and stare at the landscape. And it's always fun to wave at random people passing by!

The Giant's Causeway was amazing! I tried to understand the volcanic activity and such that created it, but it was a bit over my head. I'd rather stick to the giant story. There are a couple of variations on the story, but according to legend a giant living in Ulster named Finn MacCool built a path to reach his love living in Staffa, an island off the Scottish coast. But after a fight with Finn, one of his rivals wrecked the causeway to keep Finn from catching him. It must've been quite a run back across the causeway; I don't know whether a giant would be more graceful than me but I definitely had a few close calls while climbing around on the rocks!

Giants and volcanoes aside, I felt like the Giant's Causeway served as a testament of God's handiwork- at least in my mind :-) Looking down on the causeway it was easy for me to picture God piecing the rocks together. It was a good time to think and pray about God's presence in Northern Ireland. Our trip to the Giant's Causeway definitely served as a good reminder of just how small I am in this great big world we live in.

:-)

Getting acquainted

These last few days have been full of class registration and getting better acquainted with the university and the city. On Tuesday Mary Clare, Lacey, and I walked along the River Foyle which splits the city of Derry in half. It was an abnormally sunny day so we decided to enjoy it as much as possible! 

We also visited the Guildhall in the city center where cultural and city events often take place. The building first opened in 1890 but has been rebuilt and repaired after damage by a fire in 1913 and IRA bombs in 1972. The building is beautiful and has amazing stained glass windows, some of which depict the history of Derry.

That night I joined the Christian Union (CU) on campus. Each week a group of Christian students get together for worship, prayer, fellowship, and Bible study. This semester they are planning on studying Colossians which I am pretty stoked about! After a quick introductory meeting we went bowling in town. The students were all so nice and I am so excited to get to know them and get more plugged into the community here. 

Some of my friends are also trying to convince me to join up with the women's rugby team. It sounds like an intramural situation since they only play different University of Ulster campus teams and a lot of the girls who go out for the team don't know how to play. I think I might check it out next week.

Last night my friends Hannah, Lacey, Mary Clare, Luisa, and I decided to go out and experience Derry's pub culture. We ended up at a pub called Peadar O'Donnell's near the city walls. I think we got there a bit too early though; there was hardly anyone there and they stared at us as we looked around for a table- we all felt a little awkward. But later on more and more people kept showing up and we felt like we could blend in better. We ended up talking with Barry, a musician from the Republic who moved here a month or so ago and his really drunk uncle David. They were both super nice but it was nearly impossible to understand a word David said! At one point though he asked me if I was related to Mariah Carey; apparently I look exactly like her :-) 

Peadar O'Donnell's was a really fun environment- if they weren't watching the football game, people were sitting around and talking. We definitely felt more comfortable here than at the clubs many of the students frequent.

After last night I can also say I've been kissed by two Irishmen! As we were getting up to leave Barry and David gave us hugs and I got kissed on the cheek a few times. But I darted out of the pub pretty quickly after David told me he would think of me while he was at home in Belfast. 

All in all it was a wonderful night and I am definitely growing to love the craic and culture here in Derry. 

Cheers!

The Antrim Coast

This weekend I learned that Northern Ireland is ridiculously beautiful! I made it over to the Antrim coast with my friends Lacey, Hannah, and Mary Clare where we spent Saturday seeing some of the sights the coast has to offer.

We took a morning train to Portrush which was a beautiful ride- a mixture of pastureland and ocean. Portrush is a busy beach town in the summer but pretty dead in September on a Saturday morning. So we cut our time in Portrush short and took a taxi to the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. The bridge is 80 feet high and 65 feet long and connects the mainland to a small island. Fishermen have hung bridges here for 200 years in order to catch salmon as the come round the coast. It was a 1 mile walk along the coastline to the bridge which was absolutely beautiful! And praise the Lord, Saturday was on of the few days of sun in Northern Ireland! :-)

After crossing the bridge we walked to an old limestone quarry called Larrybane. At Larrybane we found amazing coastal views and a good place to nap :-)

We found a path from Larrybane to Ballintoy, a tiny coastal town. When we got to the bus stop we met some travelers from Belfast who informed us that the next bus didn't leave Ballintoy until later that evening. So we went to the nearest pub, the Carrick-a-Rede Restaurant and Bar, to see if they could call a taxi for us. Fortunately the bartender's brother is a taxi driver so she gave him a call to come get us. While we waited for him we got to talk with some locals about the area and other places to see in Ireland. All of the locals I have encountered so far on this trip are so friendly and quick to give advice on what to do and see; but I'm still working on grasping the Northern Irish accent. I definitely didn't realize just how thick it would be!

We took the taxi down to the Old Bushmills Distillery where they have been making Irish whiskey for 400 years. We got a free drink after the tour which was pretty cool. 

After the distillery we decided to walk the 6 miles back to Portrush. We definitely looked like tourists when we paused to take pictures of the sheep :-) The walk was beautiful, especially since the road continued along the coastline! We found a trail that led through pastures so we decided it would definitely be more Northern Irish of us to walk the trail instead of alongside the road. Unfortunately, our romantic beach path led straight into a thick grouping of thistle and our only choice was to hop a barbed wire fence into a cow pasture. We kept laughing at the cows staring at us as we hopped the fence and picked our way around cow chum. But the pasture ended up being amazingly muddy and by the time we made it across our shoes were soaked in mud and reeked pretty badly as well! 

On the other side of the cow pasture we found Dun Luce castle which was built in the Middle Ages. But during dinner one night in 1639 half of the kitchen fell  into the sea! After that night the Countess of Antrim decided to move elsewhere- I don't blame her! People are working to keep the castle maintained, especially since other parts of the castle look like they might fall off the edge soon.

We met John and Anna who were from a city outside Belfast while we watched the sun set from the castle. They told us a bit about the history of the castle and also about its ongoing restoration. We talked a bit about the US too since their son had studied in Iowa a few years back. They were so sweet and we were so grateful when they offered to give us a ride back to Portrush!

We finished off our Saturday with a night walk on the beach and train ride back to Derry. I am so glad we got to spend our weekend seeing more of Northern Ireland and got to meet such wonderful people along the way :-) This trip was definitely a gift!

Greetings from the parrot :-)

I say parrot because I have developed an interesting habit of mimicking the accents I'm hearing. I met another student who told me he couldn't tell if I was Irish or Canadian :-) I hope I'll get a handle on that soon! God has blessed me with a wonderful group of girls who love to explore and travel rather than stay out all night at the clubs and bars- which seems to be the main choice of entertainment here.  

Yesterday after orientation we stumbled upon the cathedral of St. Eugene. I couldn't find anything about it in my travel book, but it was a beautiful church and provided a welcome break from the rain.

The stained glass windows and stations of the cross were amazing to see. Unfortunately I disrupted the silence in the chapel when I turned a corner and hit my nalgene bottle against a pillar. I couldn't believe the echo it made! So I decided to stay behind the pillar until the sound went away :-) It's amazing to me how easy it is to find such beautiful and historic places all throughout the city! But I guess that's a perk of being in the UK!

After the cathedral we walked back to the walled city and visited the Tower Museum. Since it was about to close one of the museum employees offered to give us a quick tour for only a pound which was a great deal. The tour was definitely a quick one but we got to learn some of the history of the Troubles and hear a story or two. We heard about half-hanged McNaughton and the story behind the red hand on the Ulster flag. A long time ago families in the Ulster (Northern Ireland) area would compete for power by seeing who could paddle to shore and touch land first. One competitor wanted to win so badly that he cut off his left hand and threw it ashore! 

It started raining harder so we decided to make it an early evening and head back- I feel like I'm starting to get my bearings in the city which is a huge comfort. However, the accent here is a whole other story! I was in the market the other day when an older man asked me to get something down for him. He asked me all sorts of questions but I couldn't understand a word he said- so far I've been able to get by on the "smile and nod" tactic which I hope won't backfire on me anytime soon!

I am so enjoying my time here and am excited to start classes this Monday. The university staff here is very laid back so we can add/drop classes fairly easily throughout the next two weeks- which will be a good way to narrow down my list of class choices!

Thank you so much for all the prayers and encouraging notes- it is such a blessing to hear from you all!