ayrlund

here. we go.

I can't believe I'm startin off wif dis lame sentence, but Dublin was jess plain spectacular.   Fom the historical sites like Trinity College and St. Patrick’s Cathedral to funner places like the Guinness Factory and Temple Bar, the place was studded with culture.  I loved being there because it helped me realize the incredible differences in culture, history, and personality that are present in different parts of the world.  For instance, while it’s a mortal sin to grab your crotch for any reason in Italy, you’ll find people pissing all over the busiest parts of Dublin at night.  My Italian roommates would have been out of place, to say the least.  It was awesome to see that like the Italians, though, the Irish have so much national pride and have such a unique identity.  They’re kind of like the Elven-folk of Middle Earth in the sense that they have fair skin and their own secret language that they use only when they want to tell secrets or tell stories about fallen warriors and stuff.

We spent one night in Dublin, where we went on a pub crawl that was full of cool English-speaking people from all over the world (England, Australia, America, Canada, South Africa, Ireland, and New Zealand, to name a few).  My favorite stop was at Legend’s, where they had traditional Irish dancing and folk singing **.  We then travelled to Galway from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon.  The city itself reminded me of Verona because it’s a medium –sized city with a ton of history and few tourists.  We went out a little that first night to a pub with a KoL cover band playing and woke up early the next morning to meet up with Amy K for our bus tour around the area.  During this short but absolutely necessary trip, I went in a cave where bears once lived, saw the breathtaking Cliffs of Moher, the Burren, and a bunch of old castles among the Irish countryside.  I’ve seen some pretty beautiful natural landscapes in my day, but I don’t think any of them compare with the cliffs.  If you’re thinking of yourself, “Isn’t that the place where Harry and Dumbledore go in The Half-Blood Prince to find the locket Horcrux?”-- you’re right.

That night, I went to dinner with Mary Alice Acton from good ole ICGS.  It was fitting to see her there: she’s got red hair with freckles, Irish danced into college, and is studying abroad in Ireland for the year.  We ate fish and chips and Guinness for dinner.  My fondest memory then occurred as I met and spent the night with an Irish dude named Sean.  He treated me to a couple drinks (side note: do not ask for Irish Car Bombs or Black & Tans in the UK) because he appreciated that I was American and not a douschebag.  We met his cousins (who ranged in age from 18-60), danced to an awesome band, and talked a little The Wire and other stuff.  The Irish nightlife was so much fun – there was always music to dance to, the natives were outgoing and friendly as hell, and it never got so crazy that you couldn’t find a place to go and chat over a pint.  Such was the experience in both Galway and Dublin, where I can’t believe that I spent my Sunday night hanging out with Taylor Spaulding.  Literally everywhere I’ve gone in Europe so far, I’ve seen someone from Elmhurst on accident.  It’s a small world after all when you’re as sweet and outgoing and likeable as me  ;)

in conclusion,
I will go back to Ireland at some point in my life.  The country itself is really pretty and the girls would make perfect housewives.  I will find my mate there in the future. I pierced my ear.

Sláinte