Ahoy, Wales!

This morning we took a ferry to Wales. I'm pretty sure it was my first real ferry ride--at least my first within memory. Our bus came with us. It took over three hours and was a great time to get some things done.

After arriving in Wales, we headed to Beaumaris, a small town on the Isle of Anglesey. There we went to a castle. It brought back memories of a Byzantine castle I once went to in the Golan Heights (Israel)--it was a jungle gym for college kids. This castle was also like our jungle gym. I really enjoyed exploring and climbing around. It was a beautiful castle and it offered a great view of some of the countryside!

Climbing the turret

The center green in the castle. I walked around these ramparts.

After the exploration, we checked into our hotel (which is super nice. I guess we get good group rates!) and then got to walk around a city. I spent most of my time in a beautiful catholic church. I think it’s wonderful that they can just leave the churches open all day and trust that no one steals their hymnbooks and such. It was a peaceful place.

Lastly we were fed at the hotel, a nice change from trying to finagle the cheapest option on my own. It was a delicious dinner! Then I went with some people out to the beach outside of our hotel. We played Frisbee and talked and then I became mesmerized with finding awesome seashells. I've been on a few beaches before, but never one like this one! There were so many cool rocks and shells. I even found some sea glass, pieces of glass that have been worn smooth by the ocean (they were a big thing in New England). I saw my first [dead] jellyfish and some crab shells, too. It was really fun. 

Here's my thought for the day (I only have one each day, so pay attention): Why do we find little things like seashells so beautiful? They are so insignificant, yet once I started looking at the rocks I was stepping on, I was hooked. I was amazed by the variety of patterns I saw and the many colors and shapes. And why are broken things so beautiful? I loved the small pieces of broken shells. Their new shape merely added to their interest. I suppose the broken shells give hope to us all.

This is real. This is behind my hotel. There are the prettiest gulls here!

Last day in Ireland (28 June)

This was our last day to explore Dublin. This morning I walked with Lori to Kimainham Gaol, a jail that is really important in Irish history. The walk was enjoyable; it was another beautiful day and I’m convinced that the best way to see Ireland is on foot. The walk was deceptively long (at least according to the map) and we got to see some of the nicer, quaint neighborhoods of Dublin.

The jail was really interesting. The Irish people are really proud of their history. I was most interested in learning about how people picked sides: At first all the Irish were united against the English. As soon as they got independence (I think it was in 1921), the Irish divided into two groups and had a big civil war over how to use that independence. Interesting.

Outside of the Museum of Modern Art (I'm being  a squirrel)

We stopped at the Museum of Modern Art and then headed to the Irish National Museum. There we saw the incredible Irish High Crosses exhibit. Throughout Ireland there are certain stone crosses (maybe 60 or 70 of them) from a certain window of time (maybe it was 6^th and 7^th centuries AD?). In the exhibit there were replicas of 5 of these crosses (the molds and replicas were made over 100 years ago). They were incredible. When I turned the corner and saw them, I had what some may call a “wow-moment.” The tallest was 6.5 meters—about 18 feet I think.

At that museum I sat down for a bit and started falling asleep (the past few days have been exhausting!). I woke up when Lori started talking to the security guard, an old man. While she talked, I took notes on his language. I found it quite humorous because he had no idea I was sitting behind him listening and writing stuff down. One interesting vocabulary feature was the use of the word “gobsmacked.” It basically means surprised.

After some other wanderings, we went to the Gaity Theatre where we met up with the whole group for Riverdance. At first we ended up right in the middle of a peaceful protest (pro-Palestinian, anti-Riverdance because they’re going to perform in Israel this year). But the performance itself was absolutely incredible. These are the best riverdancers in the world. Okay, I’ll admit I didn’t really know what Riverdance was before this. If you don’t know, maybe you should youtube it. It involved traditional softshoe, tapdancing with some sort of wooden shoe, singing, and all sorts of traditional music. Everything was done well. It was so beautiful, fun, and exciting! I’m so glad we got the chance to go.

We get up early tomorrow to catch the ferry to Wales. I’m excited to go to the UK!

Exploring Dublin (27 June)

Today was a day to explore Dublin. I started out with a nice run down the Liffey River, which divides North and South Dublin. Then we got ready to go out to the city. Basically Lori and I stuck together the whole day because we have a similar pace (meaning we walk fast) and similar taste (meaning we like culture and not shopping).

First we went to Trinity College, the largest university in Ireland. We got a campus tour with one of the undergraduates. It was really awesome to learn more about student life there. I think the campus visit was my favorite part of the day.

The Great Irish Elk in the biology building on Trinity College campus

Then we walked around the entire downtown area, seeing the major shopping areas where there are interesting statues and historic buildings mingled in. We also went on a hunt for a certain CD shop that Lori wished she had gone to two years ago when she was here.

We met with the whole group for Evensong at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. It was really wonderful to hear again (it’s different every day). Then we headed home and stopped at a Lebanese restaurant for dinner. It was so fun and delicious because it reminded me of being in Jerusalem.

Now we’re back at the hostel, exhausted. We probably walked at least 5 miles today (plus I ran about 4 or 5 miles this morning). Tomorrow we plan to visit many museums (they are closed on Mondays) and some historic sites.

First Sabbath in Ireland (26 June)

Today we planned to go to church in Dublin. We arrived at the church and no one was there . . . we figured it was stake conference or something. So we tried and tried to contact someone and figure out where to go, but couldn’t reach anyone.

About an hour later we went back to our hostel and found a big room. One of the professors called his bishop to get permission to administer the sacrament and we had our own meeting. I was asked to speak (which I secretly love), and we had a good meeting. It turned out well. I am so grateful for the priesthood. It’s interesting to think about the authority that’s in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We knew we couldn’t just administer the sacrament—we needed permission and priesthood. That’s the difference between our church and all the churches we’ve been seeing these past few days.

I spoke about desire (using some from E. Oaks’ talk) and connecting it to Alma 8:10 (thank you, Ryan). I love having the opportunity to share my testimony out loud.

After a small lunch, I went to Evensong with a few people. Evensong is usually a short midweek service that has a lot of music, but St. Patrick’s Church (Anglican) actually had an Evensong today, too. It was in a beautiful cathedral. We had a program to help us follow along with what you’re supposed to do (sit, kneel, sing, speak) and I had a very enlightening time. The music was incredible! It was a mens choir . . . with the little boys singing higher than I’ve ever dreamed of singing. The organist was amazing, too. It was the kind of music I’ve heard recordings of and absolutely loved, but it was LIVE. I’m so excited to attend additional such services.

St. Patrick's Church with Kathryn and Chrisse (don't worry, I did get a photo of the entire church without the steeple chopped off).

We walked back to the hostel making some stops along the way. There’s a lot to see in Dublin. It’s a big place—we walked 40 minutes to get to the church and took about an hour getting back a different way. It’s a good way to see the city!

I finally have my Elang ears back on . . . I’m hearing many different words, phrases, uses of grammar, and vowel sounds. I’m enjoying taking notes of these varieties of English. This morning, Peter (bus driver) picked us up for church and said (because we’re all in Sunday clothes), “You are all looking fairly smart this morning.” We’ll miss Peter. He’s like a magic man who makes everything turn out well. And he’s a fountain of knowledge and always willing to answer our questions.

I think I’ll write a bit about driving in Ireland. One of the most difficult things to adjust to is that they drive on the left side of the road here. This affects how we walk on the streets (we have to think hard before crossing the road). Most of the roads here are just narrow two-lane roads. The only exceptions are right around the bigger cities. Other than that, we’re driving right next to cliffs, hedges, etc. It’s pretty exciting. People here are much better drivers than in the US.

Tonight we’ll be making dinner (we bought groceries last night) and probably playing games, reading scriptures, journaling, etc. before going today. We have two full days here and the only scheduled event is going to see Riverdance on Tuesday night (that’s actually why we’re staying here so long—it’s the opening night).

Traveling to Dublin (25 June)

Today has been awesome! We left Killarney and headed toward Dublin, making two amazing stops along the way.

First we went to Blarney castle and learned about some of the Irish superstitions (there are many). Blarney is an Irish word that refers to smoothing, flattering, and cajoling talk. If you kiss a certain stone, you get the gift of gab (which means that you have blarney). When it came time to kiss the rock, I opted not to, mostly because I’m not a very superstitious person, because I don’t really want the gift of blarney, and because it seemed kind of disgusting to kiss the same rock as millions of other people. In the line I met some wonderful German women. I enjoy talking to so many different people! It reminds me of Temple Square and I’ve come to realize what skills I gained there: I can converse easily with people who are not comfortable with English.

Blarney Castle with Kathryn (she had been my roommate for the previous two nights)

Anyway, after the castle we walked around the poison gardens, a garden full of plants that can be poisonous (depending on how they’re used). For example, there was mandrake, rhubarb, tobacco, and a bunch of other plants. It was interesting. We walked around town a bit (I purchased my first Irish icecream), and then continued on the road.

About an hour later we got to the Rock of Cashel, a ruined church. It is important in the history of Ireland because it has to do with the story of St. Patrick and when he chased out a devil. It was so beautiful! There was a lovely cemetery and an incredible view of the Irish countryside. I loved it.

The cemetery at Rock of Cashel

We then continued on to Dublin, about a two hour drive. Peter, our bus driver, told us more about the history of Ireland and how they gained their independence I had heard a lot about it before, but never really connected with it. After having been in Ireland for a few days and knowing some Irish people, I have become much more interested in their history.

Dublin is a pretty big city. We are excited to explore the churches and museums over the next few days. We’ll be staying in a hostel for 4 nights. We have twenty of us and two rooms, each with five bunk beds. It’s a big slumber party! Girls only.

I’m very excited to go to church tomorrow!

Dingle Peninsula (24 June)

Today was a wet one. My goodness—it never stopped raining! It started out dry, which was perfect—I ran 5 miles in the Killarney National Park. It was beautiful! And I got to know a few people better.

Today we went back to the Dingle Peninsula, this time to drive the route Lori, Suzanne, and I had biked (driving was a lot faster than biking). It made me so grateful that we had biked it when we did because we had seen so much more while biking AND it had been a beautiful day (after the rain). We tried not to rub it in to the rest of the group.

While on the busride today we stopped at a few places and learned more about them. For example, we passed the Beehive Huts, which are about 5,000 years old. They are human-built huts that look like beehives. They didn’t use mortar and the huts still stand! The huts were airtight and a pretty good way for fishermen to live on the peninsula. Some of them are located on the property of an old woman who charges two Euro to look at them. Right after our driver, Peter, told us about her, a guy from another tour bus stepped on her driveway to take a picture. Immediately she comes out of her house, shaking her fist and yelling at the guy. Ha ha.

Anyway, we went down to one of the beaches on the tip of the peninsula. It was definitely the most beautiful beach I’ve ever been on, but the wind was terrible! It was so funny seeing the twenty of us try to fight against the wind and get down to the water. But we made it and it was so much fun.

The windy, beautiful beach (the boys are the Gardner's sons. They are awesome.)

Eventually we made it back to the town of Dingle so we could eat and look around. We went to the bank, went to Finn McCool Surf Shop (in memory of nephew Finn), and ate fish and chips. Even though I really don’t like greasy meals, I knew I had to try fish and chips (chips = fries) once while in the British Isles. It was good, but greasy as I expected. We eat the fish with vinegar and salt. Anyway, it was a good experience!

We were regretting having a full three hours to look around Dingle because it was so windy and rainy. In Ireland, rain doesn’t fall down: it falls across. We were completely soaked. I don’t know how people do it! I was thinking about the missionaries who serve here—yikes! They must be wet and cold all the time.

As we drove back to Killarney, we could see water gushing from the hills and into the ocean. There were huge puddles on the streets, and streams formed down many of the fields. It was insane to see how much water can be dumped in a day! Yesterday on our boatride, the lake guide had told us that the lake could rise a few feet within a few days and now I can see why.

We got back to the hotel and I showered and drank HERBAL tea to get warm. I’m better now. I had a real Ireland experience today!

I realize that I haven’t told too much about the local culture. In general, families here are about 4 children. Back 20 or 30 years ago, they would be between 12 and 20! Huge. People generally stay in the areas they grow up, and the agriculture, tourism, and “communications” (actually referring to the many software companies here) make up most of the employment. (This morning I ate breakfast at the table of the bus driver and got to ask a lot about the culture.) The pubs are the social centers of the city. It’s where everyone goes at night. The pubs are also restaurants, so we sometimes go there to eat. It’s a different environment than we’re used to, but it’s part of Ireland! The people here are all so nice, though. They are willing to answer our questions and give directions all the time.

Tomorrow we head up toward Dublin and we’ll be there a few days. I’m excited for it!

First whole day with the group (23 June)

It's been a great day. Thismorning I went running with a few people on the same road in Dingle that we had taken on our bikes. We just ran out and back, all our own pace. It was such a beautiful, peaceful morning. The clouds were HUGE and the sun was rising. It was amazing and it felt so good.

We took a bus to Killarney. We went to Killarney National Park, where we had a boatride on a lake. Then we toured a towerhouse (small castle), took a carriage back to Killarney (we saw some beautiful wilderness areas of Ireland), went to the gardens at the Muckross House, and then went to our hotel in Killarney.  The whole time I was trying to figure out exactly what this all has to do with the English Language, but i've started taking notes on interesting things that I hear. Today our carriage driver called me "dear" about 5 times, which was quite an endearing feature of the language (Imagine a Kerry-county Irish accent, "yes I grew up here, my dear." "We drink guiness, my dear" (somehow everything in Irealand always comes back to drinking and guiness). We kind of interviewed him about different phrases and slang he uses and it was fun. To say that a girl is good looking, they'd call her a savage. They'd call an overweight person a barrel and a skinny person a snipe. Ha ha ha. Anyway, back in Killarney we went out into the city in small groups. My group went to a Lutheran church, a cathedral (the second largest in Ireland), and a monastery. Then at the end Lori and I stopped by a grocery store to buy something to eat. We went home and ate and I helped her cut her hair (hee hee - it looks great).

Boat ride and Irish flag

The towerhouse

At the Muckross House gardens

Cathedral of St. Mary in Killarney

Dinner with Lori (we went to the grocery store and got a prepared pasta, bread, peanut butter, and jam)

I would like to write a bit about the churches and cathedrals. I love being in those places. They are so still and quiet. Today I was analyzing the stained glass windows. I was looking at them as a common person might have in the 1600s. (The windows were meant to tell scripture stories for the people who couldn't read.) I was really touched by one that showed Jesus blessing the children. I don't know why I was particularly touched, but I was. And then I looked at a series of windows that show the last supper. The windows particularly emphasized the wheat (for bread) and the grapes (for wine) and I was reminded of the covenant symbols I have been researching lately. I'm so grateful that we have those simple reminders around us to teach us about our covenants.

Biking on Dingle Peninsula (22 June)

Around 10:00 we rented bikes. It was 10 Euro for the day, which isn't bad considering how much ground we covered! We went all the way to the end of Dingle Peninsula--a total distance of about 30 miles. We took our sweet time doing it; we didn't get home until 6. This place is so beautiful! It was an interesting adventure, though. When we started it was sunny. We took a side trip down a two mile road where we found a really beautiful cemetery (pictured below). We kept going down the road, which ended at Dingle Bay and a unique leather shop.

By the time we got to the leather shop it had started raining. After the leathershop it was POURING, but we pressed on. We ended up eating our lunch (delicious Irish bread, cheese, and apples) under a canoe! Ha ha--it was upturned on stilts and under it was the only dry ground (not that it mattered that we sit on dry ground because we were soaked anyway). It turns out that it is the type of boat that fishermen used around the 15th century. Apparently an early explorer (whose name escapes me) made it to the American continent in one of those boats before Columbus did. 

About half of the way through it cleared up and the sun even came out for a bit. We were nearly try by the time we got home. It was soooo fun--such a good way to see the  country! We saw some of the most beautiful scenes my eyes have ever beheld. Now we're pretty tired and we have what I call 'bike butt.'

A common sight - beautiful sheep!

Tomorrow morning we get up early to get back on the bus and meet up with our group. It's been fun with just the three of us, but I'm excited to let the study abroad begin!

I would just like to say that every penny I spent on my nice rain jacket was worth it. This place is WET!

First day in Ireland

I’m in Ireland. Incredible! I still can hardly believe it.

After 27 hours of travel from Idaho Falls to Dingle (including the car ride, plane trips, layovers, and bus rides), I’ve finally arrived. It’s a bit disorienting to have my sleep and eating schedule so different, but we plan to get a full night’s rest tonight and then we should be good. (“We” = Lori, Suzanne, and I. The three of us are traveling together until we meet up with the rest of our study abroad group on Wednesday.)

The trip itself was surprisingly smooth. We had a delay at the beginning, but it was made up with the first layover. Once we landed in Ireland, we took three different buses to get to Dingle (above you'll see Suzanne and I jetlagged at the airport bus stop). They all followed succinctly after the other and we never really had to wait. The bus ride was about 4 hours to Dingle, but it was worth it! People say that Ireland is one of the most beautiful places on earth and that Dingle is the most beautiful place in Ireland.

When we were landing in Ireland, the sun was shining and we could see the fields, separated by hedgerows, all in different shades of green. Our four-hour bus ride helped give us a sense of the landscape—we saw beautiful planes, hills, and forests. The fields were speckled with cows and sheep. The towns offer quaint houses and lovely churches. We were so excited to see all of it!

Once we arrived in Dingle, we walked a few minutes to our hostel. The owner has turned most of her house into a youth hostel. She gives us a key to the front door and the three of us are crammed in a little bedroom. There are a few other people staying in the house as well. Helen, the owner, told us a bit about Dingle and how it’s grown over the past few years. One of the unique things in this part of Ireland is that people still learn Irish (Gaelic) as their first language. We heard lots of people speaking it around town and wished we understood a bit.

Our first task was to find a bank. We meandered down the streets of Dingle, surprised by how colorful the buildings are. After exchanging money at the bank, we took some photos on the grounds of St. Mary’s Church (below) where there were some gardens and a cemetery for nuns. We next went to a pub for dinner. I was just glad to eat because we hadn’t had much to eat since our airplane dinner that had been at about 3:00 am Ireland time. It had started raining hard—we were very grateful for our waterproof coats! (They come in all colors, as you can see from the photos. I’m glad I didn’t end up getting the green one I wanted . . . we would have looked like Robin Hood’s band of brothers or something.)

Next we checked out the wharf and then went to the grocery store (there’s a kitchen we can use at the hostel). We got enough food for tomorrow so we can take snacks for our bike trip (above you see me with one of my favorite houses downtown -- it's purple -- and with a bag of groceries). We are excited for tomorrow, but especially excited to sleep tonight. Although drinking is a common pastime here in Ireland, we realized that we don’t need any drinks to feel a bit woozy!