In Ireland student housing is set up as ensuite apartment unites for four 3-4 people, with a shared common room and kitchen. For the first month that I was here, I was in my apartment alone. This wasn't necessarily bad, but it was quiet. Now the dynamic has changed with the arrival of my new Italian roommates!
My new roommates are awesome and extremely unique. I live on the ground floor so my room is wheel-chair accessible. My Italian roommate Alberto is handicapped and his caretaker Mauro is spending the academic year helping him out, taking him places, and cooking for him. They live down the hall in connecting singles.
Alberto is one of the most interesting people I have ever met. He is from Padua, Italy and he speaks fluent English and Italian. We've had many conversations about Rome, Italy in general, and our interests. Alberto is a history major and he knows loads of information about everything. He has no trouble reading English and he reads all the time. He's also very funny. The other day I told him I was going to write an essay and he said "I hope the ideas flow freely through your mind."
Mauro speaks almost no English, so Alberto has to act as a translator between Mauro and I. It is a very interesting dynamic. I'm learning bits of Italian everyday and Mauro is starting to pick up some English. Today he told me I was "bravo cook." Mauro is probably in his late twenties, and he is a nurse at a hospital in Italy. He said that Alberto's parents hired him, and he accepted the opportunity because he knew that it was a great chance for him to learn how to speak English. Every morning and night after dinner Mauro makes us each a small, extremely strong Italian coffee. It's basically a super concentrated shot of espresso with sugar. He said that American coffee is water without flavor and that's why we have to drink so much of it.
Mauro, Alberto, and I often sit around the table after dinner laughing, sipping coffee and eating cookies. I have to say that I am definitely going to be more cultured when I return home.
My other roommate is an Irish lad from Waterford named Neil. He's quiet and easygoing. Last night he was telling me about the plowing championships (with tractors) being held in Kilkenny. This reinforced my opinions about the importance of farming over here.
I really miss Fall. It's very different here. The air feels a little crisper, but the leaves don't change color. They simply fall off the trees and turn brown. Fall has always been one of my favorite seasons, and I'm really going to miss not being able to go mountain biking at Acadia National Park this year.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Galway
Hey guys,
I know its been quite a while. I've been very busy. I can now say that I have seen a lot of Ireland. I've been trying to go on at least one trip within the country every week. This past weekend I made a spur of the moment decision to go to Galway...one of my most favorite places that I have traveled to here so far.
I woke up Friday morning, packed my bag, walked over to campus and passed in an essay, then walked into the city to catch a bus up north. The ride was 4 hours northwest of Cork. On the busride I read a considerable portion of "The World is Flat," an excellent book about globalisation. I highly recommend it.
We pulled into Galway around 4 pm. I called my friend Courtney and met up with her to get dinner. We ate a small place called Finnigan's pub (the name reminded me of Finnigan's Way). We each ordered the soup/panini special for only 6 euro. They love panini's here they're all the rage in the culinary sphere right now. The soups are all thick, delicious vegetable purees...they're not watery with chunks like the soup I'm used to. So we had a nice little meal and then decided to explore downtown Galway a bit.
Galway is a very cool place. I would call it more of a town than a city. It's much smaller than Cork. The upper part of the town is centered around modest park with a giant fountain in the center. Everyone hangs out around this area and we laid on the grass in the sun playing cards for a long time. The streets all lead from this upper area down to the ocean.
We walked downhill on Shop Street...a very exciting, pedestrian-friendly area. Cars are not allow
ed on Shop Street, so street performers are everywhere on each side of the street playing traditional Irish music, guitar, juggling, and dancing with fire (an art form called boi). Pubs with outdoor cafes were everywhere as we walked along, and lots of people were sitting outside enjoying the sun and a tasty pint.
We went back to Courtney's hostel for a while to hang out with some friends and I talked to a German girl for a long time. She was interesting, but seemed surprisingly isolated. She said she had only left Germany twice, both times to visit Ireland. She also was traveling alone which was definitely daring for a young girl. The hostel was small, quaint, and friendly. It only had two bedrooms filled with bunk beds. Most hostels that I've had to stay in so far are not nearly as nice...and they're always a bit "dodgy" as the Irish say.
The sun set behind the distant mountains and we decided to go downtown and check out some pubs. We went to The King's Head, a huge, raging pub filled with a jolly lot. The pub had a downstairs with a dance floor and an upstairs with a lounge. After enjoying some healthy socializing I called my friend Libby from UVM who was attending UC Galway for the semester. I found my way to her place...about a fifteen minute walk outside of town. Her suitemate had gone home for the weeked so I got to sleep in a bed which was amazing.
The next morning I awoke to find a beautiful Fender Jaguar in the common room, which I decided I had to play for a while. It was great picking up the electric for a change. I currently have an acoustic guitar that I purchased from a luthier in Cork. I walked back into town and Courtney, the girls and I had a delicious breakfast at a little coffee shop. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and they gave me a massive sandwich with eggs, sausage, cheese, and relish on a big ciabbata roll. It was incredible.
Courtney took a bus to see the Cliffs of Mohr, which I had seen earlier in the week on Wednesday, so I stayed in the city and explored with my friend Ruthie. We walked down to the waterfront and went for a walk along the ocean. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and it was absolutely beautiful. We saw a bunch of
large fish in the water but I wasn't sure what kind they were. Consumed in the euphoria of the ocean air, we decided to get fish & chips at Macdunnagh's, Galway's most famous seafood restaurant. We ordered our meals to go and ate our fish & chips down by the water sitting on a large stone wall.
After lunch we went to an outdoor cafe and sat in the sun with a couple of pints. It was an incredibly fun and relaxing day. Shortly after dinner we took the bus back to Cork.
P.S. Please post recipe ideas. I love cooking now that I'm living off campus.
I know its been quite a while. I've been very busy. I can now say that I have seen a lot of Ireland. I've been trying to go on at least one trip within the country every week. This past weekend I made a spur of the moment decision to go to Galway...one of my most favorite places that I have traveled to here so far.
I woke up Friday morning, packed my bag, walked over to campus and passed in an essay, then walked into the city to catch a bus up north. The ride was 4 hours northwest of Cork. On the busride I read a considerable portion of "The World is Flat," an excellent book about globalisation. I highly recommend it.
We pulled into Galway around 4 pm. I called my friend Courtney and met up with her to get dinner. We ate a small place called Finnigan's pub (the name reminded me of Finnigan's Way). We each ordered the soup/panini special for only 6 euro. They love panini's here they're all the rage in the culinary sphere right now. The soups are all thick, delicious vegetable purees...they're not watery with chunks like the soup I'm used to. So we had a nice little meal and then decided to explore downtown Galway a bit.
Galway is a very cool place. I would call it more of a town than a city. It's much smaller than Cork. The upper part of the town is centered around modest park with a giant fountain in the center. Everyone hangs out around this area and we laid on the grass in the sun playing cards for a long time. The streets all lead from this upper area down to the ocean.
We walked downhill on Shop Street...a very exciting, pedestrian-friendly area. Cars are not allow
ed on Shop Street, so street performers are everywhere on each side of the street playing traditional Irish music, guitar, juggling, and dancing with fire (an art form called boi). Pubs with outdoor cafes were everywhere as we walked along, and lots of people were sitting outside enjoying the sun and a tasty pint.We went back to Courtney's hostel for a while to hang out with some friends and I talked to a German girl for a long time. She was interesting, but seemed surprisingly isolated. She said she had only left Germany twice, both times to visit Ireland. She also was traveling alone which was definitely daring for a young girl. The hostel was small, quaint, and friendly. It only had two bedrooms filled with bunk beds. Most hostels that I've had to stay in so far are not nearly as nice...and they're always a bit "dodgy" as the Irish say.
The sun set behind the distant mountains and we decided to go downtown and check out some pubs. We went to The King's Head, a huge, raging pub filled with a jolly lot. The pub had a downstairs with a dance floor and an upstairs with a lounge. After enjoying some healthy socializing I called my friend Libby from UVM who was attending UC Galway for the semester. I found my way to her place...about a fifteen minute walk outside of town. Her suitemate had gone home for the weeked so I got to sleep in a bed which was amazing.
The next morning I awoke to find a beautiful Fender Jaguar in the common room, which I decided I had to play for a while. It was great picking up the electric for a change. I currently have an acoustic guitar that I purchased from a luthier in Cork. I walked back into town and Courtney, the girls and I had a delicious breakfast at a little coffee shop. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and they gave me a massive sandwich with eggs, sausage, cheese, and relish on a big ciabbata roll. It was incredible.
Courtney took a bus to see the Cliffs of Mohr, which I had seen earlier in the week on Wednesday, so I stayed in the city and explored with my friend Ruthie. We walked down to the waterfront and went for a walk along the ocean. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and it was absolutely beautiful. We saw a bunch of
large fish in the water but I wasn't sure what kind they were. Consumed in the euphoria of the ocean air, we decided to get fish & chips at Macdunnagh's, Galway's most famous seafood restaurant. We ordered our meals to go and ate our fish & chips down by the water sitting on a large stone wall.After lunch we went to an outdoor cafe and sat in the sun with a couple of pints. It was an incredibly fun and relaxing day. Shortly after dinner we took the bus back to Cork.
P.S. Please post recipe ideas. I love cooking now that I'm living off campus.
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