The Big Easy Part 2

Day three of New Orleans I was on my own so I headed back to the French Quarter and had beignets at Café Du Monde, a fried dough pastry hidden by a mound of powdered sugar. I then checked out the inside of the cathedral, which had a gorgeous interior. The stained glass windows were so impressive, and the Stations of the Cross were in French. The cathedral also paid a deal of homage to St. Anthony, so I took a good long while to show my deepest appreciation. I had lost my cell phone during the wild night on Bourbon Street, and it was miraculously returned to me by a cab driver. I had no one but St. Anthony to thank for that one.

I then strolled for hours along every possible side street, popping in and out of collectable shops and art galleries. A poor curator actually thought I had $3,000 to buy a painting - I really am not sure why. Maybe the pearls I had just bought at the French Market suggested a bigger bank account? At the French Market I went to the various venders, trying on Mardi Gras masks colored in blues, purples, golds and silvers, glitter, pearls and feathers. Alligator heads greet you at every turn, beads dangle from every surface. Local art and pieces of jewelry line the tables. It was pretty neat – and cheap!

The amount of stores I could enter was endless, but I had to head back to Esplanade, another street lined with live oaks, banana trees, bright flowers, and balconies.

Day four, my last day, I headed back to the French Market and was determined to eat Jambalaya. Ever since I had studied New Orleans in French class, I’d wanted to try that sticky, spicy rice dish. So I plopped down at a café, ordered up a bowl and a daiquiri, and let the jazz band play. It hit the spot. I then sampled some local pralines on my way out of the neighborhood, and as I returned to S’ house, I was dreading the fact that I was going to board a plane in a few short hours. On the walk, I literally stopped and smelled the roses growing on a stranger’s lawn, and they were delightful.

What amazed me about NOLA was how there was so much music playing, yet none of the sounds interfered with each other. I expected a cacophony, but somehow either they just worked in sync, or you couldn’t hear one band before you hit the next. At one end of a little road island there was a jazz band, at the other was a brass band, only separated by a praline shop. But - it wasn't a musical disaster, it was just a natural flow as you moved down the sidewalk. The people were just as friendly as I expected, and the food was exceptionally good – gumbo is on my list for the next trip I make there.

New Orelans is a city that just wants to have fun, and wants to make sure you have fun, otherwise it hasn’t done its job right. I didn’t have a Springbreak-esque vacation of debauchery. Instead it was just fun, and refreshing, and while extremely hot, it was enlightening in so many ways. I’ll be back in the bayou, that’s a promise.

Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler!

Ah New Orleans. Living it up Southern style in the Big Easy. I can’t say I really knew what to expect before I arrived, aside from the wild stories about Mardi Gras and jazz. So to say the least, I was more than pleasantly surprised by all I discovered on my little weekend jaunt in October.
As the plane descended I looked below me and saw this giant body of water with a narrow bridge spanning across. The Gulf? The Mississippi? Turns out it was Lake Pontchartrain, and I was in absolute awe of the size of this lake. I must’ve looked like a little kid on their first plane trip, face practically glued to the window, smiling like a fool waiting to land and ready to explore all below me.
I arrived in the evening and decided to stroll around the airport while I waited for my friend S to pick me up. A giant Louis Armstrong statue graced the airport lobby, across from a restaurant that advertised gumbo and crawfish. The bookstore was filled with Cajun Cookin’ recipe books, shot glasses covered in alligators that don a chef’s apron and hat, and plenty of Mardi Gras masks grinning from ear to ear. Suffice to say, I was starting to get excited. When I stepped outside – the south smacked me right in the face. Humid is an understatement - the ends of my hair began instantly curling. Then a teenage boy drove by me in a dusty red pickup truck, his arm stretched along the back of the seat inside the cab – just like in a country music video. The sun was only just beginning to go down, so a golden hue took over the entire area. Suddenly the cappuccino I’d just bought felt completely out of place, because baby, we were not in New York anymore.
When S pulled up I could’ve skipped all the way to town in excitement for all that lay ahead. As we drove along he started explaining our surroundings, describing the different sections of the city, assuring me the endless strip malls had nothing to do with the New Orleans I was going to experience. We passed the Superdome, and I tried to actually imagine the Hurricane Katrina victims piling inside the structure, and as enormous as it looked with the sun reflecting off the gold paint, I struggled to picture the surrounding city packed inside its walls.

After arriving at S and his friends' yellow house I was stupefied. These 3 boys who I’d known in college had this adorable home with a blue cement porch and white columns. Inside there was a huge, cozy, open room that led into a kitchen with an island. An ISLAND.
Now laissez les bon temps rouler! S took me to a famous sandwich place for dinner, Parkway, that sits on a bayou and serves any kind of po’boy you can dream up and eat. I had barbequed beef…with pickles, on French bread. So good.

Then we headed into the French Quarter, cracking open beers – which you can drink openly on the street. As much as I tried I couldn’t stop looking over my shoulder, expecting a tap on the shoulder from a police officer, the goody two-shoes in me trying to relax. We strolled along dimly lit streets, looking up at wrought iron awnings with ivy spreading across buildings, dangling above 200-year-old porches. One house would have a hacienda feel, the next would have that Ole South look, and neither looked out of place. I could start to hear the beat of a brass band in the distance, mixed with laughter pouring outside of quaint little restaurants. We walked until we couldn’t walk any further and reached the Mississippi bank, a bridge on the horizon and lights from the riverboats dancing on the waves. We strolled toward the glowing Jax Beer sign, which I learned they no longer make, but keep the sign as a piece of its history. We walked back toward Jackson Square, and above us on a roof a swinging band played boisterous jazz. I couldn’t see them, but I could picture each musician swaying with the their horn protruding like a beak, and couples twirling each other around or clinking drinks garnished with fruit. Can’t you? The fountain we passed contained a statue of 5 iron men, each playing an instrument of their own. All I could think was, ‘Even their fountains are musicians.’ Jackson Square was full of more musicians, artists, and it sat beneath the glow of St. Louis Cathedral, a mammoth white building that could give Cinderella’s Castle a run for its money.

We then made our way along the street that is home to famous bars like Pat O’Brien’s and Preservation Hall. We turned onto another street with a saint or a French name…St. Ann or maybe Decateur. Just a block ahead was a marching band, creating a parade all their own. We decided it was a high school marching band, complete with color guard and cheerleaders. For a brief moment we joined the procession, and before we knew it we entered the Frenchman neighborhood. Ahead of this parade, was another one, with multiple brass bands made of giant tubas, trombones, tambourines, trumpets and clarinets galore. Spontaneously, a note sprung out, the instruments joined in, and the most fun version of “When The Saints Go Marching In” started playing. There wasn’t a single person who wasn’t bouncing along, including S and me. Once it ended we headed back to the rest of the French Quarter, and finally, Bourbon Street.
Oh Bourbon Street. It was a random Saturday night in October, and the street was packed shoulder to shoulder. People holding dripping plastic cups, covered in beads and feathers. The balconies were lined with patrons, holding bags of beads they showered on the passersby below – and at rapid speed. The street sparkled with plastic shades of purple, green and gold. Why anyone would go to Times Square when they could go to Bourbon Street instead is beyond me.

After getting a little overwhelmed we headed to Pat O’Brien’s for my first of quite a few Hurricanes – a drink made of rum and passion fruit. The courtyard contained a fountain that had fire at the top – it was quite an engineering feat. The deal was sealed sipping those Hurricanes and staring simultaneously at rushing water and flickering flames – I loved New Orleans.
The next day S took me on the St. Charles street car. It’s a long trip up this gorgeous street, that heads into the Uptown area. You pass gorgeous dollhouse after gorgeous dollhouse of many colors. Peach with green shutters. Yellow with black shutters. White with Grecian columns. They were just stunning. My favorite part? The Spanish Moss dangling from the trees. Between the humidity and that silver yarn hanging off the branches, I felt like a 7-year-old in Jacksonville all over again. After an hour or so, the trolley dropped us off just below the Financial District, so we checked out Bourbon Street in the daylight.

Less of a party, but still a party. The Saints game was on, and the atmosphere was pretty exciting. Even though they aren’t playing well, the city is so thrilled by this team. Shop windows are filled with gold, black and white and signs shouting “GEAUX SAINTS!” as you pass. We watched some of the game, then decided it was time for muffulettas. A giant, hot sandwich packed with ham, pastrami, salami, roast beef, swiss cheese and chopped olives. I was reluctant at first, but it was DELICIOUS.

To be continued...

It's a Dry Heat

No matter how many times I visit Tucson, Arizona, I can't get enough of it's beauty and well, how different it is from the East Coast. Saguaro Cacti dot the horizon in every direction and there is no sunset like a Southwest sunset. The sky turns a brilliant orange with watercolor like strokes of saffron and red, smeared with pink, blue and purple hues around a fireball of sunshine. You could get lost staring into the warm sky, basking in its glow...dreaming up romantic notions and conjuring up fantasies of walking into the distance to start a new life, or perhaps even being proposed to by a man with strong arms wrapped around your shoulders. That's the intensity of an Arizona sunset.

I went before the hoopla of the state's controversial immigration law. It's a pity so much attention is being paid to the state's crackdown on illegal immigration. There is so much beauty and many untapped treasures lying about. I went in April to visit my family and spend time with my adorable nephews who I rarely get to see and don't exactly get to watch grow up.

I flew into Tucson airport, grateful to be away from the cold wind and rain of New York for a few days. It was 80 degrees when I stepped outside waiting for my brother to pick me up. The first thing I saw in the distance were the Santa Catalina Mountains, caps dusted in snow while the brown base was a patchwork of brush and cacti. In the car we talked about the boys and even my brother couldn't stop talking about those snow-capped mountains - with a hint of pride in his voice over both topics.

At his house I waited for the boys to rush in the door - and when they did they were so excited and timid...cautiously approaching me with a bouquet of flowers. But from then on it was fun and games and getting to know two adorable little men.

The next day we went to C's final t-ball game and I babysat A during the game, while cheering on my favorite 2nd baseman. Later we took a walk around the neighborhood. By this lovely pond you can see more mountains in the distance, reflecting off the unnaturally blue water thanks to the clear sky.
On Sunday we hit the desert museum which is quite possibly my favorite part of Tucson. It's a wildlife reserve that's much better than a zoo. The animals have more space and you get pretty close to the prairie dogs (my favorite) and all the big wild cats. My only disappointment this time was the river otters were taking a nap instead of doing their water acrobatics in the pond.

A few days later we did visit the local zoo which I adore because talk about being close to the animals! The tiger leans up against the glass - which you can put your hands against should you dare. You can feed the giraffes and the elephants are so close I almost feel like you could reach out and they'd high-five you with their trunks.

A few days later we hit the spring training game for the Rockies and Padres - and of course that day dropped down to the 50s and rained. However my little 2nd baseman impressed the Padres pitcher so much he gave him a baseball! Good work!

More to come...

Blankets, how do they work?

I know I normally only post about my adventures abroad - but this is just too good to not talk about.
SNL did an amazing parody of the Insane Clowne Posse's "Miracles," which is quite possibly the most absurd song and video in existence. And that's saying a lot, especially if you've ever really watched the "Total Eclipse of the Heart" video.
Kudos to Ryan Phillipe and other dude, who I really do like.
http://www.hulu.com/watch/143249/saturday-night-live-outrageous-clown-squad-kickspit-dirt-festival#s-p2-sr-i1

For reference, here's the original, mind-blowing video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atgtJKpHkwo&feature=related

Enjoy.

San Francisco

It's where cable cars climb halfway to the stars. It's where you meet gentle people in the street...and often you leave your heart there....San Francisco. I recently visited that enchanting city on the west coast and think it about it almost every day. Rarely has a place just mesmorized me like San Francisco. It's such a unique city with it's Painted Lady-style homes, steep hills and unbeatable view of the water.
S and I took an early morning flight and slept soundly for the six hours until we landed. I had never been to the west coast before, so I was incredibly excited. We turned out to be quite the resourceful pair and managed our way on BART and headed to our hotel. S has been to San Fran before, so she was a very useful guide. We strolled down some frightening and smelly streets and realized our hotel was in a bit of a ghetto. Okay. Then we realized we arrived hours before check-in, so we left our bags with the desk and set off on our adventure. We headed straight for Fisherman's Wharf and when my eyes gazed upon Attica in the distance, I couldn't believe it. For such a gruesome history, it is a breathtaking sight. To an unknowing observer it's just an island with a massive building sitting peacefully in the bay, with sailboats gliding by - it's quite picturesque. We strolled through the adorable shops along the bordwalk and ate at a tasty Italian restaurant. As I was about to eat a forkful of salad I squeeled with glee at the sight of the sea lions lounging below. There were so many of them!! Lolling about on the docks by the boats, diving in and out of the water. They looked like fat, tan ladies lounging beside a pool in the Riviera. Mahvelous!
We then proceeded to get sunscreen for my skin and shampoo for her hair, then off to get dessert in Ghiradelli Square. Can I just tell you - their ice cream was delicious. Delicious I say! We split a sundae drizzled in chocolate and I died. Well obviously not, but you get the point. It's a good thing they have so many hills to work off those calories because next we trudged up one of the steepest hills I have ever seen and walked up. Literally at one point we stopped and turned around to see what progress we had made and just started laughing from hysteria and exhaustion. We still had so far to go. It was like going up the beginning of a roller coaster. Finally we reached the top (of that hill at least) and I couldn't believe how gorgeous the bay looked in virtually every direction. The Golden Gate bridge was so awe-inspiring from where I stood. It was peaceful. But the rest lasted only for a moment.
We weren't too far from Lombard Street...that incredibly curvy and famous street....so we trucked in that direction, all the while muttering "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can." Lombard Street is so pretty! It's covered in magenta hydrangeas and the houses are so unique. One in particular was a lovely shade of blue, with the hot pink flowers and bright green leaves sprouting all around it and climbing up its side.
At the bottom a newly married couple was taking wedding photos with the wacky street as their backdrop. S and I decided to make our way over to SF's version of Union Square to see how it compared to our beloved one in NYC. On the way I dragged her into a gorgeous church to check out their stained glass and architecture. It's tradition to make a wish inside a new church...and I got mine, but I'll never tell what it was.
We strolled through a park and after what seemed like hours, we finally arrived in Union Square. It was a fun, hip little area so we went into Saks to look at clothes I can't afford. And it was great because after all that flying and walking I felt disgusting, which wasn't all exagerrated by the fact that I was surrounded by models and perfect-looking salespeople. After trying on some adorable dresses, we checked out the artwork in the park and almost went into a Food Network wine and food tasting event. Turns out you needed to be on a list and pay more money than I was willing.
We had plans to meet my friend for dinner in Chinatown so we made the exhausting trek home to our hotel. That's when we discovered our air conditioning didn't work and our shower required a nuclear engineer to turn on. But eventually it all worked out.
We thought it'd be a good idea to walk to the restaurant but it took a ridiculously long time, so we made my friend wait a ridiculously long time. He must not have been too mad because he invited us to party at his place later that evening. First we joined up with more friends and then had a night on the town meeting locals and playing pool. One for the books. Quite possibly in my top five thanks to a surprisingly successful game, surfer boys, rooftops, and balconies.
Next day we checked out the Painted Ladies and had way too much singing the theme song from "Full House" and posing for goofy pictures. Then we made our way to Haight-Ashbury and encountered many many dirty hippes. I thought hippies were supposed to be nice, but the ones we encountered were absolutely not. In fact they were incredibly unnerving. One hippie chick had an adorable pig and threatened to charge S for petting it. But all in all it was a very cool area. Our friend E suggested we go for Dim Sum in Chinatown which sounded fun, but wasn't at all. I have no idea what I ate, but the experience made up for the because Chinese dragons paraded through and did flips and crazy stunts and it was just really exciting. That night we attended a soccer game...Mexico vs. Portugal - it was CRAZY! but so much fun. Those fans are nuts!
On our final day we headed up to Napa Valley on this prepaid tour. We drove over the Golden Gate and then reached our first winery. Deliciousness ensued. S chatted up the barkeep so we received quite a few extra tastings, and after we purchased a really delicious lunch and ate on picnic tables. Then we hit the Chandon winery for some sparkling wine - which was basically my heaven. The next three were also delightful and beautiful. At the end of the trip we all dozed on the bus ride home, and then relaxed on a ferry trip back to 'Frisco. That night we said goodbye to E, then headed to a really kitsch and cute restaurant in their Italian District. Courtesy S' mom's kindness, we enjoyed an elaborate meal with some of the best mashed potatoes/champ I've ever consumed. Oh and don't get me started on the bruschetta and gellato!!
Early the next morning we cabbed it back to SFO and I bid my west coast adventure adieu.
But I'll be back, that's a promise.

The Yoga Life

So I used to do yoga in high school and continued through college on my own with DVDs and yes - videos. But I was never disciplined with practicing, and somehow I'd like to change that. So I've decided to volunteer at a Yoga studio in NYC. Yes...I did say volunteer. Meaning I work for free, but get free yoga classes in exchange. Yesterday was my first stay and it was a startlingly jarring experience because it was nothing like I expected. It's a cute little studio in a trendy neighborhood, but I found it through a posting on Craiglist. When I responded looking for more information, I was greeted with a "Great! When can you start?" in my inbox...not quite what I was looking for but thought, oh heck let's for it, and I showed up Thursday afternoon. I thought it was going to be just a meet-and-greet, but I met a young girl named B who just threw me right in. It was only a two hour shift so I just learned how to sign people in (which I forsee being something that's going to give me major headaches in the future) and clean. Oh yea. I felt like I was back in high school working at a local ice cream shop where all I did was clean, clean, clean in between serving customers. But it's a pretty easy gig, and everyone seems delightful so far, but there inability to understand my bewilderment was confusing in and of itself. You see, I had zero information going in, so I was more or less expecting an interview, schedule discussion and job duties description. Instead I became a bonafide employee upon entering the door and within days I will be opening the store myself...after only 4 hours of training.
I arrived again today and did the exact same thing. I don't even like cleaning my own apartment for free, and now I'm doing it at a yoga studio. But I'm chalking it up to to a valued experience where I'm bound to meet characters galore...and it's something to do with my time when I'm not at my real job and it's FREE YOGA, in NYC. amazeballs. Updates to come.

Mr. Big Dog Juan

Oh Punta Cana. It's hard to write about all the laughs and memories but we really did have a great time. On one of the last nights we went to the Michael Jacson show. No that's not a typo. The MJ impersonator was dead-on, Michael might as well have been up on stage dancing himself. He mimicked all the dance moves perfectly. That night or maybe after the star show there was a pool-side fiesta and Liz competed in cocktail-making and-shaking contest- she should've won!!

The next night we met the Venezuelan boys. They were very funny. I met them while ordering my sangria. Juan fell in "love" with Kristin and from there it was mayhem. At the end of the night Andres, Juan, and Alejandro ended up in Liz and Jackie's room, and Andres snuggled himself right in with Katie and Katie. They lied about their age and girlfriends all night, but what did we care? The words Besos! Besos! were thrown around. And finally I kept telling Andres he was a big pero...which is how they say trouble. but Andres said no, Juan is the dog! "Mr. Big Dog Juan!" You had to be there but we didn't stop laughing all night. Of course I fell for the little one who spoke no English - Jon.

The next day we boarded a plane back for NYC. We landed in yucky, cold, gross, foggy weather. I only got a sunburn on my feet and parts of my legs, so for me it was a success! But I've got many more freckles - it's part of the sun deal.

So to recap....lots of sun and warm weather, a beautiful beach, a swim-up bar, lots of dancing and merengue. Mojitos, vodka limonadas, pina coladas, rum and cokes, sangria. I learned Spanish, I met cute boys, and I swam and snorkeled and drank great coffee. but now i'm back to reality! blech!

Yo habla espanol

Okay I speak no Spanish....very limited, but my friends speak it well so I was struggling. Half the resort was from Spain or some Spanish-speaking nation. The next day was also spent on the beach. It's amazing how much you miss the smell of the ocean....the salt in the air, the sand, the coconuts, the palm trees. The sound of waves crashing on the shore and that ever-present breeze that prevents the blaring sun from becoming too hot. I'm a pale Irish girl, so that sun was brutal - gotta love Neutrogena SPF 45.

We swam in the crystal clear blue water which was a feat for me. I have issues with water, mostly because of marine creatures. I'm terrified of alligators and sharks, and I become extremly nervous if I have to swim in what I call dark water - usually caused by vegetation on the bottom. But I sucked it up and swam to the edge of the dark water which meant I was probably in 20 feet deep water. Or 10 - who knows I could be exaggerating.

I just loved the view. Palm trees, rainbow sails adrift in the distance, yellow kayaks and banana boats, parasailing trips careening past. Gorgeous and tan European men...minus the fat ones in their speedos.

Friday was mostly a day of relaxing. Saturday we went on a day tour of the Dominican Republic - it was incredibly eye-opening. Our guide Jose took us to a plantation to show us a real farm, and we got to taste a real cocoa bean...it's white and slimey and kind of tastes like a sour fruit. We then tasted fresh and real coffee and they amde us fresh hot chocolate. It was just really cool. The best part was watching the local little boys play baseball because you know at least one of them will be an MLB star someday. Then Jose made us rum and cokes by throwing and spinning the bottle, and took us to another little shop/farm. They call the ride a 'dominican massage' because its so bumpy, and boy was that true! But I was content sitting in the sun with my ron and coke. At the next farm they weaved us baskets and we bought jewelry and art pieces and some mamajuana. It's an aphrodesiac. Last stop was this gorgeous gorgeous beach. The sand was almost pure white and so soft. Packs of wild dogs were roaming the beach - that was a little creepy.

When we returned Aileen and I decided to rent some snorkel equipment and check out the water. Without meaning to we stumbled on a coral reef and it was so beautiful. It was like peaking in on the real Finding Nemo! All kinds of colored fish with different shape fins and noses swam below us and along us. The coral was so many colors and there were all kinds of urchins and anenomes. We absolutely blown away by this complete universe of life going on below us. But I'm a bit of a freak and kept giving myself minor panic attacks, waiting for a baracuda or shark to swim up!

That night we attended the Star Show...this great great talent show with many of the resort staff dancing to disco classics. You would have thought we were at a show for a gay cruise, meanwhile half the vacationers were 45 and up European couples. The dancing and lip-synching was so much fun though, I got a real kick out of it!

Punta Cana

I am officially the worst blogger ever. So I haven't blogged in forever so I'll try and update.

I recently went on spring break to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic and it was muoy fantastico!! Seriously I loved every minute of it!

We arrived on a Tuesday at the Punta Cana airport and the building itself was so gimmicky - I loved it! It looked like a giant tiki hut. Then we boarded a bus to the Riu Taino and began our Dominican adventure. Ten of us were vacationing together and surprisingly we all survived the trip.

Our hotel was really cute, our rooms, or love bungalos as we referred to them were four to a building with a cute little balcony/terrace attached to each one. Katie and I shared a room together - I mean we worked out as roomates in Europe why not the DR. Then we trecked over to the beach and just took in the beauty of the island. It was probably 85 degrees and so beautifully sunny...palm trees lined the shoreline and the sand was so smooth on our feet. The beach was covered in blue lounge chairs, and on those chairs were a lot of leathery and often topless Europeans. I got myself a pina colada and began to relax for the first time in months. We silently agreed there would be no talk of May 18th and beyond. The future was not part of this trip.

Around six we met with Adam our Polish travel rep and he gave us the low-down. Don't drink the tap water, stay in groups, don't leave the resort unless it's part of a trip, etc. Then we ate for the first time in hours at the buffet which was so-so. We headed back to the rooms and I made a rum and coke - and what a surprise! I normally don't drink rum because of how it affects me, but this was delicioso! It tasted like no other rum I'd ever had before. After a few of those we went to check out the Caribean Street on the resort. There was a little night time fiesta with dancing - older Europeans dancing with younger Dominican men. I swear we were in our own version of Dirty Dancing...Dominican Style. It was like that scene where all the dance instructors twirl the old Jewish people around the dance floor and it just all looks so awkward. Well we got pulled in too, especially since two of my friends are very pretty twins - they were a hit! All of a sudden the dancing turns into a connected circle, which becomes a chain and we start dance-walking down the street. I'm separated from the girls by a few staff members and have no idea where they are leading us, and they will not release the grip on our hands! Next thing I know we've been literally dragged to Pacha, the discotheque on the resort. So much fun! The staff members whipped out some local dances and then just started dancing with us all night. Dancer Elias became our new friend. But it got late, and were mucho exchausted from the plane, the sun and the fabulous dancing. Dominican people are excellent dancers.

Home

So I've been back stateside for a quite a few months now. Ireland never leaves you....it buries itself in your soul and grows daily. Senior year is going well so far, working, interning, living. C'est la vie!!

Home

My adventures in Eire are finally over, and what an experience it was. I think I'll keep writing periodic memories about my time in Galway because it's a huge part of who I am now.

But I must say it is good to be back. It's incredible how so much has changed in my absence, but at the same time nothing changed at all. It's as if the last five months of my life didn't happen. How is it possible that I was living in Ireland, traveling around Europe - and suddenly I find myself back in New England and the Bronx. It is just so bizarre.

My last week in Ireland was lots of fun. My mom and aunt came to Galway and it was one helluva of a week. I showed them around Galway for about three days which was a lot of fun. They got to experience the weather I became so accustomed to - gorgeous sunshine one minute, the next a torrential downpour. We walked up and down Shop and Quay Streets, ducking in and out of the touristy gift stores. We strolled down to the Claddagh so they could get a view of Galway Bay, but the wind was pretty icy so we then checked out some churches. We went to mass at the Cathedral after walking along the Roisin Dubh canal. At night it's a little creepy, but in evening light it's gorgeous - mini waterfalls, vines with purple flowers on a stone wall - absolutely lovely. Then it was dinner time. We walked along the Corrib River and went to McDonagh's for fish and chips. It was pretty good I must say. Then we went to King's Head to catch some music.

The next day we went to the Galway Crystal Factory and Royal Tara China store. We picked up a few goodies. Then we took a drive through Connemara which was breathtakingly beautiful. It's just so green and mountainous. We stumbled upon a horse fair so we checked that our for awhile - those horses were incredible creatures. We saw Kylemore Abby - this gorgeous manor on a lake surrounded by trees and giant rhodendron bushes. We checked out some cute little towns along the way as well. When we returned it was the huge Mayo v. Galway rugby game so Galway was bustling with cars and people. We walked along Salthill so I could show them where we spent most of our sunny days on the beach, looking at the hills of Clare and the Burren. We ate at An Pucan - my FAVORITE Galway restaurant. They loved it - it's just so cute and authentic and has great music every night without fail. We stayed there until closing then hit the hay.

Next day was a drive through the Burren, which I had only seen briefly. It's this large area covered in rocks. There's nothing quite like it. I mean there's tons of vegetation and it goes for miles - but there are so many rocks!! We saw the dolomon (i think) from thousands of years ago. Then we hit the Cliffs of Moher. I had seen them since we last went 7 years ago, but my mom and aunt were shocked at how much it's changed. It's much more of a tourist trap than it was then - you have to pay for it now and it's built up. Nonetheless, it's still an incredible sight to see. That night we ate at Monroe's, another of my favorites. They always have good music too, and since it's a bit off the beaten path it's not so touristy. Unfortunately though I was coming down with an awful cold, so I felt like death most of this weekend.

Then in the morning we were off the Kilarney. We first stopped downtown to take one last stroll through Galway and take some photos. God, I'm going to miss that place. There is no other city in the world that is comparable. It's Bohemian and Irish all at once. Lots of colorful characters, delicious food and memorable music. Salthill is my favorite area, and I'll miss our beach and our view. I have to go back because I didn't get to jump off the tower. Well I have to go back for many reasons - but that's just one excuse. Next time I wouldn't live so damn far away from everything in Dunaras, but I kind of liked being able to say I lived in Rahoon - the 'dodgy' area. So farewell Galway, you were good to me.

Barcelona

Hola!!! I just spent a fabulous weekend in Barcelona – one last hurrah before I head back to the states! I’m really glad I squeezed it in – even though I had my last final the day after we got back!! I’m officially done with junior year, I’m a senior – eek!! I absolutely loved Barcelona because it’s just such a fun and unique city. Apparently it’s nothing like the rest of Spain, but I really wouldn’t know so I’ll take people’s word for it.

We left Galway at 3:30am to catch a 7am flight. We got to Girona Airport at 10amish, then hit Barcelona by 11. The metro was pretty easy to figure out and we hopped on that, then a ferrocarril – which is just another train system – and headed to our hostel. We got there, then climbed up one of the steepest mountains I’ve been on. Our hostel was located in the city’s Natural Park way up in the mountains. It was super cute, tucked away on a windy road. The countryside was absolutely beautiful, and the temperature was perfect. The hike was unbelievable with our backpacks. But we got there and the staff was very sweet and the hostel was like a glorified sleep away camp, and I mean that in a good way. Our beds were clean, we had personal lockers, the whole place was actually great – very unusual for a hostel!!

We then went to the Placa Catalunya, which is the main center. We walked along Las Ramblas, which is the busiest street. People lined it dressed up like statues or bizarre garden people or kittens, all to pose with tourists. It was so busy and cute. Further down were merchants with cute handmade jewelry and a whole section was full of artists. The architecture is the real draw to Barcelona. Every single building is different from the one next to it – some look like mini castles, and some look like they are straight out of Zorro with elegant balconies and flowing flower boxes. We popped into this little square that had a huge fountain and tons of little café tables around it. Palm trees lined the interior, and the flower boxes had vines dangling down them with vibrant blossoms coloring the yellow stucco buildings. We found a great market filled with fresh fruit, meats, and candies, but best of all – a Dunkin Donuts!!! I haven’t seen one of those puppies in 5 months! We then walked down to the port which had these modern art sculptures and beautiful sailboats. Gigantic fish just hung out along the stone lining we were sitting on – it was so cool. We walked along the boardwalk and then down the strip checkin out the palm trees. BMW was doing this huge promo thing, so we decided to partake and took a test drive in the X5 on their test course. It was literally like being on an amusement park ride in Disney, and we had an adorable German pilot for Luftansa in the car with us. We then walked all the way down the Ramblas again to the other side, and when we both almost fell asleep on a park bench we decided it was time to head to the hostel.

Next day we had a great lovely little breakfast in the outdoor café at our hostel, then headed back to Catalunya. We went to the Sangrada Familia, this gorgeous unfinished cathedral. It looks like a giant sand castle, and the top looks like a drip castle. We strolled around and went to where the Olympic Village was and hung out on the beach for a few hours – don’t worry mom – in the shade!! We then took a sky ride over the Mediterrean into the mountains and got off in these great gardens that had saguaro cacti! While we were relaxin on a bench listening to the music from the local restaurant this lady approached us and asked to take pictures of us for this tourist magazine she’s a graphic designer for. We just had to look and act really hot, and then she gave us tickets to a bunch of museums. It was hysterical. Oh and then I got the call about AIDAN!!! Very exciting news! We then went back to the center and I got some tapas – it was fried chicken pate and just thinking about it makes me nauseous. But we walked to the cathedral which was under massive construction, but I got Sangria at a café across the square and we hung out listening to a mariachi band – except they weren’t dressed like one. Someone Katie went to high school with was sitting right next to us so that was a small world experience! Also these kids started walking around with signs saying Free Hugs, and we hugging people. I thought they were definitely pick pocketing, but turns out they were just giving out some free love, and yup I got some Spanish hugs. We then walked back to the port and hung out on a bench for awhile, till it was dinner time and then back to the hostel.
Unlike our last few trips we literally just hung out in Barcelona and took it all in. We strolled – a new experience for us – and just took our time to appreciate the city since it doesn’t have major tourist attractions. It’s really cool because they have two official languages – Catalonian and Spanish, with the former almost more prominent. Katie knows Spanish and she was completely thrown by the Catalonian, but luckily her knowledge of espanol came in handy a few times. It was a fun weekend – literally no sleep though with all our early flights. I’m glad I saw it, I’ll definitely be back!!

Springtime in Ireland

So the other day was my first day out and about in Galway after traveling around Ireland and it was just one of those perfect days. The weather has finally been extremely nice here - trips to the beach, walks in the sunshine, etc.

But everything was finally in bloom, so not to sound really corny, but I couldn't stop smiling as I walked. I strolled to campus, and I've done this walk about 300 times in the last five months, but it was the first time all the trees along the walkway were in blossom. The bright green leaves, the light pink and white flowers just added a new dimension to my usually drab view. The grass was even greener.

Campus was bustling with students, and surprisingly the library was manageable. These Irish kids don't do work at home or print at home apparently. It's bizarre compared to America, where everything is done in your dorm, or the library is at least big enough to house everyone. I realized the other day that I only a month left and it's an extremely depressing thought. How did these four months go by so quickly? I love it here, and I don't want to go home. I miss my friends and family and WFUV, but I'm so comfortable here. Galway is adorable, the people are friendly and my life is very familiar here. I'm a brisk walk away from a gorgeous beach that's filled with families and adorable children with even more adorable accents. I'm two miles from a charming little town, I've got two grocery stores nearby. I guess I could do with a different laundry system. Currently I lug my load of dirty clothes about a half mile and they wash and dry it at the cleaners then deliver it. However, I don't feel my clothes get that clean or soft and my lights aren't so bright. I digress though.

Even today was cold and rainy and it was still nice and pleasant to be here. I like having my own apartment where I have no one to answer to. At home I'm not this neurotic about cleaning or being organized. If I go home I'll go back to being sloppy and lazy and my insomnia will come back. I think everyone in my life should move here. Problem solved!!

Roma

The train ride to Rome was even more beautiful – we passed really cute towns and gorgeous countryside with lakes and mountains. When we finally got to Rome we found our hotel much more easily than the other places – it was right by Termini train station thankfully!! We immediately headed out and saw almost everything in half a day. Katie and I don’t fool around – we walk everywhere and see everything. Roma was a very interesting experience because by this point in the trip we were tired and the first two places were so charming and small, and Rome is enormous and crowded. Everywhere is Times Square. So while I did like it a lot and everyone should get there, I can’t say it was my favorite.

We went to Santa Mara Maggiore first – an unbelievably beautiful basilica in a residential/business area. Just – wow – like jaw-on-the-floor wow. We then went to the piazza della Republica – which is a lot like Lincoln Center in NYC. It has an ancient basilica with this more modern structure highlighting it. We walked to the Spanish steps which were covered in people and purple flowers and then Trevi Fountain. A man somehow got to the middle and dove into the fountain and was then arrested – it was quite the show. We went into many churches which were really cool because from the outside they look like nothing – just a building, but inside they are trimmed in gold and deep blues or pinks or greens and angels painted all over the ceilings.

We saw St. Ignacious Loyola’s church (go Jesuits!) – which I actually really really liked. The outside and in are beautiful. We saw the Pantheon which is so cool because you can really see how old it is. Next up piazza Navona which is a long oval center filled with the cutest restaurants and cafes and the buildings are all these bright colors. People were painting and playing music or doing comedy routines. We strolled to the Monument Victor Emmanuel which is so impressive and HUGE – I loved it! I think we headed back at this point – I’m honestly not sure if we even ate we were so tired. But we met a really cool guy from Chile in our hostel and girls from South Africa and Spain.

The next day we got up really early and went to Vatican City – Sunday. We got mixed in with this crowd of really pushy old people - and not very Christian regardless of their crosses and banners and pictures of Il Papa. It was chaos and we somehow ended up in a very special private ticket-only section in front of St. Peter’s…but we had no ticket and on one bothered us. Next thing we know the Pope comes out and says Mass about 200ft or 300ft from us!!! Parts were in English, but it was great to listen to nonetheless – lovely music. I mean I saw mass by the POPE. I could never go again and I’m pretty sure I’d still be covered. We then strolled over the museums which were closed, and then saw the Castel Sant’Angelo – an enormous egotistical mausoleum for some ancient person I forget. We walked along the river for a bit and then got some gelato and headed for Ancient Rome. We saw the Sacred Area, the Campidoglio and then walked through the Roman Forum which was incredible. As you go through suddenly the Colosseum pops up and it’s massive. It was really impressive to see and walk around. We hung out around there for a bit then headed back and pretty much crashed. We got dinner at this ridiculous place with rude waiters who microwaved our food. Bizarre!! That night as we were getting ready for bed this guy walks in the room and we know him from Fordham!! It was so random – of all the cities and hostels and rooms, and this kid we hung out with in Galway and Paris is in our hostel. So that was fun.

Next day we got up at 6:45 and went to the Vatican Museums. We only had to wait for them to open which was a relief and we were pretty far up in line. The museums are filled with insanely good art and sculptures – you really need a full day there. But we had a goal: the Sisteen Chapel. It’s not what you expect – you’re walking along and go up and down stairs and suddenly you’re in this small little chapel covered in wall to wall paintings. It’s beyond worth seeing – the paintings are so humbling and just knowing one man painted that ceiling and those walls – quite an experience. We left there and saw some ancient Roman sculptures, and then went into St. Peter’s. I really struggle to describe how impressive this building is – it’s enormous and the alter is so big you don’t even believe it looking at it. We saw La Pieta and just walked through it with our eyes as wide as they can go. I’m still not sure how to put the whole experience into words – I guess surreal. You’re in the heart of Catholicism and it should be so sacred, but it’s almost too much – too much gold and decorations and designs and tourists and people taking cheesy photos in the confessional booths. It was breathtakingly beautiful, but something didn’t feel right. I expect basilica’s around the world to be ostentatious, but I guess I wanted this to be humble and sacred, and not such a tourist trap.

Next we walked to Piazza del Popolo and at this point you’re really north in the city and it’s so pretty, way less people, and just cute. We got great pizza and the piazza itself is really cool. The center has a huge fountain you can sit in and around and two enormous churches sit in the entrance. This day was honestly kind of miserable because of the heat and our exhausted we were, but we still had things to see and do. We walked all the way to the bottom of the city and stuck our hand in the Mouth of Truth – mine’s still here, no worries! And then saw the Circo Massimo, where all the chariot races took place. We walked by the Colosseo again, and crashed back at the hostel. At night we walked around saw the Piazza della Republica lit up with the fountain – just like LCenter in summer.

Rome is huge. Just huge. The people aren’t very friendly and barely anyone speaks English which was quite a shock and very frustrating. It’s a capital city for Pete’s sake!! However the gelato was unbelievable – this one place had a chocolate that might as well’ve been brownie batter. It’s way too crowded, but I really liked how it’s a city with all these ancient ruins or gorgeous churches that just pop up as you turn a corner. Everything is ornate and the churches are really stunning from the inside – even just itty bitty chiesas make you go “Wow.”
I was a big hit with Italian men had many men profess their love for me – one man dressed as an ancient Roman soldier put his fake sword to my neck and said “I love you.” The city felt like a twilight zone at times.
Also – I had multiple people tell me I don’t look American! I’ve gotten that before from NYC cabbies…I don’t know what makes me not look American but they didn’t believe I wasn’t English, Irish, or French. They thought Katie was American, but not me!!

Overall, Italia is bella!!! The people are so darling and I picked up more Italian in one week than I have of Irish in 5 months. Ciao bella, Prego, Gratzie, and many more phrases will be stuck in my head. The whole place just tests your senses – one minute it’s cool windy – the next smoldering heat. The colors are enchanting and I’m not kidding you could smell lilacs, gardenias, and wonderful food smells everywhere. I had many forms of chocolate gelato, as well as coconut, pineapple, orange, peach, mint, nutella, tiramisu and stractiatella. Even though I feel like I ate the country’s entire store of gelato, most of those flavors were combined on one cone!! Also – I’m aware I probably spelled most of the Italian words wrong, so those of you who are Italian, my apologies but I’m too lazy to double check!! I loved Italy, but I’m glad to be back – Gaillimh is still my favorite, followed by Paris then Venice!! Ciao!!!

Firenze

If Venice is a storybook or fairytale, Florence is a movie. I mean walking along the river looking at the mountains just looks straight out of a movie – Much Ado About Nothing had to have been filmed nearby. I was really surprised by Florence because it wasn’t quite what I expected, but I loved it nonetheless. The train ride from Venice to Florence was great – the Tuscan country side was beautiful. Our little train compartment was filled with 6 people – all really nice Italian people.

We got there around 1pm and it was soooo HOT!! I expected a cute little town but it’s a bustling city with lots and lots of people! We took a bus – well many city buses to our hotel and got there FINALLY after lugging our bags through busy, hot hot streets and it was really nice and in a great location on Via Cavour on the Piazza della Liberte. We took our map and headed toward old Firenze and saw the Il Duomo – a massive white cathedral decorated in green and pink panels, with the bapistry? right across. We then just strolled from piazza to piazza and passed beautiful buildings and gardens and statues. One piazza was filled with gardenias so I was in heaven.

We walked along the river and just couldn’t get over the view of the mountains. We walked over the Ponte Vecchio and drooled over all the diamonds in the windows. We then went to Piazza della Signoria where the famous Uffizi museum is – again the line was crazy so we passed. But the piazza holds a copy of David and many other statues – like Perseus and Rape of Sabine. All the outdoor cafes were so cute and the apartments were lined with red flowers in the flowerboxes. After some more gelato we met up with Katie’s friend who took us to Santa Croce where Michelangelo and many other famous folks are buried as well other neat piazzas and palazzos. We got sparkling red wine and a delicious dinner – tortellini pruscuitto for me, followed by chocolate gelato. We strolled back to the Ponte Vecchio and listened to a man play the guitar for a while, and went back to Piazza Signoria with all the statues and fountains lit up.

The next day we went to the Fortezza da Basso which should have a pretty lake, but we couldn’t find it so we left. We tried to buy train tickets but apparently the trains were on strike, so instead we check out the basilica across the street – Santa Maria Novella. We saw the Accademia museum from the outside (it houses the real David) and passed the Palazzo de Medici. We strolled through a great outdoor market and chatted with the vendors – just so nice and not the fake kind. One guy warned us about Roma, “In Firenze we are all nice people and like nice people. In Roma – mean. Mean people, you won’t like it.” We met up with Sarah – our new friend again and scammed our way into the Boboli Gardens using her student pass.

The gardens were my favorite – huge and beautiful filled with ponds and statues of Roman gods. They love Neptune in Firenze! We walked around for a few hours and saw the most amazing view of the city and the Tuscan countryside. It’s dotted with olive trees and purple and pink flowers. Old buildings line the tops of the hills and mountains and it’s just absolutely breathtaking. Katie and I were pretty much dead at this point so we walked back to our hotel and then went to Sarah’s for some home cookin. We had pasta covered in garlic and olive oil, bread with olive spread and more olive oil. I feel like I ate and entire olive grove – so I was in heaven. The next day we left for Roma, and while Florence was much more urban than I expected, I still found it lovely and people were pretty great.

Viva Italia

Italia – Ciao Bella!!

I just got back from my week-long trip to Italy and it was aaamaazzinngg. We did a lot - Venezia, Firenze, and Roma - so I’ll break this up into 3 posts. In Italy overall we found out they have strange laws on construction – they can only do it certain years and times of the year – and we went during prime construction. So every famous basilica and building had tons of scaffolding, but it was still unbelievable to see.

Our first stop was Venice, and it was my absolute favorite city out the three. My Italian tour book described it as “disturbingly beautiful,” which at first I thought was an odd choice of words. But once there I realized what it meant – the humidity makes everything hazy so it’s almost dreamlike. It was like a storybook - small and charming. When we got there it was about 9:00 at night and we had no idea where to go – all we knew was that we needed to take a water taxi to the island of Lido where our hotel was. So not to freak out mom I’ll just say it was a nightmare, but after a long night we got to our hotel safely by 12:30amish. It was really nice and right on the water.

We woke up really early and got on our water taxi and headed towards the main parts of Venice – first stop Piazza San Marco. The water trip was amazing – all these little islands surrounded us filled with palm trees and buildings you’d see in an old Spanish movie. The Piazza is gorgeous and we couldn’t go into the Basilica because of the line, but it was beautiful to look at. We then put the map away and just started meandering through the little streets. Shops filled with beautiful Murano glass and jewelry were lined up one after the other, and windows were filled with Venetian masks and mannequins in stunning masquerade costumes. The streets were like little alleys and as you went along you’d come across a bridge over a waterway and beneath you would be a gondola trimmed in gold and velvet. The gondoliers would yell after me, “You! Blondy girl! Ride?” Since we wound through the streets I’m not exactly sure of all the famous sites we saw, but we popped into beautiful churches as we went – one was enormous on the inside and the pillars were covered in red velvet –I think it was San Stefano. It was just so much fun – you’d be in these narrow shady streets and then out of nowhere you’d be in this huge open piazza filled with music and people. The buildings were all reds and oragnes, and some were blues with the plaster peeling away to reveal red brick beneath. Lilacs were flowing over every wall so the city smelled of salt water and lilacs. All over are water fountains with water just flowing out into a pool, and people drank from them, but I wasn’t daring around.

Our first gelato was as amazing as they tell you – I got a vanilla with nutella mixed in for a euro. Then we got pizza for lunch – and Ireland doesn’t have good pizza so this was an unbelievable treat. It tasted like pizza on Arthur Ave, but better! A man was outside Chiesa San Rocco singing opera songs in a beautiful tenor voice as we ate. We then went to the beginning of the Grand Canal, hopped on a water taxi and took a tour for an hour. The water taxis are like subways, but on water with a great view of all the buildings and bridges. We then walked through this great market by the Ponte di Rialto which is a beautiful bridge that connects two huge sections of Venice. We then stopped for dinner at a cute outdoor restaurant and I got lasagna and a glass of the house red – delicious!!! But most restaurants charge you to sit and for the service, so we didn’t eat out much. We were pretty beat so we headed back to our island, and walked around Lido down to the beach and I’m not kidding, it was so humid and hazy you could barely see 100 ft. down the beach, but it didn’t feel gross – it just looked so mysterious. We then went to the other side of the island and sat on the canal at sunset and couldn’t believe where we were.

The next day was basically the same, but we went to the island of Murano where all the famous glass comes from. It was small and adorable and then we went back to Venice and strolled through the streets again. We had lucked out the day before by walking around early because in the afternoon those tiny streets are packed with people so you can barely move. We then went back to Lido and hung out on the beach for the afternoon. The water was so clear and it was so hot – something I haven’t experienced in Ireland and forgot about!!

I wish I could describe every minute but it’s just impossible. The people in Venice were so friendly and nice and spoke excellent English and were willing to help us with any question or directions. When they found out we were Americans they didn’t get that look of dollar signs in their eyes like everywhere else we’ve been – instead they just seemed intrigued and wanted to chat. Sunset each night was gorgeous – it’s really a city for lovers and Katie and I just watched all these couples with extreme envy. The water taxis and gondolas and speed boats are so much fun to watch, and the food was amazing. People stand around the piazzas dressed in masquerade costumes and masks posing for pictures and money – it’s a riot! The city is a breeze to walk – it takes maybe a half hour to walk from top to bottom and probably an hour side to side – but there is so much to stop and see!! I really loved it, and will without a doubt make it back there when I have money and someone to ride a gondola with!!

Easter

Last week was Easter – Sunday April 2, 2007 – in Gaillimh, Ireland. It was so nice, and by nice I mean lovely, wonderful and comfortable. For the first time I felt pangs of homesickness since I’ve been in Ireland because of all the small but extraordinary things my mom always does on Easter. She outdoes herself every holiday, but particularly on Easter because of the effort she puts into thinking of the perfect present. I mean she still pretends to be Santa for my 35 year old sister – that’s how amazing she is, but on Easter it’s just a basket, and it’s perfect. Around 8am she sneaks into my room and puts a basket on the floor next to my bed; I know it’s her because I wake up and look at her and we always exchange a smile when she’s caught in the act.
“Happy Easter babydolly,” is all she says, and I fall back asleep with my Easter morning complete. That’s all I need – that could be it – that could be all that happens on Easter and it would be complete. That moment where we look at each other, catch eyes and share a knowing smile. I love her. I love her because she’s the most considerate person I have ever and will ever know. I try to emulate her consideration and ability to make everyone feel unbelievably special, but I always come up short.
This Easter though I’m across the Atlantic Ocean. When baseball season opened I missed home because of what baseball is – America, green grass being cut, T-shirts, hot dogs, and an escape from the mundane. But I love Easter – my mom makes about 5 baskets just to put around the house, she buys everyone bunny stuffed animals, candy they especially like, costume jewelry and a simple everyday-type shirt.
So this year I played Mom. I made my friend Katie an Easter basket – sort of. I bought her a pink purse I could only hope she’d like or use, and since Ireland doesn’t have the fake grass I stuffed it with this Tri-color feather boa I had for St. Paddy’s. Then I placed a chocolate bunny on top, and placed a dark-chocolate Kit-Kat, Cadbury mini-eggs, Lindt eggs, and a Butler’s chocolate egg in the bag around the bunny. It was the best I could do. I made a similar one for my friend Chris – sans the purse. I did for the sense of normalcy it would bring for all of us. I needed to do this for them as much as for myself so we wouldn’t miss home too much. The look on their faces made it all worthwhile – I know them both well and I can’t say I’ve seen such a happy look on either of their faces.
Chris, Katie and I went to 10am Mass which was nice, but lacked music so it was anti-climatic. We all anticipated the annual “Jesus Christ is risen today...” but were denied. After Mass we headed back to our apartment and I made chocolate chip pancakes and had Chris cut up a fresh pineapple. My roommate Sarah supplied some Irish bacon, then we all sat together at the spots where I puts place cards down ( I made them) for each person. It was actually really nice.
Afterwards the three of us headed down to the Salthill beach and just goofed around for a bit. We played soccer with a potato the whole walk down and then dropped it into the ocean – an Easter feast for the fish.
Once we returned home I began dinner. I cooked a ham, mashed potatoes, a veggie mix, and warmed up mac n’cheese. Chris is a vegetarian and Katie is the pickiest eater on the planet, but I found a way to please everyone. It was just nice – and nice is a really good thing. Chris and I finished 3 bottles of wine and a Kopperburg – maybe that’s what made everything so pleasant! Or that fact that I finally found jelly beans to put out with my centerpiece (jellybeans, an Easter card from my rents, and my Easter palm/pine branch).
Then after sitting and watching TV for a bit I put the cookies I had baked the day before in the oven and reheated them for about 2 minutes and put them out for the three of us to enjoy. My roommate had left for her own feast hours before, so no worries – she wasn’t excluded.
A few minutes later my family called from Whitestone, NY. They were all almost there – minus my brother, sister-in-law and nephew. I spoke to almost everyone which really made my night, but it was a 45-minute call!! But I needed it. Easter is usually low-key, but it was quite the party from the sounds of it. Of course the year I leave! I guess it’s just because we’ve all finally grown up. My cousin James is the youngest at around 10 and his brother is 15…but the rest of us are 20 and older. My sisters are married to great men and my other cousins are men themselves now. It’s now food, music, laughter and drink, instead of tears and yelling like when we were kids. Listening to their joy didn’t so much make me sad as it did just happy that they were happy. There was no fighting at this point in the day and it was so comforting to hear their joy.
So that was my Easter – my makeshift family and I loved it. I missed my real family, but it was nice. It wasn’t with the “closest thing to family” it was with family as makeshift as it is. I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. Yes I’d have loved to be home with my other family, but Galway has finally started to feel like home - I’m in love with this place and I’m in love with Chris and Katie as family.
I do miss home-home family, but I feel like Europe is where I belong, for right now at least.

Lá Fhéile Pádraig

Lá Fhéile Pádraig!! Well, it's way past St. Paddy's Day, but that was the last major event.
Two of my friends from home came to visit for a week and it was pretty intense! My other roomie had 2 friends also, so it was quite the packed house. It was an interesting mix of people too - we had three people from Wisconsin, 2 from Jersey, 1 from Boston, and 1 from Connecticut. At one point 2 other people stayed so we had 4 from Wisconsin and 2 from CT, trust me - the accent ratio was insane and we had a lot of fun with that.

Kris, Jacks, Kat, and I hit up the Cliffs of Moher which were just unbelievably beautiful. I had been there years ago, but it's something you can never see too many times. The weather was perfect - sunny, cool, and clear. Driving through the Burren alone made the trip worth it. The rolling Irish hills were in perfect form for our friends. I had class during their stay so I couldn't visit Connemara with them on another day, but I'll get there. I had to pass up on a trip to the Aran Islands also, but I'll make it there no doubt.

At the end of the week was St. Patrick's Day - which contrary to some American's belief, it is a big deal in Ireland. A very big deal. Thousands of people descended upon Galway from around the world, but the weather was awful so you didn't really see half of them.

We started off in Monroe's, a great pub, and a marching band played some music to kick off the parade. We hid under an awning during the actual parade because the rain was so bad. The parade was short but cute - lots of kids in uniforms and bagpipers. We then hit up Wards Hotel for some lunch and to watch the big rugby match. Ireland won, but not by enough points to secure the entire six-nations games. Nighttime was when the real festivities began. The rain relaxed a bit and we hit downtown.
We went to the Quays first and met some obnoxious Irish boys. I was almost set on fire by some idiot, and that idiot then literally set his friend on fire. I was asked by multiple boys for a kiss - it's the Irish pick-up line. We met up with some more American friends we had made earlier in the day and then went to Hole in the Wall. We met more crazy Irish people and danced for awhile, where we met some great people. We followed them back to their apartment and went to a real Irish house party. It was amazing.
We drank, we sang, people Irish danced and played the tin whistle, and I met some great people. We all even fell in love for the night with some nice Irish boys with great Irish names. We partied till 4am and had probably the best night in Ireland thus far. I miss my family and friends and NYC, but I am in love with Galway!!!

Visitors

Our friends from Fordham are here!! So far it's been a lot of fun, pretty low-key. Last night we hit the pubs - An Pucan, King's Head, and The Quays. Some Dublin friends were there, and a family from my home town!! It was bizarre!!

Today we went to the Cliffs of Moher and drove through the Burren. It was a gorgeous day and just so unbelievably beautiful. I saw the Cliffs years ago, and they are definitely worth seeing again. We walked along the edge, so great. Well that's about it for now!

Paris Holds the Key to Your Heart

Last week we went to Paris. I've wanted to go there for as long as I can remember - I took French for seven years just so I could go there and know the language!! Luckily it turned out to be everything I had hoped for!!

We left Saturday morning from Shannon airport and flew via Ryan Air to Beauvais, France, and then took about an hour long bus to Paris. Pulling into the city you can see the Eiffel Tower so believe me, I got tres excited. The bus pulled into a place called Port Maillot, and then Katie and I were in the middle of Paris with my basic knowledge of the language and no map. But the hotel concierge nearby directed us to a subway stop, we asked around and eventually made it to our budget hotel on the exact opposite side of the city. The hotel was pretty decent and about the same cost as our terrible hostel in London so it worked out well, and the location turned out to be perfect. Katie got in touch with a childhood friend of hers studying in Paris, so we headed over to meet her by Sacre Coeur. The best part about being abroad is you become best friends with everyone else studying, simply because we're all in the same boat and everyone wants places to stay or to be shown around. Katie hadn't talked to this girl in about four years but she was gung-ho to show us around! So we headed that way and tried to find food but Katie is the pickiest eater of all time and French food is tricky, so I just grabbed a four-cheese pizza tart thing at a boulangerie (bakery), and it was surprisingly good. I'm not a cheese person but I ate more cheese this weekend than in my whole life. We wandered around and stumbled into the Red Light district and saw the Moulin Rouge which is pretty cool to see at night because of the lights, and then we walked down the street - it was hilarious, I'll just leave it at that. We met up with Lisa the friend and her friends, and then we met up with more people and got fondue! It was so delicious! We had meat and cheese fondue, and they serve you 2euro wine out of baby bottles! It was such a cute gimmick! We also made some Canadien friends backpacking across Europe that night, so it was successful.

The next day Katie and I got up early and hit the tourism route. We started at Notre-Dame on the Ile de la Cite and went to mass, which I found to be amazing. The music was in Latin and very eerie, which fit such an historic building. We then walked along the Seine and saw the Hotel de Ville and got lunch - I got un croque-monsieur, which is basically a glorified grilled ham and cheese, but I had to pretend order them all through highschool French classes, so I finally wanted a real one. Pretty good. We also checked out the Centre Georges-Pompidou which is the one of the coolest buildings I've ever seen. Next the Louvre, which was great because it's free the first Sunday of every month! We walked around for 2 hours and saw the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo - which I found cooler than Mona Lisa, and lots of great art. The Egyptian exhibits were the best, and they let you walk down along where the old moat used to be. It got way too crowded so we had to leave, and then hit the Touleries Gardens, Place de la Concorde where all the executions took place during La Revolution, and then walked along the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. That was one heck of a hike. From there we walked to the Eiffel Tower, which is honestly so much bigger than I thought!! We didn't go up but if you go the building behind it - the Trocadero, you get a great view of the city. Why stop there? We then walked down the Eiffel's lawn - the Champs de Mars and checked out the military school - it's beautiful, and then headed towards Les Invalides, where Napolean is buried. It was probably 5 or 6 at this point, so we headed back to the hotel to relax. At night we met up with Lisa again and got dessert - a crepe with nutella and bananas...I don't think anything better exists. Then we went to an Australian pub where it was American night of all things and met up with our new friends.

On Monday we went to Sacre-Coeur which is so so so beautiful and breathtaking. The view is to die for, but the people harrassing you for money were out of control. We went inside and it was so impressive. We walked around Montmatre after that which is very cute and it wasn't too packed but artists ask to draw you every five feet. The art was so great and the buildings are charming. One particular square had a restaurant called Chez Eugene, and right near it was another cafe called La Mere Catherine, which I found to be just perfect. We walked all over that hill and then headed towards the St. Michel area to meet a friend of mine for lunch, but the Metro stop we planned to meet at had multiple exits and entrances so we missed each other! Instead I got a baguette with chicken and cheese and headed towards the Jardin du Luxembourg which was beautiful, then the Pantheon, the Sorbonne, and back to Notre Dame to see St. Chapelle - but you had to pay to get in so we didn't see the stained glass which is its draw. We walked along the Seine again to the Palais Royale, stumbled into St. Gervais church which was so haunting - really mysterious and creepy but beautiful. At night we met up with some Fordham kids and got dinner and then hit an Irish pub called The Galway - ridiculous! But I got a glass of red wine to appease my sister.

Tuesday, our last day was awful weather. The other days were mild and sunny and I walked around in a tee-shirt, but this was cold, rainy and windy and we had to lug our bags everywhere. We went to the Catacombs, which I thought were just unreal. So humbling and frightening but a necessary experience. I'll just say that Katie is claustrophobic, which I thought was just a term she threw around to mean she didn't like crowds, but I learned she really really is. We then walked to the Montparnasse area and met Lisa for lunch and I got a great little tart and une baguette sandwich. Honestly, the French understand good food better than anyplace I've ever been. We then pretty much walked to the Eiffel Tower again and then to Port Maillot, to the Arc de Triomphe and back to Port Maillot to kill time in the pouring rain. Basically it was time to go home, so after security threw out half of Katie's stuff and a bumpy plane ride, we just wanted to go home. But of course it's Ireland and Bus Eirrean would stop running at 8 at night at an international airport, so our return ticket was useless - rip off!!! But we took a different bus back to Galway and finally, finally went to bed.

The French really do walk around with baguettes sticking out of their purses, the croissants are delicious, they are actually nicer than people give them credit for and will ask if you prefer English or French at some restaurants. No one talked politics unlike the Irish, and I just had an amazing time. The Canadiens we met put the American-thing into perspective, one of them said he'd never met an American he didn't like and in fact thought we're great overall, our government just ruins it. Paris has a lot of trees and without being in bloom it gave the city a very brown, dead look, but I imagine in spring and summer it's just gorgeous. I have to go back because we didn't see the city lit up at night, except the Eiffel Tower which sparkles every so often. J'adore Paris, c'etait magnifique!!