Well, I've managed to get a bit more settled into Maria's place here in Arklow, and I figured I should work on a blog to keep everyone updated on my drunken shenanigans (and, well, the sober ones too).
The 9 hour flight was brutal, mostly because I hate planes, but Maria took me for my very first Irish beer in my very first Irish pub. Perfect welcome to the country, I'd say. For the record, Guinness over here is actually good. And no, they didn't serve it to me warm. Must be a... British thing?
I had to get up early Monday to go to my SWAP orientation. Maria works in Dublin, so she leaves early to get there. Luckily for me, the place I had to go was within walking distance of her office, so I had some coffee (NOT Tim Horton's...yikes) and went on my way. My orientation wasn't until 11, and I was in Dublin by 7:30, so I walked around the Temple Bar area (a cool little shopping centre with cobbly streets), and I hit up a Guinness store and a place to get some postcards. I was unfortunately the only person in the orientation. I was hoping to meet some fellow travelers, but the girl did say they had socials and things periodically, so I'm sure I'll get to meet some eventually. After the orientation, I did manage to make my way to The Brazen Head Pub, which is the oldest pub in Ireland. It was pretty nifty. Definitely a good way to kill an hour or two.
I went to bed super early last night to try and get over my jet lag... I slept for a pretty solid 17 hours. Maria and Mark both had to work today, so I had the house to myself. I walked down to the Tesco, which is a big store (sort of like Superstore, but not r-tardedly busy). I decided I'd make some Nanaimo bars for them, since they're bloody delicious and something not a lot of Irish people know about.
I've only had a few issues, mostly with the damned Irish appliances. I couldn't get the shower to run on Monday (you'd think a start/stop button would be enough...but noooo), then trying to cook my fettucine alfredo tonight, I couldn't get the stove to work. Who has an on/off switch for the stove located BEHIND the stove? Really? Doors here are a bit strange too... some kid on a scooter definitely saw me struggling to lock it. Don't judge me!
Alright kiddies, that's it for now. I have very important preparation (sleep) to do for tomorrow's adventures. Maria's taking me into Dublin in the morning for the St.Patty's day parade, and then drink, drank, drunk!
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