Enter Dublin

The apartment is nice and the complex is very cool. Good size, good little common room. I hate having the lights outside the room instead of inside. But I’ll live with it. Met three of four roommates: Luke, Amanda, and Paige. They’re all east coast and are doing internships here, so they work all week, but they still party at night (they’ve been here a few weeks). We stayed up and just chatted for a few hours and they seemed excited to meet me. They’re all really nice and don’t seem at all like what I thought New Yorkers would be like. The accent is already taking hold, but it’s weird, because I feel like it’s a defense mechanism to fit in, and I fear it’s just coming off as a crappy Brit impersonation, and apparently an American accent will mostly serve me well, especially since I sound a bit like a hick apparently.

Arrived a little late. Ooops. So I had to take a cab down to the IES center, which was great and not that expensive. Got Dublin 101 along the way from Seamus. Rode the bus back after a small walking tour and an amazing dinner at the Pig’s Head. The IES students are all girls but one and seem nice. Ya, so I think the study abroad ration for girl to guy is like 7:1. I can live with that.

Dublin is beautiful, and chaotic. It looks like a Harry Potter city with dreary older places spruced up with strange paints and art, and hardly anything is level. The doors in Ireland are just great. Saw the famous Post office and this weird spire in the middle of Dublin. I think it’s to poke Jesus in the eye when he comes down at the end of the world. The drivers are awful here and there is no way I’m cycling after riding with Seamus. Tomorrow is orientation and apparently I can join a soccer society for like €3 and find the level of competition for me and train and play regularly. Great! Oh, and the IES staffers are great- very nice and helpful.

I’m going on a liquid/multivitamin diet, because anything else would break me. I’ll go shopping tomorrow though for real. I’m ready for bed now. Going out with the roomates tomorrow night. Shout out to Mary, Maureen, and Barbara. Thanks so much.