Blogs from County Galway, Ireland, Europe - page 8

I'm halfway there. I can't even believe it. It feels like yesterday I was crying while saying goodbye to my parents and wondering why I was doing this to myself. Now I can't imagine my life being without Galway. This city and this country has truly captured my heart. I've grown so much as a person in these past few months, more than I could've ever thought possible. I believe in myself and my abilities more than I ever have in my entire life. It's an empowering feeling. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be here with these people and directors who love us like their own. That being said, I can't help feeling uneasy. I don't know if it is because of the lack of structure or that I am starting to miss home, ... read more

Normally I hate Halloween. I don't know why because I love dressing up for plays and such, but the idea of Halloween really turns me off. However, since I'm in Ireland I decided that I was going to enjoy myself this year. My Halloween weekend started off on Wednesday night. A group of us soccer girls decided to go out and we dressed up in shorts and jerseys and went as soccer players. Really original right? It was so much fun. I really am glad I decided to join the team and met such amazing girls that really accept me. I took Thursday night off and opted to sleep instead of going out. Friday night Bre, Erin, Brooke, and I dressed as Minnie Mice. We all had different takes on the costume; Bre wore a nightdress ... read more

Last night we have a "night on the town" as I like to refer to it as. After 6pm a few of us met and on campus to go listen to some music at the campus pub. I know, I know, the campus has a pub. It's still blowing my mind too. Anyway, we found out some of our other friends suggested the beach to walk along the water. When I say yesterday was a beautiful day, I really don't mean just for Ireland. ? The weather was absolutely gorgeous, so of course we were like, "heck ya! What a good idea!" It still shocks me when I think about how Galway is right on the ocean. From my apartment to the ocean shore it's like a 25 minute walk. I don't know if it's just ... read more

At 10:30am on September 10th the twelve API students and our Irish family; Finn and Kevin and their kids Owen, Aisling, and Roisin, boarded a bus that just fit all of us and we started our journey out the the wild lands of Connemara. Before we got way into the land we stopped at a market on the side of the road. The market was one of people coming together and trading farm animals. We saw chickens and ducks, goats and sheep, even two dogs. People were bartering and buying, checking livestock for health conditions, and speaking in Irish. A group of us became particularly smitten with a little puppy. The other dog with her, I assume it was her mother, kept putting her paws on my leg and staring into my eyes with her deep ... read more

Today was the first day we all got to sleep in, and let me tell you I totally needed it. At about 10:30am I got out of bed and got ready to face the beautiful and sunny day ahead of me. Bre and I walked to the Galway Cathedral where we accidentally showed up too early for mass. We waited until 12:30pm and we sat through a lovely service. My grandma is so proud? After Bre and Jess and Bridget and I ate lunch at this adorable bakery called Griffin's in Galway City. It was then we decided to go to Salthill to jump off the famed diving board. At this point it was still sunny and we walked through a little market that I will definitely have to re-visit with more time. We took a ... read more