Blogs from County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, Europe - page 12

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I'd wanted to wait until I could upload all my photos before posting an update on my Galway trip, but the digital photography gods seem to have it in for me. I finally managed to upload all my digital pics onto my roommate Oscar's laptop-- yay for nice roommates!--but somehow, I only managed to burn ONE of them to CD before merrily heading into campus. Only when I inserted the CD into the computer lab computer did I realize my folly. By that point, my roommate and his laptop were elsewhere. So, for now, the ONE picture I've added on a previous entry will have to suffice, as well as a vow to add more later. As for my Galway trip, as the pictures shall soon show you, it was loads of fun! There were ten ... read more
The International Crowd
Hanging out at the Hostel
Two Dutchmen


Yes, my semester has finally begun after quite a long winter break. I've tried out a few classes so far, and so many are so interesting, it's hard to choose! I really would like to get a three-day weekend for traveling purposes, but that would mean I'd have to drop one of the two courses I'm looking most forward to-- Contemporary Irish Lit in English or European Cinema! What to do, what to do? I might even drop down to taking 12 hours of credit since I can swing that and still graduate on time, but I just don't know what to do! Hopefully I'll figure it all by this weekend, after which I'll have to start making decisions! So far, my favorite classes have been the lit class mentioned above (the Cinema class is only ... read more


With this weekend, I have successfully began my adventures of exploring the world beyond Limerick! I promised my Dad before I left that I would travel every weekend, so as this weekend approached, I tried to brainstorm up a daytrip for Saturday that wouldn't be too expensive or too troublesome for a solo traveler. Thus, I woke up yesterday morning, donned one of the few outfits I had room to pack, and headed on a bus trip to Ennis, which is about a 45-minute bus ride from here. Ennis is a mid-sized town almost centered between Limerick and Galway. I enjoyed my day there, exploring the quaint shops and winding streets. It was quite busy because there was a hurling game yesterday at a pitch (playing field) nearby. Everyone was decked out in their team's colors, ... read more


I can't write much (the computer lab's about to close), but I found a place to stay and free access to computers! Yay! And they have USB ports, so I can upload some of my pics soon! Anyway, the house is nice, just about a 10 minute walk from the main buildings of the University. I have three roomies-- Oscar from Spain, Istaban from Hungary, and Cliona from Galway, Ireland. I've met the first two, and they're very nice, but the Irish girl isn't supposed to come back until classes start. I had orientation today and got shown all around the University with a bunch of other wide-eyed students. Fortunately, I wasn't as bad off as some of them-- I'd gotten rid of my jet lag, unlike a number of others there. Tonight we're having a ... read more
And the Kitchen
More Kitchen
Another view of my room


After 3 flights, one of which I had to switch to 10 minutes before takeoff because the original was cancelled, I'm finally in Ireland. So far, so good. I'm staying at a B&B until I find housing, and it's quaint and nice and close to campus. The family that runs it has been very nice to me and has even given me a number to contact about renting a room. Currently, I'm in an internet cafe downtown, so no pictures yet! Downtown Limerick is REALLY cool, with all kinds of little shops, cafes, and restaurants lining the bustling streets. I took the bus down here from the University, which isn't too bad of a deal (UL is about 5 miles from the city). Yesterday, upon arriving at 5:40am, I dropped my stuff at the B&B and ... read more
Old Headstone
View from the B&B
Main Entrance to Univ. of Limerick


I was not nervous at all going to Northern Ireland just anxious. Back home, people said we should be extra careful, stay on the bus with all the troubles going on with the political conflict, but I figured what happens, happens and is beyond our control. Our director said we could possibly be stopped at the border but we were not. There wasn't any, at least where we went through. Bill said it was just as safe as any place in America and had one area (street) where there could be a problem area just like cities in America have their areas to stay away from. Our first stop was in LONDONDERRY or DERRY, a walled city, where we had a local guide give us a city walking tour. It is also known as the "Maiden ... read more
more Londonderry


I had always wanted to go to Ireland because we believed our ancestors lived there. My grandmother was as excited as I was in the upcoming months leading up to this trip. We; Suzi (aka aditu), Leanne and I had decided to do an escorted tour with Globus called "Scenic Ireland" that started and ended in Limerick. The other towns we were staying in were Clifden, Bundoran, Ballygally in the north, Dublin, Waterford, Cork and Killarney and we also added 2 extra nights in Limerick. There were actually some people that had cancelled this trip because of 9/11. We thought that this would be the safest and thus the best time to fly. Our flight started in Pittsburgh with a layover in somewhere I can't remember and then to Limerick. I took 2 cameras, both 35mm; ... read more
St. Mary's Cathedral
River Shannon
View of Limerick from my room




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