Hi everyone and happy belated St. Patrick's day!
Patty's day is indeed a big deal in Ireland it's even a national holiday. There are parades all over the country and people of all ages and beliefs celebrate. I could not come to Ireland and not take part so I was invited by two "mature" students (they are both 64) to spend a traditional day with them in Sligo county (the northwest countryside).
The journey started on Monday after we were done with class. It took two hours to get from the city into the village of Ballinafad (pop. 47). There is a church, post office, and pub. They live outside of the village in a cottage with a traditional thatched roof. There are sheep and horses behind their house and a lot of mountain scenery. It was all very breath taking.
So after a dinner of lamb chops we went to the pub. Now, if you are reading this then you know me and you know that I am not much of a drinker, so I have pretty much avoided the pubs in the city because they are very rowdy. The Mayflower (pub) was wonderful! there were only about 25 people which was more than it usually sees but the atmosphere is just like how you would imagine an Irish pub to be. And the most incredible thing is that everyone talks to everyone, 18 year old's with 80's over a pint and malibu with pineapple juice.
I did have to drink since it would have been rude not to. So I ordered the only drink in Ireland I have found to be passable Bulmers everywhere else it is called Magners. I usually only drink one, but the owner Dermott, kept bringing more even before I was finished! By the third I was holding to the bottle for dear life so that he wouldn't be able to take it and bring more. I met a lot of really interesting people that night. Such as a girl of 21 who is studying to be a cop in the North of Ireland and an old man and all of his daughters with their families. We did not get back until 2 a.m. and then we had to wake up at 7 to start St. Patty's day.
I will post what happened then later today.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Irish Culture 101
Hi everyone! sorry that I haven't kept up the blog in a while, but we didn't have internet for a month and I've been busy with school.So I've been in Ireland for two and a half months and I thought I would share with you all what I have learned so far about Irish people.
Yes, they do drink a lot. I am the only American in my apartment and the four other girls are from nearby towns. They all go out every night and don't come home until 2:30am or 12 the next day. They dress to impress these girls! I was shocked to how much effort they put on there looks, they look like they could be in NYC. I personally don't know how they do it, they wear impossibly high heals and short dresses. As if the rain and cobble stone streets weren't hard enough to walk in normal clothes and oh yea alcohol.
For those of us who can't afford to go out and party like there is no tomorrow the t.v. offers solace. We only have 18 channels and two are in Irish. They are very fond of Friends, Scrubs, and Charmed since they are on 6 times a day each. They are half a season behind on all of the American t.v. shows like Grey's, House, and Desperate Housewives. Oh yea! they love Desperate Housewives my super trendy roommate and friends have a viewing party each week they even order chinese food (her friends include guys, who are straight).
Now lets talk about shopping. The main grocery here is Dunnes it is opened 24 hours 7 days a week. It is much smaller than say a SaveMart the food part anyways. It is also a clothing store and home decorating store. They do have a law here that doesn't permit alcohol to be sold after 10:30pm so literally there is a rush at 10:15. It is also not sold on Sunday mornings. Sunday's are also odd here since most stores are closed except for major grocery stores (this is because it is a catholic country). In the states the concept of buying a reusable bag is catching on slowly, well not here everyone owns several cloth bags which are much bigger than the ones sold back home. It could be becuase they charge 22cents for everybag that is plastic or paper. Concerning packaging it is the same as back home.
Ecofriendlyness, is more about saving money. The cost of electricity here is so high that they do conserve a lot of energy. For example there is a on and off switch for every socket. There is only hot water for about 4 hours a day. At the beginning of the semester you have to decide what does four hours will be ours are 7-11am. Because the boiler only heats those hours. Now anytime after that the boost has to be turned on which heats water for up to 2hours, but it is more expensive. My housemates do use it frequently. The cars are a lot smaller like all in Europe. They are not to big on recycling. And campus is not very eco-friendly at least compared to Wells.
Phrases, that are really Irish. They use the word craic (which sounds likc crack) means fun "that was so much craick or that was the best craick." The word grand is used a lot here but it means fine. "Your man" is a phrase that refers to any man that you are talking about but don't feel the need to be specific about. "loads" is used instead of a lot.
Ok so I think that is it for now. Let me know what else you would like to know about Ireland and I'll try to answer.
Also next week is St. Patty's day and we have the day off from school. I will be spending the weekend with an old couple who invited me to spend a traditional Patty's day with them in Sligo which is about 4 hours away. I will write about it and my b-day next week.
Until more exciting times!
-Jen
Yes, they do drink a lot. I am the only American in my apartment and the four other girls are from nearby towns. They all go out every night and don't come home until 2:30am or 12 the next day. They dress to impress these girls! I was shocked to how much effort they put on there looks, they look like they could be in NYC. I personally don't know how they do it, they wear impossibly high heals and short dresses. As if the rain and cobble stone streets weren't hard enough to walk in normal clothes and oh yea alcohol.
For those of us who can't afford to go out and party like there is no tomorrow the t.v. offers solace. We only have 18 channels and two are in Irish. They are very fond of Friends, Scrubs, and Charmed since they are on 6 times a day each. They are half a season behind on all of the American t.v. shows like Grey's, House, and Desperate Housewives. Oh yea! they love Desperate Housewives my super trendy roommate and friends have a viewing party each week they even order chinese food (her friends include guys, who are straight).
Now lets talk about shopping. The main grocery here is Dunnes it is opened 24 hours 7 days a week. It is much smaller than say a SaveMart the food part anyways. It is also a clothing store and home decorating store. They do have a law here that doesn't permit alcohol to be sold after 10:30pm so literally there is a rush at 10:15. It is also not sold on Sunday mornings. Sunday's are also odd here since most stores are closed except for major grocery stores (this is because it is a catholic country). In the states the concept of buying a reusable bag is catching on slowly, well not here everyone owns several cloth bags which are much bigger than the ones sold back home. It could be becuase they charge 22cents for everybag that is plastic or paper. Concerning packaging it is the same as back home.
Ecofriendlyness, is more about saving money. The cost of electricity here is so high that they do conserve a lot of energy. For example there is a on and off switch for every socket. There is only hot water for about 4 hours a day. At the beginning of the semester you have to decide what does four hours will be ours are 7-11am. Because the boiler only heats those hours. Now anytime after that the boost has to be turned on which heats water for up to 2hours, but it is more expensive. My housemates do use it frequently. The cars are a lot smaller like all in Europe. They are not to big on recycling. And campus is not very eco-friendly at least compared to Wells.
Phrases, that are really Irish. They use the word craic (which sounds likc crack) means fun "that was so much craick or that was the best craick." The word grand is used a lot here but it means fine. "Your man" is a phrase that refers to any man that you are talking about but don't feel the need to be specific about. "loads" is used instead of a lot.
Ok so I think that is it for now. Let me know what else you would like to know about Ireland and I'll try to answer.
Also next week is St. Patty's day and we have the day off from school. I will be spending the weekend with an old couple who invited me to spend a traditional Patty's day with them in Sligo which is about 4 hours away. I will write about it and my b-day next week.
Until more exciting times!
-Jen
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