My lunchtimes consist of outdoor patios next to castle ruins, lunches on the green and coffees on the walk back to the office. Life here is much simpler. There is no need to stress or worry on a normal day. We had a few visitors from UNCW on campus last week and I was able to tour the chapel on campus. It is locked to the public as there have been incidents of theft in the past and you must be an employee to request access. I expected a beautiful church, but this was completely unexpected.
My first full weekend in Ireland I was lucky enough to see Niamh, my lovely roommate from graduate school who is herself Irish. Since she is doing her clinical rotations in and around Dublin, we decided to meet for dinner after work on Friday. After I mentioned that I would be heading to Dublin for dinner, my colleagues basically pushed me out the door. Of course I should leave early, it's a Friday afternoon and I'm only in Ireland for a short time! I don't think I've ever met as many genuinely nice people who are interested in getting to know me and help me experience this adventure in my life.
I'll admit I was a bit nervous for my first bus trip into the city centre, but it was easily navigable. There are two buses that run from Main Street in Maynooth to the Dublin city centre and from there you can catch a bus, train, tram, plane, horse and buggy, etc. to just about anywhere you could want. I got off the bus at the D'Olier Street/College Street stop and gave Niamh a ring to see where she and Scott (her boyfriend) were. I'll be the first to admit that I am not the best at describing locations and it took a few minutes for us to figure out where I was in relation to them! It turns out I was right next to Trinity College. I hadn't seen Niamh since I left South Carolina at the beginning of May so it was wonderful to see her again.
We headed to a restaurant called crackBIRD which is located on Dame Street in the Temple Bar area. Niamh warned me that they only serve chicken dishes, but I didn't quite realize how honest she was being. The dinner menu consists of different varieties of rubs and seasonings for chicken with side dishes to round out the meal. However, there are only two sizes...half chicken and full chicken. Can you imagine how incredibly full I was? Obviously I ordered the half chicken and a side dish of croquettes (I miss my Spanish tapas), but still ended up asking for a take away container. After dinner we walked to an establishment called The Bailey for a drink before we all headed home. Niamh and I had glasses of cider (my first since I had been in Ireland) and Scott had a pint of Guinness. I have been told by different people that there are a certain number of pulls to enjoy a Guinness. But that number always seems to change with each person. In this instance, Scott told me that you should drink a Guinness in 3 pulls. My future brother-in-law, Adam told me once it was 7. Either way, if I drank a Guinness that quickly, or any beer for that matter, pigs would be flying above our heads.
On my bus ride home I watched the sun set at 10pm. It stays light pretty late in this area, not getting completely dark until about 11:30 at night. I have witnessed some of the most beautiful sunsets with colors splashing across clouds that seem to be rushing towards the sun in an effort to keep it afloat. Saturday was a day of chores. I had a marvelous lie in, not getting out of bed until 10am. I cleaned my room, went for a shop and did a load of laundry. I did enjoy a walk around town in the rain during which I found the local library and a deli that serves an amazing vanilla latte.
Sunday I had planned with Niamh to go over to her house for the afternoon and have dinner with her family. I met her mum, dad and her younger brother. We spent the afternoon watching the final match of the French Open. I have never laughed so much while watching a tennis match. Each time her dad would comment about this serve or that backhand, the announcer would match his exclamations a few moments later causing us to burst. As someone who doesn't regularly watch tennis, I learned a great deal. I found myself rooting for Djokovic even though I love Spain and consequently Rafael Nadal, because he has never won the French Open. It was such a lovely Sunday especially the home cooked meal and dessert Niamh's mom prepared. This dessert was a mix between a lemon meringue pie and lemon pudding, it just melted in my mouth. Although my apartment is very nice and perfectly suitable, it is nice to have a cozy, warm place to visit every once in awhile. A sort of home away from home.
Now I am going to do something very American and curb my salt craving with Pringles and a bottle of Coke. Aunt Katie would be proud. Do not get me started about how difficult it is to find just plain, salted crisps (potato chips)...
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