Almost Halloween

Remember how I said I’d have all that free time to explore? Yeah, well promises are sometimes meant to be broken. Uni is starting to get serious and I have some major assignments coming up so ‘free time’ is becoming a smaller and smaller portion of my life.

Every Thursday I have four hours of lectures, and, since it’s my last day of classes, it has become a tradition where some of the communications students go out to the campus bar for a couple of pints and chats. I feel as though I’m starting to connect with the people here and have more and more confidence to confide in them and call them friends.

The weekend went by in a blur of assignments and bad weather. Rain has definitely been a more frequent visitor as of late.

My biggest accomplishment of the weekend was buying all the material I needed for my and my roommate’s Halloween outfits. Lisa is going as a raver from the 80s while Jana and I will be going as Thing 1 and Thing 2 from Dr. Seuss!

I’m genuinely getting excited for Halloween now, and there are more houses around me starting to put up spooky decorations to celebrate. There seem to be two big differences between here and the States: one, there are no carved jack o’lanterns. Maybe one or two houses have some carved pumpkins but they are nowhere near the quantity seen in the US.

Two, Christmas. Yes, I said Christmas.

At the very beginning of this month- and a little even at the end of September- Christmas decorations, chocolates, and other sweets began popping up in the grocery stores. I even heard a Christmas song being played. Back home at least Thanksgiving acts somewhat as a bumper to the inevitable onslaught of festive commercialized products and traditions.

Halloween should be a grand time and I cannot wait to upload some photos.

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No pictures this week because I took every thing on my phone and it crashed.

On a final note, always do your laundry before you run out of things to wear. Rain makes it impossible to do your laundry since dryers are rare and all of your clothes need good weather to dry on the line outside.

Craft Beer Festival

Today has been an eventful day to say the least.

It was the first time- since I’ve started to attended uni- that I was late to a lecture. This might not seem like a big deal, but I promised myself I would put 100% into my school work and the worst part is I just spaced out. I genuinely believed that my lecture was at 4 instead of 3. I guess it has to happen to everyone once- or at least that is what I am telling myself.

After class I had choir and then sound check because- surprise!- we were doing back up for a gig at uni. For learning the song today and then performing it, the 7 who actually sang did a half decent job. The worst part was that it was a black tie event and I didn't know, nor did I have time to go home and change. While everyone was wearing beautiful black dresses, I wore jeans... at least I had a black shirt on.

Dún Laoghaire in all its glory.

Now time to backtrack to the weekend.

On Sunday I went to a craft beer festival in Dún Laoghaire with two of my friends. The train ride there was beautiful and it was nice to get out of the city. The festival turned out to be a giant pub crawl and at the end of the 6 pubs we received a giant glass stein and a t-shirt. I was able to listen to trad music for the first time since coming to Ireland, and I loved it. The music was a little loud, but everyone in the pub enjoyed it and would sometimes even sing along. It was a quiet night and I’m glad I was able to bond and try some Irish craft beer.

Our very first stop: a porter, IPA, and a beer from acorns. @Forty Foot Pub.

A lovely description of a red are we tried @Whiskey Fair

@Gilbert and Wright's with my winnings and my local friend who joined us

Me and my birthday twin parading our t-shirts from the festival

Uni work is finally starting to creep up on me so I’m going to cut off this post here.

Things are back to normal now, so you don’t have to worry about any posts like the previous. I’m saying ‘yes’ to more and more things and I’m definitely starting to feel busy all the time. It’s not a bad thing though, I’d rather be busy than just sitting around!

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Also, this cat greeted me on my very first day here and we’ve bonded over time.

Why do YOU travel?

If you’ve been online over the past few years- and are under the age of 30- I’m sure that you have come across some online post about Gen Y.  I’ve read too many of these articles than I care to admit, and I’ve discovered two categories that are frequently written about: love and travel.

Check out: Millenial Infographic

Now, please don’t leave.

I promise that this isn’t a stereotypical article.

The mere motivation of why I’m writing this is unique. It’s an assignment for my Master’s course in which we are required to spread some ‘news’ and garner as many comments, views, likes, etc. as possible. The ultimate goal is to illustrate how big of an impact a single person can have online.

Personally I’m using the definition of ‘news’ lightly, but what better subject to write about than something you are a part of?

Millennials. Born in the early 1980s and up through the early 2000s, we’ve survived years consisting of rapid change in technology, the economy, and a greater trend towards globalization and interconnectivity.

More and more of us are going to college and are traveling as part of our studies. Whether it's a weekend camping trip or a year living as a foreigner abroad, the lust of travel seems to be in our blood- even if we don’t have the money to afford it.

Millennial Travel Tendencies

There is even a new term coined for the way in which Millennials tend to travel called “experiential travel.” Millennial travelers tend to experience the city through culture, food and nightlife rather than using traditional channels such as prearranged tours.

Here is where an author would usually insert why travel is ‘healthy for the soul’ by ‘breaking your comfort zone’ or ‘gaining new perspectives’… but I’m not going to do that.

Why travel? Well I have my theories.

In a society where debt is rampant- and more adults are forced to live with their parents- it’s easy to feel a lack of independence. Travel allows you to feel a sense of freedom and independence- even if it’s short lived.

However, is this the main reason why is Generation Y so travel hungry? If you were hoping to find the answer then I’m sorry.

I want to start a conversation and not just ramble on about my conclusions, or accept what other authors suggest. Why have other generations try and define us when we can do it ourselves?

Why do YOU travel?

Please share, leave a comment, or like.

Anything to start a conversation and prove why Millennials are reigning kings and queens of the internet.

One Month In!?

The very idea that I’ve lived in Dublin for a month terrifies me. It literally seems like last week I arrived. If one month passes this quickly I really have to take in as many experiences as possible because a year could pass in the blink of an eye.

This last week has been full of new adventures, new experiences, and new people. On Saturday night I even met my twin! Well my Birthday twin, but still I’ve never met anyone born on the same day and year as me.

Against the Grain
Photo credit: mynameisola.com

My Birthday twin and I met up at the Autobahn Pub in Glasnevin, but soon decided we wanted to journey into City Centre. We ended up at Against the Grain on Wexford Street - I highly recommended it!- and remained there for the majority of the night. I have a feeling that this place is going to be a regular spot of mine. Against the Grain is mainly known for its craft beer, plus it has one of the largest selections on tap in the city.  I even convinced some of my friends that I met Wednesday night to come and join us. We all sat around and bonded through talk and jokes, but I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better Saturday night. I love pubs in Dublin because they really are like community living rooms. No one seems afraid to strike up a conversation even if they do not know you. This is strikingly different from the US where strangers do not approach one another- and sometimes if they do, you really wish they had just stayed put.

I had originally wanted to catch the late bus back to my flat at 11, but that did not happen. The more I go out, the more I realize I probably won’t ever just “catch the last bus.” Time flies when you’re having fun, what can I say? At least the taxi's here are reasonably priced- take note Boston!

I had planned to go to one of the free museums Dublin offers earlier Saturday, but I thought I should probably go during a weekday when it is less crowded. So, instead, I dragged my flat mate out Sunday to wander around town. No GPS! We just picked a direction and started walking. Dublin is not the largest city, but there are still so many streets I have yet to explore. I tend to avoid Temple Bar and O’Connel Street like the plague. There are so many people there it can be almost suffocating, but, to get the ‘full tourist experience,’ I know my feet will eventually lead me there.

I’m also learning how difficult it is to take photos here since the sky is almost always white- meaning atrocious lighting for skyline photography.

I feel like I wrote about a lot, yet have said very little…. Does that make sense? I’m still getting used to such shorthand writing and hope to improve in the future!

Here are some pictures I took during my time around the city. I soon hope to find the right setting to take better photos.

Slán!

A lovely little craft fair hidden in an ally.

 

Graffiti filled building just north of Temple Bar.

I love all the old architecture styles, so refreshing from a skyline dotted with towering buildings.

And we're walking...

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To Note: There are a bunch of statues hidden around the city and I’m thinking about doing a walking tour to visit all of them. My inner art geek comes out sometimes what can I say? I particularly like one entitled “meeting place” but is affectionately known as “hags with bags.”

Meeting Place