Figured I'd avoid spamming people with mass e-mails they might not want to read and create this blog through which you could follow my daily... or rather weekly adventures! So here it goes!
Most of you know how much I LOVE flying! That is to say not at all. But I have to say the 3 plane rides I had to take to get here were all quite pleasant! The British Airways one overseas was the most entertaining ans the head flight attendant was a typical British humoured person. You know the one that makes fun of you politely so you can't really tell they are doing so? In any case, I spent the majority of the flight just watching him interact with people and felt like I had my own live British comedy skit going on! Ironically enough, my brother and I were just discussing this aspect of British social interaction on the car ride to the airport.
One thing that was quite striking to me was the contrast between take-off in Ottawa and landing in Dublin. While everything was all white and sparkling in Ottawa, all the surrounding land was a lush green in Dublin! I expected it, but it was still quite a shock!
Next annoying, but kind of fun piece of info is that my large suitcase (containing most of my stuff) got lost on the way over. Probably as a result of the amount of planes I took. Funny enough though, the last flight I took was with a company called Aer Lingus and since they haven't managed to retrace my luggage within 24 hours, they've given me a daily allowance of 60 euro to spend on clothing or essentials I might have had in my suitcase for a total of 3 days! :) I'm pretty sure I had a coat, hat and umbrella in that suitcase... and maybe even shampoo!? Not... but I was going to buy these things anyways, so perhaps I can pull this one off! :)
In any case, so far Dublin is COLD! and that's coming from a Canadian who can stand cold Canadian winters! I think the fact that it's so humid makes it so that the cold really chills you to the bone! The people are all extremely nice and always regret not being able to help you, especially the case in my apartment search, which is turning out to be quite fruitless thus far. I'm staying at a hostel called the Holyhead with two other girls from UOttawa (Judith and Tra) and we are currently bundled up in our blankets because the heating simply isn't efficient... or perhaps it's the insulation?
The first two nights have been great though! Walking around town with one of Sylvie's friends who has been studying here for almost 3 years now and knows the place well. He brought us to The Porterhouse Pub on the first night and we drank great Irish beer accompanied by Irish stew! The streets are still confusing though because they definitely don't follow the ol' American grid-like pattern, so I've found out that my sense of direction isn't as good as I thought it was. I'm sure I'll get used to it though!
Anyways, pictures to follow on facebook! Now to head back to the apartment search!
Cheers,
Ria
Yay a Ria blog! Glad to hear that you, though not your luggage, have arrived safely. Good luck with the apartment hunt. Know that I will be living vicariously through your adventures this semester. So, go experience Ireland for me ;)
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