Just Follow the Zombies...

"Just keep following this path for another couple of minutes or so and stay to the right. You can't miss it. If you see zombies, you're in the right place," replied the Irish couple we stopped to ask directions from as we tromped up the Dublin Mountains. We all got a good laugh from the Irish couples' joke about zombies being at the ruined "occult" lodge we were checking out. Imagine our surprised as we crested the hill to the lodge and realized they weren't joking...

Last weekend, 17 of us headed up to Dublin Mountains for a day of hiking and exploration. One of the main attractions on the mountains is an old stone building known as the Hellfire Lodge. The legend behind the building was that a bunch of rebellious youth from Dublin got kicked out of their favorite pub for their rowdiness and so they decided to use this cabin (whether it was owned by a family members, we're unsure) for their get-togethers. Eventually, the cabin was supposed to have been used for occult meetings and rituals. More than likely, the true story behind the building was that it was a location for a bunch of Dublin men to gather together, drink a few pints and rant about the government. Nevertheless, the site does claim to have had the Devil himself back an appearance at one of the rituals, and I just couldn't help myself.


After knowing all the history behind the two-story hunting lodge, you can guess at how surprised we were when stumbled right into over a dozen men and women done-up as zombies chasing people around the building and shouting down at us "Ahhh, fresh meat".
Weirder things have happened?

What we had actually stumbled upon was the shooting of a music video for a local band called "The Riptide Movement". The members of the band weren't actually present (as far as I know), but the actors were extremely friendly and didn't seem to mind taking a break (and drinking some pints) while we took some time to explore the ruins. They even posed for a group picture with all of us.

I know that when I first arrived in Ireland, I had plans to travel over the rest of Europe every weekend, but as time passed, I realized that Ireland all by itself has more amazing sights than I could possibly see in my four months even if I never stepped off the island. Ireland is an incredible country with a rich history and, most importantly, incredible people. Every time I have stopped to ask for directions, I've always received them (about three times, just to make sure I got it), and I always got where I needed to be. Disclaimer: I will say, however, that sometimes the Irish's descriptions can be a little off. Example: "Roads" may well mean "scraggly paths of rocks" and "10 minutes" may actually be more like "25-30 minutes"

I guess what I want to say is, if you have plans to visit Europe, I wouldn't discourage you from visiting all the famous sights in the places like England, France, Germany, Italy etc., but I would urge you to take the time to see the little, less known sites. You never know who will be there or what will happen. This trip up to the Hellfire Lodge, though not educational in the least, is one of my most favorite memories from Ireland. Thanks to Ben and all the other actors there who made the trip the experience that it was!

I know I promised to talk about Arthur Guinness day and some of my other trips, but you can find information on my counterparts websites:
Check out http://frogwind.blogspot.com/ to read about Maddy's experience here in Dublin
Or http://jessicasinireland.blogspot.com/ to read Jess's Blog (and see her amazing pictures!)

(I have one more counterpart, Brett, but I don't currently have his website link!)

Check in in a few days for insider information on some of the classes here in Dublin!

Cheers
~Heather~

Western Ireland and Misconceptions

Dear Readers,
I have returned 'home' safe and sound from our incredible trip to the West Coast of Ireland and with me comes an entirely new perspective on Ireland, its people, and its history.

Words cannot describe the beauty of this country. As a child, I always imagined Ireland to be a majestic place with castles and warriors and leprechauns. This weekend tore down all my perceptions and misconceptions of Ireland and rebuilt the country in my mind to a height far behind what I ever expected. Words cannot do justice to the beauty of this country, its people, and its history.

I arrived in the town of Galway on friday afternoon and split my day between wandering the city and exploring the local museum. Museums in Ireland are free to the public, and I highly suggest taking advantage of these opportunities if you visit the country. Ireland is a picture-perfect country and so a perfect tourist spot, but this makes it is so easy to forget about Ireland's disastrous history and the poverty that still exists here today. The Museum was my first true glimpse into how bad it used to be for citizens here, and left me with this quote:

To look at bodies abandoned on this rubbish tip, to
write details of torture, are experiences that cannot ever again be obliterated.
To risk a gaze at such wounds of humanity is to choose to be changed forever.
The conservative can exist in comfort only by averting his gaze. To choose to
know is to risk being presented with a dilemma. That dilemma, put simply, is that.
once one knows, you can, from that moment, live only in bad faith of guilty
silence, or act.

Our saturday was adventure-packed as we stopped at the Corcomroe Abbey (a ruined church with graves that date from the 17th century to as recently as 2007), a Faerie Fort that marks the location of a 11th century hut that has long disappeared, the Burrens, the Kilfenora Monastary and the Cliffs of Moher before ending our night in Doolin.

The Burrens is a section of the country that is made up of miles upon miles of limestone. Over the last few millennium, the limestone has slowly been corroded by rain water, creating extensive networks of underground caves that will eventually cave in upon themselves (some already have). The area is as dangerous as it sounds, and while I can assure you there are parts that can be safely traversed, it was an eye-opener to realize that Ireland is not just the green fields and grassy knolls topped with castles that we perceive it to be.

The Cliffs of Moher is a well-known tourist attraction and although it wasn't my personal favorite location on the trip, I would highly suggest visiting it - the view is incredible. Located on the Cliffs of Moher is known as O'Brien's Tower and was built in 1835 by Cornelius O'Brien specifically for visitors to stand upon to view the cliffs. Visitors can get some amazing pictures standing on top of the tower - unfortunately during our trip, hundreds of little flying midgies that wanted to eat us =(



A lot of our traveling has taken us to ruined churches and massive graveyards, but no matter where in Ireland I travel to, I am continually surprised by the care put into the conservation of grave sites. Many of the centuries old gravestones are no longer readable, but those that have been broken have been placed aside and remarked or labeled in some way. Fresh pebbles, stones, flowers, or random knickknacks adorn almost every grave we have visited. I mourn the lack of this type of extensive care back in the States, and I hold a great deal of respect for the Irish for spending so much of their time honoring their dead.

Before I continue my tale, I want to point out and break down another common misconception of Ireland. On Saturday night, we ate at a local pub in Doolin, and as I sat there for a little over three hours, having my meal, chatting with friends, and listening to local Irish music, I noticed that not a single Irish person around me was intoxicated. It made me realize that the only intoxicated people I had seen in Dublin were tourists, especially Americans.

We constantly hear of the Irishman's fondness for drink back in the States, but the truth is, while people may spend a lot of time in pubs, very little of it is spent drinking. Often a group of people will enter a pub and have one drink each over several hours of conversation. There is no binge-drinking, no constant drunkenness, or people falling all over themselves in the streets.

Sunday morning we set out on the ferry for the largest of the three islands that make up the Aran Islands, Inis Mor. We were lucky enough to have the sun shining for the fourth day straight and with only four hours to explore, our group immediately scattered to hike or bike across the island. Inis Mor was covered in an impossible number of fort ruins, churches, and natural phenomenons (The Wurmhole, a incredibly large hole in the ground caused by water pressure in an underground cave), and I was only able to make the 2mile hike over rough limestone and crumbling rock walls to a local ruin known as "The Black Fort".


(Previewed above: Pat (one of my roommates) posing on a set of stairs along the wall of the Black Fort)

All that remains of the fort is a very thick rock wall and smaller connecting walls on the cliff edge. On either side of the cliff were amazing coves that looked like they should have come out of "The Pirates and Caribbean" movie. This was, by far, my most favorite spot on the trip.



One of the final misconceptions I would like to break down in this post is the belief that you cannot get sunburned in Ireland. After 4 days of incredible sunshine and a final day of 70 degree weather, I came out looking slightly like a Maine lobster as did many of my companions. Nevertheless, this weekend was definitely worth the sunburn (especially since that means we didn't have any rain!).


Next week: Visiting immigration, the 250th celebration of Guinness, and more!

Cheers,
~Heather~

Pre-Departure Questions and Concerns

Hey all!
As my bio states, my name is Heather and I'm majoring in Computer and Digital Forensics at Champlain College. For the fall semester of 2009, I'm studying abroad in Dublin, Ireland, and will be keeping a blog of advice, tips, stories, and experiences to give all of you out there a good idea of what its like being a Champlain student here in Ireland.


Both before my departure for Ireland, and during the last few weeks I've spent here in Dublin, my parents and I struggled with questions and concerns that commonly pop up when going through this process. I've decided to make my first post some advice and tips on common concerns to hopefully a) convince you to study abroad if you're still on the fence and b) ease some of your worries/stress (so my first blog mostly goes out to students and parents of students who are thinking of studying abroad - sorry!)

Customs:

One of my biggest concerns during the pre-departure phase was getting all the paperwork together that I would need to get through customs. My best advice for you - Don't panic! Pack your paperwork in an easy-to-reach place so you're not scrambling for it when you go through customs, and always have an extra copy on your person or in your luggage and at home. Be respectful - the customs officer wants it to run as smoothly as you do - and if there are any problems, the staff we have here on campus is incredible and will assist you in getting things straightened out.

Jet Lag:

Whether you've traveled outside of your time zone before or not, you will experience jet lag. For those like me who have never experienced before, the real trick is that you won't even realize that it's affecting you. Exhaustion and grogginess will hit you at the strangest times, which you'll want to attest to the crazy amount of exploring you'll be doing the first few days. Be aware that it can affect you for several weeks, especially if you have a hard time getting to sleep at regular times.

The best way to beat jet lag is to get your sleep schedule on track as soon as possible. This can be difficult because most students arrive pretty tired out from the flight.

Safety:

As a first-time city goer, I feel extremely safe here in Dublin. Just as in any big city, none of us travel alone at night, but Dublin is a walking city so there are always people on the street. This includes a good number of Garda (police officers) on foot, who are very approachable/friendly (very different than back in the States and the police officers you experience on Church Street in Burlington).

Academic Center and Classes:

When you first arrive in Dublin, the mile walk to the Academic Center will seem long. It's not! Dublin is a walking city, and on any trips you take for sight-seeing purposes, you will very likely walk 3x-5x this amount, and not even notice! The first couple of days, my feet protested in agony, but after the first week, I barely notice the distance when I got any where.

DON'T let the idea of walking long distances deter you from studying abroad! I was concerned about this before I left the states, but I don't notice the distance anymore. Studying Abroad is too good of an opportunity to pass up.

As for classes - your professors will be incredible. They are masters in their field, and will bring up challenging topics that will make you reevaluate the way you look at things. They are also great resources when it comes to finding things in the city and the surrounding areas! Just be prepared to attend every and class and show up on time (which of course we all do anyway... ^_~)

Culture Shock / Home Sickness:

For some of us, we may know that traveling away from our homes, family, and comfort zone will be difficult for us. For others, it may seem easy to travel away, and it might be easy. For those like me, it will seem easy to travel away from home, but you will find it more difficult than you originally thought.

I left home prepared to enter a country that was very different from my own, with different cultural norms, accents, hobbies, and food. I left home arrogant in thinking I could adapt very easily.

In my Intercultural Communications course, we discussed how entering a new culture presents us with both challenges and opportunities. One of the lessons I hope everyone can learn when studying abroad anywhere in the world is an appreciation for your home.

After my first week in Ireland, I was amazed by the "simple" food that was difficult or impossible to find. I was stressed by the different teaching styles and expectations of our professors. I was simply shocked at the smallest differences that you notice when you are taken out of your comfort zone.

The differences you couldn't have possibly fathomed will be there, and some will be harder to handle than others. But they are opportunities - not challenges.

The inability to find my regular foods/ingredients have taught me to improvise and experiment. I know that I'll be leaving Ireland a way better cook than I was when I left the States. Our teachers are incredible people and work with our administrators, classes as a whole, and individual students to mold their classes into a curriculum that works for everyone. It can be difficult at times, but if life was easy, college wouldn't be nearly as much fun =)

If you find yourself homesick or struggling with culture shock, talk to someone: your roommate, classmate, people you know who have been abroad before, or one of our administrators, and know that everyone is going through the same stuff you are, albeit in different stages. As Americans studying abroad in a foreign country, we're in this together and people will be more willing to listen and help than you may think.


Most importantly - No matter how difficult any challenge that I face here is, our main staff, Tom, Lilly, and Stephen, are the most incredible and capable people for their jobs. They go out of their way on a regular basis to make life and the transition process more comfortable for us, they provide us with incredible opportunities, and they have a never-ending supply of energy that certainly gets tested by the number of ridiculous questions we ask on an hourly basis.

If you're still uncertain about studying abroad, keep checking back in to hear about some of my experiences and challenges here in Ireland.

Check back in next week for pictures and stories about our trip to Western Ireland!

~Heather~