100,000 Welcomes

Céad míle fáilte!!!

Now that I’ve started taking Irish language classes, I’m going to sprinkle things I’ve learned into my blog. So what I’ve just said, literally translated, means “100,000 welcomes!”, and it’s a very popular phrase here. I’ve also learned how to count to ten, how to say hello (I’d say “dia dhuit!” and you would respond, “dia is Muire dhuit!”. The first phrase literally means “God to you!” and the second, “God and Mary to you!”), how to introduce myself (is misa Elise), and that’s about it! It’s a crazy language, so different from English or Spanish, but thankfully everyone in my class is as new to it as I am.

My other classes are also going well. I finally have my schedule finalized, which is a relief! I'm taking Irish Language for Beginners, Irish Indigenous Arts, History of Ireland from 1922-2002, Politics in the Republic of Ireland, and Intro to GIS, a geography course. It's a good course load, but I seem to hardly ever have class! Each class only meets for two hours a week, so I only have 10 hours of class total, and no classes on Friday which is awesome! 

Aside from classes, I've been busy immersing myself into Irish culture- which basically means going to a lot of pubs! Don't worry, I'm not out getting drunk every night, but it fun to go to the pub for a pint to catch up with friends after a day of class. I'm obsessed with the pubs here- the architecture is gorgeous, and each one has it's own unique feel while still feeling very Irish. From the outside, they all look pretty small, but then you go inside and there are stairs and hidden rooms and extra bars and nooks and crannies behind every corner! I've been horrible at remembering to take pictures, so I took some off Google images to show you my favorite pubs so far.

Aside from visiting the pubs, I've been taking advantage of every opportunity to dance that I can find. I joined dansoc, NUIG's student dance society, and have been taking their classes for €2 each. This week I took jazz, ballet, and beginners Irish. The Irish dancing class was so much fun! I've never done it before, but I think I caught on pretty quickly. I also went to a céilí mór last night, which literally translated means "big dance" (even though Google translate told me it means "great spouses"! I have a friend that speaks fluent Irish that cleared that one up for me! She also told me that Google translate is almost always wrong). It was such a blast! It was at the College Bar at the University, and there was traditional music playing (tiny flutes called tin whistles, "fiddles" or violins, accordions, etc) and dancing! But it was a lot like a square dance, in the way that there was someone on the microphone telling everyone what dance moves to do. You didn't have to know the moves to join in, there was a lot of clapping and bouncing and holding hands and people spinning you around, and it was loads of craic! (Pronounced "crack", craic is an Irish word that basically means to have fun or to have a really good time.)

I've also been making it a point to walk out by the sea every day. It's usually raining or at least misty, and very windy, but beautiful nonetheless. There are always people jogging or biking or walking their dogs along the Salthill Promenade, and I so wish Gus were with me because he would absolutely love it. It's so refreshing to walk along the water, and I'm starting to understand why so many people love living by the ocean! 

Slán go fóill! (Bye for now!)

Elise