The beginning.

So, today we finally landed in Dublin!! The plane ride was alright considering I sat in front of two small antsy Irish children. I really couldn’t get mad because 1.) It’s my vacation 2.) They are adorable. 3.) They have an Irish accent. Our Point Park group consisting of 25 students and faculty sat in the rear of the plane. I had the pleasure of sitting next to Professor Helen Fallon and Angelica Blouch on a B757 that left at 9 p.m. from the Philadelphia International Airport on Saturday May 8, 2010 and arrived in Dublin at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday May 9, 2010. I believe the captain said the plane would reach 37,000 feet in the air. We traveled north and flew over Iceland. We are 5 hours ahead and therefore had to make sure we slept on the flight so we didn’t feel the jetlag. I remember waking up to a child, Conner, saying out loud, “Volcano!” My heart jumped and my eyes immediately looked out the window. The captain said we would be able to see the volcano on the right side of the plane where I was. I didn’t see too much. I saw a white, mountain-like structure that had puffs of white smoke coming out of it. As we began to descend, I immediately described Ireland as a green mosaic piece of art. There were different shades of green just like glass in a stained- glass window. It was simply breath taking. I asked, “Are we really here?”

After we arrived, we found our luggage and met with Rachael, our tour guide for the entire trip. She is a nice lady from Rochester, New York. Our first stop was Grafton Street, a quaint little street with shops and restaurants. I ran into many entertainers/musicians hoping to make a buck or should I say Euro? I unfortunately didn’t follow directions. We were instructed to meet back at 12:15 p.m. but I thought she said 12:30p.m. which caused me to rush to get to the next activity. While I was trying to take a photo, I was honked at by an Irishman while he was trying to park his car. The next stop on the tour was the Book of Kells at Trinity College. Seeing the Long Room that was full of books reminded me of my mom who works at the State Library in Harrisburg, PA. I was sure to get her a little something from there. We then had to wait a bit for the tour of the Dublin Castle. Waiting outside was pretty good…so far today the weather has been pretty good. I’ve only had to wear a light jacket. My favorite part of the Castle was seeing the foundation of the original towers and hearing how they had to build another one.

We finally came to the Saint Augustine Apartments where we will be staying for the next few days!! The rooms are in great condition and fully equipped with everything (fridge, tv, dish washer). My roommates here are Angelica, Nicole and Bethany. I unpacked everything and now I have to leave to go to a meeting, grocery shopping and grab dinner. While I was out at Grafton Street, I got so caught up taking photos that I didn’t take time to eat needless to say I’M STARVING!