The end is near.

This trip is coming to a close very soon! Today was our last day of activities. We toured the city walls of Derry and met the Lord Mayor. He was a very nice and personable guys who loves Elvis and seems very passionate about maintaining the peace in the city. Tomorrow we have our final exams and presentations and then we're finished! We're having a nice group dinner at the Tower Hotel tomorrow and going to Dublin the next day. We'll spend the afternoon in Dublin on Friday on our own and then flight home the next morning! I'm off to finish studying!

A very interesting day.

This morning we met John Hume. It was very brief because he had other appointments today and also because he is suffering from a disease much like Alzheimer's, so he had a difficult time communicating. Nevertheless he said some very interesting things. I wrote down a few quotes from him today that I really liked. Here is one:

"The world is becoming a smaller place so our ability to shape the world is becoming greater."

After that we had a lecture by INCORE, which is the International Center of Excellence for the study of Peace and Conflict at the University of Ulster-Magee. After that we visited the civil rights museum or the "Free Derry Museum" as it is called. It is so interesting to see how the Catholics modeled their civil rights movement after the one in America. It was a fascinating museum and some of it was very sad. Our last thing today was visiting the Bogside Artists of Northern Ireland who painted a most of the murals in Derry. One of the artists gave us a tour and it was one of the most interesting things we've done. Here is a link to a picture of the one of the murals called Bernadette (named after Bernadette Devlin): http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3073/3001924131_877d06dc15.jpg?v=0

Okay now I'm off to work on my project and study for my exam tomorrow!

Mickey Dee's is my home in Derry.

I'm in McDonald's again browsing the web and researching for my presentation which is on the Northern Ireland civil rights movement. It's actually really fascinating, as are most things I have learned here. Tomorrow we get to meet John Hume which I am really excited about. He is suffering from a disease much like Alzheimer's so he won't be giving us a lecture but we get to meet him and talk to him for a while. It's going to be so cool! We walked around Derry a bit today and it's a cute little town... but it's also the home of Bloody Sunday so I guess cute may not be the most appropriate word for it.

Want to look up some of the stuff I'm learning about/researching about? (You know you do!) Google The Troubles, Bloody Sunday, NICRA, John Hume, or Bernadette Devlin McAliskey. You'll find some interesting stuff, I promise.

Okay that's all for now! I don't know if I'm going to have internet much from now until Wednesday so I wanted to give a quick update. I'll leave you with a quote from Bernadette Devlin McAlisky: "One American said that the most interesting thing about Holy Ireland was that its people hate each other in the name of Jesus Christ. And they do!"

So we arrived in Derry (or Londonderry, depending on who you're talking to) about two hours ago. We're staying in a big house in the middle of St. Colomb's park, appropriately named St. Colomb's Park House. It's a center for peace and conflict resolution and they are letting us stay there because we are here studying race, religion, and conflict. The house and the park are pretty but kind of in the middle of nowhere in this tiny town so we feel a bit isolated. Also, there is no internet access in the house so we had to take a taxi over to a McDonald's to use their free WiFi. Because of this, I probably won't be able to update the blog that much but I'll do my best!

We have a few interesting things planned out for the next couple of days such as a meeting with John Hume and possibly the mayor of Derry. All day Thursday is reserved for our final exams and presentations and then Friday we are heading back to Dublin and flying home on Saturday morning!

Wow, the past few days have been so amazing!! On Thursday we went to shipyard that the Titanic was built. It's not a shipbuilding port anymore but they still have the pit in which the the Titanic was built and now they are working on putting up a massive living/shopping/leisure center there that they are calling the Titanic Quarter. We met with one of the main guys behind the project and learned about his vision for the place. It was really interesting to see how the developers are trying to combine profit and growth with the dealing with leftover tensions from the conflict. That night we went to the Irish Culture Center here in Belfast and ate some traditonal Irish food, heard a live Irish band play some tradtional Gaelic songs, and then we got to do some Irish dancing! After that we went to a pub and finished off our night of Irish culture with a few Guinnesses. :) It was probably the most fun night we've had so far. Then yesterday we went to up the North Antrim Coast to see some amazing sites such as the Ropebridge and the Giant's Causeway. I have honestly never seen such beautiful places in my life. I was in awe the whole day. Today has been a free day and I've been packing on working on some schoolwork. Tonight we're going to the Belfast Wheel which is a huge ferris wheel that gives us a view of the whole city. We're going to Derry tomorrow and I'm going to be sad to leave Belfast but I'm sure our last week here will have more awesome things in store!

Today we toured the suburbs of Belfast. The Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods are segregated and divided by "peace walls" that are open during the day but shut every night at 10 pm. We signed the peace wall that divided Shankhill (Protestant neighborhood) and the Falls (Catholic neighborhood) and looked at all the murals inside each one. We then went to a Catholic cemetery and we were given a tour by a man who was a former member of the IRA. It was raining and cold and one of the most sober experiences I've had here. Afterward I sat in at coffee shop in the city centre reflecting, and I ended up writing this poem.


The Sun Comes Up Over Belfast

The sun comes up over Belfast,
and the rain falls on green hills
and runs down the streets
of Shankhill and the Falls.

Sheets of wet,
thunder pours out of the clouds
and my leather boots
are soaked all the way through.

I stand in a graveyard of volunteers,
men who died for their own truth,
under a sky that turns from blue to grey,
and a mountain that turns from green to black.

In a walled city, a divided land,
a man tells me of his own truth,
a holy and murderous song,
that although has quieted,
will never be completely silent.

He’s simple man, standing in the graveyard
of his comrades, of his friends, his brothers.
Beside the Crucifix and the Virgin Mary,
he speaks of the freedom and unity that he killed for.
That they died for.

Between murals and peace walls,
friends by day are enemies at night.
No Legislation, segregation, nor integration,
not even a few pints of Guinness in the city centre,
can make this country neutral ground.

beautiful day...

Today we toured Queens and had a very interesting lecture from a sociology professor at Queens on the development of urban space in Belfast and it's impact on various groups- Catholics, Protestants, women, immigrants, etc. It was very interesting. Then we went shopping, saw an a film called Two Lovers at the Queens Film Theater, and ate Italian for dinner. It was a simple and beautiful day. I really love the group of people on this trip and am really glad that we all get along so well.

We have an early lecture at Queens tomorrow so this is it for the night. I'm sending my love to all you people back home that I miss dearly!

Belfast

I've only been here a few hours and I already like it better than Dublin. Our hotel is practically on the Queens University campus and everything is right outside of our door rather than having to take a bus like we did in Dublin. It feels different too. The people are more friendly it seems more laid-back. After we got settled in I went for a run around the area and ran into an interesting old man (this seems like a trend). I was reading a sign at the entrance of the Botanic Garden and he asked if I was from around here. We ended up talking for over an hour. His name was Cyril Lindsay... interesting coincidence... and he has lived in Belfast most of life. Mr. Lindsay was absolutely brilliant but he was a bit unkempt (overgrown hair and beard) and slightly socially awkward. He told me that he has diagnosed himself with Asperger's syndrome after reading a book about it. He said it explained so much because he always struggled in school and in normal social life but has always been very motivated to learn. Throughout the course of our conversation Mr. Lindsay told me all about quantum physics, thermodynamics, the holographic universe theories, information on different cancer research work, as well as some history of Belfast and some famous scientists and inventors from Belfast. We also talked about health and wellness and organic food/vegetarianism and he told me he has prostate cancer. He also wrote down a page and a half of books for me to read, along with specific pages and line numbers. He would close his eyes and quote parts of the books to me verbatim, I'm assuming he had a photographic memory. He was obviously brilliant and it was so fascinating to talk to him. He was so kind to me and told me that I should come to school at Queens because I seem to be a very outgoing and smart girl and he is sure I'd be very successful. He told me places to avoid in order to be safe and places I should make sure to see before I leave. I so enjoyed talking to him and I hope I run into him again.

Belfast is beautiful and Queens is gorgeous. We're going on a walking tour tomorrow and then going to a lecture at Queens. I am so excited about all the things we're going to be learning. The more I learn about Ireland and N. Ireland the more I want to know about the history and conflict. There are tons of political murals everywhere and we'll be going on a tour of them this week. Though the hostility has died down there is definitely still tensions here between the Protestants and Catholics. I'm also intereted in understanding how the fact that N. Ireland is still a part of the U.K. impacts them and what the locals think about it. Mr. Lindsay seemed to take a lot of pride in being a citizen of the U.K. This is such a fascinating country and I can't wait to keep lerning about it!

I feel like last week I was behind in sleep and school and couldn't really catch up but now that I'm here I feel like I'm ready to really dive in and I can't wait! I miss all you people that I love back home. Can't wait to share more of this with all of you when I see you again!

A few pictures before I leave for Belfast

In the countryside, on the way to Tara Hill.

Newgrange

Our free pints of Guinness at the top of the brewery!

Statue in the City Centre

Their version of the Dollar Menu

Random thoughts unloading zone:

Today is a free day and I'm taking some alone time to walk around Dublin, read, try to take everything in... it's not easy. I still can't believe I'm here, in Ireland. It's so different and yet so much the same. I'm going to try to unload some of it here.

People are very friendly here. It's going to be weird to not hear Irish accents everywhere when I get back to the States. Even though everyone speaks English, they often say things quite differently. Examples- "brilliant" or just "brill" are synonyms for good. Instead of a simple "thank you," people say "thanks a million" or just "thanks a mil." Other little things like "come within" instead of "come inside" and "mind the step" instead of "watch your step." And everyone says cheers. Cheers is a very versatile word. It can mean hello or goodbye or pretty much anything in between. These little difference in the language are very cool.

There is a lot of pride in their country here. And although they have no problem with Americans, they think we're all a bit lazy and selfish. Things are smaller here and when anyone mentions that to someone from Ireland they quickly respond by telling us that we are way to obsessed with the "bigger is better" mentality in America. It is much easier to find healthy food here too. Although there are plenty of McDonalds and Burger Kings around, most everywhere else uses organic foods, no trans fat, not high fructose corn syrup etc. And the portions are smaller here. You pretty much have to go to an American chain to get anything larger than a medium here. They are also way more environmentally concious than we are.

Dublin is a bit more of a tourist trap than I thought it would be. And although there seem to be plenty of tourists around, you can still tell the strain that the recession is having Ireland (they blame us for that, by the way.)

They love their Guinness here. We went to the brewery yesterday and it was interesting. It was kind of like the Coca-Cola museum but for Guinness instead. But the best part was the free pint of Guinness they give you when you get to the top floor! And that the top floor was entirely windows and the view of Dublin was amazing.

We went out to Newgrange the other day and saw the ancient tomb there. It was really cool. We also passed by Slane Castle and went out to Tara Hill which has an amazing view. We finally saw some of the rolling green hills littered with sheep type of countryside that you think of when you think of Ireland. It was so beautiful.

We leave for Belfast tomorrow. I am really excited about that. It's going to be different there. Not as tourist-y for one, but the civil war is still a fresh wound there. There still is a lot of segregation between Catholics and Protestants up north and I'm interested in really seeing some of the stuff we've been learning about here without the sugar-coating they put on all of it here for the tourists.

Okay that's my unloading for now.

Ah!

I love it here. Today we toured Trinity College and I decided that I want to go to law school there. It's so beautiful and right in the middle of Dublin. We saw the Book of Kells there and what they call The Long Room which is basically a really old library with tons of really, really old books and they had the sliding ladders across the shelves like in Beauty and Beast. :)

My favorite part of the day though was probably sitting in the Espresso Bar on Grafton Street, drinking an americano, and people watching for almost an hour. People are so different here. Everyone is way more stylish and daring. It was fascinating to watch.

I don't know what the future holds for me but I certainly hope this isn't the last time I'm going to be in Ireland.

DUBLIN

Today we toured Dublin. It is a fascinating city with a rich history. We walked down Grafton Street (which is the main tourist center) and ate lunch on St. Stephen's Green. We had a tour guide named Edward who showed us many of the main historically and culturally significant areas such a Trinity College, Christ Church Cathedral, the Temple Bar District, and old government buildings. Dublin is a great city, but I am excited to see less commercial/tourist cities. Sorry for the short post, I'm tired!

I'm here!

I'm in Dublin! It's a beautiful city from what I have seen so far. The overnight plane ride was rough because on top of losing five hours I could not get comfortable enough to get some good sleep. The bus ride from the airport to our hotel was about half and hour long through the city and it was a neat first look. Some of the students went out and explored but the moment I looked at my bed I knew that I had to take a nap. I woke up in time to go for a jog before dinner. The streets near our hotel are all beautiful residential streets with beautiful Irish homes. I even stopped and talked to a very elderly man who was standing at the end of his driveway in a tweed suit. He was very nice and all I had to do was open my mouth and he knew that I'm not from around here. He wanted to know all about our trip but as soon as I told him we're going up to Northern Ireland to Belfast and Derry he frowned a bit and said "it's much nicer here." Seems the tensions are still around, especially for people like him who have probably experienced much of it in his lifetime. He was nice nonetheless. I hope I get the chance to meet a lot of the locals while I'm here.

Dinner was delicious- I had a capri salad, lemon sole, strawberry crumble cake, and coffee. It was so good. After dinner a few of us hung around and had drinks in the hotel bar. There are some cool people on this trip and I'm glad I'm getting the chance to get to know them.

That's it for now. I still feel a bit delirious/jet lagged. I'm sure that won't go right away but I'm hoping a good night's sleep will help!

This will be my official blog while I'm in Ireland!

I leave this Saturday, May 9th! I have so much to do, but I can't wait. I'll be sure to keep everyone updated here while I'm in Ireland!