Newsletter #2
A Dublin September!
Dia duith ó Bhaile Átha Cliath! Hello from Dublin!
Welcome to the second installment of me talking about myself! I know you enjoyed the first one so much, so I thought I’d keep the ball rolling, so to speak. This one is about the whole month of September!
Our story begins on move-in day! (which was technically in August, but don’t tell anyone)
Dad and I woke up in the hotel, had breakfast, and packed our bags.
Our trip to UCD was spent in a cab with a very kind Irishman (they’re generally very nice people!)
When we arrived, I waited in a very long line and met another American (who I haven’t seen since) named Zoe!
She was lovely and told me which form I had to fill out (I didn’t know I had to fill out a form).
I eventually got to the front of the line and got my housing assignment: Glenomena House 2, Apartment 6, Room 1.
This means nothing to all of you, but that’s where I live now! (I’ve attached a picture of my address in the photo album if you feel so inclined to send me a letter or two) (JUST LETTERS, THO. NO PACKAGES)
I live in a single with an en suite bathroom (sick, I know).
And there’s a kitchen!
After Dad dropped me off, I dropped him off in a cab, and he went to the airport to get on a plane all by himself and go home. It was very sad.
The IFSA group went shopping!
We were 40 people in the heart of Dublin, and I was ridiculously overwhelmed.
The next few days felt like freshman year all over again, but with more Irish accents and less Maine.
We had an IFSA orientation, which mainly consisted of them telling us we might have classes in which our final exam was worth 100% of our final grade.
They also told us we should never ask an Irish person for a ride under ANY circumstance. Apparently, they take the word “ride” to mean something sexual rather than something automotive.
I met my friends Finley and Jendy during the whole orientation situation, and we really hit it off. We booked a bus ride to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway, and that was it! They are now stuck with me for the rest of the semester. Finley and I started going to the gym together, and that was when I realized that I needed to brush up on my mental math because doing kilograms-to-pound conversions in my head was not easy (I’m sorry, Mama).
I began seriously suffering from what the experts call “guitar withdrawal.” It’s a very serious condition and can only be remedied with a guitar, which I did not have. The symptoms include but are not limited to listening to obsessive amounts of Noah Kahan and Zach Bryan, obscene production of mediocre poetry, excessive consumption of Bollywood and Marvel movies, journaling, and last but certainly not least, guitar teacher withdrawal. The symptoms got worse every day. It got SO bad that I went and got a guitar. Which I now have. Thank GOD. It was my first FaceBook Marketplace experience, and it was super interesting. Finley and I celebrated by getting the most fantastic fish and chips (If you’re ever in Dublin, I will make you go there).
Fair warning: the next bit is very text-heavy and mostly pertains to my classes, so if you’d like to skip this, I promise I won’t be offended. I also won’t be able to tell!
Classes started on September 9th, and life was fantastic. I have about one class a day (except for Thursdays – I have three classes on Thursdays). This semester, I’m taking five “modules.”
Irish for Beginners, which I’m sure you could tell based on my greeting for the newsletters. You might be like, “Wait, Tamrin, isn’t the Irish language Gaelic?” To which I will laugh. KIDDING! I also thought it was called Gaelic until this class. I have learned that Gaelic is an umbrella term for several different languages, Scottish Gaelic being one of them. So, calling Irish Gaelic is very reductive, and the Irish do not like that. Anyway, the class is going very well; we meet three times a week and have three different professors for each day of the week! Super not confusing at all!
I am also taking two music classes: Music in Ireland, which is about – I don’t know if you can tell – music in Ireland, and Collectors of Song and Music, which is essentially Music in Ireland if it had eight people in the class and was a 300-level course. My professor for Collectors of Song and Music is a guest lecturer for Music in Ireland – crazy crossover, I know. This guy, Eamonn something something, is also super good at playing the uilleann pipes, which are like the Irish version of bagpipes; except, they’re so much cooler than bagpipes – you just gotta look it up, I’m afraid.
The other two courses I’m taking are philosophy courses. I'll be honest: I mainly considered taking Intro to Buddhist Philosophy because Matt Riseman’s Buddhist thoughts heavily influenced teatime last semester. The other reason was it fulfills a requirement for the philosophy major, but that was secondary. I am also taking History of Ethics, which I love because it’s the only class I have that is entirely Irish students. On my first day, I sat at a table with two girls who had studied abroad in America in the spring. We had some interesting conversations. They told me all kinds of stories about mormons proposing to them, and hitchhiking down Colorado mountains. Definitely not the American experience I thought they were going to tell me about. The course is kind of brutal, though; we had our first test last week, and while I did okay overall (because the Irish grade on a crazy curve and a 55 is a C+/B-), I am not looking to repeat that score, perhaps ever.
I thought we had it bad at Bates having to pay for laundry, but here we have to pay for laundry AND printing. These mfs think I’m made of money. Also, the laundry machines are always broken. I am not a fan.
Ok, I sincerely apologize for making you read actual paragraphs. I hope you can forgive me.
Aside from classes, I have been:
Exploring the local pubs and restaurants
I am making a list of places, so genuinely, if you need recs, I have MANY
Making friends with many a random Irish person (mostly at Finley's and my favorite pub, the Swan Bar) (Dad has said, “Swans are like Geese, no??) (Do you get it?) (If you go to Bates, you should) (I have traded the Goose for the Swan)
To a drag show that entirely changed the trajectory of my life.
Climbing at the UCD wall and got approached by a guy who asked me if I wanted to shave my head within 5 minutes of being there (I said no)
Drinking many, many pints of Guinness
I really like them
Took a baby Guinness shot (kalua and Baileys) (Per Sophia’s suggestion) (It was fantastic)
Went to a Chappell Roan club night and danced the night away
Got my ears pierced again (I went with Finley as emotional support and wound up getting stuff done for myself)
IFSA also provided a free trip to Kilkenny this past weekend, which a couple of friends and I decided to take advantage of! Highlights of that trip included:
Napping on a bus
A hurling experience (it’s a sport. I did not actually throw up.)
I am not very good at hurling.
Going to Smithwick’s Brewing and got a tour from a guy named Morgan
He was awesome
I learned so much about the production of beer.
I got a free pint! It was delicious.
They told us to smell it because it supposedly smells like bananas
That was not the case.
Kelsey (new friend alert!) (she goes to Colby, plays softball, and was very good at hurling) and I went out that night in search of live music and found the best live music I’ve heard in Ireland thus far.
We met a guy named Brian who showed us said fantastic live music
He also bought us many a pint of Guinness
Kelsey and I both successfully split the G for the first time
Met some random men from Colorado and talked to them about being abroad
Went to Kilkenny Castle the following day
Found out that the castle used to belong to the Butler family (of Tim Butler of Bates College)
Was floored by that fact for a good many hours
Slept on the bus back to Dublin
Following the Kilkenny trip, I returned and had a week of class! And now you’re all caught up! I plan to go to Belfast this weekend and have lots more to come in the upcoming weeks! Stay tuned!
Once again, thank you for indulging me. I love you all more than words can explain. I also REALLY look forward to your responses to these. They make me smile. Tell me how your September has been (Bonus points if you do it in bullet points)! In any case, I’ll let you all get back to your busy lives. I hope this was a fun reprieve from whatever you were doing before this.
With all the love,
Tamrin
Timmy Two Shoes
