Craiced Out

One of the first things I've learned to love about Dublin is the hilarious differences between English and Irish meanings. Sure, I was warned profusely to ask for a lift instead of a ride unless I intended to get to know the taxi driver really well. But my personal favorite is the Irish love for craic (pronounced like crack- which can be confusing and hysterical in certain situations). Although in America crack might refer to the hard drug derived from cocaine, here it is the equivalent of having fun. People here are constantly indulging in the stuff and I've been no exception - the fun part not the hard drugs.

I'm quite taken with the pub scene here. Even though getting dressed up, going out and meeting people is a process I'm quite familiar with at home, I have to say we've really been stepping it up.

Photo-cred to the lovely LoraCogs

Photo-cred to the stunning Sarah Wheeler with a special thanks to her arms stretching abilities.

There's been some serious groovin' going on here and some truly special bust-outs. Personal highlights might be the sprinkler, the bend & snap, booty drops and so many other amazingly awful dance moves that cannot be named. The Irish are going to seriously doubt American dancing abilities after we get through with them.

Although I am exploring Dublin one pub at a time, we are here for academic purposes. Classes started last week and all of my instructors seem incredibly fascinating and knowledgeable, which can sometimes be a hit or miss with Champlain College...

I'm taking an Irish music class where we get to build and learn to play the traditional Irish bodhrán drum and many of the classes will be held in Irish pubs! Also on my plate this semester is Dublin Literature, which some of the classes will also be held in pubs as part of an Irish Lit pub crawl. I am ecstatic to be taking Non-profit Social Marketing in Dublin, as I've heard so much about previous classes and am excited to be actually doing something with local non-profits as opposed to just learning about social marketing. Conflict management is another course I've been wanting to take for some time and the content will undoubtedly be beneficial. Of course I can't forget Environmental Earth science. It seems that about 85% of the people in the Champlain Dublin program are taking this class, and it's understandable since the course has field trips to museums, caves, beaches ect.

In addition to classes I've also taken on an internship with the World Trade Center Dublin. I've gone to the office twice last week and know that I will be getting along fine in a casual office atmosphere working for such nice people. So far I've done simple intern-like tasks such as updating the website with applicable articles and events.

I've definitely been keeping busy between class, internship and going out. I was offered the opportunity to take an International Marketing course at Independent College in Dublin which is offered through the World Trade Center FO' FREE! But it is sort of a concentrated class that meets weekly on Monday nights for three hours so I haven't yet decided if I can take that on quite yet.

woah that was alot of information in one post so I guess now it's time to get ready and enjoy One More Saturday Night in Dublin :)