A Few Fun Facts from the First Two Weeks

This post is going to be the equivalent of the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie: random, not cohesive, and basically just filler to pave the way for the next installment, where stuff starts to really happen (aka weekend roadtrip to the Ring of Kerry and...drumroll...the Dingle Peninsula. Stay tuned.)


1. There's a Fitzgerald Park near the UCC campus that is apparently quite a well-known tourist attraction. It's right on the river with a lovely view of the nearby hillsides with their various church steeples and brightly-painted houses (buildings here come in all kinds of unexpected colors), and it's dotted with lots of random busts of presumably important people. It's quickly becoming a favorite between-classes picnic spot; I wish I could claim an actual family connection to it. But as it turns out...


2. Everywhere I go I see places called Fitzgerald. The Earls of Desmond, whom one of my professors mentioned in his lecture the other day, must've been very fond of procreating.
3. There is such a thing as raspberry wheat beer, and it is actually very tasty. It was the first drink I ordered and paid for myself--ever, actually.


4. It's brewed at a little pub/microbrewery called the Franciscan Well, which is located in what used to be an abbey. The entrance is inside a stone archway/tunnel that looks like it would've been a good place for unwary monks to get knifed, but other than that it's a charming little place.


5. Paying for things in cash, especially exact change, is weirdly fun here. 1- and 2-euro coins abound, and there's something classy about even the smaller change. Except I mysteriously keep running out of it; pity.


6. Something that isn't classy but is nevertheless appealing: chips. Which are actually fries. I had them for the first time yesterday, along with ketchup that tasted vaguely apple cider-y. They came in a giant portion wrapped up in paper (which I probably could've finished by myself, but only with grave consequences for my stomach). My experience in Ireland couldn't have been complete without this British/Irish staple. I also was offered a Jaffa Cake the other day, and had the pleasure of explaining the nature of a digestive biscuit to someone; certain redheaded friends will be proud.


7. Most of this week has revolved around getting my bearings, getting to know people, and going to class. Classes at UCC generally start 5 to 7 minutes late and end 5 to 10 minutes early, so I actually spend more time getting to and from campus (excellent exercise) than I do listening to any single lecture. But for the most part my courses are interesting, and at least once per lecture I find myself giggling over something a professor says that reminds me I'm in Ireland--like "Father Christmas robes" or "Cu Chulainn: c-u space c-HAYCH..." or "Oliver Cromwell, who was a horrible man" or "one more thing, and then I'll leave you go..."


And on that note, I will "leave you go" until my next (hopefully more action-packed) foray into blogland. Hope you're all having a grand day. :)