Week 5- Friends and Food

Another week gone and another seven days wiser. This week was, thankfully, not as stressful as last week. I am finally getting used to my routine here, and am enjoying the abnormal days as well. I finally got a taste of what Ireland's weather is supposed to be like with some showers and many a cloudy day. I am certainly not complaining about the beautiful days though, because September was supposed to be a terrible month in Ireland weather-wise.

 Some new things happened this week that were a refreshing new taste. Literally! This week was International Week on campus, and on Tuesday was an event called "A Taste of Our World." It featured foods from China, India, Saudi Arabia, America, France, Spain, Germany, and Brazil. The food that they served at the American booth was New York style hamburgers. I never knew that New York had a special burger, but either way it was really tasty. My two favorite dishes were from China (Peking Hoi - Sin Pork Ribs) and France (Chicken Chasseur).


Thursday I had my second class for learning to play the Irish flute or the tin whistle. I now have three songs under my belt: Twinkle Twinkle, The Rattlin' Bog, and My Darling Asleep. The last song my class may be playing at a concert of sorts at the end of the semester. I recorded myself playing The Rattlin' Bog at medium speed. Later that night I went to a show for the band Keywest. They are popular in Limerick and Dublin. They had a lot of covers of songs and then some original songs. I thought they were really good. After a little while I headed to a bar downtown with some new friends. We had a great time while we were out and made some good memories.


Friday I had some friends over at my house for a tin whistle jam session. They happen to be in the same class as me, so we were able to practice to the dismay of my other housemates. At least we do not sound so much like dying cats as we did when we learned the songs originally. We spent the rest of the day eating an unhealthy amount of junk food, watching American movies and Youtube videos, and ordering more Mexican food than we could possibly eat. Additionally this day my Hungarian housemate became an uncle for the first time. I shared a shot of his Hungarian liquor and danced to some of his 80s, pop, and Hungarian rap music.

Saturday was a day of adventure and exploring more of the beautiful city of Limerick. I went to the milk market yet again, although this time it was much emptier and most of the stalls were closing up by the time we got there. After buying three types of flavored cheese, toasted hazelnuts, an apple and raisin dessert, and some type of herb biscuit my friends and I hunted down a restaurant to eat at. We found a nice little bar that served food called "The Red Hen." I decided that it was about time for me to order a Traditional Irish Breakfast. I got a mini version though, because I was not hungry enough to eat two more portions of sausage and bacon. The breakfast consists of: bacon, sausage, a fried egg, a tomato, toast, and black and white pudding. After our meal we proceeded to check out some of the small stores that run along O'Connell Street. I was able to get a few souvenirs for my family back home (shhh don't tell them) and enjoyed looking at the things offered in some of the shops. My favorite stores were the bookstore that had three levels, the Munster Rugby store, and the candy store that sold Twinkies, Pop Tarts, Lucky Charms, Kool-Aid packets, and Funfetti cake mix like they were novelty sweets.


Fun Facts time! I overloaded you last week, so maybe this time around I will try to go easy. Keyword "try":

#1: Limerick is the third biggest city in Ireland. The first is Dublin followed by Cork.
#2: There are 32 Counties in Ireland. Limerick is located in Co. Limerick (not really that surprising). 
#3: Aran Island sweaters are popular souvenirs for tourists to bring back home from Ireland. Each is handmade from sheep wool, and can be bought from a store right in Limerick. However, the sweaters are not exactly cheap. They usually start at 50 euro and go up from there (this is around $62). 
#4: Ireland (and a few other countries) use the chip and pin system. There is a chip in each debit card that you stick into a special slot on a card reader and then proceed to enter the pin for your bank account. If you attempt to swipe this card the cashier will give you a very funny look. I have only used this system once without looking like a doofus.