Adventures in Belfast

I can finally say that I am getting my bearings around Belfast, and love it! Throughout the past couple weeks I have been meeting most of my flat mates, which all are from different countries! I am the only American on my floor, which I think is fabulous. I love talking to people from around the world, sharing different ideas, concepts, and just normal everyday routines.
The party/drinking scene is backwards here in Ireland. Most students who attend Queen’s are Northern Irish students, so every (or every other) weekend these students will go home. The major party nights in Belfast are basically Monday-Thursday! I have never seen so many people go out on a school/work night, its unbelievable! I can already tell that weekends are going to be my time to study for classes, considering no one is here on campus!

On Monday I experienced my first PUB CRAWL! Queen’s does a RAG week every semester, which includes the pub crawl. Just imagine a massive group of students in bright yellow shirts, roaming from pub to pub like cattle! For me it was a blast, and all the proceeds went to charity. What is better than being able to drink, have a great time with friends, and in the mean time raise money for charity? NOTHING! :)

I am still trying to get the Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Derry, and every other county’s accent down. Each accent is completely different than the next! I feel like a complete idiot having to ask somebody to repeat what they said more than twice, but some people cannot understand me! Most people will ask me if I am either Canadian, or Irish. The people of Ireland do not want to offend those that are Canadians, so they will never ask if you are American, the question will always be are you from Canada? I believe people in my modules, and tutorials get confused about where I am from. They believe I am Irish from the way I look, but as soon as I open my mouth every single head in that module turns!

Well I have a mound of reading to do, a mound of laundry, and a mound of mess in my room to clean up. I should probably get to those unnecessary, fun killing, boring tasks that are calling my name.

UNTIL NEXT TIME :)

Megan

As I sit here and wait for the Super Bowl to start, I find this the best time to catch everyone up on my adventures here in Belfast. For the past seventy-two hours our group was sent to Navan, a small town south of Belfast, for our home stay. Once we arrived, Jaime and I were informed that our home stay dad was taken to the hospital, so we were put into other homes. My home stay family consisted of Mary, Finbarr, and Bagiou. Mary and Finbarr a lovey couple, originally from Belfast, welcomed us into their home along with their dog Bagiou. As you all know, I have dogs back in Minnesota, who I miss dearly. Having a dog in the family just filled that empty void in my heart. One of the many things we were all anxious for was a home cooked meal, and boy did they spoil us everyday! The most spontaneous day of food was Saturday. Now, I don’t know if you all know what white/black pudding is, but I tried it and will never eat it again. White/black pudding is pigs blood, and the left over scraps of pig after they have been butchered. I also tried mussels, cockles, a type of fish (white) native to Ireland, and sting ray. My favorites by far were the mussels, and cockles; wish I could eat them everyday! Our Saturday activities included a trip to Dublin (which was amazing), and a visit to the scenic country side of Ireland.
Mary and Finbarr took us to a historic piece of land called The Hill of Tara. Known as Temair in Gaelic, was once the ancient seat of power in Ireland. One hundred and forty two kings are said to have resigned there in prehistoric and historic times. On a clear day you can see half the counties in Ireland from the top of Tara. Standing on top of Tara will be something I will never forget; the view of Ireland is absolutely outstanding from Tara. If you ever take a trip to Ireland, make sure you take the time and see The Hill of Tara; if you don’t you will regret it!
This is the second week of classes, and I am already stressed about the amount of studying I already have entailed! The class I am most worried about is Irish Politics, and this module is a two thousand level. So all the other students have been taking political classes much longer than I have, let alone they live in Ireland. Automatically I am at a disadvantage not knowing much about the political system, but I am determined to learn all I can. Coming from a philosophical point of view, I am very excited to hear the different ideas and concepts these students have on these topics. I find it very interesting learning new concepts from a different point of view, especially coming from other international/Irish students.
As of a few days ago, I have booked my ticket for spring break! At Queen’s we have a three week break for Easter/studying; mine will be used for traveling. So far a group of us will be flying to London, taking a train to Paris, and possibly stops in other countries. I am hoping I will be able to see Spain, specifically Madrid or Barcelona. I have a few friends studying in Granada, so a trip there is mandatory! Coming over here I was hoping I would be able to travel to every country I had in mind, but due to studying and exams I won’t be able to go everywhere, bummer. One stop I will be making for sure is to Scotland, from Belfast it is only about thirty minutes to the boarder.
In making my decision to study in Ireland was the fact that my ancestors have derived from Northern Ireland, as well as Scotland. Other than studying, and traveling, I will be working on my family’s genealogy. My uncle has done tremendous work so far, but he seems to be stuck at one ancestor. That’s when I come into play, I will be trying to find information about this certain fellow, and more information about my family. I will be on the hunt to find out more about the Thompson’s till the day I leave!
I started this blog before the Super Bowl came on, and I am now finishing it two days later. Which I must say one thing, the Super Bowl is not the same without the commercials. All the Americans were sitting watching the Super Bowl praying that we would get the commercials, and we did not see one! We got stuck with a BBC reporter talking with two Americans to explain the game of “American Football.” Every single play the reporter would ask what happened, and why that happened; talk about frustrating!
Anyways, I should probably get back to reading/studying. I had to take a break in order to keep all of you back home updated (mom and dad don’t be mad).

Until next time!!

Megan Thompson