An exciting bit of news for the day- I was finally assigned my internship for here in Dublin! The program I'm in has us take classes for the first seven weeks, break, and then work as an intern somewhere in the city, depending on our majors, etc. As an advertising major, I was assigned-- bodhrán drumroll please-- BLOOM.
Bloom Advertising is an up and coming agency now looking to expand and broaden its client base. Like all agencies in Dublin, it is quite small- consists of five full-time staff. It is the only north side advertising agency in the city, and is known for an emphasis on creativity and new ideas. I'll be mostly shadowing at first, just learning about small specialized advertising agency work and then later participating depending on interest and ability.
I'm REALLY excited about this new internship. A lifetime of art class, recreational drawing, and volumes worth of daydream-induced doodles might finally pay off! My interview is February, so until then I'm concentrating on class and doing some research on the company- and hopefully trying to figure out some good answers to the question, "Where do you see yourself in five years?" Sadly, I don't think Broadway with a beautiful Irish husband is a valid answer.
In other news, today we saw Newgrange in Meath. It is a passage tomb built approximately 5,000 years ago- making it older than Stonehenge. It's best known for the annual event for Winter Solstice on December 21st, when fifty lucky people are chosen in a lottery to enter the tomb to watch the sunrise, which only enters the tomb on that day. Apparently it's an amazing thing to see.
Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the tomb, and while I took plenty of the outside, I'm temporarily without my camera cable. So, here's a website! The answer to everything!
http://www.knowth.com/newgrange-interior.htm
Which shows you a pretty good idea of the designs on the inside. I loved the swirly designs, and all of the possible inspirations for them. The most amazing thing about the site is how long it took to construct, and how the people laying down the first stones and even those decades after them knew they would never see the completed product, but their commitment to their community and the spiritual significance it held motivated them to build what has survived as one of the oldest sites in history. Today I stood in a 5,000 year old building. Not too many people can say they've done the same!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
DCU Life
As for the rest of what I've been up to, it has mostly involved sticking around campus. We are a rather disappointing 30 minute bus ride from the city, so during the week I'll stay at DCU, at least while it's still cold. For the most part, the terrifying ice weather we were forewarned about has been more lamb than lion. We've seen some pretty beautiful sunny days compared to what we're accustomed to in Boston. As if we don't stick out enough as Americans, we also wear very light clothing compared to the students here because even the chilly days feel like springtime. It hasn't even rained too much. I guess I bring good weather!
I'm taking The History of Ireland with Caroline (we are told to call them by their first name here, it is so foreign to me!) who is one of my favorite people here so far. I'm also studying contemporary Irish culture with Frank and the Arts in Ireland with Padhraic. In Art, to my utmost delight I learned that I would be taught to play the bodhrán and the tin whistle, my two favorite instruments on earth. I had my first lesson last night-- the former is MUCH easier to pick up than the second, which takes years to master. I told him I was an Irish dancer, and he assured me I would have great rhythm to pick up the bodhrán. By the end of the seven weeks, he said we'd all be good enough to partake in a pub session. Let's hope! I've wanted to do that my whole life.
The other classes are definitely interesting, but require a lot of reading. The greatest thing I've learned so far was actually the first day of orientation, when a woman came in and taught us basic Gaelic for an hour. I am hopelessly addicted. Combine my enthusiasm for linguistics with my obsession with Ireland and you have Gaelic. I want to learn more, so I'll have to ask around on campus for where I can do that. So far, my favorite is Baile Athá Cliath (The th sound is pronounced like an H), which is the Gaelic name for Dublin. The words light up the entrance of Henry Street in town, and I was dying to find out what they meant. Even if I am unable to become fluent in the language at any point in my life, I at least want to be proficient at reading and pronouncing it. Example: when I take visual arts after spring break, my professors name is Caoimhghin. It looks like a sneeze. In fact, it is pronounced something like "Queevin" and is Gaelic for Kevin. I love how little sense that makes.
Now, it's off to practice my bodhrán!
I'm taking The History of Ireland with Caroline (we are told to call them by their first name here, it is so foreign to me!) who is one of my favorite people here so far. I'm also studying contemporary Irish culture with Frank and the Arts in Ireland with Padhraic. In Art, to my utmost delight I learned that I would be taught to play the bodhrán and the tin whistle, my two favorite instruments on earth. I had my first lesson last night-- the former is MUCH easier to pick up than the second, which takes years to master. I told him I was an Irish dancer, and he assured me I would have great rhythm to pick up the bodhrán. By the end of the seven weeks, he said we'd all be good enough to partake in a pub session. Let's hope! I've wanted to do that my whole life.
The other classes are definitely interesting, but require a lot of reading. The greatest thing I've learned so far was actually the first day of orientation, when a woman came in and taught us basic Gaelic for an hour. I am hopelessly addicted. Combine my enthusiasm for linguistics with my obsession with Ireland and you have Gaelic. I want to learn more, so I'll have to ask around on campus for where I can do that. So far, my favorite is Baile Athá Cliath (The th sound is pronounced like an H), which is the Gaelic name for Dublin. The words light up the entrance of Henry Street in town, and I was dying to find out what they meant. Even if I am unable to become fluent in the language at any point in my life, I at least want to be proficient at reading and pronouncing it. Example: when I take visual arts after spring break, my professors name is Caoimhghin. It looks like a sneeze. In fact, it is pronounced something like "Queevin" and is Gaelic for Kevin. I love how little sense that makes.
Now, it's off to practice my bodhrán!
Howth
Sunday, a bunch of us decided to get away from the city to explore more of the area outside of Dublin and head to the coast. It took about an hour and a half to get there by bus with the traffic, but when we finally turned off one street and saw the glorious near-sunset dazzling off the water, the rest of the wait wasn't too terrible to endure.
We had landed in an area called Howth, a beautiful seascape complete with sunset, wide open sky, sailboats, docks, far off greenery, and wafts of fresh fish and chips awaiting. It was breathtaking; the water, the rocks, we walked all around the docks (and saw sea lions bobbing around! They entertained us until they realized we didn't have food.) and out onto these rocks that jutted out into the water. The whole sky grew pink with the setting sun, topped off with a bagpipe player down below who set the perfect mood. Won't deny it- I teared up a little it was so beautiful.
After walking and taking it all in for over an hour, we all teared up a little more when we saw how much it would cost us to sit for dinner in any of the restaurants lining the main street. But luckily we passed a place called Beshoffs, and it wasn't sit down but it was the best fish and chips I have ever experienced in my entire life. I have become a huge fan of the salt and vinegar on chips (fries) which I wasn't expecting! And the fish was the freshest I have ever tasted.
I cannot wait to go back to that area when it's warmer out. Next time I'll bring sardines or something for the sea lions, too.
We had landed in an area called Howth, a beautiful seascape complete with sunset, wide open sky, sailboats, docks, far off greenery, and wafts of fresh fish and chips awaiting. It was breathtaking; the water, the rocks, we walked all around the docks (and saw sea lions bobbing around! They entertained us until they realized we didn't have food.) and out onto these rocks that jutted out into the water. The whole sky grew pink with the setting sun, topped off with a bagpipe player down below who set the perfect mood. Won't deny it- I teared up a little it was so beautiful.
After walking and taking it all in for over an hour, we all teared up a little more when we saw how much it would cost us to sit for dinner in any of the restaurants lining the main street. But luckily we passed a place called Beshoffs, and it wasn't sit down but it was the best fish and chips I have ever experienced in my entire life. I have become a huge fan of the salt and vinegar on chips (fries) which I wasn't expecting! And the fish was the freshest I have ever tasted.
I cannot wait to go back to that area when it's warmer out. Next time I'll bring sardines or something for the sea lions, too.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
In Dublin Fair City, Where the Girls Are So Pretty...
FRIDAY
We return with the other teams to go over the answers and have a question and answer session with Mary. One of the answers was a statue of Molly Malone we had to find, and Mary asked us if anyone knew the song. Having sung that song every single summer around the bonfire at Canandaigua Lake with my family, I raised my hand. I was the only one. And she asked me, for two points to my team, to sing it. Mortifying? Absolutely. I said no at first, but at the protest from my team and the help of another girl, I did it. A few kids on the trip loved it so much they had me teach them, and they have on more than one occasion belted it walking down the city streets. While some locals undoubtedly find this annoying, quite a few have joined in.
The First Day!
Finally- some time to sit down and catch up on my first five days in Dublin!
There’s so much to write about I’ll split it up into a few posts.
THURSDAY
Erica and I had a great flight on Aer Lingus; it took about eight hours, and I REALLY missed that night’s sleep as the new day wore on, but I sat next to an entertaining flight buddy which made the whole experience pretty enjoyable. His name was Patrick, and he was a Cork native in his mid-seventies who actually studied at BU for his master’s once upon a time. We had a few things in common then, but I quickly found him to be a loquacious fellow. He rambled on about his accomplishments, careers, advice, children, and grandchildren as the instructional safety video played, drawing some annoyed looks from those sitting near us. I tried to slow his tangent by distracting him with a book my mom gave me- The Oxford Dictionary of the Origin of Words (perfect for a linguistics enthusiast like me!) but it only provoked him—he was delighted and shared every word that fascinated him, which ones must have been wrong, and which ones he had a better explanation for. While at the time it was a bit irksome, in retrospect I was glad to have made him so happy. He wrote down the title to buy his own copy. Once we finally landed, he helped me find customs, the baggage claim, and even hailed us a taxi, which was incredibly helpful.
The cab driver was also a colorful character, cracking jokes in the thickest northern Irish accent I’ve ever encountered. Though he had to repeat himself multiple times for me and Erica, the sleep-deprived zombies in the back seat, he was patient and really funny. We checked in, unpacked, and trudged over to our opening meeting, which was cruelly scheduled three hours after we all arrived. To be perfectly honest, I was so exhausted, I don’t remember a single word that was said at that meeting, but I was told there wasn’t much to it. After a solid shower and nap, we were ready to rock. We met a handful of other students in the program and ventured into the city.
It was an amazing night- we walked around the lit stone streets in search of anything, laughing and getting to know each other. We were without phones, without responsibility, just free to explore for one night. We didn’t get terribly far before our appetites got the best of us- though it was about 24 hours earlier, none of us had eaten since the plane food. We found Madigans, the kind of pub you’d imagine in a touristy area- dark wood, dim light, small round tables, mostly empty. The nine of us pushed four tables together and brought the place to life with our vivacious energy. Or we seriously annoyed the staff. Depends on how you look at it, I suppose! But we were so excited to be there that everything seemed so much better- the mediocre fish n chips we all ordered tasted like heaven.
Next stop was Fitzgerald’s across the river- we ordered our first pints of Guinness as legal citizens of the universe and continued to enjoy each other’s company. It was the perfect first night, a small group walking around with no solid idea of where we were going, just soaking it all in.
There’s so much to write about I’ll split it up into a few posts.
THURSDAY
Erica and I had a great flight on Aer Lingus; it took about eight hours, and I REALLY missed that night’s sleep as the new day wore on, but I sat next to an entertaining flight buddy which made the whole experience pretty enjoyable. His name was Patrick, and he was a Cork native in his mid-seventies who actually studied at BU for his master’s once upon a time. We had a few things in common then, but I quickly found him to be a loquacious fellow. He rambled on about his accomplishments, careers, advice, children, and grandchildren as the instructional safety video played, drawing some annoyed looks from those sitting near us. I tried to slow his tangent by distracting him with a book my mom gave me- The Oxford Dictionary of the Origin of Words (perfect for a linguistics enthusiast like me!) but it only provoked him—he was delighted and shared every word that fascinated him, which ones must have been wrong, and which ones he had a better explanation for. While at the time it was a bit irksome, in retrospect I was glad to have made him so happy. He wrote down the title to buy his own copy. Once we finally landed, he helped me find customs, the baggage claim, and even hailed us a taxi, which was incredibly helpful.
The cab driver was also a colorful character, cracking jokes in the thickest northern Irish accent I’ve ever encountered. Though he had to repeat himself multiple times for me and Erica, the sleep-deprived zombies in the back seat, he was patient and really funny. We checked in, unpacked, and trudged over to our opening meeting, which was cruelly scheduled three hours after we all arrived. To be perfectly honest, I was so exhausted, I don’t remember a single word that was said at that meeting, but I was told there wasn’t much to it. After a solid shower and nap, we were ready to rock. We met a handful of other students in the program and ventured into the city.
It was an amazing night- we walked around the lit stone streets in search of anything, laughing and getting to know each other. We were without phones, without responsibility, just free to explore for one night. We didn’t get terribly far before our appetites got the best of us- though it was about 24 hours earlier, none of us had eaten since the plane food. We found Madigans, the kind of pub you’d imagine in a touristy area- dark wood, dim light, small round tables, mostly empty. The nine of us pushed four tables together and brought the place to life with our vivacious energy. Or we seriously annoyed the staff. Depends on how you look at it, I suppose! But we were so excited to be there that everything seemed so much better- the mediocre fish n chips we all ordered tasted like heaven.
Next stop was Fitzgerald’s across the river- we ordered our first pints of Guinness as legal citizens of the universe and continued to enjoy each other’s company. It was the perfect first night, a small group walking around with no solid idea of where we were going, just soaking it all in.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
The Paradox of Packing
Here's my issue. Without music playing, I have no motivation to pack. But while music is blaring, and I start making strides organizing, I start singing along, grooving, and before I know it I've belted along to an entire song without touching a thing. Most recent example: Mariah Carey, "Heartbreaker". You cannot avoid singing along to that song. My poor parents and sister are probably ready to ship me to Dublin in any form of transportation at this point, rickety rowboat included.
Despite my inability to focus for more than two minutes, I'm finally starting to see progress. Once clothes are out of the way, the rest shouldn't be too hard. It is hard to believe that twenty-four hours from now, I'll be on an Aer Lingus flight, being served an adorable miniature dinner by kelly-green-clad flight attendants with bright red lipstick (they crack me up). Hope there's a good movie playing. If not, my amazing oldest brother Johnny provided me with the rest of Wolverine and the X-Men season 1 for my iPod. That's love.
And fortunately, my roommate-to-be, Erica, will be on the same flight. Hyde Park born and raised, she has THE thickest Boston accent you'll ever hear. I've known her for a couple years at BU, and when we found out we were both in the program, we decided to room together and coordinate the same flight to make things easier. It's comforting that we can be lost and anxious together getting a cab from the airport to our campus residence. It's all happening so soon! But there's still so much to do!
Like... packing. I guess I've procrastinated enough. Let's just hope for productivity sake that no Glee pops up on shuffle.
Despite my inability to focus for more than two minutes, I'm finally starting to see progress. Once clothes are out of the way, the rest shouldn't be too hard. It is hard to believe that twenty-four hours from now, I'll be on an Aer Lingus flight, being served an adorable miniature dinner by kelly-green-clad flight attendants with bright red lipstick (they crack me up). Hope there's a good movie playing. If not, my amazing oldest brother Johnny provided me with the rest of Wolverine and the X-Men season 1 for my iPod. That's love.
And fortunately, my roommate-to-be, Erica, will be on the same flight. Hyde Park born and raised, she has THE thickest Boston accent you'll ever hear. I've known her for a couple years at BU, and when we found out we were both in the program, we decided to room together and coordinate the same flight to make things easier. It's comforting that we can be lost and anxious together getting a cab from the airport to our campus residence. It's all happening so soon! But there's still so much to do!
Like... packing. I guess I've procrastinated enough. Let's just hope for productivity sake that no Glee pops up on shuffle.
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