Since this will be my final blog post I’d like to talk about my favorite memories and experiences from my time in Galway and what life was like after returning home.
I am extremely grateful for my time abroad. It was such a wonderful learning experience and the only thing I would change about it is that I would have liked to stay in Galway until May, as it was originally planned. My favorite part about being in Ireland was that I had to take care of myself, and be truly independently, for the first time in my life. I have always been an independent person, so I really enjoyed making my own decisions about what to eat, when to do my laundry, how to spend my money, where to go, etc. This was the first time that I didn’t have a parent watching my every move. While I am on my own at SU, my family is only an hour away, so they don’t miss that much 😉. I think every student who studies abroad learns a lot about themselves as an individual because when you are abroad you spend a lot of time with yourself, uninterrupted by the distractions of life at home. The most valuable experience I had during my time in Ireland was the weekend I spent in Connemara learning Gaelic from people who speak the language every day. As I said in previous blogs, I took a beginners Gaelic course at NUIG to learn a bit of Ireland’s native language. Students in this course were able to take a trip to an area of Connemara where Gaelic is everyone’s first language. There I stayed with a host family and got to see how their house was run and the types of customs and traditions that were important to them. This weekend trip was where I learned the most about Irish culture. I saw traditional Irish song and dance performances and attended Gaelic classes taught by native speakers as well. My trip to Connemara was extremely educational in a multitude of ways and I am very glad I had the opportunity to go on that trip. After returning home to the US I didn’t feel too different. I definitely feel that I have grown as an individual, but I didn’t experience any major personality changes. I miss Galway immensely, especially since I had to leave in such a hurry and didn’t get to have a proper goodbye. The most irritating part about returning home is that you have to tell each and every relative about everything you saw and did during your time abroad, as well as go through your hundreds of pictures multiple times. However, you can’t complain about having to retell your story because studying abroad is such a unique opportunity and your loved ones only want to show you their support. Choosing to study abroad for a semester was one of the best decisions I have made in my life and I highly encourage any student thinking about studying in Galway to do so. If anyone ever has any questions about Galway or doing a GO Long please do not hesitate to reach out to me!
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This week I would like to give some advice about planning side trips and the best places to visit in Ireland. I would highly recommend deciding where you want to go the most before you even leave for your semester abroad. Four months may seem like a long time, but the weeks pass by very quickly and if you are not prepared you may run out of time to travel.
Personally, I knew of a few places I wanted to visit in Ireland, but I had not thought about traveling around other European countries at all. The luxury of studying abroad in Europe is that you can book cheap flights from your host country to other European countries (a two to three hour plane ride was usually around 30 to 60 euro). However, planning trips outside your host country requires a lot of thought and these trips need to be planned well in advance. This is where my friends and I ran into problems. At the beginning of the semester everyone needs time to get adjusted to their new surroundings and the new culture/way of life, so no one usually travels during the first few weeks of their study abroad experience. Looking back, I think that students should spend the first few weeks of their semester abroad traveling around their host country while simultaneously planning their trips outside their host country. This is something that I failed to do. I did not spend enough time really thinking about what places I wanted to see outside of Ireland, and by the time my friends and I realized that we needed to start planning those trips, we only had about six weeks left in our semester. Six weeks may sound like a lot of time, but it really is not when you are responsible for planning your own trip and have to coordinate schedules with other people. If I had not left Ireland early due to the Coronavirus then I probably would have only had time for one or two more side trips during my remaining time. If I had started planning earlier in the semester then I could have made it to four or five different places in Europe. So, my recommendation would be to figure out the places you want to visit while abroad before you even leave, and upon arrival start planning your side trips immediately to allow yourself enough time to make the appropriate arrangements, get the best flight prices, and coordinate schedules with friends. I saw some incredible places in Ireland during my semester such as the Cliffs of Moher, Connemara, and Dublin. I would recommend that everyone studying abroad in Ireland see the Cliffs of Moher, they are breathtaking. For citygoers and history buffs I would recommend Dublin because it is a much larger city than Galway and contains many more historical sites and museums. For those who prefer the country I would recommend visiting the Connemara region because it has incredible views and spectacular places to hike. Below are a few pictures from the Cliffs of Moher, Dublin and Connemara. This week I’d like to offer some advice on how to make friends during your semester abroad. I was a little nervous about making friends when I first arrived in Galway because I really only knew one other student from SU. During orientation it seemed like everyone already had a group of friends. However, after careful observation I soon learned that there were a few large universities that had sent groups of 20 or more students to study in Galway altogether. Once I realized this I was less anxious and noticed many other students who were only talking to one other person or who were standing by themselves.
Orientation is a great time to make friends. I approached students who were standing by themselves and introduced myself. Keep in mind that everyone is uncomfortable, and everyone is feeling alone during the first few days at a new school in a new country. I met a close friend of mine during orientation. She was doing a home-stay (living off campus), so I probably would have never met her if I hadn’t approached her during orientation. NUIG also held socials for the international students during orientation. These events were held at the campus bar and involved music, games, and food. It was a great opportunity to socialize with the other international students. In my opinion, studying abroad is all about breaking our of your comfort zone and trying new things. So, if you are someone who doesn’t like to socialize or start conversations then I suggest just going to events, even if you are alone, there is always the possibility that someone will start a conversation with you. Another tip I will offer is to get contact information from the people that you interact with. Studying abroad is much different than being at your home university in the sense that not everyone knows each other, and it is harder to make connections. For example, at a social event one night I met another international student and we talked a little bit and before she left I got her phone number in case she ever wanted to hang out with me. We never ended up hanging out, but she did end up being in one of my classes and it was really nice to be able to text her whenever I missed a class and ask what I missed. At SU it is typical that you have a connection with at least one other person in each of your classes, but abroad that is rarely true. That’s why I recommend getting anyone and everyone’s contact info when you are socializing. Making friends can be intimidating and scary, but it is one of the most beneficial and rewarding things that you can do abroad. My friends and I did everything together in Galway. It nice to have other people to travel with, to cook with, go shopping with, etc. Anyone can make friends; you just have to get out of your comfort zone sometimes and try something new. Below are some pictures of my friends and I exploring different places around Ireland. As wonderful as Galway City is, sometimes you want to explore other places in the surrounding area. I would recommend taking a walk to Salthill when you get the urge to go on a little adventure. Salthill is a small town about a mile and half east of Galway City. Salthill is located right on Galway Bay, so you smell the saltiness from the ocean when you’re walking through it. The town has a promenade (similar to a boardwalk) that runs the whole length of Salthill and provides a great view of the bay and the mountains in the distance. The promenade is about three miles long, so it makes for a great walk on a clear day.
Salthill has other things to offer besides the promenade, like the Galway Aquarium. The aquarium is a great place to visit and it only costs 10 euros for students making it a great rainy day activity to do with your friends. The aquarium is two stories and has a diverse selection of marine life. If you visit the aquarium at the right time you may be able to join the touch pool tour where you will get to hold crabs, starfish, and sea cucumbers as well as touch koi and other tropical fish. Another site to visit in Salthill is O’Connor’s Famous Pub. This is one of the locations that Ed Sheeran’s music video for his song “Galway Girl” was shot at. Besides being the site of a famous music video, O’Connor’s is special because it is totally different than any other pub I went to in Galway. This pub has some wild décor. The ceiling is full of fishing nets and seashells, there is a wall of old lamps, a corner for old road signs, random taxidermy, strange lighting, etc. But the weird décor of O’Connor’s creates a very welcoming atmosphere. It is so different than any pub in Galway City which is why I highly recommend visiting it if you are ever in Salthill. Another thing that Salthill is famous for is its diving board located at the end of the promenade. The diving board is approximately 25-30 feet high and leads directly into the waves of Galway Bay. Some people jump off the diving board for fun, but it is common among international NUIG students to jump off the diving board before leaving Ireland. I am not a fan of heights or plunging into freezing cold water, so I passed on this tradition, but I know a few girls who did jump off the diving board before returning home and they said that they were glad they had a chance to do it, but they were never so cold in their lives. Salthill is definitely a hidden gem in County Galway, and it is somewhere you must visit during your semester at NUIG. I have included a few pictures below so you can get a sense of what Salthill is really like the pictures include: the promenade, the aquarium, the diving board, and O’Connor’s. Housing at NUIG is something that I think is really helpful to understand before you study abroad there. To start, housing is not called housing in Ireland. It is called your accommodation, which can be confusing at first because in America accommodation means something completely different. On the NUIG campus there are two student residences. One residence is called Corrib Village. Corrib is a bit older and outdated than the other student residence, Goldcrest Village. However, both residences are nice places to live. Corrib Village consists of about 30 different two story buildings. Each building has four apartments and each apartment usually has two double rooms, or a double room and two single rooms. Goldcrest consists of eight 5-story buildings. Each story has two apartments and each apartment has six single rooms. In Corrib and Goldcrest everyone in the apartment shares a kitchen space. Goldcrest gets extra points though because every room has its own private bathroom, whereas in Corrib everyone in an apartment shares a bathroom.
Each on-campus residence is protected by a series of gates and turnstiles. The gates open and close at specific times each day, so if you come home after the gates close you have to use your residence card to get through the gate. Upon arrival you will receive an ID card that you use to swipe into your building, apartment, and your individual bedroom. This means that it is very easy to lock yourself out of your room! All doors shut behind you quickly, so if you leave your card in your room when your leaving for class then you get locked out of your building, apartment, and room all at once. Don’t panic though, there is always a security guard on duty in Goldcrest and Corrib Village and s/he will be able to let you back into your building and apartment. Corrib and Goldcrest are located at the very north end of campus. This means that if you have a class on south campus (most classes are located on south campus) it will take you quite a while to walk to class. I always left my room a good 20 minutes before my class started and I usually got to class about three to five minutes early. The reception area for Goldcrest and Corrib Village is located on the ground floor of Goldcrest Village. Reception is a resource for students who are having issues with their roommates, it is where students go to make payments, and to pickup their mail. There is also a common space located in Corrib Village. This space is a building where events are held for students, such as yoga and bingo. There is also a small convenience store located in the common space which can come in very handy when you need a tomato but don’t have time to go all the way to the grocery store. There is also a laundry room located in the common space. Another laundry room is located in Goldcrest Village. Laundry is not included in the housing cost like it is at Susquehanna, so I recommend budgeting enough money to do laundry each week or so. Overall living on-campus was a really positive experience for me. Goldcrest provided me with lots of resources to have a successful semester at NUIG and I am thankful that I got to spend my time living there! [Below is the sunset from my bedroom window :) ] |
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