‘It’ll be grand’: Studying Abroad in Ireland’s capital city. A reflection.

Looking back on the past two months that I have spent in Ireland, deciding to study abroad was the best decision I have ever made.  Getting the opportunity to study at American College Dublin made studying abroad even better.  One thing holds true though, studying abroad is more than just what you learn in the classroom.  Most of the experiences outside of the classroom will be remembered more.  Through exploring Dublin and venturing out to other parts of Ireland like Cork, the Blarney Castle, and Galway during the first month, I made lots of memories and became close with other students who were studying and traveling with me.  It’s true what they say though, time flies when you’re having fun.  The days spent exploring Ireland, the countless nights going out, and time spent at the school went by so quickly and before you know it, I had to say goodbye to the amazing friends that I have made who were only in Ireland for a month. I didn’t want them to leave because I was having such a great time with them, but fortunately a new group of students were coming in, who were just as great.

My favorite memory from a trip with them is going to the Cliffs of Moher.  We had to take a three hour bus ride to Galway, then another three hour bus ride to the Cliffs. All of those long rides made me sick, especially on those windy roads leading to the cliffs, and they had to take care of me (thanks guys!).  But, I learned more than just to spend a night in Galway so the buses aren’t back to back, making the busses more tolerable.  It taught me that you can become close to people really quickly and traveling together makes you even closer.  I met some of my best friends studying abroad and can only hope that we can meet up again in the future. This trip made me realize that I don’t have to worry as much as I used to.  If I did not know where to go or what to do in a given situation, I learned that it is okay to ask people, and most of the time they are more than willing to help.  It also taught me how to save my money… and when buying something to not do the conversion to US dollars in my head so that I don’t worry about it (especially if in an area that uses British Pounds).

At first I was nervous to study abroad because I did not know what Ireland was really like but now that I’m back home, I’m wishing I was back in Ireland. I didn’t expect to enjoy Ireland as much as I did but the two months that I have spent in Ireland have been the best of my life. This trip allowed me to get out and explore, giving me a new sense of freedom and capability to really do what I want.  I feel like I can go anywhere now! I think that going into Ireland with an open mind helped me make the most out of the trip.  I was able to adapt easily which made me enjoy Ireland so much more. I came home with a new love for Ireland, especially Dublin, amazing memories and friends, and the longing to return to someday.  

American College Dublin. A Graduate Intern’s Perspective: Maura Haverty

It has been an extremely busy couple of weeks here at ACD! We unfortunately had to say goodbye to the first group of students we had in the first four weeks. It is always hard saying goodbye and they seemed to really enjoy themselves in Dublin! Although it was sad, there was no down time between the first group leaving and the second group arriving! Airport picks were just as chaotic as the first group, with several of our students being delayed or having their flights canceled! However, by Sunday the 15th, we had the entire group on the ground in Dublin! On their first Monday night, I took them to the Comedy Crunch, a free comedy show that is located in the basement of The Stag’s Head Pub. The show is rated number one on Trip Advisor for things to do in Dublin! It really is a great show and some of the students were even part of the act!

While the second group was beginning to settle in, I took on a new role at the college for a couple of days. I worked in the Admissions office for a week while covering for others that were on holiday. What an experience working in admissions was! I worked at the front desk and answered any calls that came into the office. Although answering all the various calls on the phone proved to be hectic at first, I really enjoyed it. My time working in admissions has really solidified the fact that I would love to continue working in this type of higher education setting. On a one day break from working at the front desk in admission last week, I was able to tag along on one of the student field trips. We hiked Bray Head which proved to be a difficult hike. However, there is a big feeling of relief and awe once you get to the top and see the view. The view from Bray Head is breath-taking and it is by far one of my favorite hikes. Although I have hiked it several times, I always find the hike challenging! The view once at the top is worth sweating over! When I am up there, I truly feel like all my worries go away! I am heading into my last two weeks being an intern at the college. I can say I have honestly enjoyed myself and have met so many great people though this experience! Stay tuned for my last blog entry which I’m sure will be an emotional one!

‘It’ll be grand’: Studying Abroad in Ireland’s capital city

Day 9 Tuesday

Today we got to play Hurling again.  It is really fun getting to learn how to actually play the Irish sports instead of just hearing about it.  After that we taught Colum and Damien how to play ultimate Frisbee! I realized that I’m not good at either of them but it is still fun playing!

Day 10 Bray!

Most of the ACD students took a trip to Bray on Wednesday.  We enjoyed a nice hike up the hill, which was a good way to start the day.  That night, a big group of us went out to Howl and hung out.  It was a lot of fun hanging out with everyone!

Day 11 Thursday

The World Cup is going on and it seems to be big everywhere but the US.  Now that the US is in the cup, the attention of soccer is growing.  Since we are in Ireland, a radio station wanted to interview us about how we felt about the US soccer team and the game against Germany.  Later that day I went out to watch the game and was disappointed that the US lost.  I’m still proud of their accomplishments so far though!

Day 12 PARIS!!

Today I left really early in the morning for Paris with Steph and Gwen.  When we finally got into the city I couldn’t believe that we were actually there.  We went and saw Notre Dame and the Lock Bridge first.  After that we went to the arc de Triomphe and climbed up to the top.  From there we had a great view of the Eiffel tower and we waited up there until it got dark and the tower lit up!

Day 13

This was my second day in Paris.  We went to a museum where we got to see a lot of art and they had a big room in there for Van Gogh! That night we went to Trocadera so that we could be really close to the Eiffel Tower.  When we got there, we were actually able to go up in the Eiffel Tower (after thinking that all of the tickets were sold out).  The view from up there was amazing and I couldn’t believe I was actually in the tower.  We were there at night too so it was all lit up and every hour the lights start to flash so we stayed for that as well!

Day 14

This was unfortunately my last day in Paris.  Throughout the way we were doing a bus tour where we could get on and off the bus at whatever time and it would take us to 10 different stops.  Also included with that was a boat ride, so we started our day off with that.  Afterwards we went to the Luvre, a really big museum which is also the home of the Mona Lisa! We got to see that (and take a selfie with it) as well as other great art work!  We finished our time in Paris off with shopping and dinner and then made our way back to Dublin!!

Day 15 Monday

This past weekend I had an amazing time in Paris and almost wish I had more time to experience other parts of France. Studying abroad is great though because when you take a weekend trip to a different country, you are still coming back to a foreign country.  Time is flying though and I realized I only have two more weeks in Ireland! Today will be relaxing and enjoying Ireland, making the most out of everything I can!

‘It’ll be grand’: Studying Abroad in Ireland’s capital city

Day Four

I got to play Gaelic Football again yesterday.  I love playing football because it reminds me of playing soccer (I love soccer!).  After that Steph and I went to go get gelato because it was so hot out. That night, a group of us went to Howl at the Moon which is the usual Wednesday night thing. It was a fun night of friendship and dancing!

Day Five

The movie, The Fault in Our Stars, came out yesterday in Ireland so Steph, Gwen and I went to see it.  The book by John Green was so good that we couldn’t wait to see it.  The movie held up to my expectations.  It was so good but I, as well as the rest of the people in the theater, cried a lot!

Day Six

Yesterday was a nice day to relax and catch up on rest.  Steph and I were supposed to go to Belfast to visit our friend for the weekend but we both weren’t feeling good so we cancelled.  Instead we hung out around the house and had a good evening!

Day Seven

Yesterday I got to go to the zoo with Colum and Gwen! I was so excited because they have giraffes there and I got to go see them as well as the rest of the animals. Ali and Courtney from the last group came back to Dublin later on for a night before going back to the states.  We became really good friends so I was happy to see them again. We celebrated with Bunsen and then went out with a group of people from the house.  It was a lot of fun!

Day Eight

Over the weekend I went back to Galway so that I could get a bus from there to the Cliffs of Moher. I felt really sick on the bus ride there.  But after all it took to get to the cliffs, seeing them was worth it! I’m glad I got to experience the view from the cliffs; it really is something that you have to see when visiting Ireland!

ACD Study tour to Paris and Normandy

Would you like to join ACD for a ten day tour to Paris and Normandy, with completion of the course in Dublin and earn some credits while doing so?

 

The course explores aspects of French history, art, culture and society, from the earliest times to the present day. Themes considered include the medieval Norman invasions of England and Ireland, the allied D-Day invasion of Normandy, Gallo-Roman civilization, medieval France, painting, sculpture and architecture from the Renaissance to the modern period, the absolutist state, the French Revolution, Baron Haussman’s redesign of Paris, American culture in Paris. Some of the places you will visit include the D-Day landing sites (and the Irish locations for the filming of those landings for the movie ‘Saving Private Ryan’), the Bayeux Tapestry Museum, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, Sainte Chapelle, Conciergerie, Louvre, Musée d’Orsay, Pompidou Centre, Versailles. This class takes place in the fortnight before the regular fall semester commences in mid-September.

Dates: 30th August – 10th September 2014

Cost: €1650

Contact our Admissions team at info@iamu.edu should you like any more details.

* Please note that these trips are subject to cancellation due to insufficient student numbers; should they not take place the fee for the specific trip will be fully refunded.

‘It’ll be grand’: Studying Abroad in Ireland’s capital city

This is my first day interning for American College Dublin.  When I first applied to come to school here for the summer program, I thought I was going to get a psychology internship.  The school was trying to set it up for me and did all they could but things did not work out.  Instead, I have been taking classes for the past month. I was okay with this because I loved learning about the history and culture of Ireland. We got much more than just classroom lectures because we got to visit museums, galleries, and places around Ireland.  We also got taught how to play Hurling and Gaelic Football, which was a lot of fun!  When I heard that this internship was opening up, I wanted to take it because I do not need any more class credits at my home institution.  This past weekend, students from the first summer session left Ireland. This past month has truly flown by and I cannot believe I have been here this long. It was hard saying goodbye to the good friends that I have made.  In order to make this easier, we have made some plans to get together at the end of the summer.  I may even be traveling with one of the students to Spain for a weekend coming up! Even though they have left, I am looking forward to this next month because new students have arrived yesterday.  Colum took all of us to Howth for a hike. The weather was perfect for this and we all had a great time.  I am excited to get to know the new students better and make even more memories here in Ireland!

Yesterday Maura took all of the new students to the Comedy Crunch and I went along with them.  The Comedy Crunch is a free comedy show in the basement of the Stag’s Head.  Usually there are five acts when we go.  The first three acts usually go and then there is a break followed by the last two. During the break, they give out free ice cream which is a plus! The headliner was really funny yesterday and did not do anything that he had planned.  His whole act consisted of him making fun of two of the people that I came with from the school. This was a relaxing way to end the day. Before I went to the Comedy Crunch I got to go on a run through Phoenix Park to enjoy the sunshine. I plan to do the same today!

Livin’ it up in Dublin: A student perspective on Ireland’s capital city

Day 24:

DICEYS!! We went to Diceys last night, it was so much fun! We were told that if you get there before 11 its free BUT what they don’t tell you is that you need an app on your cell phone to do that.

Day 25:

Today after work we went the famine ship.  This ship was significant because it was a replica of the types of ships that would have been used in that time period.  Millions of Irish moved out of Ireland during that short time period. The ship was very interesting and the history behind it was really significant.

Day 26:

I was sick today which sucked because it is one of my last days.  I slept for the majority of the day, but after dinner we went out for a little. It was fun we went to Howl at the Moon, like we usually do on Wednesdays.  We left relatively early, but it was still fun, I’m glad they made me go out.

Day 27:

Thursday was really fun because we went to learn how to play Gaelic football.  I took a lot of pictures; it looked like a lot of fun!  After that I went to the museum and Bunsen.  The Bunsen restaurant is so good! ! I went probably like four times this week!  It was a day of packing because we all were getting ready to leave. Its really sad to think about leaving, everyone here has been so amazing.

Day 28:

It’s our last day!! I didn’t want this day to come, it is so sad! We all pretty much spent the day together we ate at this really good restaurant place for lunch and went to “stupid ass” for dinner. They both were so good! Then after we all went to the hard rock café for one final drink! It sucks leaving but I really loved it here and hope that I can come back soon! I miss it already! 😦

American College Dublin. A Graduate Intern’s Perspective: Maura Haverty

Hello everyone!

I can’t believe that these first four weeks of the summer program are coming to end and we have to say goodbye to the majority of our first group of study abroad students. It has been a very eventful four weeks to say the least and for many of them, the time has flown by. Last week, I took the students on a musical pub crawl starting at Oliver St. John Gogerty’s in Temple Bar. The two musicians running the pub crawl were fantastic and very talented. We went to three different pubs, ending north of the city off of O’Connell Street. In the last pub, some of the fellow pub crawler were even able to try their chance at singing! On Thursday, I also got to take the students to Croke Park, a personal favorite of mine. We were able to walk around the GAA museum and got a tour of the stadium! I was in heaven, especially being a Kerry fan! I even was able to pose in the locker room with one of the Kerry jerseys! I couldn’t help thinking what it must like for the players to walk out onto the pitch with 80,000 + fans screaming!

Tomorrow night I will be saying goodbye to most of the students from the first group by taking them on the literary pub crawl in city centre.  One of the most popular pub crawls in Dublin, the professional actors act out some of the great works from famous Dubliners such as James Joyce and Samuel Beckett. I am looking forward to Thursday night but not looking forward to saying goodbye! Stay Tuned!

Livin’ it up in Dublin: A student perspective on Ireland’s capital city

Day 14:

Friday!!  It is finally the weekend!  We decided to go to The Porter House because they have 2 for 1 Daiquiri’s on Fridays. They were sooo good! But, get there early because there isn’t a lot of seating.  I was hungry so I asked if a couple people wanted to go to credo with me to get gluten free pizza.  I ended up getting pizza and a burger at Bunsen.  Those are literally the best burgers EVERRRR!!! I have never had a burger that fresh, it was amazing! I want to go there everyday.  So I ended up buying two meals but I decided to save the pizza for tomorrow.

Day 15:

Today, we went to The Cliffs of Moher they were completely beautiful! The tour that we went on was called the paddy wagon; we went to about four different places throughout the tour.  I did not like the tour very much because I felt very rushed.  We went to so many places and we could only stay for about ten minutes! It was awful!!! But seeing he Cliffs of Moher was worth the rush.  They were so beautiful it didn’t even seem real!!!

Day 16:

Shopping!! Sunday afternoons are always lazy days, but we made it fun.  We decided to walk around and go shopping which was really fun, we went to all the stores that we usually wouldn’t have time to go in, and we walked all around the city.  It was a blast!

Day 17:

Maura’s had a race today; we went to go support at the finish line.  We underestimated the amount of people that were going to be there, so it took us a while to actually find her, but we did eventually.  She ran for the Special Olympics in Ireland, and I think she did a great job! After Maura’s race we decided to go to the movies, but we ended up being a little late so we did not go in.  Instead, we tried a gluten free fish and chips restaurant.  It was very good for being gluten free and I was very happy about how accommodating they are with Gluten allergies.  I wanted to eat fish and chips at least once while I was here and I am very happy, that I did.

Day 18:

Tuesdays are usually very uneventful days.  It was pouring so we decided to stay in and watch movies. After dinner, some of the students went to a musical pub-crawl for their culture class, when they got home they decided to go out again to Dicey’s.  A couple of us decided to just stay behind and have a relaxing day.   Later on in the night we wanted to get some fresh air so we decided to grab food.  They bought pizza from Pizza Hut (and got an AMAZING deal) and I bought some bacon and gluten free bread in order to make a BLT. It was delicious!!

Day 19:

Wednesday night we went to howl at the moon, it seems to be our tradition now.  We always reserve a table and it loads of fun, drinks are relatively cheap and it is just a good time all around.  We got there early because if it is before 9 you have free admission, but the time went by very quickly.  After a while we down to the lower level where the dancing was and had fun dancing the night away.

Day 20:

I didn’t do much today, after work I went home and cleaned.  Living with so many people it is hard to find time to get organized and clean, so I took a day where I did laundry and organized my room.  The other students learned how to play hurling, which sounded, really interesting and fun.  They seem to have a blast! I was upset I couldn’t make it but I didn’t get a lot of much needed organizing done.

Day 21:

On Friday all of the ACD students went on a hike to Bray.   This was really fun, because the view was breath taking.  I suggest if anyone has the chance to go on a hike to Bray defiantly take it.  The only thing is that it is defiantly a hike; it is not an easy stroll by any means.  So just be prepared.  But once you make it to the top the air is so clean and the view literally is like a scene in a movie.

Day 22:

We got up really early on Saturday in order to visit Galway.  It was a wonderful time; we did a lot of shopping at cute little shops.  The only bad thing about Galway was the weather; it went from pouring to sunny, to cold, to pouring again.  But other than that it was perfect.  We had lunch at a restaurant call The Kings Head it was very good and the plates that they served the food on was really cool.  The only thing that I didn’t like about my food was the capers’ that they put on my salmon; those were gross but other then that the food was very fresh and excellent.  Later we stopped by a local bakery that had gluten free pastries, it was so amazing! We sat outside for a little and had an amazing view but then it started raining again.  Galway is a beautiful place and I suggest that if you are in Ireland to visit Galway at least once.

Day 23:

On Sunday our plans changed multiple times.  We tried to go to Waterford but it just didn’t seem to work out.  Instead we ended up just going shopping and walking around Dublin all day.  I know it always seems like we are shopping.  There are a lot of really interesting shops in Dublin.  BUT, it is more expensive then the U.S. so you will be surprised about how much things actually cost.

American College Dublin. A Graduate Intern’s Perspective: Maura Haverty

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind. The students have settled into their respective routines and I have been hard at work in the office at ACD working on various projects! On my second day as an intern, I was asked to take a solo trip to the Dutch Embassy as a representative of American College Dublin. At the embassy, I was able to attend a presentation on the problem of student housing in Dublin. I was able to meet many other study abroad advisors from various Dublin colleges at this meeting and even got to speak briefly with the Dutch Ambassador to Ireland. This was a very exciting opportunity and I am so very grateful to Colum that he allowed me to attend the presentation!

The same night, I brought some of the study abroad students to their first Tuesdays at Dicey’s experience. For those of you who do not know what Dicey’s is, it is one of the most popular nightclubs in Dublin. On Tuesdays, they have many drink specials, which makes it a very desirable spot for students on a budget. They had a great time and I was happy to see them all having an enjoyable but safe experience! It is hard to believe many students from this group are going back home soon. I guess time flies when you are having fun! One of the pieces of advice that I have given them over the past two weeks is to enjoy their time in Dublin to the fullest. It goes by way too fast and they should not have any regrets when it is all over! Stay tuned for my next blog post!