Author: Hannah Gwynne

This Sunday, all the exchange students came together again to traveled to the city of Cork from some last minute Christmas shopping. We met at the Temple Gate Bus Park in Ennis right before 10 before pilling onto a small bus and started the 1 1/2 hour bus ride to Cork. Although I had not seen the other students for more than  a month, we all fell back into our old ways of telling stories and sharing our experiences of Ireland. On the way to Cork, we decided to sing Christmas songs from out own countries.

After doing many Christmas carols and deciding to do a secret santa, we finally reached the city of Cork. There seemed to be buildings everywhere. Houses and stores were built on every piece of open land I could see. This was sure to mean some good shopping places for my Christmas gifts. Once we toke a group photo with some santa hats on, we all split up and went our separate ways. Pia and I stuck together as we walked around the town and zoomed in and out of shops.

By lunch time, we both had a large amount of bags hanging around our arms. We stopped for a bite to eat before continuing on our journey around Cork. From Irish souvenirs to jewelry and clothes, Cork had a shop for everything. It was also decorated head to toe in Christmas lights. I have heard many things about the Christmas lights in Cork, but I did not get to see them lit up at we had to leave at 4 o’clock sharp to be back in Ennis by 6 P.M.

Once everyone was back on the bus, we started off by passing out the secret santa gifts. Everyone got adorable things and made the trip a little extra special. After all the gifts had been exchanged, some of the students started talking about doing another get together in January. The next trip isn’t scheduled until February, but everyone really wanted to see each other again. It was decided that we would try to come to Gort (YAY) the next trip and maybe go into a pub to experience some traditional Irish music. However, the next time we get together, there will be 24 of us as 10 new students come after the new year.

November 6th, for many, just another Friday that has come. However, for me, this date symbolizes a huge landmark. November 6, 2015 is the halfway mark of my overseas adventure in Ireland. When I first learned about it, I could not believe it! I knew that I had been here for a while, but halfway! I guess time really does fly by when you are having fun. It seems like just last week I was saying goodbye to my family and hopping onto a plane to a country I had never been to and I was going to be staying with a family I had never met. The though of taking on this daughting challenge scared me when the date of my departure loomed closer. But I knew everything was going to be ok as long as believed it would be.

I have already done so much while I have been here. I have been introduced to amazing family, met some pretty cool peps at school, I have traveled to Dublin with only a friend and rode a horse in the fields of Ireland. I have seen show jumping for the first time and been hunting with friends and family. There have been visits to various pubs, horse shows and the grandma’s house. Although I have done so much, there is still plenty on my checklist that has yet to be accomplished.

Although the times here have been absolutely spectacular, it has not been without stress, hard times, longing, and plenty of missing of the family and friends. However, I can say with confidence that all the stress and worry that has occurred both before the trip and during the adventure, the good has defiantly outweighed the bad. I wake up every morning thankful for my situation and everything that has happened.

I am sure as the days role on, Thanksgiving will be upon us, then Christmas will not be far behind. As soon as school is back from winter break, I will be packing my bags for home. I am excited for all the expeditions ahead and all the things that await me here in Ireland.

During the first weekend in October, the Ballinasloe Horse Fair is an event that anyone involved with horses attends. Ballinasloe is the oldest and largest horse fair in all of Europe, dating back to the 17th century. The fair is held annually in the town of… you guessed it: Ballinasloe, the second largest town in County Galway. The fair is one of the most important social and economic events in the town.  Welcoming up to 80,000 visitors for all over the globe, events include live music, an equestrian parade, street entertainment, soap box racing, a firework display, street tug of war and a craft market.

Being a yearly tradition, my family asked me to come with them to see what happened at the horse fair. My host father and brother left bright and early at 9:00 A.M. on Sunday morning while my host mother, sister and I did not join them until later in the afternoon. When we first arrived at the fair, I was amazed at how many cars were there. Not only cars, but giant buses that carried multiple horses, and many horse trailers attached to the back of vehicles, all pilled on the sidewalk to find parking places. Once we finally found a place to put the car and starting heading towards the actual fair, my excitement grew as I waited in anticipation to see what all the talk was about when it came to this horse fair. When the walking came to an end, I looked over the edge of a stone wall to see a huge open valley filled to the horizon with horses.

As my host mother, sister and I walked down to try and meet up with the rest of the family, I was able to get a closer look at all the animals that were up for sale. There were horses big and small, mothers with foals and miniature horses that were only knee high. I even spotted a donkey or two in the field. Every single open space was filled with a horse or a person. Some horses had riders, some with saddles, some with just ropes around their head to keep them from running off. While many were secure to a firm hand of an owner or one of the rare trees in the valley, a couple horses were able to get free. One humorous scene was when a small pony that was no taller than my knee, bobbing and weaving through the field with a little kids on his tail trying to catch him.

When we finally found our way to my host father and brother, all the kids toke me around the fair to show me what there was to do. There were a couple sketchy carnival rides and a ton of street side vendors that offered things from small toy horses to winter coats. There was also a band warming up on the stage downtown, but I did not stick around to see what type of music they played.

After everything to see was seen, we all headed back to where the rest of the family was to say our goodbyes before we left. Ballinasloe was a one of a kind event that I am sure I will never see the likes of again. With only a few sprinkles of rain and mostly sunny skies overhead, I had yet another spectacular day with my host family.

This Saturday the foreign exchange students from all around Ennis and Gort came together and traveled to Bunratty Castle. Located in County Clare between Limerick and Ennis, the castle is a National Monument of Ireland and major tourist attraction that is open to the public. It was built in 1425 and restored in 1956. The name Bunratty, Bun Raite in irish means the “bottom” or “end of the Ratty” river.

Bunratty Castle is made completely out of stone and is actually the forth structure to be built on the site. The three previous structures were destroyed over the centuries until the current castle was built under the MacNamara family. Maccon Sioda MacNamara was the creator, but died before the castle was completed so the building was finished under his son Sean Finn. The castle has exchanged hands throughout history and was even used as a barrack by the Royal Irish Constabulary in the mid-19th century. In 1956, Bunratty castle was bought by the 7th Viscount Gort and resorted.

Visiting the castle was a wonderful experience. We got there nice and early to get a private tour of the inside. Due to the art and tapestries that dated back to the 1600s, the castle’s temperature is under constant control. The main hall had many pieces of history within it, from elk antlers to swords on the wall. I was able to climb the tiny, steep staircases to two of the towers and I was able to see the breathtaking views. After seeing what the castle had to offer, everyone walked around the village that was located behind the tower. It was an adorable little town with tiny houses.

After spending the entire day at the castle and the town, I was tired and ready to go home. I had an amazing day at the monument and learned a lot about the other exchange students. I even met a girl from Chicago who is staying for five months just like me. I was surprised how happy I was to hear the midwest accent.  After being surrounded by Irish accents and my host mom’s sort of New Yorker accent, I jumped at the opportunity to hear the Midwestern accent from someone. Everyone, at least those who will not be leaving after three months, will be getting back together for Christmas shopping in Cork city.

The month of October is finally here, and with the new month comes new adventures. All this month, many of the fourth years will be attending college visit to start getting an idea of where they want  to go after secondary school and what they might want to study. When the opportunity to visit a couple of the colleges arose, I decided to go and see how different the colleges here in Ireland differ compared to those in Michigan.

The college the fourth year class visited this Friday was National University of Ireland, Galway (or NUI Galway/ NUIG for short). Located right next to the popular town of Galway, the college is an impressive establishment. It is a research-led university with various majors, from human rights to marine science. Most undergrad degrees can be completed in four years, but some of the Arts and Business majors can be completed in three while medicine is usually six years.

With over 30 universities in Ireland, NUI Galway is considered on of the best schools to attend for a degree. With over 17,000 students and over 2,000 international students, Galway is on the bigger side when it comes to the amount of students. They report that they are Ireland’s top university for graduate employability with 96% employed or furthering in their studies within six months. They are the leading university in Biomedical science and Engineering, web science, human rights, marine science, and applied social science.

When it comes to price, NUI Galway is consistent with other colleges in Ireland. It cost 10,260 euro a year to attend, which works out to be $11,210 at the current exchange rate. Compare this to Trinity College in Dublin (considered the most prestigious university in Ireland) whose tuition is 12,010 euro, which is about $13,452. However these are basically the living cost, there are additional cost for the actual classes that also need to be included (for both colleges).

The college visit was very similar to the college  visits I did while I was in Michigan. I went to various talks, heard about different academic programs and toke many pieces of paper with information. The one things that is different is the way you get into the programs.

As I may have mentioned before, when students take the leaving cert exam, they put down the tope three careers/majors they would want to study in college. Then they take the test and see how many points they get. In order to be even considered for a program, the students need to get an x amount of points or they cannot do that major. For example, if someone wants to study psychology, they need to get 300 points out of a possible 640. If they get 300, then they can study the major. If they don’t, they have to select another major.  From what I have learned from my fellow classmates, 300 is reachable. When the requirements start getting into the high 400s and low 500s, it is more challenging.

Visiting NUI Galway and being able to see the town of Galway again was a lot of fun. I got to experience another college in a different country and saw a ton of interesting programs. Next up for colleges visits is the fabled university in Limerick, which I have heard is quiet good. I will have to wait for two weeks and see before I can say anything.