What I like about College Life.

Last week I gave you a description of what is going on here in Griffith College. This week, I wanted to find out what the students like exactly about their College time and I went out with my Interview Mic again.

Here are the results:

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“I love this city tonight; I love this city always.”

People always ask me what I like about Dublin and I never really know what to answer. What exactly makes this city so special for me? Why do I enjoy it here so much?  When I walked into town yesterday I thought about these questions and paid attention to the things I love about this city. And there were a lot of small things that I discovered: the scent of the city, enjoying autumn colours in St. Stephen’s Green, the friendly people, driving on the left side, the “Look rightà” signs on the street, the yellow-blue buses, the uneven footpaths, the small old houses, the colourful doors, the font of the pub signs, the pubs and the cider, the short walking distances, the nightclubs, the street musicians in Grafton Street, the nightclubs, college life and the Liffey running through the city which reminds of my hometown Bremen. Maybe the similarities with Bremen make me feel home here as well. Dublin has round about the same amount of habitants and the composition of the cities is very similar. Both of the cities have a river through the city centre which divides the city in two parts. In Bremen, the northern part is the place to be; in Dublin it’s the south. If there wouldn’t be the Liffey I would maybe not love Dublin that much. It’s really important for me to be close to water. I must have the opportunity to go out and sit by the riverside, watching the sunlight glistening on the water, seeing the swans swimming and observing the tourists on the boats while enjoying a hot coffee. That’s what I really like about Dublin and about my hometown.
Every city is a bit like home; built of light, steel and concrete. You live in a modern style, no matter where you are. And again, I lie awake and so much is passing by. All the things next to my bed are suggestive of me being settled. But I'm not. I'm restless; always looking for new adventures. The mail comes via internet. Everyone told me I was courageous and how much they would like to do the same. I tell them: I’m fine; and it’s good to be alone; away. I’m standing here and see the future far and wide.

My step into reality.

I did it; I tried reality for two days last week. It had a bitter taste. I flew back to Germany from Monday till Wednesday. When I arrived at Dublin Airport on Monday I could already hear so much German at the gate. The worst thing was the German translation of the security instructions in the Aer Lingus plane. It sounded even worse than a self learning-CD. No one talks like that. It wasn’t real. My time in Germany felt a bit unreal, too. I felt like a visitor in my own country. It was like waking up out of a deep dream. Well, I was happy to see my parents and my friends and I had a great time with them, short but great. None of my friends knew that I was coming so it was a very nice surprise. Another good thing was the food; finally I had proper meals again ;) I went out for dinner with my parents both nights; one night with my mom, one night with my dad and my little brother. He’s just one year old and he can take his first steps now :) Life is going on in Bremen; it’s a different life for me now. I miss so many things that are going on there, while I live here in Dublin. I start to accept the bubble as reality, my reality. The world outside is not real for me; it’s strange. I’m not ready for this world yet. And I don’t want to be. I’m happy I’m back in Dublin now. Back in the bubble; back home.  

Home?!

This week, I went home. But what does that mean; the little word home? Where is it; the place called home?
Where is my home?

Home is where the heart is, they say. And my heart is in Ireland. It walks on the cliffs. It plays with sheep. It likes the music on the streets. It lies down in the green grass. It goes out for a pint. It dances in a nightclub. It enjoys coffee in Stephen’s Green, sitting in the sun. It goes shopping in Grafton Street. It wants to learn Irish. It enjoys college life. It meets new people. It likes the Irish. It watches the seals in Howth. It walks through the Wicklow Mountains. It drives around the Ring of Kerry and enjoys the views. It speaks different languages. It is in Cork for a weekend, shopping at the English Market. It learns a lot in college. It likes the Irish accents. It goes swimming in Kinsale in March. It’s happy. And when I say, let’s go back to Germany; it hides behind the hills, where the Leprechauns live. It doesn’t want to leave. And me neither.

Living in the Bubble.

This could be the real world now. But it’s not; it’s college. College life is like a colourful bubble; it keeps us from reality. The real world is out there; we know. But we don’t want to go out there yet. We like our bubble. We want to stay in there. It’s a safe nice world on its own without consequences; with responsibilities but with a lot of freedom. It’s a safe environment for experiments, mistakes, experiences, friends and learning. The bubble consists of many nationalities: There are French, Austrians, Spanish, Germans, Asians, Italians, some Irish and so many more. We do everything in our bubble.

We stay awake the whole night and go to class without sleep. We start doing our assignments one night before the deadline. We wake up Asian guys at 9pm. We meet new people from everywhere in the world. We go to dog races and lose our money. We speak different languages. We play drinking games. We kiss. We don’t pay attention in class; we rather play solitaire. We just knock at doors to see if there’s a party going on. We dress up. And down. We skip classes because we are hung over. We cook pasta at 5am. We watch movies. We go on bike trips. We get kicked out of clubs (if we get in...) We vomit in taxis. We wake up at 5am because of a fire alarm. We do sports. We lock ourselves out by forgetting the keys in our rooms. We set off the fire alarm by burning toasts. We fall asleep on strange sofas. We drink espresso at 5am. We take a taxi to the nightclub (and back home). Our camera brings back our memories from last night. We’re lazy. We’re busy. We study. We read. We write. We think. We blog. We drink. We smoke. We get tattoos and piercings. We need coffee. And alcohol. We’re enthusiastic. We go shopping although we have no money. We date. We get student discounts. We miss home. We fall asleep with contact lenses in. We have fun. We enjoy life. We have bad taste parties. We laugh. We cry. We work. Sometimes. We make up new words. We go out during the week and stay in during the weekend. We broaden our minds. We start thinking critically. We are open-minded.

And some day we’ll get to the point when we get our diploma. We’ll throw away our hats and will be released from the bubble. But will we be ready for reality? 

College time passes by really fast and when it’s over, there’s no way back into the bubble. There’s enough time left for seriousness, work and family; out there in the real world. So enjoy your time in college; it’s the time of your life! 

Dress up! It’s Hallowe’en

SpongeBob with Patrick.

Scary.

Last weekend – well, last week – was Hallowe’en. Many would assume that this is an American holiday, but in fact it’s Irish. It has roots in the Celtic festival Samhain, which celebrates the end of the brighter half of the year and the beginning of the darker half. That’s why it’s often called Celtic New Year. You shouldn’t eat any blackberries after Hallowe’en. Pooka, a ghost that often appears in the shape of a horse which carries its horseman quickly through the forest, spits on the blackberries during that night. Of course, this myth has a true essence: Blackberries that froze can hurt your stomach. And around Hallowe’en it’s often cold enough to freeze.

Today, Hallowe’en is spelled Halloween and it is mostly celebrated in the US, Ireland, Scotland and Canada. A very common Halloween customs nowadays are “Trick or Treat”, Halloween costumes and costume parties, bonfires and ghost stories.

Me and a cat.

Waldo!

 

The Irish take their holiday very serious, what I found out during the last weeks. The stores were full of crazy costumes, pumpkins in every shape and size, skeletons and spin webs. Even one week before the actual Halloween night, there were a lot of Halloween parties. I attended three of them and they were full of funny encounters. I met the Joker, danced with the devil, was attacked by a pirate, a monkey and a vampire; I met SpongeBob and his friend Patrick, a zombie; and I even found Waldo! I turned myself into a witch, a cat and a Bavarian girl. On the actual Halloween night, there was supposed to be a parade and fireworks. But we couldn’t find anything. So we were the parade! A parade that consisted of a devil, a vampire, a cat, a Bavarian girl, a guy that just came out of the shower and a leprechaun.

The parade.

For more pictures of crazy costumes, check out my Halloween Photo Album

Things I miss from home.

As I don't only want to share my experiences in Dublin but also the experiences of other exchange students; I took an interview mic and walked around campus to find out what they miss from home.
Is it the food? Family? Friends? Or nothing?

Click here to find out:

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If you think there's something missing, tell me what you miss from home!

Howth

My roommate and I went to Howth for a day; it was a wonderful trip. We saw seals like this one in the Howth Harbour; they were fed with fish and had to be very quick to get them before the seagulls did. We did the 10km long trip; it took a couple of hours but we stopped very often to catch the beautiful cliffs in photographs.

Dublin, a rough place at night.

I can only recommend: Hold your belongings at all times, especially in Temple Bar. Last Thursday I learned it the hard way.. While we were all standing in a group, but still in the way (there was no other way to stand, though, the pub was packed!) another group of people passed by, like really close to us. It is not unusual that people squish their way through a pub but this time it was different. When the group was gone I looked down to my purse which was open. I reached inside and all I could find was my camera, good luck. But my wallet and phone were gone. All of us looked on the floor but couldn’t find anything. I was standing in the Temple Bar and cried. It was also bad because of the money, but you know, it was MY phone, MY wallet, MY credit card and I don’t want anyone to use it! Someone came up with the idea to ask the bartender but I thought it was useless. But I tried my luck and asked, still sobbing, if there was my pink Blackberry and my little brown and golden wallet, which I got from a friend from Stockholm. The wallet itself is a bit torn; there doesn’t fit in much, but these are the reasons I love it. So the idea of someone else using it is terrible! But I was lucky this time and got it back. I will be even more careful in the future.

Another night, I had to walk home on my own. Nobody wanted to leave the club yet so I had to go alone; which is not a safe way to do, not even in lovely Dublin. When I arrived at Griffith, the gates were closed. The turnstile didn’t work properly and I couldn’t get in. I was standing on the street; left alone from my colleagues and cried. I just wanted to go to sleep; that was the reason why I left the club that early. Another student from Griffith arrived and tried to get in through the turnstile but didn’t succeed either. We both tried to call the security again, which I had tried before as well but no success. Fortunately, some of his friends arrived and they lifted him up over the gates so he could open them from the inside. I don’t really know how he could manage it; I was just happy to go to bed then.

My first experiences in Dublin.

Welcome to my blog about studying abroad!

I have spent my first 4 weeks in Griffith College Dublin now, where I'm studying for one semester. In this blog, I want to share my experiences being abroad and what happens when a little German girl discovers the Irish culture...

The Liffey in Dublin.

 The start of my semester abroad was a lot of trouble... Still having a tear in my eye, but with a fever of excitement, I got off the airplane in Dublin. It's not that I haven't been in Ireland before, but still, I tried to get into the taxi on the wrong side. "Wanna drive?" the driver asked me in a deep Irish accent. No t(h)anks. On our way into town, the driver tried to call my landlord, but all attempts were in vain. His phone was turned off. I was lost in Dublin with no bed for the night, but my entire luggage for 5 months. The driver didn't want to leave me alone on the streets so he got me to Griffith College, where I felt welcome from the first moment. I decided to stay in the campus accomodation, which was a very good decision! I live with 3 very nice girls, all exchange students as well and so in the same situation as me. I'm also really close to my classes which makes mornings way easier and I'm always on time. Well, that doesn't count for everybody here though... But I guess that's part of the Irish way of life; it's just much more relaxed. In Germany, we're usually on time.  Another very obvious difference is the driving on the left side. It's still weird for me, but I start to get used to it. And there are signs on the streets that help you not to die. Traffic is very special in Ireland. Speed limits and traffic lights are arranged randomly and more seen as an advice. Who waits for green is wether a mum or a tourist. I'm neither one nor the other. I'm a student. We live dangerously. We have to wear high visibility jackets and helmets on a bike trip through Kilkenny; we set off the fire alarm by lighting birthday candles; we jump on bouncing castles while being drunk; we try to drive a tandem; we go out without a jacket and all we can cook is pasta.

Griffith College.