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...
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| 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.
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| Griffith College. |
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.
Perfekt :D Sehr cooler Post, liebste Toni. Das les ich fast noch lieber als die emails ;)
ReplyDeleteIch denk an dich, in deiner Sicherheitsweste und deinem Helm und freue mich immer, wenn ich höre, dass es dir gut geht. Übrigens.. gute Entscheidung on the topic of this blog! :*