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Christ Church in Dublin

From my trip to Dublin, having my wallet stolen at work, having my first exam at school, and being threatened to be deported this week has been a busy and stressful one!  Where to start…

Well last weekend kicked off pretty poorly when someone from work stole my wallet out of my purse.  We all keep our jackets and purses hanging up in the back cloak room so I never thought that someone would be able to get back there to steal anything.  Another girl I work with also had some money stolen from her purse on the same night.  I lost my wallet, Michigan license, school ID, credit card, money, bus pass, and a few other things.  What a nightmare! This also happened right before my trip to Ireland so I had no credit card and severely depleted funds for the trip.  This also means that I took a hit in the polo department because lessons are only payable by card. This is the second time I have lost a wallet so I have vowed never to have it happen again, and I am trying not to carry anything valuable, or anything at all really, with me.

So after all of this happened I had to somehow come up with enough spending money for my trip to Ireland.  I searched my room from top to bottom and was able to collect 30 pounds in coins, and also $100 USD.  This gave me 110 euros which my Irish friend said would not be nearly enough, but I learned how to save money from the best… my mother, and especially my Sister Lindsey, famous for their bargain shopping ways.  I was able to get through three days only spending 60 euros which I seriously think is some kind of record.  I even splurged and bought my granny a 50 cent post card!

In front of the Bank of Ireland

Instead of staying at the hostel with the other American girls I was traveling with, I was able to stay in a spare room of a friends which ended up saving me tons of money.  The couple also insisted on making a Sunday roast, and feeding me breakfast every morning, so that was extremely generous and helped me get through the weekend.  Also, as far as meals go, there is nothing like a cheap loaf of bread to fill up with!  On Friday the other girls took a guided bus tour of the Irish country side but I stayed back and walked around the coast taking pictures.  I saved the most money on Saturday when I opted to drink water while everyone else was drinking pints of Guinness while watching the Ireland vs. Australia rugby match.  I still had a great time, but I did end up being annoyingly peppy the next morning while everyone else wanted to stay in bed. So that is how I was able to see Ireland on a budget, and the flight was also only 30 pounds bringing my grand total for money spent for an entire weekend in Ireland to about $135 USD. Not to shabby!

The coast at a park in Greystones, Ireland

All in all, I thought that Dublin was great fun.  The people are all really nice and they like to drink so it reminds me of the Upper Peninsula a bit! I think the Irish are a bit more talkative and friendly then people here in London.  I’m not sure if it was because of the Ireland vs. France world qualifying football match, or the rugby match vs. Australia, but there was a good energy in Dublin; a little frantic, but exciting at the same time.  In Greystones, about 40 minutes up the coast from Dublin, the energy was a little more relaxed and I got a taste of the more laid back small town life. One thing I do regret was not being able to go on the bus tour.  I would definitely recommend a tour of the country side to anyone planning on visiting Ireland. My friends had a great time and said it was well worth the money.

Back in London, I had my first test in my Inorganic Chemistry class.  It was a little more challenging then I thought it would be, but I think I managed and hopefully I will get a good grade.  Other than this short 10 question test there is only the final exam left which will be worth most of  my grade.  I think most of the science courses, and probably all other courses here, are set up like this where the final exam makes up most of the grade.

And last but not least, being threatened to be deported!!! Luckily it looks like I am in the clear but I thought I would be able to drop one of my courses here that I found out wouldn’t count towards my major.  Before my trip to Ireland I sent an e-mail to the study abroad office that I would in fact be dropping this class.  They responded by telling me I was unable to drop course. Unfortunately, I was unable to reply because I was in Ireland.  When I got home late Monday night, I had a letter waiting for me saying I needed to come into the study abroad office as soon as possible.  Long story short, I had a very harsh scolding from the study abroad manager threatening to have me deported if I was not studying as a full time student.  So I guess it’s back to studying hard for all my classes with only less than 2 months to go until finals!

Best

Lauren