Lost in the Right Direction
Before I came to Maynooth, I only knew a few people that have studied abroad. I saw their awesome pictures from trips in their base countries as well as pictures from their excursions. Some went to Eifel Tower, Colesseum, Anne Frank House, and Cliffs of Moher; from these images, it was easy to imagine that these students were having the times of their lives.
During the beginning of my semester, this is how I thought I was supposed to experience Ireland. Although there is no right or wrong way to study abroad I only allowed myself to experience the cities I on a surface level.
During the first two months I was here, I went to Temple Bar (picture on left), the Cliffs of Moher (picture bottom left), and Lisbon, Portugal and Trier, Germany (among other sights and cities) and focused on seeing as many landmarks as I could. Although this allowed me to check sights off of my list, I really missed out on experiencing the real culture of these places. I had to learn how to be a traveler instead of a tourist. On my first few trips, I needed to plan my days before embarking on the journey. I needed structure and wanted to see as many sights as possible within a limited amount of days.
When I went to Portugal, my friends and I rode a gaudy, yellow, hop-on hop-off tour bus which screamed TOURIST (picture below)!!!
This only allowed us to see the city from the top of a double decker bus, and we missed out on experiencing the real Lisbon. In Germany, our hosts took us on a road trip to Trier which was an awesome city with this huge Roman wall. Although I have some awesome pictures of the city of Lisbon and a few landmarks in Trier, I left without really learning about the cultures of these places. I came back to Ireland and wanted to change how I experienced the world.
As my semester continued, I began to feel more comfortable exploring Ireland as a traveler instead of a tourist. By this, I mean that I learned to immerse myself more fully into the experiences instead of taking quick pictures of tourist spots. I learned how to wander with no schedule, and became more comfortable approaching new cities as adventures instead of as places that I must check off my list.
My friends and I went to the Wicklow Mountain National park (image below) for an afternoon in early May and hiked around and played in the forest for a few hours. On the way down the mountain, a group of Irish guys came over to us and asked where we were from (because they heard our American accent. Dang it). We strolled down the mountain with them, and they told us all the spots to see during our last month in Ireland. After giving their suggestions (including their favorite pub in Dublin: The Celt), the conversation turned more personal, and the man I was walking with (Paul) told me the reason he hikes up the mountain every month. He is a recovering alcoholic/drug addict and joined a support group in Dublin that encourages people to turn to physical exercise and group conversations instead of drugs. He and his buddies hike up the mountains at the National Park twice a month no matter the weather as a reminder of how far they have come and of their goal to be free from the addiction. He continued to share his personal story with me, and it was such an empowering conversation that really changed my day. This conversation could not have been planned and was another reminder that sometimes, the best adventures are those that you least expect. After this encounter, I decided I would rather embark on more spontaneous adventures during my last month in Ireland, instead of booking another trip to Germany or Austria as I originally intended. So I stayed in Ireland and spent as much time as possible with the amazing people I met and we had as much fun as we could in the few weeks we had left together.
The first weekend in May brought a weekend of fun, as I went to Bundoran in County Donegal to try to learn how to surf. I went with the (International/Erasmus Student Network) at Maynooth, so the gals I traveled with were from all over the world. It was so wonderful to spend the weekend together in the sunny (how did we get so lucky) beach town of Bundoran (image to left). We surfed, picnicked and played on the beach by day, and played cards, sang, watched the sunset hiked the cliffs, and stargazed by night. I found some awesome gals to travel, play pick-up soccer/catch, picnic on the quad, and just sit and talk to for hours. It is really unfortunate that the time we had together was so short, but, as my sister Gretchen says, "Each goodbye is an opportunity for another hello". I know I will keep in touch with these girls for many years to come, and I am so grateful that we had a semester to experience this beautiful country together!
For me, the experience of studying abroad and traveling the world was greatly enhanced when I got rid of my checklist and treated each destination as an adventure. When I threw away the guidebook and tourist suggestions and spoke to locals or friends instead, I was able to experience the "real" Ireland instead of a surface-level version with only pretty pictures. It was so important for me to take pictures during my travels. But when I have wonderful memories attached to these pictures, it is much more meaningful than just taking a picture at a tourist spot.
This semester has opened my eyes to the wonderful people, places, and experiences that are available in this giant world if I am open to them, and for me, I feel most at home and fulfilled when I am wandering with the people that mean the most to me. I have so many wonderful memories of times where my friends and I just wandered around Ireland with only had general plans, because everywhere we went, we found hidden gems that were better than we could have imagined. For example, in Kilkenny (pictured above), my friend Sara and I stumbled upon a choir concert in a medieval chapel. While waiting for it to begin, the woman working admission for the church told us we could climb up the round tower of this church for free (tickets for this were six euro, so it was awesome to get it for free because the view was amazing!!). Similar things happened over the course of the semester (including jamming with a Bolivian man in a hostel in Edinburgh, being serenaded by a Portuguese man in a cafe in Lisbon, and walking along a cliff path at night and stopping to lay down on the road to look at stars).
Although it took a few months for me to feel this comfortable and find travel companions that had similar desires as myself, this semester has made me stronger and braver than I was before. Because of the challenges that come with studying abroad including homesickness, loneliness, and (strangely) boredom and exhaustion, it took me a while to find my strength. However, when I did, my experience totally changed. (The two pictures in this section are from my trip to Sligo with Bri and Sara during which we sat on the beach eating ice cream for hours and got lost on a walk and ended up walking through many Irish sheep farms on accident.) By being open to new people and experiences, and a little bit of chaos, I had a wonderful time studying and exploring in Ireland and beyond.
"Adventure is out there" if we only have the courage to seize it, and I feel that after this semester, I want to live life with courage. Being in Ireland has made me stronger, more independent, and more excited to see the world. I'm excited to continue this journey that is my life with confidence and conviction, and I can't wait for the adventures that are yet to come!
