1 month & 1 day

Have been in Ireland for 31 (and a half) days now! So here's what happened this week:

Monday to Thursday: university and more

On Monday, nothing of significance happened at classes, but I went swimming in a long break, this time doing 3200 meters. It felt much better than swimming any time in the last few years. And in the evening, I had my first online date ever - We've been together with my boyfriend for 3 and a half years now and to celebrate this, we cooked the same food (sweet potatos and fish fingers) and had dinner together while videochatting. It was really nice, I miss him a lot... But he's coming to visit me next Friday. :)

This is how my hair looks like after having been braided and left like that for a day

Having a bad headache and being really tired for the second day in a row, I wasn't fond of Tuesday. But the EFL class improved a lot since last week, this time I actually had some interest in talking about the topic - not childhood memories anymore! And we got distributed into groups of four, having to do a group presentation together. My team is not the best but I guess I can cope with it - two Swedish guys and a German-Turkish girl. After school, we did some grocery shopping in Lidl. And in the evening, we watched the first episode of the new season of The Big Band Theory with my boyfriend (texting about it while watching at the same time, that is). I love this series so much! #LeonardPenny #Shamy

This small rooftop garden reminds me SO MUCH of High School Musical!

Wednesdays seem to have at least one thing in common: fucking rain. Every Wednesday, we get a heavy rain in the morning and it doesn't stop until late night (or the next day). But now that we are kinda geared up against it, it's not THAT bad. Still very annoying though. At EFL, we had two novice teachers come in and they were considerably better than the original teacher. At least the class was much better. At Irish Language, we learned more numbers and a new rule. And unfortunately, we had to start being productive: between classes we went to the library and worked on our topic proposals for the BA thesis, as we had to hand them in on Friday. But then I could reduce my stress level by going to archery training and shooting those arrows like a pro. We moved a few meters further from the targets and we were also shown how to string the bows. This time I stayed not only till the end but also helped packing the stuff away afterwards - and yet I still haven't stayed for the drinking after. Once, I will have to. Those guys are so nice and I wanna hang out with them so much. Would be great craic.

So it is not just us suffering at EFL, I guess

Eszter keeps braiding my hair - so awesome!
She is really good at it!

Two of those arrows in the yellow are mine. :p

Finally, on Thursday we had the TEFL lecture and tutorial, just like last week. And I noticed that autumn has finally arrived here too. Not that I am so happy about it. But it doesn't really seem to make a difference here - it had been raining and all even before the leaves started to fall. So far, it just looks lovely. And brings a slight drop in temperature. In the afternoon, I joined the swim club training and this time we were swimming in the smaller pool, short course, that is. 25meters is much closer to my comfort zone. And I got really tired by the end even if it was only 2600ms altogether. Late afternoon I was supposed to have a lecture but I decided to skip it and go home to be able to work on my topic proposal - it was really getting urgent.

Autumn in so pretty - when it is not raining so hard that you can't see shit...

Friday - a long day again

I got up pretty early this Friday too - just like last week. I went to training (two days in a row, wow!), where we only swam 2300meters but because we had a kick set (just like on Thursday), my thighs got really worn down. It was mostly just freestyle though... By the way, the coach guy still keeps praising my freestyle technique - every practice, he mentions at least once that it looks great, that I am really good at it, that he wonders why I was a fly swimmer and not front crawl, etc. It is kinda flattering, but still.... I don't feel that good about my swimming. In general. Yet. Hopefully, I will soon if I go swim so often. (This week I've been swimming three times!)
After training, I met up with my EFL presentation group and we were brainstorming on our project for almost two hours. Then the others went to class and I came home to finally have breakfast. At 11 or so. Was really hungry by that time. Then I sat down and wrote my whole topic proposal. Didn't even do proofreading before sending it. I knew I would have to re-write it. But at least I am done with it - now I only have to correct it before someone hands it in for me officially tomorrow morning.
In the evening, we went to a house party, a usual pre-party before the International Night in Stables. On our way there we bought some wine and snacks at a petrol station and when we started from there, Vera and Eszter started cycling on the wrong side of the road! I was going on the left, as we are supposed to here in Ireland, and they kept rolling on the right and a car was coming! I shouted at them and they got so scared, quickly getting out of the car's way - it was both frightening and fucking funny. :D How could they end up on the wrong side after one month here? Even before actually having a sip of any alcoholic beverage?
So then we cycled to campus, as this week the party was held by people living on campus, in Killmury Village. We played beerpong - two guys against Vera and me. This was my first time ever playing (and Vera's second) and we almost lost but at the end we somehow won! Yay! :) Around 9 or half 9 we walked over to the Stables and started actually partying. It was fun, as usual, and this time we ended up dancing together with a Brazilian guy from the EFL class. He was friendly, not pushy at all, thank all the gods, and he even paid one round of beer for us. After the party, we were still slightly drunk but not horribly so, and so we cycled home. It was really funny. Especially since we stopped at McDonald's, being really hungry, but they were already closed, only a few guys finishing their shifts inside, cleaning and packing. Vera shouted in, asking them to give us at least some leftovers. I laughed so hard at them - Eszter whining for food, Vera pleading for leftovers. Then we gave up and came home, arriving safe and sound. And, at half past two, Eszter decided she would make fish fingers with some fries. And she did. And we had supper at 3 in the morning, then went to bed.

This guy is one of our novie teachers. At the party. His dance moves were hilarious :D

Saturday - a half day awake, a few hours in Limerick

After Friday's party, we stayed in bed till like noon. Then we had a late breakfast and a late lunch, basically doing nothing in between. Around 4pm, we went into the city, first visiting TKMAX, where I bought a lunch box so now I don't have to steal Vera's to be able to have some lunch with me at school. Then we went to Penneys, where I spent not a single shilling, being very proud of myself. For dinner, we went to McDonald's - we really needed it after our disappointment the previous night. I had some chicken wrap and it was really delicious. Finally, we went to an Irish pub and I tried Irish coffee!! It has whiskey in it and whipped cream on top. It was really good and a bit strong, at the end. But it was definitely worth 5.50 EUR since it had penty of alcohol and good coffee in it. And by the way, the bartender was named Tim. We know this becaue Eszter tried to order tea and the guy brought her something totally different, thinking she just said his name and not the word "tea". Which is crazy, since this was our first time ever there - how could we had possibly known his name?

Saw this AMAZING skull-lamp in TKMAX and I almost ended up buying it.... *.*

Beautiful jeans in Penneys. For 21EUR.
Still, it pains me that I didn't buy one.

Vera and Eszter enjoying McDonald's

My first Irish coffee

The wall of the pub - it was so cozy and nice.

And they had two of these on the mantlepiece of an actual fireplace!

Sunday - that is today

And today I am supposed to correct my topic proposal, send it to someone who can hand it in for me, vacuum clean, wash my clothes, clean the bathroom (as it is my turn this week), cook some meal, go grocery shopping, cook muffins (as I promised the girls), study some, do research for the EFL presentation, plan what we will do with my boyfriend when he comes and write postcards for my grandparents who can't read this blog (language barriers and btw they don't even have a PC or internet or even smart phones) so have no idea whether I live or die. Oh and I really have to read a book for tomorrow morning's literature tutorial.