Happy last day of January! It is so crazy how fast the time is flying here. I've already been here 2.5 weeks. That is so insane to me! This week has been a pretty busy one! It's been full of skype dates with good friends, trips to downtown Dublin, and excitement for our trip to Belfast! Tuesday night I skyped with two of my best friends from home, Bernadette and Allie. I was SO excited to see them and talk to them. I told them how living here in an apartment with my three lovely roommates has made me really look forward to sharing an apartment with them and our friend Courtney next fall! We've already planned our ikea trip this summer since I'm now such an expert of that store ;]. I loved catching up with them despite skype being a big jerk and disconnecting our call multiple times. I guess that's what you get being 3000 miles away. Love you ladies so much and I look forward to many more skype calls in the near future!
Wednesday, my friend Brittany and I went to the GNIB, or the Garda National Immigration Bureau. Instead of having a visa, all international students are required to register at the Garda within 30 days of our arrival date. You need to bring a bunch of documents such as bank statements, health insurance cards, a passport, and an acceptance letter from UCD. We had heard that it took a LONG time to process, and that others who had gone before us waited up to five hours to receive their official card. But we were optimistic and figured that there was no way it could take so long. After getting off the bus and walking in the opposite direction of the Garda, we took a nice scenic stroll through Dublin. We found a few helpful civilians to turn us in the right direction. Eventually, we made it there and needed to fill out a form and stand in line to receive our number in the next line. When it was finally my turn, the man told me that my insurance may not suffice because I had copied the front and back of my family's card rather than have the actual card with me. Commence minor freak out. Luckily, Brittany was there with me and reminded me that Marquette provided us with health insurance, and I just needed to find a computer and printer to log on and print out that health insurance card.
We were told that we had an hour and a half until our numbers would be called, so off we went to try to find the nearest computer/printer. There happened to be one right down the street. Unfortunately, I had to pay a small amount to use the computer/ print out my card which was frustrating because if I had remembered this before I left, I could have done it for free :/. But you can't dwell! Thank you Brittany for being so nice and calming and dealing with my stressed brain!
We had a lot of time to kill, so we decided to check out a nearby pub, which ended up being my favorite one yet. It was so cozy and decorative with couches, paintings, and twinkly lights (those who know me know that those are my favorite things to ever exist). Our server couldn't have been sweeter and we toasted with a nice pint of Bulmers Irish Cider (sooooo good). Unfortunately, we needed to go back to the GNIB to complete our registration. Though we couldn't find the name of the pub, we will definitely return to it in the near future and figure it out. Back to the Garda we go.
When my number was finally called, I went up to the desk number. The Garda basically looks exactly like a DMV. I lucked out with the employee who handled my case. He was a nice and funny (and cute) worker who cracked a few jokes and definitely helped calmed my nerves (still working on breathing while I'm here). But then we had to wait in ANOTHER line to receive our actual card. We had no idea how long this would take because they don't give you another piece of paper with a number on it, but rather call your name. So we waited....and waited... and waited until they FINALLY called our names. BUT funny coincidence! We happened to be sitting next to a boy named Ryan who happened to live in my apartment building! He invited us out that night to a club to listen to two bands play.
After we all got home, we had about an hour to get ready and go! I was able to meet a bunch of others who live in our building as well (there are three apartments, each with four people. So 12 of us all together in Belgrove House 09). We went out to the club and it was a lot of fun! The bands had so much energy and I had mini crushes on every member. It was a really fun night! I will post pictures soon! But I need to go to bed soon and I haven't uploaded them onto my computer and I am too lazy to do that right now. Sorry!
Today I had one class because my other tutorials don't start until next week. It was really nice to sleep in since my class didn't start until noon. After it was over, Abby, Ellie, and I went to a class at the gym. It was called Core and Tone. Our instructor was exactly how you would picture a terrifying gym instructor. We're talking huge muscles and a thick accent. I secretly prayed the whole time that he wouldn't see me making any mistakes and yell at me. Hahah but overall it was a good class. I'm currently limping and unable to move because I'm so sore, but that's just a sign that I need to keep at it!
So now we are preparing for Belfast in the morning! Ellie and I needed to run to the bank to convert our euros to pounds since Belfast is technically UK property. The good news is that the bank does this service for free. The bad news is that the exchange rate isn't wonderful. However, it's just one of those things you need to deal with! I also needed to run to the pharmacy to grab some cold medicine. I'm still unable to shake this thing, but I'm hoping to see improvements with the medicine. So I've been packing, listening to music, and chatting with good friends from home since! I can't wait for this weekend, and I know that it is just the first of many amazing trips to come.
Wow this post was longer than I expected, so if you made it this far, thank you so much for reading! Those of you who read this make it so worthwhile! I appreciate it more than you know! I will post all about Belfast once I come back!
Carpe Diem!
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